Economics

Chair: Buhong Zheng
Program Assistant: Christine Lukvec
Office: Lawrence Street Center, LW-470
Telephone: 303-315-2030
Website: econ.ucdenver.edu/home/

Faculty

Professors:

Laura M. Argys, PhD, University of Colorado
Brian J. Duncan, PhD, University of California at Santa Barbara
Steven G. Medema, PhD, Michigan State University
Daniel I. Rees, PhD, Cornell University
W. James Smith, PhD, University of Colorado
Buhong Zheng, PhD, West Virginia University

Associate Professors:

Steven R. Beckman, PhD, University of California Davis
Hani Mansour, PhD, Univerisity of California at Santa Barbara

Assistant Professors:

Ryan P. Brown, PhD, Duke University
Chloe East, PhD, University of California Davis
Andrew I. Friedson, PhD, Syracuse University
Phillip Luck, PhD, University of California Davis
Andrea Velasquez, PhD, Duke University

Instructors:

Alpna Bhatia, PhD, University of Colorado
Enoch Cheng, PhD, University of California-Los Angeles
Debbie Evercloud, PhD, University of Virginia
Lawrence Hamelin, MA, University of Colorado
Kyle J. Hurst, MA, Baylor University
George K. Quansah, MA, University of Colorado
Yue Shen, PhD, Queen’s University
Kawin Thamtanajit, PhD, University of Delaware
Chun-Chieh Hu, PhD, Syracuse University

Economics is the science of decision making. The rigorous and general approach that characterizes economics lends itself to a remarkably wide field of practical application. Economists are noted for major contributions in a number of fields including government policy, taxation, law, regulation, political economy, international trade and finance, international and U.S. development, marketing, environmental studies, medical policy, portfolio management and banking. The broad and rigorous training of economics majors accounts for their significant demand in virtually every industry and government agency. Economics provides excellent preparation for advanced graduate study as well. Recent studies indicate that economics is a preferred degree for prestigious MBA programs and law schools.

Graduate Program

The Department of Economics offers an MA program in Economics and MS and Ph.D. programs in Health Economics. The MA program in Economics trains students in quantitative and applied economic skills and is directed toward two groups: (1) those who look on the MA as a key to career development in business or government service, and (2) those who desire to go on to pursue the PhD in economics or related fields. The strong quantitative emphasis of the department’s MA program is ideally suited for the pursuit of both these goals. Our graduates are sought out by energy companies, defense contractors, health care agencies, consulting firms, financial institutions, and other companies looking for employees who know how to use real-world data to answer research questions. Many of our graduates use their MA degree in economics at CU Denver as a springboard towards pursuing a Ph.D. degree in economics at highly ranked programs across the country.

The MS and Ph.D. programs in Health Economics are designed to train scientists to engage in modern economic research related to questions pertinent to health policy, health behaviors, and health care services. Both programs are collaborative among faculty in the Department of Economics (ECON), housed in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and the Department of Health Systems, Management & Policy (HSMP), housed in the Colorado School of Public Health. The ECON coursework grounds students in rigorous economic theory and modern statistical methods, whereas the HSMP coursework connects students to institutional details of the health care sector, study design, quantitative methods, cost-effectiveness analysis, and grant writing. The Health Economics programs equip students with an applied interdisciplinary skill set that integrates creative knowledge with the technical expertise that is in demand in the health care industry, enhancing their career and professional development.

Click here to learn about the Master of Arts in Economics.

Click here to learn about the Master of Science in Health Economics.

Click here to learn about the MA Economics/MS Applied Mathematics Dual Degree.

Click here to learn about the MA Economics/MS Finance Dual Degree.

Click here to learn about the MA Economics/MPA Public Administration Dual Degree.

Click here to learn about the Doctorate in Health Economics.