UNIVERSITY FACULTY SENATE FORMS

UNIVERSITY FACULTY SENATE FORMS

Academic Program Approval

This form is a routing document for the approval of new and revised academic programs. Proposing department should complete this form. For more information, call the Faculty Senate Office at 831-2921.

Submitted by: _____Saul Hoffman_______phone number x1907________________

Department: _Economics_________email address hoffmans@lerner.udel.edu

Date: _________________Dec 1, 2009___________________________

Action: _____Revision of Graduate Program Requirements and Policy Statement_______

(Example: add major/minor/concentration, delete major/minor/concentration, revise major/minor/concentration, academic unit name change, request for permanent status, policy change, etc.)

Effective term_________10f______________________________________________________________________________

(use format 04F, 05W)

Current degree______MA __________________________________________________________

(Example: BA, BACH, BACJ, HBA, EDD, MA, MBA, etc.)

Proposed change leads to the degree of: ____No change_____________________________

(Example: BA, BACH, BACJ, HBA, EDD, MA, MBA, etc.)

Proposed name:_____NA________________________________________________________

Proposed new name for revised or new major / minor / concentration / academic unit

(if applicable)

Revising:

Undergraduate major / Concentration:______________________________________

(Example: Applied Music – Instrumental degree BMAS)

Undergraduate minor:____________________________________________________

(Example: African Studies, Business Administration, English, Leadership, etc.)

Graduate Program Policy statement change:_________________________________

(Must attach your Graduate Program Policy Statement)

Graduate Program of Study:______MA Economics___________________________

(Example: Animal Science: MS Animal Science: PHD Economics: MA Economics: PHD)

Graduate minor / concentration:___________________________________________

Note: all graduate studies proposals must include an electronic copy of the Graduate Program Policy Document, highlighting the changes made to the original policy document.

Please see Appendix.

List new courses required for the new or revised curriculum. How do they support the overall program objectives of the major/minor/concentrations)?

(Be aware that approval of the curriculum is dependent upon these courses successfully passing through the Course Challenge list. If there are no new courses enter “None”)

New Courses:

ECON803 Applied Econometrics I (new course number only)

ECON804 Applied Econometrics II (new course number only)

ECON845 Development Economics

ECON803 is a renumbering of ECON822. It is a required course in econometrics for MA students and available to students in other programs (FINC, FREC, etc). ECON804 is a renumbering of ECON828. ECON845 is a new elective for MA students.

Explain, when appropriate, how this new/revised curriculum supports the 10 goals of undergraduate education: http://www.ugs.udel.edu/gened/

Identify other units affected by the proposed changes:

(Attach permission from the affected units. If no other unit is affected, enter “None”)

These changes will affect students in other units who were required to take the old ECON822 (Econometrics). In most cases, those students will now take ECON803, which will be better suited to their academic programs. More advanced students could continue to take ECON822. Options for these students will be enhanced by our program changes. The Department of Finance and the Department of Food and Resource Economics have been advised of these changes.

Describe the rationale for the proposed program change(s):

(Explain your reasons for creating, revising, or deleting the curriculum or program.)

Requirements for this program have not changed. Only course numbers and titles of some courses have changed.

Program Requirements:

(Show the new or revised curriculum as it should appear in the Course Catalog. If this is a revision, be sure to indicate the changes being made to the current curriculum and include a side-by-side comparison of the credit distribution before and after the proposed change.)

Appendix I. Program Policy Statement (Revised) - MA in Economics

The revised program policy statement incorporates the proposed curriculum changes. It also codifies minor procedures that have been adopted since the original program policy statement. No further changes have been made. The new program policy statement follows.

DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS
UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE

GRADUATE PROGRAM POLICY STATEMENT - MA DEGREE IN ECONOMICS

Degree Requirements:

Economic Theory: ECON801 and ECON802 6

Econometrics: ECON803 or ECON822 3

Research Project: ECON868 3

Electives*: 15

TOTAL REQUIRED CREDITS 30

* Graduate-level courses approved by the departmental Graduate Committee. Up to two courses may be taken outside the Department of Economics. Students may be allowed to take a third course if it is directly related to their research project.

Research Project:

Students are required to write a three-credit research paper. The student selects an advisor and a reader from the full-time graduate program faculty as defined below.

Comprehensive Examination:

All students must either pass a comprehensive examination in Microeconomic Theory, Macroeconomic Theory, and Econometrics or earn exemplary grades in the corresponding coursework. Students who receive at least an A- in ECON801 (Microeconomics), ECON802 (Macroeconomics), and either ECON803 or ECON822 (Econometrics) are exempt form that portion of the comprehensive examination. The examinations are generally offered in the beginning of February and the end of June. Students will generally take the examination after the completion of their first semester. A faculty committee consisting of at least two faculty members from the Department of Economics will be responsible for the writing and grading of the examinations. Students who do not pass a part of the examination on the first attempt may retake it up to two additional times.

Admissions Policies: Admission to the graduate program is competitive and based on enrollment availability. Those who meet the following minimum requirements are not guaranteed admission, nor are those who fail to meet all of those requirements necessarily precluded from admission if they offer other appropriate strengths.

Baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university.
An officially reported GRE score. Students are normally expected to have a minimum score of 1100 on math and verbal sections combined.
An undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or higher.
For non-native English speakers an officially reported minimum TOEFL score of 600 (paper-based test) or 250 (computer-based test) or 100 (iBT).
A written statement of goals and objectives, including a statement that clearly identifies the applicant’s interest in the program.
Coursework in microeconomics and macroeconomics at the intermediate level or above and in statistics and mathematics (calculus) is expected. Otherwise qualified students who lack this background may be directed to appropriate coursework to remedy this deficiency.

Program Administration: The MA program is administered by the department’s Graduate Committee under the direction of the Associate Chairperson for Graduate Programs. In addition to the Graduate Chairperson, the committee consists of members of the departmental faculty appointed for one-year, renewable terms by the departmental Chairperson. This committee is charged with recruiting students to the program, making admissions decisions, and assuring that the program is administered in accordance with this policy document.

Graduate Program Faculty: The graduate program faculty includes all full-time, Department of Economics faculty of the rank of assistant professor or above. Part-time faculty may be included at the discretion of the Chairperson, Department of Economics.

Additional Requirements for Graduation: Students must also meet the University’s full-time residency requirement of at least one continuous academic year consisting of at least nine credits per semester and must complete their degree within the time limit established by the University. The University of Delaware Graduate catalog provides guidelines governing a possible extension of the time limit for circumstances beyond a student’s control.

Graduate Student Funding and Time Limits: Graduate student financial support comes from both University and non-university sources. The Department of Economics does not guarantee financial support for the duration of a student’s program.

Financial aid is awarded on the basis of merit within the defined programs of study by the Department Chairperson. Support is awarded on a semester basis. Graduate students under contract are reviewed each semester for academic standing and progress toward the degree.

Dismissal Policy: The Department of Economics adheres to the University policy for termination of graduate students with the following specific exceptions.

Waiver Policy: Students who seek a waiver of any of the above-mentioned policies must do so in writing to the Graduate Committee.

ROUTING AND AUTHORIZATION: (Please do not remove supporting documentation.)

Department Chairperson Date

Dean of College Date

Chairperson, College Curriculum Committee___________________________________Date_____________________

Chairperson, Senate Com. on UG or GR Studies Date

Chairperson, Senate Coordinating Com. Date

Secretary, Faculty Senate Date

Date of Senate Resolution Date to be Effective

Registrar Program Code Date

Vice Provost for Academic Affairs & International Programs Date

Provost Date

Board of Trustee Notification Date

Revised 02/09/2009 /khs