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Master
of Arts in Economics
Comprehensive Examination
Masters students are required
to pass a comprehensive examination. The General Track requires
a comprehensive examination in economic theory. Students admitted
to the Development Finance Track January 2005 or later also take
the comprehensive examination in economic theory. Students in
the Financial Economic Policy Track and students admitted to the Development
Finance Track September 2004 or before take a comprehensive examination
in those subjects. The content of each comprehensive examination
is circumscribed by the syllabi of the required courses and recommended
courses. Generally the emphasis of the comprehensive examination
is on the last full sequence of the courses that are required
for the comprehensive examination. A comprehensive examination
requires a deeper and more synthesized understanding of the material
than is expected in the courses required for that comprehensive
examination.
Comprehensive examinations are given twice each year in January
and June. In order to sit for a comprehensive, students must
register with the department staff by the announced deadline,
which is generally eight to ten weeks before the comprehensive
examinations are given. The date of the registration deadline
will be posted well in advance. To avoid missing the deadline,
you are advised to apply for your comprehensive examination when
you register for the semester before you plan to take your comp.
The examination date for your comprehensive will be set after
the registration deadline. It is your responsibility to learn
about the administration of the comprehensive examinations, including
the dates by which you must register.
Professors who read the comps are not told
the name of the students sitting for the comps. To protect the
students’ anonymity, a special identification number is
issued to each student for each session of comprehensive examinations.
Each comprehensive is graded by at least two professors. Students
are allowed to know the names of the readers for each examination.
Once a reader assigns a grade to a comprehensive examination,
it cannot be regraded except by recommendation of the department
Chair. The Chair will not recommend regrading except in truly
extraordinary circumstances, such as apparent negligence or incompetence
on the part of the grader.
Students in the General Track and in the
Development Finance Track admitted January 2005 or later are expected
to sit for their comprehensive examination as soon as they have
completed ECON-500 Microeconomics, ECON-501 Macroeconomics, and
ECON-505 Mathematical Economics.
Students in the Development Finance Track
admitted September 2004 or before are expected to sit for their
comprehensive examination as soon as they have completed ECON-634
Development Finance and Banking, ECON-662 Development Microeconomics,
and ECON-663 Development Macroeconomics, and one of the following:
ECON-665 Project Evaluation in Developing Countries, ECON 670
Survey of International Economics, and ECON 635 International
Capital Markets.
Students in the Financial Economic Policy
Track are expected to sit for their comprehensive examination
as soon as they have completed ECON-633 Financial Economics, ECON-639
Policy Issues in Financial Economics, and FIN-614 Financial Management.
Students who fail the comprehensive examination
have two additional attempts to pass a comprehensive examination.
Switching tracks does not give the student more than three total
attempts. Should a student fail the comprehensive three times,
the student will receive a Graduate Certificate in Applied Microeconomics
rather than a Master’s degree (providing all other requirements
are met). Students who fail a comprehensive should retake the
examination at the first opportunity. Students who fail to attempt
their comprehensive examination promptly and/or fail to maintain
a GPA above 3.0 face dismissal from the program for poor academic
performance.
(Revised July 2008)
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