Economics Courses

Economics is the science behind how wealth is distributed. It’s a field dedicated to finding the most efficient methods of maximising value from scarce resources. Postgraduate study can range in activities, from learning fundamentals to learning advanced mathematics for economics, international trade, monetary policies and more.

The history of economics is fairly recent, but rudimentary and misguided forms have existed for hundreds of years. The dominant school of thought from the 16th to 18th centuries was mercantilism, the principle that all wealth was static and must be regulated by imposing tariffs on imports and encouraging exports. It wasn’t until 18th century author Adam Smith wrote “The Theory of Moral Sentiments” and later “The Wealth of Nations” that commonly held beliefs began to change. He was the first to postulate that economies were guided by the ‘invisible hand’ of self-regulating principles. Thus, modern economics was born.

Modern economists have an exceptional understanding of trade, government regulation and the complicated relationships between governments and financial systems. Now their hands are the ones guiding world economies.

Is economics for me?

Economics is for the mathematically proficient. It demands unwavering logic and knowledge of core principles and concepts. If you’re excited by the idea of finding out how commodities flow between nations, how monetary policy is developed and how this knowledge can be used to improve a country’s prosperity, economics could very well be for you.

Study pathway

Economics can be studied all the way up to a PhD, with graduate certificates, diplomas and master degrees all being available.

Graduate certificates provide students with prior economics experience the chance to round off their knowledge. These programs are succinct, taking six months of full time study to complete or a year part time. Institutions like the University of Queensland provide units in the macroeconomy, consumer and firm behaviour, rudimentary econometrics and a selection of electives. This makes them an ideal path to further study as well.

Graduate diplomas offer the chance to specialise in a discipline of economics, which will then guide further study. The University of Sydney gives students the choice between general economics, financial economics and econometrics. No matter the specialisation however, students can expect vital units in macro and microeconomic analysis, capital markets and more. These courses take a year of full time study to complete, or two years part time. Unlike with certificates, students who hold bachelor degrees outside economics can normally enter these courses so long as they have a credit GPA (65%).

Master degrees from Macquarie University and others are an excellent way to gain extensive knowledge of the field. Topics range from basic microeconomics, macroeconomics and business statistics to more advanced topics in monetary policy, international trade, the economics of public issues and more. Electives are exceptionally broad, including options to study risk management and derivatives, banking and financial intermediation, options, futures, derivatives and a plethora of other useful topics. These programs take two years of full time study to complete and up to four years part time. This duration can be decreased to one year if students have a prior bachelor degree in economics or relevant experience.

PhDs from institutions like Monash University allow students to make valuable contributions to the field through research into a topic of their choice. They culminate in a substantial thesis of about 80,000 words, with the program’s total length ranging between three to eight years. Entry requirements can include:

• An honours degree in economics or cognate discipline with a strong research component (roughly 25% of the course content)
• Sufficient GMAT result (varies between institutions)
• Demonstrable current knowledge of the field (determined by recency of last qualification obtained)

Employment options

Data analyst

The analytical nature of economics programs make graduates well suited to processing quantitative data and interpreting it in a business context. These professionals help companies make sound decisions based on the information at hand. Companies like Analytics8 and ScienceSoft are ideal employers.  

Economist

Naturally, a career as an economist is ideally suited to graduates from these courses. These professionals utilise their knowledge economic theory and relationships to discover statistical trends and deliver specialist advice to governments and corporations. Companies like Frontier Economics are perfect for aspiring economists.

Statistician

The extent of quantitative skills developed throughout postgraduate study are perfect for designing and managing experiments to gather data. The Statistics and Data Corporation is a good example of the sort of employer aspiring statisticians should look for.

There are a great deal of other employment options open to economics graduates should they gain complimentary qualifications, including:

• Actuarial analyst
• Data scientist
• Diplomatic service officer
• Financial risk analyst
• Forensic accountant
• Investment analyst
• Quantity surveyor
• Stockbroker