Academics

Economics is the study of how societies use their limited resources to produce wealth, and how the distribution of the wealth among their members is determined. This very broad field covers topics ranging from the causes of inflation and unemployment to the behavior of individual households and businesses. Knowledge of economics helps households and businesses understand how economic events will affect them, how they can best react to these events, and how to assess government economic policies.

Economics graduates are considered generalists who are well trained in analytical thinking. Many employers find such graduates valuable because they are good at problem-solving, they are adaptable to rapidly changing business environments and they are trainable. Employers know these workers can quickly learn on the job the specific skills they need.

Majoring in economics is therefore a springboard to a very wide variety of careers, not only in business, but also in government agencies and not-for-profit organizations. For example, recent ODU economics graduates have found career positions with Federal Express, Jackson-Hewitt Tax Service and the U.S. Department of Labor. Economics is an extremely versatile major.

Yes. If you major in economics and follow the Bachelor of Arts curriculum, you can fit in a minor or a second major in any subject, business or nonbusiness, often with little or no increase in the total number of courses required for graduation. If you follow the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration curriculum, you can also get a minor or a second major in any subject, sometimes with only a few additional courses beyond the number required for graduation without a minor or second major.

Certainly. Any student at ODU can minor in economics. In fact, minoring in economics is one way to fulfill the university's upper-level general education requirement. And it can add balance to your resume, enhancing your qualifications in the eyes of prospective employers. The minor requires that you take our two courses in principles of economics plus any four 300- or 400-level economics courses of your choice. These courses can often satisfy other requirements, too, with no increase in the total number of courses needed to graduate.