1. Ph.D. Program
The Doctor of Philosophy is a research degree. It signifies that the recipient is able to
conduct independent research and has both a broad basic knowledge of all areas of
economics and a comprehensive knowledge of one or two areas in particular. The Ph.D.
program equips its graduates with modern economic techniques, enabling them to take
leadership positions in economic research in the academic, business, and government
worlds.
The Department of Economics has risen to prominence in recent years by attracting
internationally renowned scholars to its faculty and by carefully selecting its student
body. There are many reasons to believe that we can offer students an outstanding
intellectual environment. Seven members of our department are Fellows of the
Econometric Society, and one is a Nobel Laureate. Many currently serve or have served
on the editorial boards of major journals, including the American Economic Review,
Econometrica, the Review of Economic Studies, and the Journal of Economic Theory.
Perhaps most significantly, the department placed among the top ten in the Tilburg
University ranking of economics departments.
1.1 General Degree Program Requirements
Active graduate students are either in ‘good standing’ or on ‘academic probation.’ To be
in good standing, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) requires that
students maintain a minimum grade-point average of 3.0 and successfully complete 66%
of credits attempted while at NYU, excluding the current semester. Courses with grades
of IP, N, W, and F are not considered successfully completed.
Students must also advance to candidacy by the end of their fourth year. Candidacy is
achieved by completing all degree requirements except the dissertation.
In addition to the GSAS criteria, the Department of Economics requires that all
qualifying and field examinations be passed within the appropriate time period and that a
third-year paper be satisfactorily completed and presented before the last day of the
spring semester of a student’s third year.
If a student fails to meet any of these requirements, the department’s Graduate
Committee will review the student’s dossier and decide whether to place the student on
academic probation. Students placed on probation will have one semester to satisfy the
conditions set by the Committee. This time limit can be modified in cases involving
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