Graduate programs in economics are required to develop those skills. Economics majors, however, should understand the basic elements of applied economic analysis. This requires the integration of several types of knowledge and skills. First, the institutional and historical context of a particular problem has to be understood. Second, the relevance of basic economic theory to that problem has to be considered.
Economic theory offers insights but also has a limited range of applicability.
Students need to be able to determine the types of empirical data that would be relevant to analyzing the problem and the likely sources of that data. Finally students need to be able to apply basic economic logic and quantitative tools that allow them to analyze the relevant data in a way that brings insights and suggests solutions. Because individual courses do not always allow students to integrate what they have learned and apply it to a specific problem and receive ongoing guidance and criticism as they do so, the Economics Department is considering requiring majors to being working on an integrating project at the beginning of their junior year, a project that would culminate in the equivalent of a senior thesis. During the fall semester of the junior year, majors would meet a half-dozen times as a group with a faculty member to outline the requirements for the senior project. Students would be encouraged to begin exploring possible topics and to make use of their elective courses to develop the relevant institutional, historical, and theoretical information.