Student Learning Outcomes

Students graduating from this program will:

• Demonstrate a thorough degree of knowledge in the discipline
• Demonstrate an ability to use proper investigation techniques for the discipline
• Use oral and written forms of communication to convey their ideas

Program Structure

Total Credit Required for Graduation: 42

Residence requirement: Ph.D. students must satisfy the doctoral residency requirement by satisfactory completion of at least 18 credits in no more than 24 consecutive months. When satisfying the residency requirement, all Ph.D. students are subject to the following restrictions:

• The doctoral residency requirement must be satisfied no later than the end of the semester in which the student completes his or her comprehensive examinations.
• Students must achieve a cumulative graduate grade-point average of at least 3.0 in all courses counted toward satisfying the residency requirement.

Admission Requirements

Economics Program Admission Requirements include:

1. The criteria for admission to Ph.D. program in Economics are a grade point average of at least 3.00 (on a 4.00 scale) in undergraduate coursework, or a grade point average of at least 3.25 (on a 4.00 scale) covering all post-baccalaureate work completed to date. For full admission applicants must have at least 18 undergraduate semester credit hours in economics, including intermediate microeconomics and intermediate macroeconomics, and an introductory course in statistics. In addition it is strongly recommended that applicants have some of the following courses: econometrics, mathematical economics, history of economic thought, heterodox economics, economic history, calculus, and linear algebra. Students who have not taken intermediate microeconomics and/or intermediate macroeconomics, or who have taken fewer than 18 credit hours in economics will be admitted only on a provisional status.
2. For applicants with only a baccalaureate degree, a Graduate Records Examination score is required.
3. For applicants with a M.A. degree in economics, the Graduate Record Examination may be waived—contact the department Ph.D. advisor for further details. Applicants matriculated into the M.A. economics program at UMKC may apply for admission to the Ph.D. program in Economics as once they have completed 15 credit hours of graduate coursework in economics and have earned a grade point average of 3.25 or better.
4. International students who have studied less than two years (full time) in a U.S. academic program or a comparable program in an English-speaking country are required to meet the minimum proficiency requirements for graduate students as determined by the UMKC International Student Affairs Office (ISAO). Current criteria for English proficiency are here: https://www.umkc.edu/isao/future-students/english-proficiency.html.
5. Applicants who wish to transfer to the UMKC Ph.D. program in Economics from Ph.D. programs at other institutions must have obtained grade point average of at least 3.25 covering all graduate coursework. Transfer students must apply for transfer credits toward the Ph.D. as soon as possible after admission. No transfer credit will be granted for any courses not relevant to the Ph.D. in economics or for any courses with a grade of less than 3.00. The UMKC policy for transfer credits in the Ph.D. program is no more than 50 percent of the coursework for the degree can be transferred from other institutions. Applicants who do not fit the above criteria may substitute evidence of scholarly publication, research, recommendations, and academic qualifications to the department admission committee.

Application Details

The deadline for completed applications and supporting documentation is February 1 for the Fall semester and October 1 for the Spring semester. Applications received after these dates may be considered for admission, but generally will not be eligible for Department of Economics assistantships and fellowships.

Program Requirements

Total Credit Hours: 42

Requirements for Retention

Economics Ph.D. students must maintain a high degree of academic excellence by obtaining a B or higher (B- not acceptable) in all required courses and maintain a minimum of a 3.0 graduate grade-point average overall. A student who receives a grade of C+ or lower will receive an academic warning. Students who receive a grade of C or C- in two classes, or a D+ or lower in one class, will be dismissed from the program.

Comprehensive Exams

To advance to degree candidacy Economics Ph.D. students are required to choose and pass comprehensive examinations. Doctoral students must take and pass the doctoral comprehensive examinations and advance to candidacy within five years from the beginning of doctoral coursework.

Dissertation Requirement

Doctoral candidates must prepare and defend a dissertation proposal. The minimum requirements for a dissertation proposal are established by the Department of Economics faculty. A dissertation proposal defense is scheduled on an individual basis after consultation with the student’s supervisory committee. Once the dissertation proposal has been successfully defended it must be filed with the School of Graduate Studies.

The doctoral degree requires the successful completion of a doctoral dissertation. Upon completion of the research project, the student will defend the dissertation before the supervisory committee, who determine whether the dissertation is acceptable for the awarding of the Ph.D. degree.