The mission of the Department of Economics and Management is to introduce our students to the world of ideas and to the world itself. We want our students to ask and to begin to understand questions such as:

What drives human progress? Why do some societies prosper while others remain poor? What economic institutions and policies are essential for the good society? How can I make a difference in the fields of business and public policy to create a more prosperous world?

We believe that these are first order questions for any liberally educated person. We also understand that these questions are extraordinarily complex. To grapple with these great questions students need to build their understanding on a foundation of economic theory and quantitative analysis of empirical phenomena. On this foundation we build understanding of economic institutions, the international flow of ideas, people, goods and capital, and the key role of the entrepreneur as the driving force of economic change.

We complement this immersion in the world of ideas with experience in the broader world. We seek to provide students with opportunities to engage with the world itself. We believe that students should do some of the following: study abroad, pursue an internship, develop a business venture, engage in civic activity, and join (and lead) an organization.

Prof. Bob Elder gave a presentation entitled "Applications of Mechanism Design" to students and faculty in the Economics Department at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota on September 11, 2008. (More)

Coming in October: The Upton Forum 2008 with Douglass North, co-recipient of the 1993 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Science and the Spencer T. Olin Professor in Arts and Sciences at Washington University. 

Department Initiates Charles G. Koch Student Research Colloquium and Speaker Series (more)

Two Graduates Win Fubright Scholarships (more)

Faculty/Student Publication
Josh Hall published an article with student Madeline Helling in the May 2008 issue of Economic Affairs. Titled "High Cotton: Why the United States Should No Longer Provide Agricultural Subsidies to Cotton Farmers," the article was an outgrowth of a writing assignment for Hall's introductory economics class.

Class of 2008
The Department of Economics and Management graduated seventeen majors on May 11, 2008. (more)

Prof. Emily Chamlee-Wright Awarded Hayek Prize
Emily Chamlee-Wright, the Elbert H. Neese Professor of Economics at Beloit College, has been awarded the Hayek Prize by the Atlas Economic Research Foundation for her work at the intersection of studies of entrepreneurship, philanthropy, civil society, and market activities.. See here for Beloit College Press release, and here for prize announcement by The Fund for the Study of Spontaneous Orders at the Atlas Economic Research Foundation.