M.A.-J.D. Degree Program
A dual degree in economics and law can be applied to virtually any area of legal practice and is especially valuable in corporate law, tort law, contract law, civil procedure, and international law. Additional career options include mergers and acquisitions consultant, policy advisor, legislator, regulatory investigator, and several options in the financial services sector.
Admission to Graduate Studies
Admission Requirements
- All applicants must meet the requirements outlined in the Admission to Graduate Study policy.
- Bachelor’s degree: A copy of official transcripts showing proof of a bachelor's degree (and any post-bachelor’s coursework or degrees) from a regionally accredited institution, or a foreign university with equivalent bachelor's degree requirements is required.
- English proficiency: Proof of English proficiency for non-native or non-native-like English speakers is required. There are two bands of English proficiency, including Admission and Full proficiency. For applicants to online programs, Full proficiency is required.
Applicants to the M.A. and M.A./J.D. programs should have taken a minimum of 2 courses in calculus (6 to 10 semester hours) and a statistics course (similar to MATH 526). Students with little background in economics may be advised to take ECON 520 Microeconomics and/or ECON 522 Macroeconomics and/or ECON 526 Introduction to Econometrics as preparation for M.A. courses. ECON 520, ECON 522, and ECON 526 do not count toward completion of M.A. degree requirements. A bachelor's degree in economics is not necessary, but applicants should have knowledge in economics and an adequate background in mathematics as indicated above. Please note that the M.A. program does not require the GRE, but applicants are welcome to send scores if they wish to do so.
Additionally, applicants must first be accepted to the University of Kansas Law School before applying to the Department of Economics M.A. program. Admission to the M.A./J.D. degree program must be approved by the School of Law, the Department of Economics, and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. In the spring semester (year 1) of law school, students can apply for the Department of Economics M.A./J.D. degree.
In addition to all University requirements for admission to graduate studies, applicants to the Econ MA program must provide and/or meet all of the following:
- Résumé/curriculum vitae
- A list of academic courses taken that taught multi-variable calculus, linear algebra, and introduction to proofs, including a brief course description (or bulleted list of topics covered) as well as the textbook that was used
- A statement of purpose indicating interest in the program, and its relationship to the indented graduate course of study and/or career objectives
- 3 letters of reference
For additional information regarding the admission process, see the program’s admissions page.
Contact the department:
Michelle Morrison
Graduate Program Coordinator
Department of Mathematics
433 Snow Hall
michmor@ku.edu
M.A.-J.D. Degree Program
The M.A./J.D. degree in Economics & Law requires a total of 99 hours and is a course work-only master's degree. The requirements for the combined degree are as follows:
Course Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ECON 700 | Survey of Microeconomics 1 | 3 |
| ECON 701 | Survey of Macroeconomics 1 | 3 |
| ECON 715 | Elementary Econometrics 1 | 3 |
| 9 hours of ECON electives at the 500+ level | 9 | |
| 81 hours of LAW coursework 2 | 81 | |
| Total Hours | 99 | |
1Doctoral-level theory courses (ECON 801, ECON 810, ECON 817) can be substituted.
2 A full list of required LAW coursework for the juris doctorate can be found on the School of Law academic catalog page.
The Department of Economics gives credit toward the M.A. degree for 12 hours of pertinent work in the law school, and the law school gives credit toward the J.D. degree for 9 hours of pertinent work in economics. The 9 hours of economics courses that count toward the J.D. degree should be chosen in consultation with the student's law school academic advisor. The student takes only law classes the first year and spreads out the 18 hours of credit in economics in the following semesters (e.g., 1 course per semester).
At initial enrollment, each candidate must discuss a preliminary plan of study with the M.A. graduate program coordinator. This plan may be revised over time.
Electives
Below is a list of available electives in Economics.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ECON 600 | Money and Banking | 3 |
| ECON 604 | International Trade | 3 |
| ECON 605 | International Finance | 3 |
| ECON 620 | Elements of Mathematical Economics | 3 |
| ECON 622 | Public Finance | 3 |
| ECON 630 | Industrial Organization and Antitrust Policy | 3 |
| ECON 640 | Labor Economics | 3 |
| ECON 664 | Topics in Economics: _____ | 3 |
| ECON 669 | The Economics of Financial Markets | 3 |
| ECON 680 | Economic Growth | 3 |
| ECON 696 | Research Methods in Economics | 3 |
| ECON 716 | Econometric Forecasting | 3 |
| ECON 718 | Elementary Financial Econometrics | 3 |
| ECON 719 | Digital Economics | 3 |
| ECON 730 | Topics in Industrial Organization | 3 |
| ECON 740 | Theory of Economic Growth and Development | 3 |
| ECON 769 | Financial Economics | 3 |
| ECON 770 | Economics of the Labor Market | 3 |
| ECON 780 | Topics in Economics: _____ | 1-3 |
| ECON 790 | Game Theory and Applications | 3 |
| ECON 791 | Game Theory and Applications II | 3 |
| ECON 800 | Optimization Techniques I | 3 |
| ECON 801 | Microeconomics I | 3 |
| ECON 802 | Microeconomics II | 3 |
| ECON 809 | Optimization Techniques II | 3 |
| ECON 810 | Macroeconomics I | 3 |
| ECON 811 | Macroeconomics II | 3 |
| ECON 816 | Probability and Statistics | 3 |
| ECON 817 | Econometrics I | 3 |
| ECON 818 | Econometrics II | 3 |
| ECON 830 | Game Theory and Industrial Organization | 3 |
| ECON 854 | Advanced Environmental Economic Theory | 3 |
| ECON 869 | Advanced Financial Economics | 3 |
| ECON 870 | Applied Microeconomics | 3 |
| ECON 880 | Advanced Topics in Economic Theory: _____ | 1-3 |
| ECON 901 | Advanced Economic Theory I | 3 |
| ECON 911 | Applied Macroeconomics | 3 |
| ECON 912 | Advanced Macroeconomics | 3 |
| ECON 914 | Computational Methods for Economics | 3 |
| ECON 915 | Advanced Econometrics I | 3 |
| ECON 917 | Advanced Econometrics III | 3 |
| ECON 918 | Financial Econometrics | 3 |
| ECON 919 | Advanced Health Economics | 3 |
| ECON 950 | Special Problems in Economics | 1-3 |
A full list of required LAW coursework for the juris doctorate (years 1-4) can be found on the School of Law academic catalog page. The plan below is only reflective of the required economics coursework in years 2-4.
| Year 2 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| ECON 7001 | 3 | ECON 7011 | 3 |
| 3 | 3 | ||
| Year 3 | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| ECON 500+ Elective | 3 | ECON 7151 | 3 |
| 3 | 3 | ||
| Year 4 | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| ECON 500+ Elective | 3 | ECON 500+ Elective | 3 |
| 3 | 3 | ||
| Total Hours 18 | |||
At the completion of this program, students will be able to:
- Acquire Knowledge and understanding of substantive and procedural law.
- Develop legal analysis and reasoning, legal research, problem-solving, professional skills, and written and oral communication in the legal context.
- Exercise proper professional and ethical responsibilities to clients and the legal system.
- Apply tools of economic analysis to critique original research in their specific field or subfield.
- Apply broad knowledge of theory and research methods to questions and current problems in the field of economics.
- Communicate effectively to professional audiences and the public through technical reports and presentations.