Thinking about economics?
Economics is about understanding how decisions get made about what gets produced in the economy, how it gets produced, and who gets what. Understanding how such decisions get made and what their implications are lets us find answers to complex real-world questions, such as: What drives up housing prices in Vancouver? Why are some countries poorer than others? Why is income inequality rising in Canada and around the world?
Economics affects our daily lives in almost everything we do - our jobs, how much education we get, how much leisure time we have, whether to invest or spend our earnings, whether to drive or take the bus. It looks at larger forces that affect Canada and the world - what sort of health care system we have, how interest and exchange rates are determined, how government policies affect unemployment, whether international trade benefits the country.
Studying economics provides a framework for thinking clearly about these sorts of issues, and the tools to decipher what’s really going on when politicians talk about things like recession, inflation and economic stagnation. Understanding how the economy works is also extremely useful when making personal decisions about things like where to go to school, what career to pursue, when to buy a house and whether or not to invest in the stock market. Economics is about choice: about making decisions in one's best interests given the constraints imposed by income, costs, and time; about how societies can use scarce resources to satisfy their needs.
In other words, studying economics helps you develop the kind of rigorous training in logical thinking that will benefit you in almost every aspect of your life.
Why choose SFU Economics?
SFU Economics is unique among Economics departments in B.C. in ensuring that undergraduate students learn with renowned research professors, who regularly teach first-year courses. Studying Economics at SFU allows you to think about the world in a dynamic and challenging way. Our program has a strong tradition of research and teaching in diverse fields of study such as international economics, development economics, monetary policy, public finance, labor economics and quantitative methods. As an SFU economics student, you will be taught by an international faculty and you will learn from an award winning group of teachers and researchers who have been recognized for their academic excellence. Recently, we were ranked number one in a cross country survey which gave SFU Economics the proud distinction of being the most actively published Economics Department amongst comprehensive universities in Canada.
Careers in Economics
Economics is an excellent undergraduate degree because it provides a way of analyzing and solving problems. Economics combines well with many disciplines in the social sciences, humanities, engineering, business, psychology, medicine, and mathematics, among others. Undergraduate economics is also a good major for those contemplating post-graduate programs such as law or business.
Numerous careers are open to those with undergraduate degrees in economics, such as:
- Government policy analyst or researcher
- Financial analyst, planner or broker
- Manager in private business or the non-profit sector
- International trade specialist or diplomat
- Teacher for high school social studies
- Urban and regional planner
- Consultant in the public or private sector
- Forecaster for banks or other institutions