Independent Study

» Economics Department I.S. Titles

Economics

In the junior year, students spend one semester learning the tools and skills of economic research and writing a short paper. In the senior year, each student works with a faculty member to conduct an intensive investigation of a subject in which the student has a particular interest. This exercise results in the thesis-like paper. Some of the topics students have explored in recent years include a study of developing countries’ foreign debts, an analysis of the determinants of CEO compensation, the relationship between a baseball player’s performance and salary, an analysis of health care in the 1990s, and the effectiveness of minimum-wage legislation as an anti-poverty policy.

Business Economics

Independent Study offers business economics majors a unique opportunity to study, in depth, a topic of special interest to them.Working closely with a faculty advisor, students embark upon a year-long project that provides them with the fundamentals of research. Examples of recent studies include a comparison of the cost of operations in several plants within a firm; market surveys to determine bank customer satisfaction; and an analysis of capital expenditures for a local hospital.