Example Curriculum 3: Major Economics in a Liberal Arts and Sciences Programme

This chapter provides examples of how economics programmes could look and be structured. Such proposals help make the debate concrete and bring out potential trade-offs. This is important because critics of current programmes often simply ask to teach more and more, without considering practical limits on time and content. Curriculum proposals help us to flesh out not only what could be added to a programme, but also what could be left out. In addition, these examples show how the building blocks of Economy Studies can be combined to form coherent programmes.

This chapter is also intended to make clear once again: Economy Studies is not a blueprint of a single, ‘ideal’ curriculum. It is possible to design a wide variety of programmes with these building blocks, and it is our hope that they will be used for this. We firmly believe that the world is best served with a wide variety of economists. One size does not fit all.

Example Curricula:

This undergraduate programme is shorter than the two above, as it describes a major in economics that lasts for one and a half years as part of a three-year long Liberal Arts and Sciences programme. A Liberal Arts education gives students a broad and interdisciplinary education, whilst also allowing them to specialise in the single discipline that they are most interested in. The economics programme here is thus not very interdisciplinary, as the other half of the liberal arts and sciences programme will already be in other fields of study.

The programme shows how each of the ten building blocks can be included in only three semesters. For most building blocks, this is done in a very straightforward way by devoting one course to each building block. The exceptions are that history of economic thought and economic history are merged together in one course, and that there are two methods courses and three theory courses, to provide students with a basis in analytical tools.