2023-2024 Graduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
Economic Policy Analysis (ECPA)
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DAVID MITCH, Chair
TIM GINDLING, Graduate Program Director
M.A. (Degree Types ) [STEM: Econometrics and Quantitative Economics]
Economics Faculty
Professors
CARPENTER, ROBERT (Economics), Ph.D., Washington University; Macroeconomics, financial economics.
COATES, DENNIS (Economics), Ph.D., University of Maryland, College Park; Public finance, public-choice economics, economics of education, sports economics.
GINDLING, T. H. (Economics), Ph.D., Cornell University; Economic development, labor economics, economics of education.
LAMDIN, DOUGLAS (Economics), Ph.D., University of Maryland, College Park; Corporate finance, managerial economics, economics of education.
MITCH, DAVID (Economics), Ph.D., University of Chicago; American, Asian and European economic history; labor economics, economics of education.
Associate Professors
ABO-ZAID, SALEM (Economics), Ph.D., University of Maryland, College Park; Monetary economics, macroeconomics, fiscal policy, labor-macro.
DICKSON, LISA (Economics), Ph.D., University of Texas at Austin; Economics of education, labor economics.
ROSE, MORGAN. (Economics), Ph.D., Washington University in Saint Louis; Applied microeconomics, corporate finance, corporate governance, industrial organization, financial institutions.
VIAUROUX, CHRISTELLE, (Economics), Ph.D., University of Toulouse, France; Theoretical and applied econometrics, structural applied microeconomics, structural applied game theory, microecono
Assistant Professors
ANDREWS, MICHAEL (Economics) Ph.D., University of Iowa; Economics of Innovation, entrepreneurship, economic history, urban economics.
BERNEDO DEL CARPIO, MARIA (Economics), Ph.D., Georgia State University; Environmental, behavioral, experimental and urban and regional economics.
FIRSIN, OLEG (Applied Economics and Management), Ph.D., Cornell University; International trade, labor economics, development economics, and applied microeconomics.
PARK, SE MI (Economics), Ph.D., University of Colorado Boulder; International trade, institutional economics, economic development.
YEE, CHRISTINE (Economics), Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley; Health economics, public policy, applied econometrics, labor economics.
YUAN, CHUNMING (Economics), Ph.D., University of California Los Angeles; International economics/finance, financial economics, econometrics.
Lecturers
MA, BING (Economics), Ph.D., University of California Los Angeles; Labor economics, health economics, applied econometrics, and applied microeconomics.
THOMAS, Mark (Economics), Ph.D., Michigan State University; History of economic thought and globalization.
Professors Emeritus
BRADLEY, MICHAEL (Economics), Ph.D., Cornell University; History of economic thought, comparative economic systems.
FARROW, SCOTT (Economics), Ph.D., Washington State University; Empirical risk analysis, program evaluation, benefit-cost analysis.
GOLDFARB, MARSHA (Economics), Ph.D., Northwestern University; Health economics, economics of education.
GREENBERG, DAVID (Economics emeritus), Ph.D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Labor economics, industrial relations, cost benefit analysis, evaluation of welfare and government-funded training programs.
McCONNELL, VIRGINIA (Economics), Ph.D., University of Maryland, College Park; Environmental economics, cost-benefit analysis, air pollution policy, land-use policy.
SORKIN, ALAN L. (Economics), Ph.D., The Johns Hopkins University; Health economics, economics of human resources.
TAKACS, WENDY (Economics), Ph.D., The Johns Hopkins University; International economics, international trade.
Associate Professor Emeritus
CARROLL, KATHLEEN (Economics), Ph.D., The Johns Hopkins University; Economics of organizations, antitrust, regulation.
PEAKE, CHARLES (Economics), Ph.D., University of Maryland, College Park; Monetary economics, finance
Public Policy Faculty
Professors
BENNETT, PAMELA (Sociology), Ph.D., University of Michigan, Ann Arbor; Sociology of education, residential segregations, racial and ethnic inequality, social stratification.
MILLER, NANCY (Public Policy), Ph.D., University of Chicago; Health policy, disability and long term care, health disparities, aging policy.
SHORT, JOHN RENNIE (Geography), Ph.D., University of Bristol; Urban issues, environmental concerns and cartographic representation.
STERETT, SUSAN (Jurisprudence and Social Policy), Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley; Law and social welfare.
Associate Professors
EDWARDS, LAUREN HAMILTON (Public Policy) Ph.D., Andrew Young School of Policy Studies Joint Program, Georgia State University and Georgia Institute of Technology; Public management, strategic management, planning and performance, public participation and co-production, diversity and inclusion in the public sector.
McLAREN, ZOE M. (Public Policy and Economics), Ph.D., University of Michigan; Health policy, quantitative methods, economics of HIV/AIDS and TB.
Assistant Professors
ALI, MIR USMAN (Public Affairs), Ph.D., Indiana University Bloomington; Public Management and Policy Analysis
KUWAYAMA, YUSUKE (Agricultural and applied economics), Ph.D., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Environmental economics, water management.
Students in the Economic Policy Analysis (ECPA) M.A. program take classes in the Department of Economics, the School of Public Policy, the MPP in Data Sciences and other departments and programs at UMBC. The course of study combines a multi-disciplinary approach to policy analysis with focused study on the use of data analysis and economic tools to analyze policy issues. The core economics courses teach students economic modeling, econometrics and data analysis.
The M.A. in Economic Policy Analysis is flexible enough to accommodate students with different backgrounds, interests and career objectives. The program is designed for students from a variety of undergraduate majors, including but not limited to: economics, public policy, political science, information systems, mathematics, computer science, sociology, history, and business. The program is designed for: managers and policy analysts who are already employed and engaged in policy formulation who would like to deepen their understanding of policy issues and/or develop their quantitative skills; students who would like to pursue graduate study to prepare for entry-level positions in the economic policy field with international organizations, federal, state or local governments, consulting firms, corporations, or non-profit organizations; students who would like to prepare for further graduate study at the PhD level in Public Policy or Economics. Many ECPA graduates continue at UMBC for a Ph.D. in Public Policy. A student with an M.A. in Economic Policy Analysis has already completed a substantial amount of the course work required for a Ph.D.
Full or part-time students, students with schedules which permit only evening courses, or students with schedules which combine evening and day courses can all be accommodated. All required courses, and many electives, will be offered in the evening to accommodate the needs of students employed full-time.
The “accelerated pathway” is an attractive and cost-effective option for UMBC undergraduates. The accelerated pathway enables UMBC undergraduate students to take graduate courses as an undergraduate, reducing tuition charges and allowing students to complete both the bachelor’s degree and the Economic Policy Analysis M.A. in as few as five years.
The Economic Policy Analysis M.A. recommends that students choose electives to fit one of the following three concentrations:
- Economic Policy: For students who would like to focus on the economic tools used in policy analysis. This is the broadest and most flexible concentration.
- Public Policy: For students who would like a comprehensive study of the public policy process, including the techniques of evaluation of public policies and the political and sociological aspects of the public policy process. This concentration is strongly recommended for students who plan to continue on to the Public Policy Ph.D. at UMBC.
- Economic Policy and Data Sciences: For students who are interested in learning more about computer programming languages and statistics programs that are relevant to Economic Policy Analysis. This concentration is offered in collaboration with the Masters of Professional Studies in Data Sciences at UMBC.
Students applying for admission to the program must submit scores from the general Graduate Record Exam (GRE); provide three letters of recommendation, preferably from individuals familiar with the applicant’s prior academic work; and fulfill all of the other admissions requirements set forth by the Graduate School. Contact the Graduate School or the economic policy analysis graduate program director for admissions materials. Application materials also may be found on the Graduate School Web site.
To succeed in the program, students will need some undergraduate economics, mathematics and statistics background. Before beginning the core economic theory and econometrics courses in the graduate program, a student must have completed courses in calculus, intermediate microeconomic theory, intermediate statistics, undergraduate econometrics and mathematical economics. The undergraduate econometrics course requirement may be waived for students with a strong statistics background, and the undergraduate mathematical economics course requirement may be waived for students with a strong mathematics background. Prospective students may apply to the program before completing all of these courses.
The UMBC economics department frequently offers an intermediate microeconomic theory course, a mathematical economics course and an undergraduate econometrics course in the summer for those students who wish to enter the program but who have not yet taken these courses. Depending on instructor availability, some of these courses may be offered in the evening or on-line to accommodate students who work during the day. The mathematical economics course, ECON 490, will provide students who have had at least one semester of undergraduate calculus with the mathematics background necessary to succeed in the master’s program. Students applying to the ECPA M.A. program should consult with the graduate program director at econ-masters@umbc.edu to discuss whether their prior coursework in economics, mathematics and statistics provides adequate preparation to begin the program.
UMBC undergraduates who want to complete the accelerated pathway for a combined undergraduate bachelor’s degree and M.A. should contact the economic policy analysis graduate program director during the first semester of their junior year to ensure that they complete the course requirements for entry into the accelerated pathway program.
Financial Assistance
The university and the economic policy analysis program offer a limited number of assistantships to qualified applicants who wish to study full time. These assistantships include tuition remission, a stipend for living expenses and health insurance. Contact the economic policy analysis graduate program director for more information. Students intending to study full-time also should consult the Office of Financial Aid and refer to the financial information section of the graduate catalog for details about the variety of scholarships, grants and loans available. Students also may receive income from working on faculty research projects. Other students may choose to participate in paid internships or co-op programs with various government agencies. UMBC has one of the largest co-op programs on the East Coast. Contact the Shriver Center for details at 410-455-2493.
Many ECPA M.A. students work full-time and may be eligible for tuition assistance through their employers. Students currently employed should check with their employers to see what type of financial support is available. We will help them develop a curriculum or the documentation necessary to receive employer financial support. Also, with good planning, research projects and papers in individual courses can be related to the student’s full-time job in such a way that a single project or modified version may meet the requirements of both institutions.
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