Applying to the Econ Major
Prospective Majors
Applying to the Econ major
Thank you for your interest in becoming an Economics Major. The Economics Major is a capped major. We recommend that students apply during the semester that they are completing their final prerequisite courses. For most students, this is during their sophomore year. For transfer students, you must apply during the first semester on the UC Berkeley campus.
Non-transfer students must have an average gpa of 3.0 in the prerequisite courses taken at Berkeley, and an average gpa of 3.0 in any prerequisite courses taken at another institution. Transfer students must have an average gpa of 3.0 in the prerequisite transfer courses, and an average gpa of 2.7 in prerequisite courses taken at Berkeley.
All applicants must review the information below prior to submitting the application.
Unit cap/Semester Cap
Transfer students must apply to the major at the beginning of their first semester on campus. Summer session prior to the academic year does not count as the first semester. Applications will not be accepted from second-semester transfer students. There are no exceptions.
Non-transfer students must apply to the major prior to reaching 80 units of post-high school coursework (including in-progress courses), or at the beginning of their fifth semester (not including summers) of post-high school coursework, whichever comes second. We do not accept applications from graduating seniors or students in their fourth (or later) year of studies, even if it is not the student's first major. There are absolutely no exceptions.
Prerequisite Coursework
List the grades you earned in the prerequisite courses in the spaces provided. Misreporting of grades, mistakenly or intentional, will result in an automatic denial to the major.
All prerequisites and courses for the major must be taken for a letter grade. If you change a prerequisite course to P/NP during the semester in which you apply, you will automatically be denied admission to the major.
You may use AP or IB or A-Level scores for the Calculus or Introductory Economics courses. We do not accept the AP statistics scores. Statistics 2 will not satisfy the prerequisite requirement. If you have taken both the AP exam and the course, we will count the course grade. Please see "prerequisites" for more specific information.
Only one semester of macro or micro economic theory is required in order to apply to the major. If you have completed both parts of the A-B sequence, both grades will be counted. UGBA 101A is not accepted effective Spring 2009. If you took the course prior to that term, you can apply. UGBA 101A will NOT be accepted after Spring 2009, and there are no exceptions to this.
If you took the math or statistics course at another 4-year institution, or an out-of-state community college, you must include the Equivalency form from either the Math or Statistics Department. If your coursework was taken at a California Community College, and is listed on assist.org as an equivalent course, you do not need to submit additional forms.
Repeating courses and unit issues
The University will not grant credit for Stat 20 or 21 to students who have already completed Stat 2. The Economics Department will allow students to take stat 20 or 21 after completing stat 2. Though they will not receive academic credit, the stat 20 or 21 grade will satisfy the prerequisite for the major. For all other situations, the department will only honor repeated courses if they fall within University guidelines.
The Econ department will honor repeated courses if they fall within University guidelines. Courses that fall outside these guidelines will not be calculated for admission to the major. For in-depth information on repeating courses, please see http://ls-probation.berkeley.edu/gpa.html
The department will accept only one repeated prerequisite course. Students who repeat more than 1 prerequisite course are subject to additional review by the undergraduate chair. If you have concerns about repeating multiple courses, please speak with an undergraduate advisor.
Notification
You will be notified via email of your acceptance or denial approximately 2 weeks after grades are posted for the semester. Admission is based solely on the gpa, and other criteria as listed above. If you meet all the criterion for admission, you will be admitted!
Alternate majors
All students should plan for an alternate major. Transfer students and students with a prerequisite gpa of 3.1 or lower will be required to list an alternate major on the application. Please note that Environmental Economics and Policy is now a capped major. For more information about EEP see http://nature.berkeley.edu/site/majors/eep.php
Students who are having difficulty choosing an alternate major must meet with an Economics advisor or an advisor in the College of Letters and Science as soon as possible.
Deadline
The application is due by 4pm on Wednesday, February 29th, 2012. There are no exceptions.
By submitting the application form, you certify that the information provided is true and accurate to the best of your knowledge. Any student found to have provided false documentation may be referred to the Center for Student Conduct and Community Standards for further investigation, and will automatically be denied from the major.
If you have any questions about the application process, please email us at .