Roadmap 1: Econ Foundation

Roadmap 1: Econ Foundation

Learn how to become an official economics major, make a graduation plan, and get an introduction to the range of career opportunities you can pursue in economics.
Roadmap 1: Econ Foundation

Objective: Declare your major and meet your advisor or an Undergraduate (UN) Specialist in the Liberal Arts Advisement & Career Center.

Step 1: Getting to Know You

Step 2: Econ Prerequisites

Step 3: Academic Orientation

Step 4: Helpful Tips for New Econ Majors

Step 5: Start Career Prep Roadmap

Click "Next" to begin Roadmap 1: Econ Foundation. At the bottom of each page, you'll see three buttons: "Back," "Save and Close," and "Next." The "Back" button will allow you to go back to a previous page. The "Save and Close" button will save your progress and allow you to return to the Roadmap later by emailing you a personalized link. The "Next" button will take you to the next page in the Roadmap.

On the last page, you will see a "Submit Roadmap" button. When you have completed all the steps in the Roadmap, please click that button. You will still be able to view and edit your responses later, but your Roadmap will be marked as complete.

The Economics Department would like to get to know you! Please enter your information in the fields below.

Entering your name and email is required. This allows our system to save your progress in the Roadmap and allows you to access your Roadmap later. The other fields are not required, but will provide helpful information to the department.
Name *

First Name Last Name
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Where are you from?

Street Address

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City State / Province

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What topics are you most excited about, both economics and otherwise?
What classes are you most excited about, both economics and otherwise?
Please select your gender
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Is there anything else you would like the department to know about you?

The BYU Economics program is only 37 credit hours—one of the shortest programs at the university. There are two prerequisites to the econ core: calculus and Econ 110.

To fulfill the calculus requirement, you must complete either Math 112 (Calculus 1) or Math 113 (Calculus 2) with a grade of C- or better.

To fulfill the Econ 110 requirement, you must complete Econ 110 with a grade of C- or better.

These two classes are foundational in the major, and they are required prerequisites for every 300-level class that makes up the core of the econ curriculum. If you have already declared yourself an econ major, or if you are considering majoring in economics, we encourage you to take these classes as soon as possible.

To see all the econ program requirements, visit the Undergraduate Catalog.

Please indicate your completion of these two courses in the fields below.
When did you complete Econ 110?
If you have not yet completed this class, please indicate so in the dropdown menu.
When did you complete Math 112?
If you have not yet completed this class, please indicate so in the dropdown menu.

The Econ Department has compiled a few tips for new econ students, listed below. These tips will help you succeed and plan ahead as you start your major.

Grad School Prep

If you're interested in pursuing graduate school at some point in the future, check out our Grad School Prep Roadmap. This quick guide to graduate programs will help you determine which steps will make your journey as smooth as possible. Whether you're interested in getting a PhD in economics or a related field, or if you're primarily interested in MBA programs, the medical field, or any other program, this Roadmap offers a few resources to help you succeed. To access Roadmap: Grad School Prep, click here.

Internships

In the words of advice from a 2021 econ grad, "Go for internships as early as possible and get as many internships as possible!" As a general rule, we encourage you to do at least one internship during your time in the econ major, and the earlier the better. Internships will help you apply what you're learning in class and give you valuable insight on the type of work you will enjoy and excel at. They also give you an opportunity to start building your professional network and your résumé. Even if you plan on attending graduate school immediately following your undergrad, we still encourage you to complete an internship.

To receive emails from the department about internship opportunities, join our email blast. Send an email to economics@byu.edu and ask to be added to the list. You may also want to subscribe to notifications from hiring platforms like Indeed or Glassdoor to find opportunities. To make your internship searches more effective, review this article from the University of Texas about which key terms are likely to bring relevant results for econ majors.

If you want to receive class credit for your internships, review this page on the economics website. It contains the most up-to-date information about internship course requirements. If you do not qualify for the economics internship course, we recommend looking into STDEV 199R (a general internship class) or looking for an internship course offered by your secondary major or minor, if you have one. You can often earn up to 3 credit hours in the internship classes offered by other departments.

If you have questions or are seeking advice about internship courses, please reach out to the department Alumni & Internship Coordinator at alumni-economics@byu.edu.

TA Opportunities

One of the best work opportunities for econ students is to be a Teaching Assistant for the department. We are almost always hiring for an upcoming semester or term, and we need TAs in nearly every econ class. Being a TA will give you a unique mastery of course material and an opportunity to be mentored by one of your professors. It also looks great on a résumé!

To see TA requirements, pay information, and job openings, view our Department Student Jobs webpage.

Econ 210: Career Prep Seminar

The Economics Department offers a Career Prep Seminar every fall and winter semester. This 1-credit course is held once a week for 50 minutes. For half of the class periods, we invite BYU Econ alumni from a variety of career fields to come speak about their experiences and share their advice. For the other class periods, we talk about grad schools, PhD programs, and resources on campus. Although this class is not required, we strongly encourage all our econ students to take it. You can view the course page for Econ 210 here and register for the class through MyMap.
Minors

Since the econ major is so short compared to other majors, we strongly encourage all our students to have at least one minor. Having a minor can add value to your degree by giving you a specialized skillset. It can also set you apart from other applicants to grad schools, jobs, or internships.

Here are a few minors our econ students are commonly interested in, grouped by subject, with links to the course list for each minor.

To view the full list of minors at BYU, visit the Undergraduate Catalog.
Check the box of the field(s) you are most interested in to see a list of recommended minors. You can then click each minor to view more information in the Undergraduate Catalog.

Data Science/Tech Business Medicine Law Politics
If you are interested in data science or tech, consider these minors. They are individually linked to the Undergraduate Catalog.
If you are interested in business, consider these minors. They are individually linked to the Undergraduate Catalog.
If you're interested in medicine, consider these minors. They are individually linked to the Undergraduate Catalog.
If you're interested in law, consider these minors. They are individually linked to the Undergraduate Catalog.
If you are interested in politics, consider these minors. They are individually linked to the Undergraduate Catalog.

Roadmap 1: Econ Foundation

Congratulations!