Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics Graduate Programs

Virginia Tech offers graduate studies leading to the M.A. in Economics, the M.S. in Agricultural and Applied Economics, and the Ph.D. in Economics. The economics Ph.D. program is administered jointly by the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics and the Department of Economics, and students enroll through either department. The goal of the graduate programs is to train students in economic theory and its applications.  

Students in the M.A. and M.S. programs take one year of courses in economic theory, quantitative methods and applied fields, and may write a thesis. The M.A. is offered in Economics and the M.S. in Agricultural and Applied Economics. The MA degree in Economics is not a free standing program; it is intended to serve advanced Virginia Tech undergraduate students who participate in the 5th year B.S./M.A. program and those Ph.D. students who begin their studies, but are unable to complete the program. The M.S. program in Agricultural and Applied Economics offers a choice of an applied economics or agribusiness management and marketing focus. Ph.D. students take two years of courses in economic theory, quantitative methods and two or more specialized fields, and write a dissertation. Ph.D. fields of specialization are: 

•  Theory: Microeconomics and Macroeconomics; 

•  Econometrics;

•  Markets and Industrial Organization;

•  Resource and Environmental Economics;

•  Public and Regional/Urban Economics; and

•  Development and International Economics. 

The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences was ranked number 10 out of 100 Universities and Colleges by the National Science Foundation. Both the master’s and Ph.D. programs are supported by state, national and international research projects within the departments. Undergraduate teaching and extension/public service activities provide graduate students with additional professional experiences and funding opportunities.

The American Agricultural Economics Association AAEA, Online Career Central is a great place to search for positions or post a resume. New Positions are also being posted almost daily on the classifieds section of the AAEA website http://www.aaea.org/classifieds/.