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CIP 45.0601 Social Sciences

Economics, General

IPEDS Completions, US Department of Education · 2025

中文

Total graduates

21,403

2025 · 635 schools

International share

11.6%

2,488 international students

Bachelor's degrees

15,795

13.3% international

Master's degrees

281

32.4% international

Overview

Economics, General is a fundamental field of study that explores how societies allocate scarce resources. It encompasses a wide range of topics, including the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services, as well as the behavior of individuals, businesses, and governments in making economic decisions.

Students pursuing a general economics degree will typically engage with both microeconomics and macroeconomics. Microeconomics focuses on individual and business decision-making processes and the factors that influence supply and demand in specific markets. In contrast, macroeconomics examines broader economic trends, such as inflation, unemployment, and national economic growth.

The curriculum often includes courses in statistics, econometrics, and economic theory, equipping students with analytical skills and quantitative methods essential for understanding economic phenomena. Students may also explore topics like international trade, labor economics, and public policy, which provide insights into how economic principles apply to real-world situations.

Graduates with a degree in general economics are well-prepared for a variety of career paths. They can pursue roles in finance, government, consulting, and research, among others. Moreover, the critical thinking and analytical skills developed through an economics program are highly valued in many industries, making these graduates versatile in the job market.

Overall, a degree in Economics, General not only provides a solid understanding of economic principles but also prepares students to tackle complex issues in a rapidly changing world.

Graduates by year

Graduates by degree level (first and second majors)

AssociateBachelor'sMaster'sDoctoral

From 2002 to 2025, graduates fell 16% and the international share went from 14.5% to 11.6%.

International share (%)
Graduates by group, 2025
White
43.5%
Asian
12.4%
Hispanic
19.8%
Black
4.7%
Other
8.0%
Intl.
11.6%

Colleges that award this degree

In 2025, 635 schools awarded this degree as a first major. The table lists those in the 2027 U.S. News National or Liberal Arts rankings, plus the unranked schools with the most graduates.

RankSchoolStateGraduatesInternational
#7 University of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 1 0
#12 Columbia University in the City of New York New York 39 3
#16 Washington University in St Louis Missouri 7 6
#16 Rice University Texas 55 24
#25 University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Michigan 623 88
#27 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill North Carolina 258 20
#31 New York University New York 12 10
#34 University of California-Irvine California 228 92
#34 University of Florida Florida 294 17
#34 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Illinois 246 78
#34 Boston University Massachusetts 267 116
#34 Wake Forest University North Carolina 121 12
#34 The University of Texas at Austin Texas 359 29
#34 University of Wisconsin-Madison Wisconsin 539 136
#44 Rutgers University-New Brunswick New Jersey 229 49
#44 Case Western Reserve University Ohio 36 8
#52 University of Georgia Georgia 60 0
#52 College of William and Mary Virginia 19 1
#52 Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Virginia 92 4
#55 Santa Clara University California 86 6
#55 University of Miami Florida 90 18
#59 George Washington University D.C. 30 4
#59 Tulane University of Louisiana Louisiana 2 2
#59 University of Massachusetts-Amherst Massachusetts 190 38
#59 University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Minnesota 114 23
#59 Stony Brook University New York 36 17
#59 University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus Pennsylvania 1 0
#59 Texas A & M University-College Station Texas 323 4
#69 Michigan State University Michigan 225 18
#69 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute New York 12 4
#69 University of California-Merced California 23 0
#72 Syracuse University New York 149 47
#73 University of Connecticut Connecticut 378 73
#73 Howard University D.C. 47 8
#73 Indiana University-Bloomington Indiana 53 10
#73 Rutgers University-Newark New Jersey 18 0
#73 Binghamton University New York 239 13
#80 Pepperdine University California 51 7
#80 Colorado School of Mines Colorado 5 0
#80 Drexel University Pennsylvania 5 1
#80 Clemson University South Carolina 184 7
#85 University of Delaware Delaware 49 6
#85 University at Buffalo New York 85 23
#85 Southern Methodist University Texas 255 11
#90 Yeshiva University New York 5 0
#90 Texas Christian University Texas 93 11
#90 Marquette University Wisconsin 18 0
#95 American University D.C. 38 7
#95 University of Illinois at Chicago Illinois 71 13
#95 University of Missouri-Columbia Missouri 148 2
#95 Rutgers University--Camden New Jersey 6 0
#100 Auburn University Alabama 39 7
#100 Florida International University Florida 149 19
#100 University of South Florida-Main Campus Florida 158 29
#100 University of Iowa Iowa 71 1
#100 Creighton University Nebraska 14 0
#100 Elon University North Carolina 29 1
#109 University of California-Santa Cruz California 70 9
#109 University of Colorado Boulder Colorado 204 10
#109 Fairfield University Connecticut 16 0
#109 University of New Hampshire-Main Campus New Hampshire 72 1
#109 Temple University Pennsylvania 40 4
#109 The University of Tennessee-Knoxville Tennessee 15 0
#116 Iowa State University Iowa 10 1
#116 Brigham Young University-Provo Utah 108 2
#121 Arizona State University-Tempe Arizona 4 1
#121 University of Arizona Arizona 89 24
#121 University of Denver Colorado 29 3
#121 University of Central Florida Florida 42 4
#121 Loyola University Chicago Illinois 14 1
#121 University of South Carolina-Columbia South Carolina 58 2
#121 The University of Texas at Dallas Texas 23 2
#133 Clark University Massachusetts 19 4
#133 Miami University-Oxford Ohio 56 12
#133 University of Vermont Vermont 50 2
#137 California State University--Long Beach California 55 2
#137 San Diego State University California 182 11
#137 San Jose State University California 50 0
#137 St John's University (NY) New York 21 3
#137 Saint Joseph's University - Philadelphia Pennsylvania 7 0
#137 University of Scranton Pennsylvania 3 0
#137 University of Houston Texas 150 13
#137 James Madison University Virginia 19 0
#148 California State University-Los Angeles California 24 2
#148 Mercer University Georgia 7 0
#148 University of Kansas Kansas 40 9
#148 University of Kentucky Kentucky 28 3
#148 University of Massachusetts-Lowell Massachusetts 25 1
#148 University of Tulsa Oklahoma 1 0
#148 University of Rhode Island Rhode Island 31 1
#156 The University of Alabama Alabama 94 0
#156 California State University-Fullerton California 28 1
#156 Quinnipiac University Connecticut 16 1
#156 Florida A&M University Florida 15 0
#156 Kansas State University Kansas 10 1
#156 University of St Thomas (MN) Minnesota 24 2
#156 Montclair State University New Jersey 56 2
#156 Seton Hall University New Jersey 8 0
#156 CUNY--City College New York 135 12
#156 Oregon State University Oregon 63 4
#156 University of Portland Oregon 7 1
#156 Duquesne University Pennsylvania 5 0
#169 DePaul University Illinois 11 0
#169 Butler University Indiana 7 1
#169 Simmons University Massachusetts 3 0
#169 Michigan Technological University Michigan 3 0
#169 Touro College New York 3 0
#179 University of Louisville Kentucky 8 0
#179 University of Mississippi Mississippi 13 1
#179 CUNY Hunter College New York 116 2
#179 University of Cincinnati-Main Campus Ohio 44 3
#179 Seattle University Washington 8 1
#186 California Lutheran University California 4 1
#186 University of Hawaii at Manoa Hawaii 83 6
#186 University of Detroit Mercy Michigan 9 1
#186 Wayne State University Michigan 26 5
#186 Texas Tech University Texas 44 6
#191 Samford University Alabama 1 0
#191 University of Arkansas Arkansas 26 3
#191 Florida Atlantic University Florida 50 4
#191 Georgia State University Georgia 81 7
#191 Drake University Iowa 6 1
#191 Rowan University New Jersey 26 1
#191 Adelphi University New York 7 2
#191 Hofstra University New York 5 2
#191 Oklahoma State University-Main Campus Oklahoma 9 0
#202 Sacred Heart University Connecticut 22 0
#202 Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Louisiana 21 0
#202 University of Massachusetts-Boston Massachusetts 85 14
#202 East Carolina University North Carolina 45 3
#202 Ohio University-Main Campus Ohio 12 2
#202 University of St. Thomas (TX) Texas 1 0
#208 California State University--Fresno California 30 5
#208 California State University-Sacramento California 132 4
#208 University of La Verne California 1 0
#208 University of Idaho Idaho 6 1
#208 Mississippi State University Mississippi 5 1
#208 University of North Carolina at Greensboro North Carolina 17 0
#208 Xavier University Ohio 4 0
#208 Willamette University Oregon 21 0
#208 University of North Texas Texas 22 2
#219 Illinois State University Illinois 18 0
#219 Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis Indiana 13 0
#219 University of Nevada-Reno Nevada 46 0
#219 North Carolina A&T State University North Carolina 21 0
#219 University of North Carolina--Wilmington North Carolina 12 0
#219 Gannon University Pennsylvania 3 0
#219 Robert Morris University Pennsylvania 6 1
#227 San Francisco State University California 38 3
#227 Ball State University Indiana 15 1
#227 The New School New York 10 1
#227 University of North Dakota North Dakota 3 0
#227 West Virginia University West Virginia 4 1
#236 University of North Florida Florida 16 1
#236 Stetson University Florida 1 0
#236 Bethel University Minnesota 1 0
#236 University of Nevada--Las Vegas Nevada 44 3
#236 University of New Mexico-Main Campus New Mexico 40 8
#236 North Dakota State University-Main Campus North Dakota 20 0
#236 Portland State University Oregon 16 0
#236 Chatham University Pennsylvania 3 0
#236 Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 5 1
#250 University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth Massachusetts 13 1
#250 New Mexico State University-Main Campus New Mexico 22 0
#250 La Salle University Pennsylvania 4 1
#250 South Dakota State University South Dakota 24 5
#250 University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley Texas 15 2
#262 University of Maine Maine 24 0
#262 Suffolk University Massachusetts 2 0
#262 Western New England University Massachusetts 2 0
#262 Central Michigan University Michigan 3 0
#262 University of South Dakota South Dakota 9 0
#262 Seattle Pacific University Washington 11 3
#276 Western Michigan University Michigan 6 2
#276 University of Missouri--St. Louis Missouri 2 0
#276 Bowling Green State University-Main Campus Ohio 17 0
#276 Marymount University Virginia 1 0
#288 University of Hartford Connecticut 1 0
#288 Southern Illinois University-Carbondale Illinois 16 0
#288 Wichita State University Kansas 2 0
#288 University of Memphis Tennessee 4 0
#288 Texas State University Texas 13 0
#288 University of Wisconsin--Milwaukee Wisconsin 29 4
#299 Boise State University Idaho 7 0
#299 Utica University New York 1 0
#308 Northern Illinois University Illinois 22 0
#308 Oakland University Michigan 6 0
#308 Montana State University Montana 24 1
#317 Morgan State University Maryland 3 0
#317 Ferris State University Michigan 2 0
#317 Kean University New Jersey 1 0
#317 Indiana University of Pennsylvania-Main Campus Pennsylvania 15 1
#317 Emory & Henry University Virginia 1 0
#328 Georgia Southern University Georgia 3 0
#332 Point Park University Pennsylvania 4 0
#332 University of Lynchburg Virginia 2 0
#342 Concordia University -- Irvine California 3 0
#342 University of Northern Colorado Colorado 31 1
#342 Campbell University North Carolina 2 0
#342 University of Akron Ohio 5 0
#342 Cleveland State University Ohio 9 2
#353 Jacksonville State University Alabama 3 0
#353 Arkansas State University Arkansas 7 0
#353 University of West Georgia Georgia 9 0
#353 Southern Illinois University--Edwardsville Illinois 1 0
#353 University of Michigan--Flint Michigan 1 0
#353 Youngstown State University Ohio 2 0
#353 University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras Puerto Rico 14 0
#353 Pennsylvania Western University Pennsylvania 1 0
#365 University of Central Arkansas Arkansas 18 0
#365 Indiana State University Indiana 2 1
#365 The University of Montana Montana 15 2
#365 Eastern Washington University Washington 21 0
#382 University of Colorado--Colorado Springs Colorado 14 1
#382 Palm Beach Atlantic University Florida 1 1
#382 Governors State University Illinois 3 0
#382 Roosevelt University Illinois 2 0
#382 University of Southern Maine Maine 15 0
#382 Wright State University-Main Campus Ohio 3 0
LAC #3 Swarthmore College Pennsylvania 57 7
LAC #12 Vassar College New York 41 7
LAC #12 Washington and Lee University Virginia 33 7
LAC #22 College of the Holy Cross Massachusetts 123 2
LAC #22 Smith College Massachusetts 14 2
LAC #29 Bucknell University Pennsylvania 79 2
LAC #31 Trinity College Connecticut 46 1
LAC #31 Bryn Mawr College Pennsylvania 5 1
LAC #34 Colorado College Colorado 23 1
LAC #34 Franklin and Marshall College Pennsylvania 23 9
LAC #38 Trinity University Texas 12 1
LAC #41 Kenyon College Ohio 28 7
LAC #44 Pitzer College California 18 1
LAC #44 Wabash College Indiana 18 0
LAC #47 Connecticut College Connecticut 33 1
LAC #47 Hillsdale College Michigan 36 0
LAC #49 St. Olaf College Minnesota 30 0
LAC #49 St. Lawrence University New York 51 10
LAC #49 Rhodes College Tennessee 7 0
LAC #54 Dickinson College Pennsylvania 25 1
LAC #57 Furman University South Carolina 16 2
LAC #62 Agnes Scott College Georgia 8 0
LAC #62 Berea College Kentucky 5 3
LAC #62 Gustavus Adolphus College Minnesota 17 0
LAC #62 Muhlenberg College Pennsylvania 6 0
LAC #62 Virginia Military Institute Virginia 45 1
LAC #68 College of St. Benedict Minnesota 1 0
LAC #68 Wofford College South Carolina 9 1
LAC #72 Saint Anselm College New Hampshire 3 0
LAC #72 Bard College New York 2 1
LAC #74 Rollins College Florida 21 4
LAC #74 Principia College Illinois 4 4
LAC #74 Kalamazoo College Michigan 14 2
LAC #78 Saint Mary's College Indiana 6 0
LAC #78 Hope College Michigan 2 1
LAC #81 Wheaton College (MA) Massachusetts 6 2
LAC #83 Morehouse College Georgia 17 0
LAC #85 Stonehill College Massachusetts 9 0
LAC #85 Drew University New Jersey 10 2
LAC #85 Allegheny College Pennsylvania 16 4
LAC #85 Susquehanna University Pennsylvania 1 0
LAC #91 Augustana College Illinois 5 2
LAC #91 Juniata College Pennsylvania 3 1
LAC #91 Ursinus College Pennsylvania 11 0
LAC #91 Washington and Jefferson College Pennsylvania 13 0
LAC #91 Southwestern University Texas 10 2
LAC #97 Washington College Maryland 11 1
LAC #97 Lewis & Clark College Oregon 18 1
LAC #97 Austin College Texas 2 0
LAC #100 Hendrix College Arkansas 23 0
LAC #100 Whittier College California 4 3
LAC #100 Lycoming College Pennsylvania 1 0
LAC #100 University of Puget Sound Washington 14 1
LAC #106 Transylvania University Kentucky 2 0
LAC #106 St. Mary's College of Maryland Maryland 14 0
LAC #106 Pacific Lutheran University Washington 8 0
LAC #109 Hanover College Indiana 4 2
LAC #111 Luther College Iowa 10 6
LAC #111 Hampden-Sydney College Virginia 15 0
LAC #111 Whitworth University Washington 18 7
LAC #116 Ohio Wesleyan University Ohio 5 0
LAC #116 Saint Michael's College Vermont 8 2
LAC #116 Roanoke College Virginia 2 0
LAC #119 Coe College Iowa 5 0
LAC #119 Albion College Michigan 17 0
LAC #119 Meredith College North Carolina 4 1
LAC #119 Christopher Newport University Virginia 32 0
LAC #119 Ripon College Wisconsin 3 0
LAC #119 California State University-Channel Islands California 8 0
LAC #125 Goucher College Maryland 11 3
LAC #125 Emmanuel College Massachusetts 8 0
LAC #128 University of Minnesota-Morris Minnesota 2 0
LAC #128 SUNY at Purchase College New York 19 0
LAC #128 University of Mary Washington Virginia 11 0
LAC #132 Eckerd College Florida 10 2
LAC #132 Centenary College of Louisiana Louisiana 2 0
LAC #132 Bennington College Vermont 1 1
LAC #132 Saint Norbert College Wisconsin 10 0
LAC #138 Millsaps College Mississippi 1 0
LAC #142 Eastern Connecticut State University Connecticut 11 0
LAC #142 Covenant College Georgia 13 0
LAC #146 Oglethorpe University Georgia 10 0
LAC #150 Sweet Briar College Virginia 1 0
LAC #150 New College of Florida Florida 8 0
LAC #154 SUNY Old Westbury New York 3 0
LAC #154 University of North Carolina Asheville North Carolina 13 3
LAC #160 Wittenberg University Ohio 4 0
LAC #160 Albright College Pennsylvania 1 0
LAC #165 Bridgewater College Virginia 2 0
LAC #170 Western Oregon University Oregon 5 0
LAC #172 Guilford College North Carolina 1 1
LAC #172 University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Wisconsin 1 0
LAC #178 Tougaloo College Mississippi 20 1
LAC #178 University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma Oklahoma 2 1
LAC #181 Bethany College West Virginia 1 0
LAC #184 Fort Lewis College Colorado 8 0
LAC #184 Young Harris College Georgia 2 0
LAC #184 West Virginia State University West Virginia 6 1
— Southern New Hampshire University New Hampshire 272 242
— Santa Monica College California 254 42
— Pasadena City College California 250 17
— Los Angeles Pierce College California 239 9
— Moorpark College California 219 5
— Grossmont College California 216 5
— Los Angeles Valley College California 209 3
— Santa Barbara City College California 195 8
— West Valley College California 178 2
— Golden West College California 175 4
— Cerritos College California 166 0
— Sierra College California 158 0
— Saddleback College California 157 4
— CUNY Queens College New York 120 3
— Mt San Jacinto Community College District California 118 0
— Southwestern College California 112 0
— College of the Canyons California 108 5
— Folsom Lake College California 98 1
— El Camino Community College District California 95 1
— Las Positas College California 88 1
— Diablo Valley College California 87 5
— Frostburg State University Maryland 85 76
— Evergreen Valley College California 82 1
— Cuesta College California 79 0
— California State University-Northridge California 76 5
— Los Angeles City College California 76 6
— American River College California 74 0
— Oxnard College California 72 0
— College of San Mateo California 72 10
— De Anza College California 70 15

Purple: international students are 25% or more of the school's graduates.

Related jobs and pay

OccupationUS employmentMean hourly wageMean annual wage
Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education 1,065,210 — $76,320
Managers, All Other 622,190 $73.99 $153,890
Social Science Research Assistants 30,640 $31.80 $66,140
Economists 17,790 $68.33 $142,130
Economics Teachers, Postsecondary 11,560 — $138,850
Survey Researchers 8,290 $38.26 $79,580

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025.

Graduate counts: IPEDS Completions, US Department of Education, 2002–2025. Rankings: 2027 U.S. News.