ANTHOLOGY

Reinvigorating the Study of Economics

HOWARD H. COCHRAN, JR. AND GARY L. HODGIN Belmont University-- U.S.A.

The number of baccalaureate degrees awarded in economics declined substantially during the 1990's. A combination of declining enrollments and rising costs is placing pressure on departments to become more efficient. Consequently, economics departments from a vari- ety of institutional settings are considering some of the following innovative approaches to enrollment management.

Forming new multidisciplinary programs will help broaden the appeal of economics. For example, elements of a traditional economics degree might be combined with those of foreign languages to form a degree that appeals to students seeking an internationM focus. Political science and mathematics are two other departments that might be interested in such an alliance. By sharing existing upper-division courses, multidisciplinary degrees can be added at minimal incremental costs.

By revamping existing upper-division curriculum and developing courses that are more attractive to non-economics majors, departments could increase credit hour production. Re- visions may include courses with a stronger public policy focus, such as topics in public policy, business and government, or specialized areas of interest such as entertainment economics or e-economy.

Through well-structured internships, students can build competitive resumes, understand connections between theory and practice, establish relationships with potential employers, learn job skills, assess future employment preferences, and receive remuneration.

Promotion should include increasing student awareness about the program as well as the career prospects available to graduates. Attractive brochures, along with informative web pages are effective in generating interest. Direct selling of the major in the principles course as well as in the advising process is essential. Distributing coursework through web mediated instruction or other distance learning approaches could appeal to non-traditional students. Additionally, information on scholarships, grants, awards, and other financial aid should be readily available.

Law and graduate business schools recognize the fundamental importance of economics to their disciplines. The president of AT& T believes social science majors are most suitable to leading change. Also, many top law schools seek students who understand the economic implications of the law.

In order to pique student interest, the standard chalk-and-talk approach may not well match the learning style of contemporary students. More emphasis could be placed on ped- agogies such as service learning, constructed knowledge, case study methods, experimental economics, and collaborative learning.

A one-semester introductory economics course among university general education re- quirements would expose more students to economics and serve as a gateway to the con- tinued study of economics. However, these survey students should not be precluded from taking at least some upper-division courses because of the traditional two-semester principles prerequisite barrier.

Economics departments are no longer immune to the competitive pressures of declining enrollments and rising tuition. Consequently, in today's environment selling the discipline as well as educating students is essential. (JEL A22)

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