Career Opportunities
The economics program prepares students for careers in both the public (government or education) and private (Goodyear or IBM, for example) sectors. Economics is also the most likely major to produce a CEO of a Fortune 500 company (Flynn, P. and M. Quinn, 2010. "Economics: Good Choice of Major for Future CEOs." The American Economist, 55(1).).
Kent graduates have taken positions in banking and insurance as managers, analysts, and sales associates. In addition, economics graduates find positions in industrial sales and management, as analysts for government agencies, and as managers and sales representatives in retail trade establishments. Undergraduate economics majors are also well prepared to pursue graduate work in economics -- they may want to pursue a Master of Arts (MA) in Economics or an MBA. Furthermore, a major in economics is excellent preparation for law school. For students with an interest in international opportunities, the Economics major is a good program to consider.
Specific information on career opportunities are presented below. Additionally, the American Economic Association has detailed information about career opportunities and options for graduate school for economics majors.Salaries by Undergraduate Major
Economics consistently ranks as one of the highest starting salaries for majors, typically only behind engineering majors, and one of the highest mid-career earnings.
| Undergraduate major | Mid-career earnings of BA/BS holders |
% who earn a graduate degree |
Mid-career earnings with a graduate degree |
| Engineering | $75,000 | 37% | $99,000 |
| Computer science |
$75,000 | 28% | $93,750 |
Economics |
$70,400 |
39% |
$103,488 |
| Mathematics | $67,000 | 47% | $89,110 |
| Finance | $65,000 | 26% | $92,950 |
| Accounting | $63,000 | 21% | $86,310 |
| Political science | $59,000 | 47% | $95,580 |
| Business administration/management |
$58,000 | 20% | $78,300 |
| Chemistry | $58,000 | 60% | $111,940 |
| Marketing | $58,000 | 14% | $76,560 |
| Biology/life sciences |
$50,000 | 54% | $100,500 |
| History | $50,000 | 46% | $80,000 |
| Hospitality management | $50,000 | 12% | $72,500 |
| Communications/Journalism | $50,000 | 20% | $62,500 |
| Sociology | $45,000 | 34% | $60,300 |
| Psychology | $45,000 | 43% | $65,250 |
* Carneval, Anthony P., Jeff Strohl, and Michelle Melton, 2011. "What It's Worth: The Economic Value of College Majors." Center on Education and the Workforce, Georgetown University.
Jobs Accepted By Recent Economics Department Graduates
Unlike many majors, economics majors have an extremely wide range of possible jobs available. Recent jobs accepted by graduates include:
| Accountant | Commercial Credit Analyst |
Purchasing Manager |
| Accountant | Consumer Lending Officer |
Small Business Consultant |
| Assistant Bank Examiner | Financial Analyst |
Systems Analyst |
| Assistant Manager (retail) | Insurance Investigator |
Trust Analyst |
| Bank Manager | Loan Officer Trainee | |
| Branch Manager Trainee | Manufacturing Sales Representative |
Graduate School Opportunities
Wages and earnings increase substantially with the amount of education a worker has. Economics majors do very well when applying to a variety of graduate programs including law schools, MBA programs, public policy programs and MA and PhD programs in economics. Recent undergraduates have gone on to graduate programs at Cambridge University, University of Leuven (Belgium), University of Florida, or have continued to complete the MA in Economics here at Kent State University. Students have also attended law school at Georgetown University and the University of Chicago.
Questions?
If you have any questions about career opportunities in economics, please contact us or talk to any members of the economics faculty. You may also find useful information at the American Economic Association website.