Economics

...for engineers

Christopher Makler, Ph.D.

Lecturer & Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies, Economics Department

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Why econ?

You'll get a good-paying job.

You'll learn rigorous tools to analyze data.

Just like every other major at Stanford.

You can follow a career path with a significant and measurable social impact.

Relatively few units required; lots of people double major/minor

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You'll learn how to analyze messy situations with elegant, testable models.

You'll have a wide range of career -- and career-switching -- options.

If you combine Econ and engineering, people will think you're Jedi.

One of the Stanford Econ department's specialties is mechanism design.

If you're entrepreneurial, you'll be faced with a lot of economic problems.

Sooner or later, even as an engineer, you'll have to deal with humans.

dealing with humans

Matt Gentzkow

Pioneered the economic study
of social networks

Winner, 2014 John Bates Clark Medal

Teaches Econ 47

mechanism design

MIcroeconomists

MAcroeconomists

People who are wrong about
specific things

People who are wrong about
things in general

mechanism design

Much of economics is about understanding how people respond to incentives, and in particular how they respond to prices in a market mechanism.

Mechanism design takes an engineering approach to economics, and asks:

How can we design mechanisms 
that provide the incentives
to achieve a desired result?

Al Roth

Designed algorithms to support kidney exchanges

Won Nobel Prize in 2012

Paul Milgrom

Designed $19 billion
wireless spectrum auction

Won Nobel Prize in 2020

Teaches Econ 136

Some (very) notable Stanford Econ professors in this field:

Paul Milgrom

Designed $19 billion
wireless spectrum auction

Won Nobel Prize in 2020

Teaches Econ 136

career opportunities

Finance and Consulting

Entrepreneurship and Tech

Well-established internship programs, career paths, mentoring

Product managers, CEO's, venture capital

Dirty little secret #1: You can work at any of these firms with any Stanford major.

Policy and Research

Policy think tanks, government, nonprofit organizations, academia

Dirty little secret #2: What you do there might depend on your major. Know yourself!

two programs: ba and bs

plus: certificates!

Certificates

  • 18 or more units, generally taken from upper-division courses
  • Available to majors only
  • Doesn't appear on transcript or diploma, but recognizes focused work in a career-oriented area of study
  • Four certificates offered:
    • Business Economics
    • Data Science
    • Environmental Economics
    • Finance

B.A. Core Requirements

B.S. Core Requirements

(note: B.A. still qualifies as STEM)

CORE
(47 units)

FIELD
(25 units)

(5)

CAPSTONE

ELEC
(8)

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

110

120

Units

Philosophy, Linguistics

Electrical Engineering

International Relations

Mechanical Engineering

Management Science & Engineering

Computer Science (min.)

Sociology, American Studies, German

B.S.

CORE
(30 units)

FIELD
(25 units)

(5)

CAPSTONE

ELECTIVES
(20 units)

Opportunities to pursue your interests

B.A.

85

Data Science Minors

Human Rights Minor

Italian Minor

Double major in math, co-term in CS

thank you and good luck!

Chris Makler

cmakler@stanford.edu

calendly.com/chrismakler

(please don't schedule 1:1 next week due to an upcoming midterm...)

thank you
and good luck

chris makler

cmakler@stanford.edu