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Detailed Information

Programs of Study

Rensselaer’s Department of Economics offers Ph.D. and M.S. degrees with emphasis on its focal areas of ecological economics and the economics of technological change. As part of a leading technological university, the Department is uniquely positioned to offer graduate training in ecological economics, and this fast-growing field offers unparalleled opportunities for linking economics to new developments in the natural sciences and in the other social sciences. The Department’s courses in economics impart both general knowledge–of microeconomic and macroeconomic processes and of tools for economic analysis–and specific knowledge relevant to informed decision-making about the environment and R&D processes. Armed with a deeper understanding of economics and the far-reaching consequences of economic policies, graduates are equipped to understand and effectively influence the forces around them.

The Ph.D. requires 90 credits beyond the bachelor’s degree and 60 beyond the master’s degree. Students are required to take 30 credits of core courses and electives (ten courses) in addition to passing comprehensive exams and proposing, writing, and defending the Ph.D. dissertation.

The Department maintains a small Ph.D. in Ecological Economics program in which students have the opportunity to work closely with distinguished faculty members. Students are expected to carry out original research and are provided with the skills and attention to become leaders. The faculty members focus their research in two main areas. In ecological economics, they analyze how the global economy and local economies can and will change in the future, reflecting social values and economic policies for dealing with global environmental change. In the economics of technological change, they probe the forces driving technology creation and diffusion, the transfer of technology from universities to firms, the evolution of industries, and technology evaluation and development–hence the well-being of the world’s people. In both areas, close attention is paid to empirical facts, ensuring relevance for the models and analyses. Research assistantships cover diverse topics, including sustainable regional development, climate change policy, renewable energy economics, and sustainable livelihoods. In particular, work in the area of sustainable development involves quantitative models linking economic structure, socioeconomic characteristics, and ecosystem services. Such research covers both global analysis–such as how climate change may impact future quantities and prices of food–and community initiatives, in both the U.S. and abroad, that involve public participation.

The Department of Economics also offers a Master of Science degree in economics, which is designed to meet the needs of traditional students as well as those of returning students who wish to integrate their professional experience with additional training in economics. This degree requires 30 credits beyond the bachelor’s degree with a minimum of 24 credit hours in residency. An applied master’s thesis can account for 6 of the credit hours. The program is specifically designed for students who wish to tailor an advanced degree to their career goals. In addition to a solid grounding in economic theory, they are able to develop in-depth knowledge in applied economics in a particular area of interest.

Students may also opt for a Professional Master’s Degree in Ecological Economics, Values, and Policy (EEVP), a dual major offered with the Department of Science and Technology Studies.

Research Facilities

Research is supported by state-of-the-art facilities and equipment including the Rensselaer Libraries, whose electronic information system provides access to collections, databases, and the Internet from campus and remote terminals; the Rensselaer Computing System, which permeates the campus with a coherent array of more than 7,000 nodes of distributed laptops, desktops, advanced workstations, and servers; a shared toolkit of applications for interactive learning and research and high-speed Internet connectivity; one of the country’s largest academically based, class 100 clean room facilities; high-performance campuswide computing facilities that allow for serial or parallel computation; and five core laboratories for molecular biology, proteomics, bio-imaging, and tissue engineering.

Rensselaer’s research capabilities have been enhanced with the addition of the Computational Center for Nanotechnology Innovations (CCNI). The result of a $100-million collaboration with IBM and New York State, the CCNI is the world’s most powerful university-based supercomputing center and a top ten supercomputing center of any kind in the world. The CCNI is made up of massively parallel Blue Gene supercomputers, POWER-based Linux clusters, and Opteron-based clusters, providing more than 100 teraflops of computational muscle and approximately a petabyte of shared online storage.

Other facilities and research centers include the Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies; the George M. Low Center for Industrial Innovation; research centers for integrated electronics, terahertz science,  nanotechnology, fuel cell and hydrogen research, lighting research, science and technology policy, and infrastructure and transportation studies; the Geotechnical Centrifuge Research Center; the Darrin Fresh Water Institute; and the Scientific Computation Research Center.

In addition, academic departments and faculty laboratories have extensive discipline-specific research capabilities and equipment.

Financial Aid

Financial aid is available in the forms of teaching and research assistantships and fellowships, which include tuition scholarships and stipends. Rensselaer assistantships cover the academic year, with summer support available in many departments. University, corporate, or national fellowships fund many of Rensselaer’s full-time graduate students. Outstanding students may qualify for university-sponsored Rensselaer Graduate Fellowship Awards, which carry a minimum stipend of $22,000 and a full tuition and fees scholarship. All fellowship awards are calendar-year awards for full-time graduate students. Low-interest, deferred-repayment graduate loans are available to U.S. citizens with demonstrated need.

Cost of Study

Full-time graduate tuition for the 2008–09 academic year is $36,950. Other costs (estimated living expenses, insurance, etc.) are projected to be about $13,680. Therefore, the cost of attendance for full-time graduate study is approximately $50,630. Part-time study and cohort programs are priced differently. Students should contact Rensselaer for specific cost information related to the programs they wish to study.

Living and Housing Costs

Graduate students at Rensselaer may choose from a variety of housing options. On campus, students can select one of the many residence halls and immerse themselves in campus life or choose from a select number of apartments designed for graduate students only. There are abundant, affordable options off campus as well, many within easy walking distance.

Student Group

Of the 1,176 graduate students, 29 percent are women and 92 percent are full-time, with 75 percent of full-time graduate students studying at the doctoral level.

Student Outcomes

Rensselaer’s graduate students are hired in a variety of industries and sectors of the economy and by private and public organizations, the government, and institutions of higher education. Their starting salaries average $74,807 for master’s degree recipients and $82,750 for Ph.D. recipients.

Location

Located just 10 miles northeast of Albany, New York State’s capital city, Rensselaer’s historic 275-acre campus sits on a hill overlooking the city of Troy, New York, and the Hudson River. The area offers a relaxed lifestyle with many cultural and recreational opportunities, with easy access to both the high-energy metropolitan centers of the Northeast–such as Boston, New York City, and Montreal, Canada–and the quiet beauty of the neighboring Adirondack Mountains.

The Institute

Recognized as a leader in interactive learning and interdisciplinary research, Rensselaer continues a tradition of excellence and technological innovation dating back to 1824. Rensselaer has five schools–Architecture, Engineering, Management, Science, and Humanities and Social Sciences–that offer more than 100 graduate programs in over forty-eight disciplines that attract top students, researchers, and professors. The discovery of new scientific concepts and technologies, especially in emerging interdisciplinary fields, is the lifeblood of Rensselaer’s culture and a core goal for the faculty, staff, and students. Fueled by significant support from government, industry, and private donors, Rensselaer provides a world-class education in an environment tailored to the individual.

Applying

Science and engineering backgrounds, as well as traditional economics backgrounds, are good starting points for work on the economics of technology and industry. Students are considered each year for admission in the fall semester. The admission deadline for the fall semester is January 1. Basic admission requirements are the submission of a completed application form (available online), the required application fee ($75), a statement of background and goals, official transcripts, official scores on the GRE General Test or the GMAT, TOEFL or IELTS scores (if applicable), and two recommendations. A scholarly writing sample is also required for Ph.D. applicants.

The Faculty and Their Research

• James Adams, Professor; Ph.D., Chicago. James D. Adams is Professor of Economics at Rensselaer, the former department head (2006–08), and a research associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Prior to joining Rensselaer he was Professor of Economics at the University of Florida. He has held visiting appointments at the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. Bureau of the Census, and the George J. Stigler Center for the Study of the Economy and the State at the University of Chicago. He recently served on the Telecommunications R&D Board of the National Academy of Sciences, Washington, D.C., and has advised the Advanced Technology Program of the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology on issues of data quality and policy evaluation. Dr. Adams has published numerous articles on the economics of technical change, with emphasis on the causes and consequences of industrial and academic research and development, as well as a range of articles in the fields of labor and public economics. His recent research focuses on the limits of the firm in research and development, the measurement of scientific influence, the identification of alternative channels of knowledge externalities in the economy, the structure and meaning of scientific teams and collaborations, the speed of diffusion of scientific research, the interaction between investment in industrial research and development and investment in physical capital, and the determinants of research and teaching productivity in academia. (adamsj@rpi.edu)
• Science and industry: Tracing the flow of basic research through manufacturing and trade. Econ. Innovat. New Techol. 2008. (http://www.economics.rpi.edu/workingpapers/rpi0614.pdf)
• Learning, internal research, and spillovers: Evidence from a sample of R&D laboratories. Econ. Innovat. New Techol. 2006. (http://www.economics.rpi.edu/workingpapers/rpi0409.pdf)
• Scientific teams and institutional collaborations: Evidence from U.S. universities, 1991–1999. Res. Pol. 34(3):259–85, 2005.
• The influence of federal laboratory R&D on industrial research. Rev. Econ. Statist. 85:1003–20, 2003.
• Faye Duchin, Professor; Ph.D., Berkeley. For many years, Dr. Duchin has been engaged in formulating alternative scenarios about technological change and analyzing their implications for employment and economic well-being as well as for resource use and the environment. The research makes use of mathematical models of individual economies and the world economy implemented with input-output databases. A sustainable development research agenda requires cross-disciplinary collaborations and needs to engage not only the policy community and corporate decision makers but also civil society. This research involves collaborations with colleagues in several countries, and Dr. Duchin is also involved in building scholarly networks through her leadership roles in several international professional societies and scholarly journals. At the present time, she is especially active in the integration of input-output economics and industrial ecology, mainly input-output models of economies and engineering-based life-cycle analysis. (duchin@rpi.edu)
• A world trade model based on comparative advantage with m regions, n goods, and k factors. Econ. Syst. Res. 17(2):141–62, 2005. (http://econpapers.repec.org/paper/rpirpiwpe/0309.htm)
• Sustainable consumption of food. J. Ind. Ecol. 9(1–2):99–114, 2005. (http://econpapers.repec.org/paper/rpirpiwpe/0405.htm)
• World trade as the adjustment mechanism of agriculture to climate change. Climatic Change 82(3–4):393–409, 2007. (http://econpapers.repec.org/paper/rpirpiwpe/0507.htm)
• Arturo Estrella, Professor and Department Head; Ph.D., Harvard. Dr. Estrella’s research focuses on predictive power of the term structure of interest rates; affine models of the term structure of interest rates; macroeconomic models: theoretical and empirical; use of macro economic models in monetary policy analysis; bank capital regulation; corporate finance, particularly in the financial sector; and financial markets and instruments. (estrea@rpi.edu)
• Monetary tightening cycles and the predictability of economic activity. Econ. Lett., in press.
• The yield curve as a leading indicator: Some practical issues. Current Issues in Economics and Finance, New York: Federal Reserve Bank, July/August, 2006. With Trubin.
• Why does the yield curve predict output and inflation? Econ. J. July, 2005.
• John Gowdy, Professor; Ph.D., West Virginia. Dr. Gowdy’s research focuses on ecological economics, including economic valuation of biodiversity and environmental theory and policy; behavioral economics and environmental policy; economic anthropology, including the sustainability of complex societies; evolutionary models of economic change; and biophysical models of sustainability. (gowdyj@rpi.edu)
• Microeconomic Theory Old and New: A Student’s Guide. Palo Alto: Stanford University Press, in press.
• Paradise for Sale: A Parable of Nature. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2000. With McDaniel.
• Behavioral economics and climate change policy. J. Econ. Behav. Organ., in press.
• Toward a new welfare foundation for sustainability. Ecolog. Econ. 53:211–22, 2005.
• The approach of ecological economics. Cambridge J. Econ. 29(2):207–22, 2005. With Erickson.
• The revolution in welfare economics and its implications for environmental valuation. Land Econ. 80(2):239–57, 2004.
• John Heim, Clinical Professor; M.P.A., Harvard; M.S., Ph.D., SUNY at Albany. Dr. Heim’s current research focuses on converting Hick’s IS-LM version of Keynesian theory into a system of mechanics by finding stable and unambiguous estimates of the parameters in the IS and LM equations. Work to date on the IS curve is substantially progressed and suggests that with the addition of accelerator, crowd out, and Tobin’s q variables, the IS curve predicts most of the variance in the real GDP quite well. Work on the LM curve is in a more preliminary stage. Work on determining the mechanism that brings the system into equilibrium at the intersection of the two curves is well progressed. A second area of research interest is the East Asian economic recovery after the 1997–1998 economic crisis. Preliminary investigation of whether the recovery was generated by the effects classical mechanics or Keynesian mechanics is underway.(heimj@rpi.edu)
• Lighting Fixtures With Specular Reflectors Compared To Lighting Fixtures With Ordinary Reflectors: A Cost Benefit Study. Delmar, N.Y.: The Dormitory Authority of the State of New York, 1996.
• A/E fee schedules: 1991 comparison of FDC with certain states and other public entities. Albany, N.Y.: The NYS Facilities Development Corporation, 1991.
• Robert W. Jones, Clinical Assistant Professor; M.B.A, Rochester; Ph.D., Rensselaer. Dr. Jones’ research focuses on regional economics, valuation of closely held businesses, and economics and law. (jonesr2@rpi.edu)
• An institutional perception of cooperative behavior. J. Soc. Econ. 32:233–48, 2003. With Onyeiwu.
• Daniel Shawhan, Assistant Professor; Ph.D., Cornell. Dr. Shawhan’s research focuses on environmental regulation of electric power industry, electricity market design, human behavior in decisions involving up-front costs, and delayed benefits. (shawhd@rpi.edu)
• Is time inconsistency primarily a male problem? J. Econ. Behav. Organ. Feburary, 2008.
• Tradable permit markets. In Experimental Methods, Environmental Economics, eds. T. Cheery, S. Kroll, and J. Shogren. New York: Routledge, 2007.
• Markets for reactive power and reliability: A white paper. Engineering and Economics of Electricity Research Group White Paper, December 5, 2006. Available at http://e3rg.pserc,cornell.edu/node/100.
• Kenneth Simons, Assistant Professor; Ph.D., Carnegie Mellon. Professor Simons is an expert in the dynamics of industrial organization and technological change. His work probes industry shakeouts, cross-industry differences in competitive dynamics, firm survival, merger and acquisition, entrepreneurship, technological innovation, and disruptive technological change. The work involves detailed empirical study using state-of-the-art methods for industry dynamics and technology research, complemented with theoretical industrial organization modeling plus simulation and computational methods. Prior to joining RPI, he was on the faculty of the University of London’s Royal Holloway College. He has served as chairman of the Network of Industrial Economists and editorial board member of two journals, and has organized several conferences on industrial organization and technological change. Student research opportunities may be available. He has employed several Ph.D. and undergraduate students as research assistants, as well as serving as advisor or committee member for numerous Ph.D. students. (simonk@rpi.edu)
• Ownership change, productivity, and human capital: New evidence from matched employer-employee data in Swedish manufacturing. In Producer Dynamics: New Evidence from Micro Data. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, for the National Bureau of Economic Research, in press. With Siegel and Lindstrom.
• Lighting industry. In Innovation in Global Industries-U.S. Firms Competing in a New World. Washington, D.C.: National Academics Press: 163–205, 2008. With Sanderson, Walls, and Lai.
• Industry shakeouts and technological change. Int. J. Ind. Organ. 23(1–2):23–43, 2005. With Klepper.
• Political instability and growth in dictatorships. Public Choice 125(3–4):445–70, 2005. With Overland and Spagat.
• Donald Vitaliano, Professor; Ph.D., CUNY. Dr. Vitaliano’s research agenda focuses on efficiency and productivity measurement, with particular interest in the public sector. Both stochastic frontier regression and data envelopment analysis are employed in these studies. Three new papers dealing with corporate social responsibility have been recently published. In addition, three papers relating to electric utility, gender wage differences based on human capital and corporate social responsibility and land turnover are under review. (vitald@rpi.edu)
• An empirical analysis of the strategic use of corporate social responsibility. J. Econ. Manag. Strat. 16(3):773–92, 2007. With Siegel.
• How increased enforcement can offset statutory deregulation: The case of the community reinvestment act. J. Financ. Regul. Compl. 15(3):1358–88, 2007. With Stella.
• The cost of corporate social responsibility: The case of the community reinvestment act. J. Prod. Anal. 26:235–44, 2006. With Stella.

Correspondence and Information

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Department of Economics
Russell Sage Laboratory
110 8th Street
Troy, New York 12180
Telephone: 518-276-6387
Email: kaufmb@rpi.edu