Studying Economics during either a B.Comm. or a B.A. degree, you develop an invaluable set of analytical skills and tools. Choose to study Economics as part of a B.Comm. if you also want to study complimentary business subjects that give you a better insight into the business world. Choose to study Economics as part of a B.A. if you want the opportunity to choose other subjects from the extensive range of liberal Arts courses available in NUI Galway.

Choosing either undergraduate degree programmes allows you to pursue your interest in Economics and to study other subjects as well. Make your decision based on your current interest in either business issues or in some of the subjects available through a B.A., but remember that your undergraduate degree is but a starting point, you will be able to pursue your interest in Economics and all potential career options through either degree programme.

Economics is a core component of B.Comm. degree and is a compulsory subject in all years of the B.Comm, reflecting its central role in a rounded business education.

In First Commerce, you study Economics by exploring:

• The decision-making behaviour of individual economic actors, for example, individual consumers, business entrepreneurs, bankers and government ministers - this is called microeconomics
• The collective behaviour of these actors, looking at how all these decisions interact - this is called macroeconomics

In Second Commerce, you build on the concepts and principles covered in first year microeconomics and macroeconomics, with an emphasis also on business organisation issues. If you decide to choose Economics as a specialist subject in your B.Comm., you choose additional Economics courses from a list of Economics options, for example, Introduction to Financial Economics, Comparative Economic Thought and Cost-Benefit Analysis.

In Third Commerce, all students take a course in Comparative European Economy, which aims to give an account of the major policy issues facing the Irish and European economy. If you have chosen Economics as your specialist subject, you also take courses in Economic Theory, and Econometrics or a Research Project and you choose additional courses from a list of Economics options, for example, health economics, regional and urban economics and financial markets.

For detailed descriptions of the courses in each year, check out the Current Students section of this web site.

With Economics in your degree, you can work anywhere. Our graduates follow three different broad career paths :

• Economics - a good basis for a generalist
  
  Economics is an excellent training, providing you with good analytical skills and a broad understanding of economic issues, and preparing you for a wide variety of work environments. The majority of our graduates find employment in generalist roles in all sectors, such as business, banking, insurance and public administration, where the skills and knowledge gained through studying Economics are invaluable assets. Because there is an economic dimension to most decisions in all sectors, graduates with Economics have a head start.
   
• Economics - a stepping stone to a specialism
  
  Economics is an excellent degree on which to build a specialism. You can follow many different career paths, taking postgraduate and professional courses to specialise in specific areas such as accountancy, management, marketing, social and community work, law or the financial services.
   
• Economics - training future economists
  
  A small percentage of our Economics students follow their basic degree with further postgraduate study in Economics, at diploma, Masters or PhD levels. On graduating, these people find employment as:
  - economists in government departments, for example, Finance or Enterprise, Trade and Employment
  - economists in international organisations, for example, the European Union or the World Bank
  - as lecturers and researchers in universities and other third-level institutes
  - as consultants with organisations such as the ESRI
  as economists in the private sector with companies such as Price Waterhouse and Irish Life.

In all of these positions, our graduates draw extensively on the analytical tools, the skills and knowledge acquired when studying Economics as part of their degree.

With a B.Comm., you can apply for entry into four taught Economics postgraduate programmes at NUI Galway:the Higher Diploma in Economic Science and four different Master of Economic Science programmes, a masters programme in Economic Policy Evaluation & Planning, a masters programme in International Finance, a masters programme in Economic and Environmental Modelling or a maters programme in Health Economics.

Apply for the B.Comm through the CAO system - check out the Admissions section of the NUI Galway web site and the CAO web site for more information, where you will also find details on entry requirements.

A certain number of places are reserved each year for mature students. Mature students also apply through the CAO system. Check out the Mature Students section of the NUI Galway web site for more information.

For more information about Economics as part of the B.Comm., contact contact Brendan Kennelly (tel: 353 91 493904) or Claire Noone (tel: 353 91 492177).

For more information about the B.Comm. in general, contact the J.E. Cairnes School of Business and Economics office (tel: 353 91 492988).