Econometrics vs Economics

[Mr Rayon]

Which college major is most employable?

 

Which is most useful?

 

Thanks

[Nester]

Economist here...

 

Econometrics is the study of mathematical models of the economy: in my experience, it isn't something you study apart from economics, since you need to know the theory to understand the models. In the United States, an undergrad econ major typically has a one year econometric sequence, mainly linear regression with some time series. In grad school, you typically read journal articles that use econometric models to model aspects of the economy: these are much more sophisticated, such as the ARCH model for estimating market volatility. However, grad school allows other specializations, such as experimental economics, or game theory.

 

If you just want the math without the theory, then perhaps an applied math major, with a minor in economics (so you can pick up the specific models) would work.

 

Nester