Economics
Economics is the branch of social science that deals with the study of production, distribution and consumption of goods and services. In other words, it is the study of how the forces of supply and demand allocate scarce resources. The term economics comes from the Greek words, oikos (house) and nomos (custom or law), hence 'rules of the house (hold)'. Economics play an important role in all aspects of our life whether it is social, political or economic as well as day to day matters. It is based on this pillar that the progress of a country stands.
Economics is an integral part of a well-rounded liberal arts education. It occupies a strategic place among various disciplines of social sciences, and is considered as a field that often overlaps with the fields of political science, sociology, geography, history and psychology. As the economic way of thinking is so useful in making sense of the world around us, economics has sometimes been called the 'queen of social sciences'. Economic analysis is applied throughout society, in business, finance and government, crime, education, the family, health, law, politics, religion, social institutions, war and science.
Economics is the study of how individuals and societies choose to employ scarce resources. It deals with, what goods and services will be produced, how they will be produced, and how they will be distributed among the members of society. Economics has two branches: microeconomics and macroeconomics. Microeconomics studies the behavior of specific sectors of the economy, such as companies, industries or households. Micro-economics explains how demand and supply affect prices, wages, rentals and interest rates. Its primary concern is to help consumers and investors to make their lives better by increasing their earnings and satisfying their needs despite limited resources. Macroeconomics studies a nation or the world's economy as a whole, using data about inflation, unemployment and industrial production to understand the past and predict the future. In macro economics, we study the economic behavior of the large aggregates such as the overall conditions of the economy in relation to total production, total consumption, total saving and total investment in it.
The study of economics helps formulate an understanding of the effects of financial actions and reactions, by individuals and institutions. Knowledge of economic laws and principles enables entrepreneurs to have an ideal combination of the different factors of production. An economy exists because of two basic facts. Firstly, human wants for goods and services are unlimited and secondly, productive resources with which to produce goods and services are scarce. Therefore, an economy has to decide how to use its scarce resources to obtain the maximum possible satisfaction of the members of the society. Economics, guide consumers to distribute their income in purchasing of different commodities in such a way that they can satisfy their maximum number of wants within the given resources.
Those who specialise in this subject field are known as Economists. They study and analyze the relationship between supply and demand of goods and services and how they are produced, distributed and consumed. They provide information to management that affects decisions on marketing and pricing of products, economic forecasts, and the effect of government policies on business. Economists also help in solving problems like unfair wages, rapid population growth, people migration to city centers, high crime incidence, and loss of human resources due to overseas migration.
Eligibility & Course Areas
Educational: Economics very often forms a part of the curriculum in many Indian schools right from class IX itself. However, Minimum requirement to start a career as Economists is graduation. After graduation you can go for Post graduation. Further you can do M. Phil/Ph. D in Development studies with major emphasis on Economics. Alternately, you can specialize in a branch like Business or Agricultural Economics, Financial Economics, Labour Economics, Industrial Economics, Banking Economics, International Economics etc. which are offered only a few universities. Besides departments of economics of some universities have also introduced courses in International Business and Financial Control and Analysis.
Another option is to do Master of Business Economics (MBE). Delhi University is the most reputed one in this subject. Business economics deals with the analysis of the behaviour of firms in markets and industries, and with determination of costs and prices. Courses are at present offered by about 13 universities in India leading to Master of Business Economics or MA in Business Economics.
If you are interested you can go for Econometrics which is another specialisation in this field. Econometrics combines economic theory expressed in mathematical form with statistical methods. At present the subject is available only in University of Madras; Rani Durgavati Vishwavidyalaya, Jabalpur; Sri Venkateshwara University, Tirupati and the Indian Statistical Institutes.
Most of the colleges and Universities in India offer Bachelor and Master's degree course in Economics. Universities offer honours courses leading to the award of B.A (Hons) or B.Sc (Hons). It is only in three Universities, viz., Anna University, Birla Institute of Technology and Science and Chhatrapati Sahu Ji Maharaj University that the nomenclature of the award is M.Sc (Economics). Doctoral courses like M.Phil and Ph.D. courses are also offered by many Universities and specific Economics school within the country. Prominent among them are Delhi School of Economics, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Banaras Hindu University etc. There are two deemed Universities in Economics, viz., Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics, Pune. It offers only M.A and Ph.D courses and Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, Mumbai (IGIDR offers M.Phil (2 Years) and Ph.D (4 Years) Programs in Development Studies. Postgraduate diploma courses are available in Annamalai University; Gujarat University, Ahmedabad, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar.
Personal attributes:
Economists must have
- A logical and analytical bent of mind
- Numerical ability
- An interest in current social and political activities
- Sincerity, commitment and devotion
- An interest in problem solving
- A high level of patience, with a positive and optimistic attitude
- Knowledge of overseas economic ideas and trends
- Knowledge of maths, including statistics
- Decision-making ability
- Good oral and written communication skills
- Good time and project management skills
Job Prospects & Career Options
Globalisation and economic liberalisation has widened the job prospects of economists in business, education, government and non- profit sector. Well-trained economists are in huge demand across industries, not only at the national but at the international level as well.
Opportunities for economics academicians are available in finance sector, urban and rural development, foreign trade, colleges and universities, government service etc. Planning commissions, management consultants and organizations associated with data collection and interpretations recruit economics graduates at lucrative terms. Economics professionals are employed as economic analyst, finance economist, econometrician, economic advisor and economist.
Securing a Government job is really a matter of pride. The Indian Economic Service and Reserve Bank of India are excellent options open to those who want to join government services. Those who have specialised in economics can appear for Indian Economic Service (IES) exam conducted by UPSC which is the gateway to a challenging career in which selected candidates can join the service as Group-A officers. They are placed in the Planning Commission, Planning Board, Ministry of Economic Affairs, National Sample Survey and other departments that need specialists in economics. Reserve Bank of India also conducts various tests to recruit economists in the banking sector. Postgraduates in the age group 21-28 are eligible for the examination.
Economic consulting is another option available for students from economics background. However, the foremost growth potential for economists lies in the private sector and most notably in scientific research and consulting firms. Research institutes like National Council of Applied Economic Research, New Delhi; Indian Council of Social Science Research; Institute of Economic Growth, New Delhi etc. offer ample job opportunities to economists.
Banking and insurance sector is also a lucrative option in this field. Financial institutions like various nationalised banks, private and foreign banks and insurance companies offer good openings to postgraduate degree holders in economics. In banks, they can find jobs like branch managers, clerks, economic advisers, development officers etc. In the insurance sector they are generally employed as insurance consultants, insurance agents, development officers, insurance policy makers and can even work as mangers, assistant mangers of the insurance company. Besides merging of world economy gives ample career opportunities in international financial institutions and research activities. Various international organisations like the World Bank and the International Labour Organisation offer ample job opportunities to well-known economists. Some others may choose to enter non-profit institutions like NGOs.
Tax, taxation, filling process of indirect and direct taxes is the part of public economics. Those who have interest regarding tax matters can go for some special courses available to tax consultants like Diploma in taxation, Certificate course in tax consultant etc. and work as tax consultants.
Investment consultant is another area available for the students of economics. If you have good knowledge of capital market, money market and commodity market you can become investment consultant. Mutual fund is a growing service industry in India where knowledge of economic analysis is required for effective investment decision making and therefore professionals from economics and finance background can find prospects in this area.
Those who have keen interest in higher studies and research can opt for M.Phil. and Ph.D. and thereby aspire to take higher position in public and private sector. Post graduates in this field can write UGC exams like NET and take up teaching as a career in various colleges, universities and professional institutions.
Forest sector is also one of the important sectors for the students of economics and agricultural economics. Candidates who have completed their degree or diploma with resource economics, agricultural economics, environmental economics can take this opportunity in India and abroad also. They are employed for conservation and scientific management of forests and the utilization of their resources. Agricultural Scientist Recruitment Board recruits scientist from economics background who have passed Master degree in economics with specialization in Agricultural Economics.
Those with degree in economics followed by a degree in Journalism and Mass Communication have lots of opportunities in print media as well as in television. Economics academicians can work as economic journalist in business journals, newspapers, television and web channels. Newspapers and journals provide economics graduates with opportunities to write reports on economic and business events.
Institutes
There are several colleges and universities conducting bachelor and master level courses as well as M.Phil and Ph.D. Universities which are widely perceived as centres of excellence, include Anna University (Madras School of Economics, Chennai), Aligarh Muslim University, Andhra University, University of Calcutta, University of Delhi (Delhi School of Economics), University of Hyderabad, Indian Statistical Institute, Jadavpur University, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), University of Lucknow, University of Madras, Madurai Kamaraj University, University of Mumbai, Punjab University, Pune University. The Indian Statistical Institute has pioneered to study of Econometrics.
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