Department of Economics, University of Copenhagen Department profile - Research and study

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1 Department of Economics, University of Copenhagen Department profile - Research and study The Department of Economics at the University of Copenhagen is part of the Faculty of Social Sciences. The Department in its present form was founded in 1958, though teaching and research in Economics already began at the University in The Department is the University s department for teaching in Economics at all academic levels as well as for research in Economics, and it is located in the centre of Copenhagen in scenic, classical buildings. Currently, the faculty includes 46 permanent faculty members whose interests cover a wide range of fields in Economics. To stimulate high quality research and teaching, the Department has an ambitious guest programme; encourages national and international collaboration; operates an active seminar, workshop and conference programme and promotes the establishment of externally funded research centres. Moreover, the Department maintains a high level of ongoing investment in information technology. Troels Østergaard Sørensen Head of Department October 2005 Before 1 September 2005, the Department of Economics was named the Institute of Economics. 1

2 Research General economic theory and methodology has a central position in the Department s research profile. It is the Department s philosophy that a solid foundation in economic theory and methodology is an important prerequisite for the contribution of new knowledge in Economics. Furthermore, it is the Department s policy to carry out both basic and applied research. According to the faculty members research reports in 2004, approximately 40% can be considered basic research and 60% applied research. The research profile can be illustrated by the Journal of Economic Literature (JEL) classification. Research output can be measured as the share of peer reviewed books and journal articles within each JEL group as reported by faculty and PhD students during Measured in this way the four main research fields are: Mathematical and Quantitative Methods: Theory and Econometrics (C) 18%, Microeconomics (D) 15%, Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics (E) 11% and Development Economics (O) 11%. The key fields within Quantitative Methods are Applied Microeconometrics and Time Series Econometrics. Other main research fields are: International Economics (F), Public Economics (H), Health, Education and Welfare (I), Labour and Demographic Economics (J), Industrial Organization (L) and Economic History. In addition, Finance and Experimental Economics have recently been strengthened through new faculty appointments. Research centres In order to strengthen research efforts and to be at the European research frontier in selected fields, externally funded research centres have been developed as an integrated part of the Department. The Centre for Applied Microeconometrics (CAM) is funded by The Danish National Research Foundation and supports research in all areas of applied microeconometrics. Particular emphasis is paid to research in economic behaviour and welfare of households, labour market issues and development of panel data methods. The Economic Policy Research Unit (EPRU) is also funded by The Danish National Research Foundation. EPRU s main research fields are public economics, macroeconomic theory and policy, and international economic policy. As regards the Development Economics Research Group (DERG), it is partly funded by Danida (the Danish Development Research Council). DERGresearchers focus on development theory and policy in general as well as specific issues in developing countries. Finally, the Centre for Industrial Economics (CIE) is an industrial economics network, mainly funded by the Danish Social Science Foundation. CIE conducts research into competition and regulation and the firm and its relationships. Other research fields at the Department have strong international profiles and receive external funding without being formally organized as centres, e.g. economic theory, game theory, time-series econometrics and economic history. 2

3 Thus the Department is very active in attracting external funding. During the last 7 years, the share of externally funded researchers at the Department, measured in full time equivalents, has been between %. The Department is currently in the process of expanding its research and teaching in Finance and a new Finance Research Unit has been established. The faculty members in Finance conduct research in the areas of micro-finance, macro-finance and financial econometrics. Recognized research quality It is the aim of the Department to improve its international rankings among economic research departments. In a ranking of economics departments published in Journal of the European Economic Association in December 2003, the University of Copenhagen was ranked as number 19 out of 75 European institutions. The ranking was based on articles in the most influential scholarly journals in Economics appearing in the Journal of Economic Literature (JEL) database. In a recent ranking published in European Economic Review, the Department is ranked as number 15 out of 148 European university departments. The ranking is related to publications in top journals during 1997 to In a comparable ranking related to publications during the Department was ranked as number 66 out of 192. It is the Department s ambition that research should strive to reach the international research frontiers in various subfields and that research results should be published internationally in books and journals. The Department has a research policy which explicitly focuses on and encourages the faculty to publish in international top journals. At present, American Economic Review, Econometrica, Journal of Political Economy and Quarterly Journal of Economics are considered to be the top-4 journals. 25 other journals, including the best field journals, are also given high priority, and incentives to publish in high priority journals are supported by salary supplement measures. Working paper series, visitors and seminars In order to encourage the dissemination of work in progress the Department and its research centres publish several working paper series in English, which are available in full text on the web. An ambitious guest and seminar programme helps stimulate innovative research and teaching at the Department. The main objectives of the programmes are network building, encouragement of national and international collaboration, including joint research, and strengthening of the general reputation of the Department in the international economic community. 3

4 In 2004, the Department and its research centres hosted 26 long-term guests and 72 short-term visitors. The thriving research environment is reflected in the large number of regular seminars and during 2004, 108 seminars were organized by the Department and the centres. In 1996, the Department launched a new series of lectures, the Zeuthen Lectures, in honour of Frederik Zeuthen, the renowned Danish Professor in Economics at the University of Copenhagen from 1930 to Once a year, the Zeuthen Lectures feature an internationally distinguished scholar for three lectures on new groundbreaking economic subjects. The lectures are made available to the international audience through the Zeuthen Lectures Book Series published by the MIT Press. The latest Zeuthen lecturers were Professor Eric Maskin from Princeton University (2004) and Professor Matthew Rabin from University of California, Berkeley (2005). Study The Department offers study programmes and teaching in Economics at Bachelor, Master s and PhD level according to a model. Most students enrol in the full 5-year Master s degree programme, and achieve the title of MSc in Economics (cand.polit. in Danish). A negligible minority leave the University after the 3-year BSc degree. Due to a new University reform, which was passed in 2003, it is expected that student mobility among universities within Denmark as well as internationally will increase. In addition, the Bachelor and Master s programmes will become more independent programmes with separate admission procedures. Until recently, a 2-year MSc degree was required for entry to the 3-year PhD programme in Economics, but it is now possible to follow a 4+4 model with admission to the PhD programme after completion of the first year of the Master s programme. The study programme is fully adapted to the European ECTS system. A full-year study programme is equivalent to 60 ECTS. The academic year is divided into two terms. The spring term runs from 1 February to 1 June and the autumn term from 1 September to late December. Most exams are held in June and January. Bachelor and Master s programmes In 2004, 260 students were admitted to the undergraduate level and 235 students to the Master s level. 181 students graduated with a BSc degree and 156 graduated with an MSc in Economics. The total number of Bachelor and Master s students enrolled was There are no tuition fees for Bachelor or Master s students from EU countries, however, students have to pay for their own books, PCs etc. The living costs for Danish students are supported by government grants and loans. From 2006, foreign students from countries outside the European Union will have to pay fees unless their 4

5 study is part of a formal agreement between the University of Copenhagen and their home university. The annual fee is expected to be approximately 5,000 Euro. The main focus of the curriculum is economic theory. The Bachelor level s core compulsory courses are microeconomics, macroeconomics and econometrics/ statistics. In the second and the third year, students can choose from a range of optional courses, including business economics. The Bachelor programme is concluded with a Bachelor thesis and leads to a BSc degree in Economics. As regards the Master s students, they have a wide range of topic choice and can thus specialize in many fields. In the 2-year Master s programme students are required to take 7-8 lecture courses and 2-3 seminars, most of which are offered in English. The seminars gather a small group of students who participate by submitting a paper for discussion to the instructor and fellow students. The programme is concluded with a Master s thesis of approximately 100 pages. Student mobility Master s students are encouraged to spend one semester or more abroad either through the Department s exchange programmes or through more individually organized visits. Besides the Master s students, a few third-year BSc students also study abroad. The Department participates in the EU sponsored Socrates Programme and has formal student exchange arrangements with many foreign universities. Approximately 60 students in Economics studied abroad during 2004 An increasing number of foreign students are studying Economics in Copenhagen. In 2004, 50 international Master s students were enrolled in the full Master s programme and 97 international guest students attended courses at the Department. Most Master s courses are offered in English and so are some of the courses in the third year of the Bachelor programme. Thus, many courses can be followed by foreign students. Employment prospects for MSc graduates in Economics Graduates in Economics are employed both in the public and the private sector and an increasing number are employed in the latter. Employment and salary prospects for those holding an MSc in Economics from the University of Copenhagen have traditionally been excellent. During 2003, unemployment among new university graduates in Denmark rose slightly, partly due to a mild recession, and partly due to budget cuts in the public sector. Thus, young economists experienced an increase in unemployment, but to a far lesser degree than most other university graduates. However, employment prospects for economists have improved during

6 PhD programme In 2004, 32 students were enrolled in the Department s PhD programme. Eight new students joined the programme and nine received a PhD degree. PhD students in Economics receive an annual fee of 15,000 Euro. Approximately half the PhD students are supported by university grants while the other half receive outside funding. A typical PhD grant includes a salary of 42,000 Euro annually and tuition fees for a three year period. PhD students are formally employed by the University and their salary reflects the salary offered to economists in other public sector jobs in Denmark. The PhD programme consists of both coursework and independent research. The bulk of the programme is the preparation and completion of a PhD thesis. As part of the programme, students are expected to visit other research institutions, preferably abroad, and the Department often sends its PhD students to highly regarded British and American universities such as the London School of Economics and Harvard University for one or two terms. The Department has been approved by the European Commission as a Marie Curie Training Site. The Marie Curie Training Programme offers fellowships to young scholars who are pursuing a PhD. In 2004, 4 Marie Curie fellows visited the Department, typically for three to six months. The Department also participates in two European Doctoral programmes: The Quantitative Economics Doctorate (QED) and The European Doctoral Group in Economics (EDGE). Furthermore, the Department founded the Danish Doctoral Program in Economics (DGPE) together with the Department of Economics at the University of Aarhus. Moreover, the Department is a full partner in the Nordic Network in Economics (NNE) from Other activities The Department is a partner in the Math-Econ study programme at the Faculty of Science and is responsible for the programme s courses in micro- and macroeconomics. The Department is also responsible for teaching Economics in the Public Health programme at the Faculty of Health Science. Furthermore, as part of a continuing education programme, the Department offers a three week Summer School in Econometrics. In addition to research and teaching, faculty members are active in outreach activities and regularly participate in Danish and international economic policy debates in journals and the mass media. Faculty members carry out work for domestic government committees and international organisations, e.g. the Danish Economic Council and the OECD. These activities not only provide services to society but also stimulate research and study activities at the Department. 6

7 Faculty and staff The faculty included 14 full professors, 32 associate professors and 8 assistant professors by the end of The Department has several vacant positions and new faculty members at all levels will be appointed during The Department and its research centres also employ researchers in various fixed term or guest positions. In the course of 2004, 21 research assistants and research fellows/post docs, 1 visiting associate professor and 4 visiting professors were employed for various periods at the Department and the research centres. A large number of Danish and foreign researchers were otherwise affiliated with the Department and the centres, and in 2004, 12 researchers spent a period on sabbatical at the Department and the centres. Part of the teaching at the Department is carried out by external teachers in positions as teaching assistants or external lecturers. The teachers are typically young economists with an MSc or PhD degree and a full time job in government, business, banking, etc. who teach part time (2 or 4 hours a week). In 2004, 76 teaching assistants and 42 external lecturers were affiliated with the Department. As regards PhD students, they typically teach 4 hours a week for 2 terms. At the end of 2004, the joint administrative staff at the Department, the research centres and the Study Board included 14 senior or head clerks, 2 librarians and the Head of Administration. Various Master s students are employed as IT-supporters and as assistants in the library and the administration. Furthermore, students are often hired as research assistants by the research centres and faculty members. The Department encourages positions as student research assistants as a valuable mean for recruiting bright PhD students. 7

8 Key figures 2004 Full Professors 14 (13.3) Associate Professors 32 (26.9) Assistant Professors 8 (6.6) Visiting Professors 4 (1.3) Visiting Associate Professors 1 (0.3) Research Fellows/Research Assistants 21 (10.7) Visiting Researchers on sabbatical 12 (4.1) External Lectures (part time) 42 (7.2) Teaching Assistants (part time) 76 (8.9) Administrative Staff 17 (15.2) Student Assistants (Research, study and administration) 63 (19.2) Marie Curie PhD Students 4 (1.0) International Master s Students 50 International Guest Students 97 MSc Students studying abroad 57 Externally financed research centres 4 Basic research / Applied research 42% / 58% Bachelor programme Master s programme PhD programme In-take Degrees awarded Total number enrolled x: persons during the year - (x): persons in full-year equivalents 8