Graduate Programs in Public Policy and Political Economy
Master of Science in International Political Economy Dual Degree
36 semester credit hours minimum
Faculty
Professors: Patrick T. Brandt, Euel W. Elliott, Jennifer S. Holmes, Dohyeong Kim, Clint W. Peinhardt, Richard K. Scotch
Associate Professor: Simon M. Fass
Assistant-Professors: Elías Cisneros, Marcelo Leal, Erin Litzow, Anton Sobolev, Pengfei Zhang
Professors Emeriti: Brian J. L. Berry, Paul Diehl, Lloyd J. Dumas, Donald A. Hicks, Murray J. Leaf
Professor-of-Practice: Timothy M. Bray
Professor of Instruction: Karl K. Ho
Mission
The MSc in International Political Economy (MSc IPE) is an international and interdisciplinary two-year Master's program designed to combine the analytical strength of economics with global insights from political science. Students acquire the knowledge and skills expected of an economist and, at the same time, gain expertise in international relations, issues of development, security, and international policy. The program provides training in quantitative as well as qualitative research methods. The MSc IPE is jointly offered by the University of Texas at Dallas and the University of Marburg and successful students will receive a degree from both universities (double or dual degree program). Students are required to spend one year of study at each university. The Program is taught entirely in English.
Program participants will develop an up-to-date understanding of the subject of study (i.e., an awareness of leading theories, criticisms, and limitations, as well as recent advances in research). In addition, they will be taught how to use this acquired knowledge to analyze real-world circumstances within an economic paradigm and discover appropriate and feasible solutions.
Objectives
- Students will demonstrate the ability to apply social science and international political economy theories and concepts.
- Students will develop competency in analysis, evaluation, and research design relevant to social science and international political economy research and analysis.
- Students will develop basic skills in professional communication appropriate to international political economy research and analysis in a new cultural environment.
Facilities
At UTD, Students have access to the computing facilities in the School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences and the University's computer labs. The school has four computing laboratories which house between 24-30 computers that are network linked and equipped with major social science software packages, including EViews, R, RATS, SPSS, and Stata. A computerized geographic information system, the LexisNexis database, and Westlaw are also available for student use. The University's computer labs provide personal computers and UNIX workstations. Many important data and reference materials are also available online via the library and school's memberships in numerous organizations.
Admission Requirements
The University's general admission requirements are discussed on the Graduate Admission page.
The master's program in International Political Economy seeks applications from students with a baccalaureate degree from an institution of higher education. Although applications will be reviewed holistically, in general, entering students have earned at least a 3.0 undergraduate grade point average (GPA) (on a 4.0 point scale), and a verbal score of 156 and a quantitative score of 146 on the Graduate Records Examination (GRE). Standardized test scores are only one of the factors taken into account in determining admission. (Dual degree candidates must maintain a 3.5 in the program to be considered to continue on to Marburg). Students should also submit all transcripts, three letters of recommendation, and a one-page essay outlining the applicant's background, education, and professional objectives. Final admissions decisions are made by a joint admissions committee of faculty from both UT-Dallas and Marburg.
Degree Requirements
Option I: Students Starting at UT Dallas
First year at UT Dallas
18 semester credit hours (Roughly equivalent to 60 ECTS at Philipps-Universität Marburg)
Research Methods and Economics: 9 semester credit hours
EPPS 6313 Introduction to Quantitative Methods
or EPPS 7313 Descriptive and Inferential Statistics
PPPE 6321 Economics for Public Policy
ECON 5322 Macroeconomic Theory for Applications
International Politics/IPE: 6 semester credit hours
PSCI 6300 Proseminar in Comparative Politics and International Relations
or PSCI 6321 Proseminar in Comparative Politics
or PSCI 7335 Theories of International Relations
And
PSCI 6316 International Organizations
or PPPE 6352 World Political Economy
Electives: 3 semester credit hours
Choose one course from the following:
PPPE 6335 Institutions and Development
PPPE 6362 Political Development
PPPE 6301 Political-Economic Theories
PSCI 7372 Game Theory for Political Scientists
PPPE 6368 Political Economy of Finance
PPPE 6370 Political Economy of Natural Resources
PSCI 6319 Proseminar in International Relations
PPPE 7V76 Policy Research Workshop in Development Studies
Other classes may be substituted with approval of the Program Head.
Second year at Philipps-Universität Marburg
60 ECTS (Roughly equivalent to 18 semester credit hours at UT Dallas)
Research Methods: 6 ECTS
Choose one course from the following:
Empirical Macroeconomics (6 ECTS)
Empirical Institutional Economics (6 ECTS)
International Economics: 12 ECTS
Choose two courses from the following:
Economic Aspects of Political Institutions (6 ECTS)
International Macroeconomics and Finance (6 ECTS)
Development Economics (6 ECTS)
Seminar: 12 ECTS
MSc seminar: varying topics (6 ECTS)
MSc seminar: varying topics (6 ECTS)
Thesis: 18 ECTS
Electives: 12 ECTS
Choose three courses from the following:
Economics of Cooperation (6 ECTS)
Islamic Economics (6 ECTS)
Law and Economics (6 ECTS)
European Competition and Regulatory Policy (6 ECTS)
European Monetary Economics (6 ECTS)
Institutional Economics (6 ECTS)
Other classes may be substituted with approval of the Program Head
Option II: Students starting at Philipps-Universität Marburg
First year at Philipps-Universität Marburg
60 ECTS (Roughly equivalent to 18 semester credit hours at UT Dallas)
Research Methods: 12 ECTS
Empirical Macroeconomics (6 ECTS)
Empirical Institutional Economics (6 ECTS)
International Economics: 12 ECTS
Choose two courses from the following:
Economic Aspects of Political Institutions (6 ECTS)
International Macroeconomics and Finance (6 ECTS)
Development Economics (6 ECTS)
Electives: 30 ECTS
Economics of Cooperation (6 ECTS)
Islamic Economics (6 ECTS)
Law and Economics (6 ECTS)
European Competition and Regulatory Policy (6 ECTS)
European Monetary Economics (6 ECTS)
Seminar: 6 ECTS
MSc seminar: varying topics (6 ECTS)
Other classes may be substituted with approval of the Program Head
Second year at UT Dallas
18 semester credit hours (Roughly equivalent to 60 ECTS at Philipps-Universität Marburg)
Research Methods: 3 semester credit hours
EPPS 6346 Qualitative Research Orientation
or PSCI 7372 Game Theory for Political Scientists
International Politics/IPE: 6 semester credit hours
PSCI 6300 Proseminar in Comparative Politics and International Relations
or PPPE 6352 World Political Economy
And
PSCI 6316 International Organizations
or PSCI 7335 Theories of International Relations
The program head can approve substitutions for International Politics/IPE.
Electives: 3 semester credit hours
Choose one course from the following:
PPPE 6335 Institutions and Development
PPPE 6362 Political Development
PPPE 6301 Political-Economic Theories
PSCI 7372 Game Theory for Political Scientists
PPPE 6368 Political Economy of Finance
PPPE 6370 Political Economy of Natural Resources
Other EPPS methods classes
Thesis: 6 semester credit hours
PPPE 6V98 Masters Thesis
Other classes may be substituted with approval of the Program Head.