Learn why M.S. in Applied Economics Program Director, Dr. Aleksander (Sasha) Tomic created his program to address an industry need.
MSAE program at Boston College
Dr. Tomic was asked Why did you choose to build the MSAE program at Boston College? His answer: to bring economics to the real world beyond the stuffy theories and academia. Challenging the stereotypes of economics was a challenge that Dr. Tomic could not resist.
The MSAE program is part of the Woods College of Advancing Studies at Boston College. The program prepares students from around the globe to make effective, highly impactful decisions with a deep understanding of big data and ethics. The program launched in 2015 with the mission to provide an applied, hands-on curriculum to help students address real-world problems.
Whether you are just starting your career or are looking to hone your skills, a Master’s Degree in Applied Economics offers essential advantages. “The program allows you to learn real-world skills applied to very different situations through an economic lens,” said Elliot Tobin, a recent MSAE alumni to the Markets Insider.
The program is designed to develop “T-shaped professionals,” those who have both breadth in how to collaborate and innovate across disciplines and depth in specific areas of expertise. “T-shaped professionals” hone sophisticated technical skills and soft skills, both of which are the foundations for today’s complex problems in all industries.
MSAE curriculum
The MSAE curriculum combines a high level of technical skills and focuses on the improvement of soft skills, allowing students to be leaders. Students work with real-world data sets that are often unstructured, complex, and require a knowledge of coding. In addition to learning how to think like an economist, students have the opportunity to learn other technical skills, including forecasting, predictive analytics, transfer pricing, measuring business cycles, and more. Team collaboration skills are also of the utmost importance in the industry, and the MSAE program brings together a diverse group of students in each of its courses. The program also requires students to deliver polished presentations on the analytical work that they are doing for course projects. Students are vigorously coached to help them nail down their communication and presentation skills.