The Department of Economics offers several challenging academic programs and is home to a vibrant group of professors whose research touches on a wide range of issues. Experiential learning through co-op and unique directed research courses are a hallmark of our undergraduate programs, which also offer students an opportunity to develop their skills in both of Canada’s official languages. Our MA and PhD programs prepare students for a variety of careers in the public and private sectors. Our professors are engaged in research on topics including philanthropy, carbon taxes, pollution, the behaviour of NGOs, the effects of minimum wages, health inequalities, mergers, property rights and environmental regulation, strategic behavior, affirmative action and employment, social networks, indigenous issues, terrorism, research transparency, trade policy, inflation, and climate policy. Learn more about the department.
Department of Economics
Why the Department of Economics?
Among the phenomena that influence our society, those related to the economy attract much attention. Unemployment, inflation, interest rates, exchange rates, jobs, productivity, investment are terms encountered daily in the media. It is not always easy to unravel the mass of information which is conveyed.
Economics is the discipline that seeks to understand such phenomena and analyze the relationships between them. More precisely, economics examines how a country's resources are used to fulfill the needs of its citizens. It is concerned with the production, distribution and consumption of goods and services.
Economics is divided into two interrelated branches. Macroeconomics deals with the economy as a whole and examines the factors that determine the production, employment and price levels in a country. Microeconomics deals with the behaviour of individual economic agents and studies, among other things, how prices are determined in a given market. Be inspired!
Discover our programs
Undergraduate studies
Graduate studies
ECO 4195 The Art and Science of Monetary Policy-Making in Canada
“Economics helps me understand how the world works. It is complex, ever evolving and it has always fascinated me.”
Stephanie Renaud, student
PhD job market candidates
Contact us
Department of Economics
Faculty of Social Sciences
Social Sciences Building
120 University Private, Room 9005
Ottawa, Ontario K1N 6N5
Canada (map)
Office hours
Monday to Friday
8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. & 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
(June to August: closed at 3:30 p.m.)
Note
Please note our services and our personnel are available by MS Teams and by email.
The Social Sciences (FSS) and Vanier (VNR) buildings are open open seven days a week from 6:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.