Why study in the Economics, Data, and Policy 1-year MA program at CEU?
Top reasons:
- Fast progress. Get your master’s degree in only one year (full-time). Why spend two years if you already have a strong background in economics?
- Modern curriculum. Emphasis on understanding society and gaining quant skills for the future.
- Accredited in the US and Austria (Austrian accreditation in progress).
- Scholarships. Top applicants will be offered a full tuition waiver and a 10,000 euros scholarship per year, additional substantial tuition waivers and smaller stipends also available.
- Internationally diverse. Students in the past few years have come from, among many other countries: Afghanistan, Austria, Bangladesh, Brazil, Bulgaria, Hungary, Italy, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russia, Thailand, Viet Nam, Ukraine, United States.
- Top faculty. Courses taught byresearchers holding PhD’s from Harvard, Princeton, Cambridge, LSE, etc., and practitioners from central banks and leading companies such as Meta, Morgan Stanley, etc.
- Study in Vienna. Consistently rated as the world's most livable cities.
- Fully English language university. No need to know German at CEU.
Choose one of two tracks:
- The Research (pre-PhD) track puts special emphasis on quantitative skills and exposes you to the frontiers of research preparing you for a PhD or for technical research jobs in the public and private sector. You can finish most of the coursework for a PhD in Economics at CEU during your master’s to get a head start.
- The Global Economic Policy track gives a broad view of the economy and a deep understanding of the economic policy process and provides you with the analytical ability to evaluate economic policies. The track is an ideal steppingstone if you want a job in government (ministries, central banks), in international organizations, or in the private sector (banks, consulting firms, etc.).
Is this the right program for me?
- If you already have covered economics courses at an intermediate level in your previous degrees and have at least four years of university education, this is probably the right program for you, regardless of whether you want to do research or get engaged in policy.
- If you are still missing some of the foundations in economics or only have three years university education, check out the two-year version of the program.
- In case you are aiming for a job in business or want to study only part-time, check out our MS in Business Analytics and MS in Finance programs.
Design your own curriculum to match your ambitions
Given that you are expected to have a strong background in economics when you are applying, foundational courses are focused on causal analysis and macroeconomics, areas where you might have had a different approach in your previous degree. However, if you have already taken these courses with similar content, you may take electives instead:
Foundations
- Data Analysis 4: Causal Analysis
- Macroeconomics
- Academic Writing
Given that this is a short one-year program, you are expected to choose your track when applying for the program. Switching tracks once enrolled is allowed in exceptional cases and only very early on in the program. Here are the tracks:
Research (pre-PhD) Track
- Statistics for Econometrics
+ take least two of the following:
- Advanced Econometrics 1 & 2
- Advanced Microeconomics
- Advanced Macroeconomics
+ take at least three courses from the following list:
- Research Internship
- PhD-level research electives (offer changes by year). If you have already taken Advanced level core courses you may take more research electives.
Global Economic Policy Track
- Global Economy: Emergence and Current Issues
- International Economic Policy
- Economic Policy Seminar Series
+ take at least three courses from the following list:
- Policy Internship
- Economic Policy and Global Strategy
- International Economic Integration
- Fiscal Policy in Practice
- Development Economics
- Impact Evaluation: Policy Applications with R
- Theory and Practice of Economic Forecasting
Sample Electives:
- Competition Policy
- Designing Markets that Work
- Ecological Economics
- Economics of the Public Sector
- Energy Markets
- Fintech in Depth
- Future of Work
- International Political Economy
- Labor Economics
- Monetary Policy
- Python Programming, Visualization and Text Analysis
In the Spring term students on either track will participate in a Thesis Seminar and write their master's thesis.
Build critical, in-demand skills for a successful career
The MA in Economics, Data, and Policy (1 year) program will equip you with a solid foundation in economics and quantitative methodology and the ability to interpret data and link them to economic and social processes. The skills you gain will enable you to pursue a variety of exciting careers. In recent years, graduating students have:
- Continued their studies in highly ranked PhD programs: Boston University, Duke University, CEU, Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (Switzerland), UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, University of Michigan.
- Engaged in policy and research work in the public sector, at international organizations or think-tanks: European Commission, European Investment Bank, ECB, International Monetary Fund (IMF), RAND Corporation, United Nations (UN), World Bank.
- Embarked on careers in banking, finance, or consulting: BlackRock, Boston Consulting Group, Citi, Ernst & Young, KPMG, Morgan Stanley, McKinsey, PWC, Raiffeisen.
Applications and scholarships
Can I apply?
You must possess a BA degree (or higher) or be enrolled in the last year of your university studies. You must have at least four full years of university education (240 ECTS credit equivalent) to enroll in the program. We expect you already to have a firm background in economics, more specifically, you should be familiar with the course content of the following first year courses in our “MA in Economics, Data, and Policy (2 year)” program: “Microeconomics”, “Coding”, “Data Analysis 1: Exploration”, and “Data Analysis 2: Pattern Discovery and Regression Analysis”, those applying for the “Research (pre-PhD)” track are also expected to be familiar with the course content of “Game Theory and Asymmetric Information”.
Since the program is flexible, you can choose the mathematical rigor of courses according to your background. Therefore, there is no mandatory mathematics test required for admission but, especially if you are considering the “Research (pre-PhD)” track, you are encouraged to write a math test. A good math score may increase the chance of getting a scholarship.
For more details, see the Admissions Requirements webpage.
Deadlines
- October 18, 2023 – if you seek financial aid and are from a country with lengthy visa processing time
- February 1, 2024 – if you seek financial aid
- March 15, 2024 – if you need a study visa
- August 15, 2024 – if you do not need a visa
Scholarships
Financial aid is granted on the basis of academic merit. The top candidates in the MA in Economics, Data, and Policy will receive a full tuition waiver and 10,000 EUR per year as a scholarship. Partial tuition waivers and smaller stipends will also be offered.