Postgraduate Program
PhD Economics Program
PhD Economics programme is designed to provide a solid background in theory, quantitative methods and applications appropriate to the needs of economists involved in policy planning, analysis and forecasting in public and private sectors. PhD Economics emphasizes on Applied Economics and caters to the growing market for Economic analysts. The curriculum of this programme has been designed to meet international standards and the students will find the programme to be intellectually challenging and personally rewarding. Graduates from this programme will be able to teach and conduct quality research in the fields of their interest, and will be prepared for careers in universities, research organizations, business enterprises, government organizations and multinational companies.
Duration
Duration of the program is 4 years. The maximum time allowed is 8 years.
Eligibility
MS / M.Phil. or equivalent degree in Economics or related discipline from HEC recognized universities/institute with minimum 3 out of 4 CGPA or 60% marks in the last degree. All equivalency claims shall be evaluated by HEC. Experience is not mandatory for admission to the PhD program. IBA allows those candidates to apply for admission whose final results have not been announced. The admission may be conditional pending submission of the required results before the date of commencement of classes.
Admission criteria
Admissions to all programs at the IBA are granted on merit, and there are no reserved seats for any category. The criterion for admission is:
IBA will offer three options for admission in economics department:
- a. International GRE (60% marks required for eligibility)
- b. HEC organized GAT/NTS test (60% marks required for eligibility)
- c. IBA’s own conducted test (60% marks required for eligibility. All those admitted with IBA test they have to clear their international GRE or HEC PhD admission test within one year of their stay at IBA)
The candidates who pass the admission test qualify for the interview. Candidates are required to submit a short research proposal at the time of interview as well along with two recommendation letters.
Comprehensive Examination
Comprehensive exam will consist of microeconomics and macroeconomics. In case of failing in one part of exam candidate will give the complete exam again. Students will be allowed for two attempts for qualifying exam. Students are however expected to pass the comprehensive exams within two years from the commencement of the PhD program.
Oral defense of dissertation proposal
At the end of the 2nd year, students are expected to present and defend their Ph.D. proposal.
Teaching/research assistant positions:
Ph.D. program is a full time morning program. IBA will offer Teaching/research assistant positions to Ph.D. students along with a tuition fee waiver. Teaching/research assistants must not work elsewhere. A Ph.D. student has to spend at least the first two years of degree's duration in IBA as a full-time student. The provision of stipend will be conditional on satisfactory performance of students.
Major Areas of Specializations:
a. Macroeconomic modeling and policy analysis
b. Labor Economics
c. Development Economics
d. Environmental Economics
e. Environment and Climate Change
f. Financial Economics
g. Industrial Organization
h. Monetary Economics
i. Public Finance
j. Behavioral and Experimental Economics
k. International Finance
l. International Trade
For further details, visit: www.economics.iba.edu.pk
List of core and elective courses
Fall Semester
Course title |
Course code |
Credit hours |
Pre-requisite |
Topics in Microeconomic Theory |
ECO644 |
4 |
- |
Topics in Microeconomic Theory |
ECO645 |
4 |
- |
Econometric Analysis |
ECO646 |
4 |
- |
Spring Semester
Course title |
Course code |
Credit hours |
Pre-requisite |
Topics in Research Methods |
ECO650 |
4 |
- |
Elective I |
- |
4 |
- |
Elective II |
- |
4 |
- |
Dissertation
Course title |
Course code |
Credit hours |
Pre-requisite |
PhD Dissertation |
ECO799 |
24 |
- |