by our College Data Analytics Team
It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major” ranking.
In 2020-2021, 49,055 people earned their degree in economics, making the major the 19th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, economics graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $48,736 and had an average of $22,046 in loans still to pay off.
At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 1,248 economics graduates with average earnings and debt of $75,260 and $0 respectively.
This year’s “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major” ranking looked at 135 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in economics. That schools that top this list have a program in economics in which the largest percentage of students at the school are enrolled.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major” list to help you make the college decision.
You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
The colleges and universities below are the best for doctor’s degree economics students.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Pardee RAND Graduate School. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major list. Located in Santa Monica, California, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 10 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s economics students in 2020-2021.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Out of the 135 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Claremont Graduate University landed the #2 spot on the list. Claremont Graduate University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Claremont, California. It awarded 18 doctorate’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.9% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Read full report on Economics at Claremont Graduate University
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Princeton University. The school came in at #3 for the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major. Princeton, New Jersey is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctorate’s economics degrees to 20 students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Chicago. The school came in at #4 for the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctorate’s economics degrees to 43 students in 2020-2021.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. With a freshman retention rate of 100%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The school came in at #5 for the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major. This fairly large school is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and it awarded 22 doctorate’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. With a freshman retention rate of 98%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Economics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Stanford University ranked #6 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major list. Located in Stanford, California, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 25 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s economics students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.
With a ranking of #7, The Graduate Center, CUNY did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major list. The Graduate Center is a medium-sized school located in New York, New York that handed out 14 doctorate’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.9% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Yale University landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major ranking. Yale is a private not-for-profit institution located in New Haven, Connecticut. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 20 doctorate’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Harvard University ranked #9 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major list. Cambridge, Massachusetts is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctorate’s economics degrees to 43 students in 2020-2021.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Brown University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major ranking. Brown University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Providence, Rhode Island. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 13 doctorate’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Teachers College at Columbia University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major ranking, coming in at #11. Teachers College is located in New York, New York and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 8 doctorate’s economics degrees to qualified students.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.1% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read full report on Economics at Teachers College at Columbia University
Vanderbilt University landed the #12 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major ranking. Located in Nashville, Tennessee, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 14 degrees to qualified doctorate’s economics students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.9% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Howard University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major ranking. Howard is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Washington, District of Columbia. It awarded 7 doctorate’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 90%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
The New School landed the #14 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major ranking. The New School is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in New York, New York. It awarded 8 doctorate’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
University of Pennsylvania ranked #15 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major list. UPenn is a large school located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that handed out 27 doctorate’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
University of Minnesota - Twin Cities ranked #16 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major list. UMN Twin Cities is a large public school situated in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It awarded 39 doctorate’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Economics at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
University of California - Berkeley came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major ranking. Located in Berkeley, California, this large public school awarded 38 degrees to qualified doctorate’s economics students in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Economics at University of California - Berkeley
Duke University came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major ranking. This fairly large school is located in Durham, North Carolina, and it awarded 17 doctorate’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.3% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
With a ranking of #19, Cornell University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major list. Cornell University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Ithaca, New York. The school has a large population, and it awarded 19 doctorate’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #20, Colorado School of Mines did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major list. Located in Golden, Colorado, this medium-sized public school handed out 4 degrees to qualified doctorate’s economics students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
University of Southern Mississippi ranked #21 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major list. Hattiesburg, Mississippi is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s economics degrees to 8 students in 2020-2021.
Georgia State University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major ranking, coming in at #22. Atlanta, Georgia is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s economics degrees to 18 students in 2020-2021.
University of California - Davis ranked #23 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major list. UC Davis is located in Davis, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 25 doctorate’s economics degrees to qualified students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.5% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
With a ranking of #24, Northwestern University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major list. This large school is located in Evanston, Illinois, and it awarded 19 doctorate’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
University of Rochester did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Economics Major ranking, coming in at #25. Located in Rochester, New York, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 8 degrees to qualified doctorate’s economics students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
