Admission Requirements & Pre-Requisites

Applicants for the M.S. in agricultural economics must first meet the requirements of the University of Arkansas Graduate School and then be accepted by the AEAB Department.
 
Graduate School admission requirements. The applicant must hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution with at least a 3.00 cumulative grade point average (4.00 system) on the last 60 hours of study. Applicants whose native tongue is not English must also demonstrate proficiency in English by providing a minimum TOEFL score (550 paper based, 213 computer based, 80 internet based) or IELTS score (6.5). In addition, international applicants must provide evidence of financial resources to support graduate study for at least one year (approximately $22,000 U.S. or a one-half time assistantship).
 
AEAB admission requirements. After reviewing the applicant’s submitted materials, admission to the departmental graduate program is based on the recommendation of the AEAB Graduate Programs Committee. Although the AEAB department encourages applicants from all academic backgrounds, a number of pre-requisite courses may be assigned as deficiencies for applicants who have not had training in specified areas. Pre-requisites for the thesis-track are higher than those for the non-thesis track and reflect a more quantitative and theoretical emphasis.

Pre-requisite courses for admission into the M.S. program in agricultural economics:

• Thesis-Track Pre-Requisites (semester hours)
  • College Algebra, 3 hrs
  • Survey of Calculus or above, 3 hrs
  • Statistics, 3 hrs
  • Intermediate Microeconomic Theory, 3 hrs
  • Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory, 3 hrs
  • Farm Mgt or upper level management, 3 hrs
  • Agri Marketing or upper level marketing, 3 hrs
  • Humanities and/or Social Sciences, 6 hrs
• Non-Thesis Track Pre-Requisites (semester hours)
  • College Algebra, 3 hrs
  • Finite Math or Survey of Calc or equivalent, 3 hrs
  • Statistics, 3 hrs
  • Microeconomic Principles or equivalent, 3 hrs
  • Macroeconomic Principles or equivalent, 3 hrs
  • Farm Mgt or upper level management, 3 hrs
  • Agri Marketing or upper level marketing, 3 hrs
  • Introductory Accounting or equivalent, 3 hrs

Note: “Upper level” and “intermediate” refers to junior and senior level classes. “Principles” courses are typically lower level (freshman, sophomore) courses.

Applicants who are assessed these pre-requisite courses as deficiencies will be required to enroll in these courses early in their M.S. program. Deficiency courses typically lengthen the time to complete the M.S. degree and they do not count for graduate credit.

Letters of reference and Graduate Record Exam (GRE) scores are not required for admission into the M.S. program, but are optional. However, letters of reference and GRE scores are required for applicants who are seeking either a graduate research assistantship or a graduate teaching assistantship (see Graduate Assistantship in the Financial Assistance section).

Deadline for application for admission. Students may begin graduate study during any term (fall, spring, or summer) but most begin in the fall semester. Deficiency courses may also be removed in the summer sessions. Deadlines for application for admission to the Graduate School are one-month prior to the date of anticipated enrollment. However, for priority consideration, all application for admission materials should be at the Graduate School by the following dates:

Deadlines for applicants seeking a graduate research or teaching assistantship are earlier than the deadlines listed above for admission only (see Graduate Assistantship in the Financial Assistance section).