Honors Track
The department offers students in the economics and international economics majors the chance to distinguish themselves from their peers by pursuing departmental honors. Students who receive departmental honors earn exceptionally high GPAs in their economics courses, write a senior thesis, and pursue a more difficult course of study than their peers.
Application process
Applications for the honors track are accepted during the spring semester of students’ junior year and are due by Thursday, April 23th, 2026.
GPA requirements
To earn departmental honors, economics and international economics students must meet a minimum GPA requirement. This requirement can be satisfied in one of the two following ways:
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Students may complete Intermediate Microeconomics (ECON 30010), Intermediate Macroeconomics (ECON 30020), and Econometrics (ECON 30341) with a minimum grade point average of an A- (3.667). For example, a B+ (3.333) in Intermediate Micro, an A- (3.667) in Intermediate Macro, and an A (4) in Econometrics would satisfy this requirement.
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Alternatively, students may satisfy the GPA requirement by having a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.4 in all of their courses at Notre Dame and a minimum GPA of an A- (3.667) in the six major core economics courses.
Elective requirements
To earn departmental honors, students must take five total electives, as compared to four for the regular major. Two of these five electives are the Senior Honors Workshop and Senior Honors Thesis courses described below. Of the remaining three electives, one must be at the 43000 level (i.e. a writing-intensive, 40000-level course). Elective requirements differ for international economics majors and students in concentrations. Please visit our FAQ page for details.
Senior honors thesis
In addition to satisfying the GPA and elective requirements, students who wish to earn departmental honors must:
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Complete, with a grade of B+ or higher, the Senior Honors Workshop (ECON 43962) in the fall semester of their senior year. In the workshop, students learn about the research process. Students are also expected to meet one-on-one with their faculty research advisor during the fall of their senior year.
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Complete, with a grade B+ or higher, the Senior Honors Thesis (ECON 48600) course in the spring semester of their senior year. In this semester, students meet one-on-one with their faculty research advisor to complete their senior thesis.
Planning ahead
In preparing to write a senior honors thesis, students should consider:
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Taking a 43000-level, writing-intensive elective in their sophomore or junior year;
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Working as a research assistant or intern for a faculty member;
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Exploring the resources available for undergraduate research; and
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Reviewing the senior thesis process.
"Entering college, I wanted my field of study to enable me to develop a quantitative and qualitative toolkit to aid in understanding the driving forces behind human behavior, social impact, and policy decisions. Studying Economics empowered me to approach new kinds of problems with a logical framework, a desire to dig deeper into the 'why?' and provided me with the opportunity to apply my major to my passion for social impact through research with LEO and writing a senior thesis on the performance of socially responsible mutual funds. As a consultant, I use the skills I learned in the Economics major every day to approach complex client challenges with a logical methodology, data-driven decision-making, and an ability to effectively communicate results to a variety of audiences."