Economics vs Labor Economics

<p>I am interested in pursuing a degree in Economics. The school I plan to go to has two types of degrees, Economics B.A. and Labor Economics B.S. As of right now I am more interested in general Economics, but I am not sure which one has better job and advancement prospects. I am thinking Economics on its own would be better, since I would be able to specialize afterward in areas which I like, but Labor Economics is Bachelor of Science. Usually B.S. degree beats B.A. so I am not sure which option would be more beneficial.</p>

<p>No one cares if it is a BA or BS. It is a pretty trivial difference at some schools. </p>

<p>Take a Labor economics class and see what you think about it. If you love microeconomics, then labor economics is some of the most interesting micro material out there. If I had decided to focus my studies, then labor would have been the area I chose (but thats just because it appeals to me). </p>

<p>As far as job prospects in the field, you will need a graduate degree or two to really put economics to work. To do those programs, you might as well major in math to go along with economics.</p>

<p>Labor economics is extremely tough but really interesting… at least this was the case for me.</p>

<p>It seems really specialized though. It may be good if you want to pursue a career in Academics. I have never heard of any specific labor economics programs though. What school is this?</p>

<p>If I had to choose, I would go with Labor Economics as well.</p>

<p>Get ready to work either way.</p>

<p>Until I studied “labor economics” I did not truly realize how vast an area the material covers. Everything from the returns to a college education, to the benefits of a household, the wage/risk relationship, unemployment, capital movement, trade, worker mobility, the minimum wage, and wage structure are covered in a basic labor economics course. Those are only a some of the topics that came to mind. All of this is really applicable to the real world so I found it to be very interesting. </p>

<p>It would be a great area to become a PhD. You could do a ton of policy work for think tanks, work in human resource consulting, or do academic research.</p>