Graduate Programs

The first state university west of the Mississippi River, the University of Missouri-Columbia (MU) celebrates more than 160 years of teaching, research and service. Read more about its rich history at About Mizzou.

At MU, the best and the brightest students are educated and challenged to excel in competitive professions.

Graduate Student Spotlight

National Needs Fellowships

2008 National Needs Fellowships for Ph.D. and M.S. studies are available.

Why study agricultural economics at MU?

Graduate studies in agricultural economics at MU will prepare you for a career in academia, agricultural business, government and international agriculture.

Programs focus on:

Business management, organization, contracting, governance and strategy.
Collective action and cooperative theory.
Econometrics and price analysis.
Entrepreneurship.
Environmental economics.
Food and agricultural policy and regulation.
Food production, distribution and consumption and sustainable agriculture.
Natural resource use.
Regional economics.
Rural development policy and economic development.

The graduate program at MU is recognized for its innovative approach to graduate training in agricultural economics. A distinguishing feature of the program is the integration of organizational and institutional economics in both applied and theoretical research. This approach gives the program a competitive advantage.

Graduate students have the opportunity of working with leading scholars engaged in a diverse range of challenging research projects that develop new knowledge about state, national and international agricultural issues. Many of these scholars are affiliated with internationally renowned research centers, including:

Many students conduct research with faculty, the results of which often lead to coauthorships on published papers, grants and other research reports.

Master of Science Degree

The M.S. degree program, usually completed in two years, offers students two alternatives:

A traditional thesis option program comprising a minimum of 24 semester hours of course work and a thesis, or
A non-thesis option comprising additional course work and a technical paper in place of the thesis.

Doctoral Degree

The doctoral degree program emphasizes preparation for research, teaching and extension and usually requires about three years beyond the master's program to complete.

Students build on a core of neoclassical economics and new institutional economics.

The Ph.D. core consists of two semesters of microeconomic theory, one semester of new institutional economics, one semester of econometrics, and one semester of research methods.

Beyond the core, doctoral candidates have flexibility in developing their own program by choosing specialties from one of the department's three thrust areas.

Thrust Areas

The thrust areas and related specialties are as follows:

Agribusiness Management Thrust, including agribusiness management and organization, contracting, governance and strategy, collective action and cooperative theory, entrepreneurship, sustainable agriculture, and economics of biotechnology and innovation
Public Policy Analysis Thrust, including food and agricultural policy, regulatory policies (e.g. food and environmental safety, IPR and market structure), rural development policy, econometrics and price analysis
Resources and Development Thrust, including natural resources and environmental economics, international trade, economic development, and regional economics

In addition to these specialty areas, students can also pursue studies through:

For More Information

Contact Harvey James, Director of Graduate Studies, at HJames@missouri.edu.