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Five-Year BA/MS Track (STEM)

The Five-Year B.A./M.S. track is an accelerated, rigorous program option available to undergraduates who maintain a 3.3 GPA and who show the ability and discipline necessary to successfully complete an accelerated combination undergraduate and graduate program in economics.

The track allows a student to receive the Bachelor of Arts in Business Economics and the Master of Science in Applied Economics in five years. This special undergraduate core is more rigorous than the traditional undergraduate core. Students are allowed to take 500-level and 600-level courses prior to graduation and count some or all of these credits towards the bachelor's degree. However, students may opt out early with a bachelor's degree provided that certain course requirements are satisfied.

In addition to the accelerated timetable, the five-year track differs from the stand alone Bachelor of Arts in Business Economics track:

• Students interested in the five-year track are encouraged to make an appointment with the graduate director of the program during their sophomore year. This will allow for correct selection of undergraduate course work. 
• Students should apply for early provisional admission through the School of Graduate Studies online application upon successful completion of 90 undergraduate credits with a 3.3 or higher GPA.
• Provisionally admitted students will be coded as five-year students and a degree audit (DARS) created to reflect the requirements of the accelerated track.
• Students may complete the Bachelor of Arts in Business Economics and Master of Arts in Applied Economics with 12 fewer required semester credits than if they chose to take the programs through the traditional tracks.
• Students remain in undergraduate student status through the fourth year of the program which may affect financial aid eligibility. In addition, students will need to request permission and overrides to enroll in graduate level courses through submission of the Undergraduate Permission to Enroll form.
• Credits completed at the graduate level are used to fulfill requirements at the undergraduate level. Program plans should identify which undergraduate requirements are met by completion of the 500/600 level graduate courses.
• All credits required for the graduate degree will be completed at the graduate level.
• Students may opt out early with a bachelor’s degree provided certain course requirements are satisfied. Graduate-level courses used to complete the undergraduate degree may not be applicable to a graduate degree program in the future.
• Students may enroll in culminating project credits, such as thesis, starred paper, or internship courses between their fourth and fifth years. Students are encouraged to begin work on their culminating project during the summer between their fourth and fifth years.
• Five-year students are eligible for graduate assistantship funding after completion of the Bachelor’s degree.
• To be eligible for full admission to the master’s degree, a student must maintain a 3.0 GPA in all 500- and 600-level courses.