The Four Tracks of Economics and Finance Electives

The views and options presented here are deeply personal, and based on discussions with relevant stakeholders. However, I would strongly urge you to discuss these with your seniors and other trusted individuals before making the final call. All B3 students need to complete 6 Discipline Electives (DEls) in their 4 or 5 years on campus, largely completed in 2-1, 2-2, 3-2 and 4th year. It is suggested (and is your best case-scenario) that you take at least 2 of these 6 electives in your second year. It is completely upto you whether you wish to take both these electives in 2-1, in 2-2 or one elective in each semester. I can say with certainty that neither of the three options are worse or better than the other.

In addition, BITS offers all students the ability to pursue a Minor alongside their Major degree. These minors are offered in Data Science, Finance, Materials, Public Policy, Physics and Robotics. B3 students are not allowed to do a Minor in Finance. For them, given the constraints on credits Minor in Public Policy is the easiest to cover. If (and only if) your dual degree is A7, it is super easy for you to do a Minor in Data science. There is one essential condition for that, which I mention later in the write-up. I present four tracks to complete these Electives. These are only suggestive, and are not meant to be followed compulsively. (The second column in each track indicates the preference of when an elective should be taken)

I am attaching a definition here, which you might need later:

Course Pre-Requisite: In several cases, BITS requires you to compulsorily study Course A before sitting for Course B, as the knowledge of Course A is essential to succeed in Course B. Please keep that in mind. You can google “BITS Pilani Pre-Requisites” for a complete list.)

I will now discuss each tracks in detail.

1. The Finance Priority Track: If your dual does not excite you, and you are pretty sure that the only way to get a job is by doing well in Finance, this track is for you. It helps you complete a courses equivalent of a Finance Minor, and the details regarding when to take a particular course are mentioned in the table. Students opting for this are suggested to take a Summer term before their 4th year, but it is optional and you can complete the electives without doing the same. A brief description of courses is in order: SAPM is a relatively simple finance course taken by a lenient faculty, DRM is a relatively tough course and must be avoided in 2-1, FM is a necessary evil and generally very easy as the IC gives you the questions for exam in-prior (It cannot be taken in 2-1 as it has pre-requisites), BAV is a somewhat advanced version of FM, FRAM is a decent finance course but don’t bother about it till 4th year. Finally, alongside course, the Economics department also gives the students an option to take a research project under the faculty instead of doing a course. Its grading and evaluation is similar to the courses. There are three types of projects – SOP (Study-Oriented), DOP (Design-Oriented) and LOP (Lab-Oriented). Projects can be both formal and informal, but the informal ones are not used for grading. In general, after the mid-semester exams of each semester, you can contact the professor of your choice to take projects in forthcoming semesters. While the professors are generally liberal with giving projects, they might mandate attendance, performance in a particular course or knowledge as criteria. This, however, varies by faculty, and I would encourage you to contact them. I would urge finance enthusiasts to pursue at least one project with a finance faculty. If that is not possible, then one can take either Project Appraisal ( a simple course which is almost like a summary of all finance courses) or Game Theory (a relatively tough, but insanely interesting and useful course)
   

2. “I hate Finance and Economics” Track: those who prefer their dual degrees and have turned their face away from their B3 degree for good should pursue this. Most of the courses have been explained earlier, but two deserve mention. One, Optimization is a course offered by Maths faculty for eco students. It is a wonderful course, and anyone who wants to complete a Minor in Data science must take it, preferably in their 2nd year. Two, International Business is a simple course with a relatively relaxed faculty, and offers a broad view of what modern firms look like.
   

3. “I want a career in economics/ economic research” Track: As the name suggests, this track is for those who are deeply committed to economics as a field of research, and wish to make a career in academia. While I have explained other courses before, Industrial Economics deserves mention. It is an amazing and intriguing course that employs Game Theory and Microeconomics to understand what firms actually look like. While it is one of the toughest economics electives, it is a must do for research-aspirants.
   

4. Finance Quickie: The Finance Quickie pathway helps you complete all Finance courses by 3-2. This is suggested for those whose dual is so abysmal that keeping or dropping it would make little difference. In this case, it is pertinent to do atleast one Fin elective in 2-1, two in 2-2 and one in 3-2. Either that, or one might take a summer term at the end of their third year. If you are able to do this, you can sit for Finance SI in your fourth year, or apply for summer internships outside college.
   

Note that these are not the only electives offered by the Department. We have many more electives, and in case you cannot any of these, you can always take the others. Try to substitute the projects for these “superfluous” electives in each scheme.

1. Operations Research: A fun course offered by Maths Department, which utilized concepts of Probability and Linear Algebra to gain insight into how various industrial processes of supply, storage, etc. are structured.
   

2. Marketing Research: It is an easy elective, which can be taken if you have interest in roles that involve interaction with market (like product roles).
   

3. Behavioural Economics: It is the frontier of economic research, and if offered, it is a must take for research aspirants.
   

4. Environment and Resource Economics: A field which is much-in-demand in the Western countries, this course offers insights into how to apply economic principles to understanding pressing environmental issues. Ideal for research aspirants, especially those planning to go abroad.
   

A few more points are in order:

1. Since you do not know your dual degrees yet, it is suggested that none of you should take any CDCs of your BE dual in second year. Even if you are pretty sure of what you will get, my personal opinion is that one should refrain from taking CDCs in advance as they might make it difficult for you to make groups with your friends for assignments and projects. As this semester is completely online, we expect such group activities to be many. It is better, hence, to not take them, atleast not in the first semester
   

2. Regarding CDCs of M.Sc. Economics, I would suggest that you stick to the order given in the ERP. In the first semester, we have 4 of the easiest CDCs. ECON F211 (Principles of Economics) introduces you to what economics actually is, issues of supply and demand, elasticity, firms, labour, capital, among others. it is a fun course, with a slightly weighty syllabus. ECON F212 (Fundamentals of Finance and Accounting) is a basic course for Minor in Finance. It introduces you to the concepts in a simple and lucid manner, and is relatively easy to grasp. Try to attend all classes for this course, as most of the exam is directly from them. ECON F213 (Mathematical and Statistical Methods) is a simple course which is easy to ace. It has concepts of inferential probability. ECON F214 (Economic Environment of Business) introduces you to the tools of economic policy – fiscal policy and monetary policy, and how these can be used to affect macroeconomic change. Overall, the difficulty of the semester is mild to moderate.
   

3. If your dual is CS, you can pursue a Minor in Data Science with ease. I would not go into details, but I would insist that you take MATH F212 (Optimization) in 2-1.
   

4. If you believe strongly that you have no future outside Finance, then please take care of your offshoot score (CGPA in FoFA, SAPM, DRM (or FRAM, you can choose one), FM and BAV). The combined CGPA of these courses serves as a metric for Finance placements.
   

5. Similar to Point 1, I would advocate against taking any DEls from your second degree (a.k.a BE degree) in 2-1. After knowing the same, you might take atleast one DEl from B.E. in 2-2.
   

6. All said, I would suggest you to personally read the handout of any course before you take it. Courses are dynamic, and they change with time. You are your best judge, and are required to choose what is best for you.
   

None of what is said here is a part of official BITS policy. You are allowed to deviate from these suggestions, try and fail in your own right, and learn from your mistakes. These suggestions are for those who wish to stick to the well-trodden path. However, given the vagaries of the time-table, it is possible that you might not be able to realize some of these objectives. I cannot vouch for their feasibility in case the Time Table changes dramatically, but these would usually fit into your schedule.

For all,

Vastav Ratra

Editor-in-Chief, De-Economist

P.S: Feel free to reach out to Aman Mahajan (President, The economics Association), Rohan Sachan (Secretary, The Economics Association) or me for any doubts whatsoever.