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Business Economics

Business Economics

  • Program Requirements
From corporate finance, industrial organization, and international business, to markets, competition, and government regulation, HBS doctoral students in Business Economics delve into some of the most pressing and relevant topics in the field of economics through the practical lens of business.
Jointly administered by HBS and the Department of Economics in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, the program combines theoretical analysis with in-depth, interdisciplinary research rooted in real-world applications.

Curriculum & Coursework

As a Business Economics PhD student, you will take courses alongside your peers in the Department of Economics, studying microeconomic theory, macroeconomic theory, probability and statistics, econometrics, and other specialized topics. In addition, your doctoral coursework and two MBA courses at HBS deepen your theoretical knowledge and harness it toward practical applications. Your coursework culminates in a written exam administered jointly by the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) and HBS at the end of your second year on two special fields of study. In addition to coursework and research, doctoral students are required to complete one academic term of teaching.

Research Dissertation

HBS doctoral students are insatiably curious, and they use the tools and knowledge developed in the classroom to ask—and answer—pressing questions about the field of economics. After passing your field exams, you will work closely with faculty mentors to identify a line of inquiry that will guide your original research. In the course of your research, you will present, analyze, and evaluate unique data and reach relevant, independent conclusions that advance your field.

Areas of Specialization

  • Behavioral Economics
  • Development
  • Econometrics
  • Economic Theory
  • Economics of Organization
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Finance
  • Industrial Organization
  • International Economics
  • Labor Economics
  • Macroeconomics
Program Requirements

Profiles

Gabriel Levin Konigsberg

Business Economics

Ran Zhuo

Business Economics

Sagar Saxena

Business Economics
“ HBS is the ideal environment because I get to think about the world like an economist, but I have the freedom and resources to draw on methods from other disciplines as I study market design and industrial organization. ”
Erica Moszkowski
PhD Candidate, Business Economics
“ HBS is the ideal environment because I get to think about the world like an economist, but I have the freedom and resources to draw on methods from other disciplines as I study market design and industrial organization. ”
Erica Moszkowski
PhD Candidate, Business Economics

Current Harvard Economics Faculty

  • Alberto Alesina
  • Isaiah Andrews
  • Pol Antràs
  • Robert Barro
  • Emily Breza
  • John Y. Campbell
  • Raj Chetty
  • Gabriel Chodorow-Reich
  • Richard Cooper
  • David M Cutler
  • Melissa Dell
  • Karen Dynan
  • Benjamin Enke
  • Richard B. Freeman
  • Benjamin M. Friedman
  • Roland G. Fryer, Jr.
  • Xavier Gabaix
  • Edward Glaeser
  • Claudia Goldin
  • Benjamin Golub
  • Gita Gopinath
  • Jerry Green
  • Oliver Hart
  • Elhanan Helpman
  • Nathaniel Hendren
  • Dale Jorgenson
  • Myrto Kalouptsidi
  • Maximilian Kasy
  • Lawrence Katz
  • Gabriel Kreindler
  • Michael Kremer
  • David Laibson
  • Robin S. Lee
  • Matteo Maggiori
  • N. Gregory Mankiw
  • Stephen Marglin
  • Eric S. Maskin
  • Marc Melitz
  • Jeffrey Miron
  • Nathan Nunn
  • Ariel Pakes
  • Amanda Pallais
  • Matthew Rabin
  • Gautam Rao
  • Kenneth Rogoff
  • Amartya Sen
  • Neil Shephard
  • Andrei Shleifer
  • Stefanie Stantcheva
  • Jeremy Stein
  • James Stock
  • Ludwig Straub
  • Tomasz Strzalecki
  • Lawrence H. Summers
  • Elie Tamer
  • Winnie Van Dijk
  • David Yang
Current Harvard Economics Faculty
  • Alberto Alesina
  • Isaiah Andrews
  • Pol Antràs
  • Robert Barro
  • Emily Breza
  • John Y. Campbell
  • Raj Chetty
  • Gabriel Chodorow-Reich
  • Richard Cooper
  • David M Cutler
  • Melissa Dell
  • Karen Dynan
  • Benjamin Enke
  • Richard B. Freeman
  • Benjamin M. Friedman
  • Roland G. Fryer, Jr.
  • Xavier Gabaix
  • Edward Glaeser
  • Claudia Goldin
  • Benjamin Golub
  • Gita Gopinath
  • Jerry Green
  • Oliver Hart
  • Elhanan Helpman
  • Nathaniel Hendren
  • Dale Jorgenson
  • Myrto Kalouptsidi
  • Maximilian Kasy
  • Lawrence Katz
  • Gabriel Kreindler
  • Michael Kremer
  • David Laibson
  • Robin S. Lee
  • Matteo Maggiori
  • N. Gregory Mankiw
  • Stephen Marglin
  • Eric S. Maskin
  • Marc Melitz
  • Jeffrey Miron
  • Nathan Nunn
  • Ariel Pakes
  • Amanda Pallais
  • Matthew Rabin
  • Gautam Rao
  • Kenneth Rogoff
  • Amartya Sen
  • Neil Shephard
  • Andrei Shleifer
  • Stefanie Stantcheva
  • Jeremy Stein
  • James Stock
  • Ludwig Straub
  • Tomasz Strzalecki
  • Lawrence H. Summers
  • Elie Tamer
  • Winnie Van Dijk
  • David Yang
Close

Current HBS Faculty

  • Laura Alfaro
  • Samuel B. Antill
  • Malcolm P. Baker
  • John Beshears
  • Katherine B. Coffman
  • Lauren H. Cohen
  • Shawn A. Cole
  • Joshua D. Coval
  • Mihir A. Desai
  • Marco Di Maggio
  • Mark L. Egan
  • Benjamin C. Esty
  • C. Fritz Foley
  • Stuart C. Gilson
  • Paul A. Gompers
  • Daniel W. Green
  • Jerry R. Green
  • Shane M. Greenstein
  • Robin Greenwood
  • Brian J. Hall
  • Samuel G. Hanson
  • Victoria Ivashina
  • William R. Kerr
  • Scott Duke Kominers
  • Josh Lerner
  • Michael Luca
  • Alexander J. MacKay
  • Christopher J. Malloy
  • David A. Moss
  • Ramana Nanda
  • Matthew Rabin
  • Forest L. Reinhardt
  • Raffaella Sadun
  • David S. Scharfstein
  • Joshua R. Schwartzstein
  • Ishita Sen
  • Emil N. Siriwardane
  • Ariel D. Stern
  • Adi Sunderam
  • Boris Vallee
  • Luis M. Viceira
  • Matthew C. Weinzierl
  • Dennis A. Yao
Current HBS Faculty
  • Laura Alfaro
  • Samuel B. Antill
  • Malcolm P. Baker
  • John Beshears
  • Katherine B. Coffman
  • Lauren H. Cohen
  • Shawn A. Cole
  • Joshua D. Coval
  • Mihir A. Desai
  • Marco Di Maggio
  • Mark L. Egan
  • Benjamin C. Esty
  • C. Fritz Foley
  • Stuart C. Gilson
  • Paul A. Gompers
  • Daniel W. Green
  • Jerry R. Green
  • Shane M. Greenstein
  • Robin Greenwood
  • Brian J. Hall
  • Samuel G. Hanson
  • Victoria Ivashina
  • William R. Kerr
  • Scott Duke Kominers
  • Josh Lerner
  • Michael Luca
  • Alexander J. MacKay
  • Christopher J. Malloy
  • David A. Moss
  • Ramana Nanda
  • Matthew Rabin
  • Forest L. Reinhardt
  • Raffaella Sadun
  • David S. Scharfstein
  • Joshua R. Schwartzstein
  • Ishita Sen
  • Emil N. Siriwardane
  • Ariel D. Stern
  • Adi Sunderam
  • Boris Vallee
  • Luis M. Viceira
  • Matthew C. Weinzierl
  • Dennis A. Yao
Close

Current Business Economics Students

  • Maxim Alekseev
  • Martin Aragoneses
  • Francesca Bastianello
  • Sage Belz
  • Michael Blank
  • John Conlon
  • Songyuan "Diane" Ding
  • Jacob Furst
  • Talia Gillis
  • Jeffrey Gortmaker
  • Helene Hall
  • Andrea Hamaui
  • Ruru (Juan Ru) Hoong
  • Justin Katz
  • Yong Wook (Spencer) Kwon
  • Gabriel Levin Konigsberg
  • Matthew Lilley
  • Samuel Lite
  • Angela Ma
  • Alex Magnuson
  • Fanele Mashwama
  • Marcela Mello
  • Robert Minton
  • Erica Moszkowski
  • Francis Pinter
  • Daniel Ramos
  • Gianluca Rinaldi
  • Kunal Sangani
  • Sagar Saxena
  • Andreas Schaab
  • Gregor Schubert
  • Karen Shen
  • Roman Sigalov
  • Yin Wei Soon
  • Wilbur Townsend
  • Andi Wang
  • Alex Wu
  • Ron Yang
  • Hanbin Yang
  • Jeffrey Yang
  • David Zhang
  • Tianlun (Allen) Zhang
  • Ran Zhuo
  • Jennifer Zou
Current Business Economics Students
  • Maxim Alekseev
  • Martin Aragoneses
  • Francesca Bastianello
  • Sage Belz
  • Michael Blank
  • John Conlon
  • Songyuan "Diane" Ding
  • Jacob Furst
  • Talia Gillis
  • Jeffrey Gortmaker
  • Helene Hall
  • Andrea Hamaui
  • Ruru (Juan Ru) Hoong
  • Justin Katz
  • Yong Wook (Spencer) Kwon
  • Gabriel Levin Konigsberg
  • Matthew Lilley
  • Samuel Lite
  • Angela Ma
  • Alex Magnuson
  • Fanele Mashwama
  • Marcela Mello
  • Robert Minton
  • Erica Moszkowski
  • Francis Pinter
  • Daniel Ramos
  • Gianluca Rinaldi
  • Kunal Sangani
  • Sagar Saxena
  • Andreas Schaab
  • Gregor Schubert
  • Karen Shen
  • Roman Sigalov
  • Yin Wei Soon
  • Wilbur Townsend
  • Andi Wang
  • Alex Wu
  • Ron Yang
  • Hanbin Yang
  • Jeffrey Yang
  • David Zhang
  • Tianlun (Allen) Zhang
  • Ran Zhuo
  • Jennifer Zou
Close

Current HBS Faculty & Students by Interest

Asset pricing
  • Lauren H. Cohen
  • Daniel W. Green
  • Robin Greenwood
  • Samuel G. Hanson
  • Christopher J. Malloy
  • Marcela Mello
  • Ishita Sen
  • Adi Sunderam
Economics
  • Laura Alfaro
  • John Beshears
  • Kevin Chen
  • Rowan Clarke
  • Jerry R. Green
  • Alexander J. MacKay
  • Forest L. Reinhardt
  • Raffaella Sadun
  • Ariel D. Stern
  • Matthew C. Weinzierl
  • Jeffrey Yang
  • Dennis A. Yao
Entrepreneurial finance
  • Paul A. Gompers
  • Ramana Nanda
Experimental economics
  • Jeffrey Yang
Game theory
  • Jerry R. Green
Investment management
  • Malcolm P. Baker
  • Lauren H. Cohen
  • Joshua D. Coval
  • Christopher J. Malloy
  • Luis M. Viceira
Market design
  • Kevin Chen
  • Scott Duke Kominers
  • Sagar Saxena
Networks
  • Shane M. Greenstein
  • Kunal Sangani
Private equity
  • Paul A. Gompers
  • Victoria Ivashina
  • Josh Lerner
  • Emil N. Siriwardane
Risk management
  • David A. Moss
  • Ishita Sen
Current HBS Faculty & Students by Interest
Asset pricing
  • Lauren H. Cohen
  • Daniel W. Green
  • Robin Greenwood
  • Samuel G. Hanson
  • Christopher J. Malloy
  • Marcela Mello
  • Ishita Sen
  • Adi Sunderam
Economics
  • Laura Alfaro
  • John Beshears
  • Kevin Chen
  • Rowan Clarke
  • Jerry R. Green
  • Alexander J. MacKay
  • Forest L. Reinhardt
  • Raffaella Sadun
  • Ariel D. Stern
  • Matthew C. Weinzierl
  • Jeffrey Yang
  • Dennis A. Yao
Entrepreneurial finance
  • Paul A. Gompers
  • Ramana Nanda
Experimental economics
  • Jeffrey Yang
Game theory
  • Jerry R. Green
Investment management
  • Malcolm P. Baker
  • Lauren H. Cohen
  • Joshua D. Coval
  • Christopher J. Malloy
  • Luis M. Viceira
Market design
  • Kevin Chen
  • Scott Duke Kominers
  • Sagar Saxena
Networks
  • Shane M. Greenstein
  • Kunal Sangani
Private equity
  • Paul A. Gompers
  • Victoria Ivashina
  • Josh Lerner
  • Emil N. Siriwardane
Risk management
  • David A. Moss
  • Ishita Sen
Close

Recent Placement

Edoardo Maria Acabbi, 2020

University Carlos III of Madrid

Christopher Anderson, 2019

Economist
Federal Reserve Board of Governors

Yizhou Jin, 2019

Postdoctoral Fellow
UC Berkeley, Economics Department & Haas School of Business

William Diamond, 2018

University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School, Finance Department

Neil Thakral, 2018

Brown University, Economics Department

Xavier Jaravel, 2016

Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, Postdoctoral Fellow, 2016-2017; London School of Economics, 2017

Filippo Mezzanotti, 2016

Northwestern University, Kellogg School of Management, Finance Department

Martin Rotemberg, 2015

Brown University, Watson Institute, Postdoctoral Fellow, 2015-2016; Brown University, Assistant Professor, 2016

Xiang Ding, 2020

Georgetown University, Walsh School of Foreign Service

Vitaly Bord, 2019

Harvard Business School, Postdoctoral fellow (2018-2019), Federal Reserve Board of Governors, Economist (2019)

Weiling Liu, 2019

Northeastern University, Finance Department

Anastassia Fedyk, 2018

University of Berkeley, Haas School of Business, Finance Department

Diana Moreira, 2017

University of California, Davis, Department of Economics

Rohan Kekre, 2016

University of Chicago, Booth School of Business

Benjamin Hebert, 2015

Stanford Graduate School of Business, Finance Department

Ran Shorrer, 2015

Pennsylvania State University, Economics Department

Michael Thaler, 2020

Postdoctoral Fellow
Princeton University, Economics Department

Oren Danieli, 2019

Tel-Aviv University, School of Economics

Janelle Schlossberger, 2019

Michael Hammer Postdoctoral Fellow
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Institute for Data, Systems and Society

Yueran Ma, 2018

University of Chicago, Booth School of Business, Finance Department

Mingzhu Tai, 2017

University of Hong Kong, School of Business

Benjamin Lockwood, 2016

University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School, Business Economics and Public Policy Department

Assaf Romm, 2015

Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Thomas Wollmann, 2015

University of Chicago Booth School of Business, Microeconomics Group

Edoardo Maria Acabbi, 2020

University Carlos III of Madrid

Xiang Ding, 2020

Georgetown University, Walsh School of Foreign Service

Michael Thaler, 2020

Postdoctoral Fellow
Princeton University, Economics Department

Christopher Anderson, 2019

Economist
Federal Reserve Board of Governors

Vitaly Bord, 2019

Harvard Business School, Postdoctoral fellow (2018-2019), Federal Reserve Board of Governors, Economist (2019)

Oren Danieli, 2019

Tel-Aviv University, School of Economics

Yizhou Jin, 2019

Postdoctoral Fellow
UC Berkeley, Economics Department & Haas School of Business

Weiling Liu, 2019

Northeastern University, Finance Department

Janelle Schlossberger, 2019

Michael Hammer Postdoctoral Fellow
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Institute for Data, Systems and Society

William Diamond, 2018

University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School, Finance Department

Anastassia Fedyk, 2018

University of Berkeley, Haas School of Business, Finance Department

Yueran Ma, 2018

University of Chicago, Booth School of Business, Finance Department

Neil Thakral, 2018

Brown University, Economics Department

Diana Moreira, 2017

University of California, Davis, Department of Economics

Mingzhu Tai, 2017

University of Hong Kong, School of Business

Xavier Jaravel, 2016

Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, Postdoctoral Fellow, 2016-2017; London School of Economics, 2017

Rohan Kekre, 2016

University of Chicago, Booth School of Business

Benjamin Lockwood, 2016

University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School, Business Economics and Public Policy Department

Filippo Mezzanotti, 2016

Northwestern University, Kellogg School of Management, Finance Department

Benjamin Hebert, 2015

Stanford Graduate School of Business, Finance Department

Assaf Romm, 2015

Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Martin Rotemberg, 2015

Brown University, Watson Institute, Postdoctoral Fellow, 2015-2016; Brown University, Assistant Professor, 2016

Ran Shorrer, 2015

Pennsylvania State University, Economics Department

Thomas Wollmann, 2015

University of Chicago Booth School of Business, Microeconomics Group
See All Placement
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Phone: 1.617.495.6101
Email: doctoralprograms+hbs.edu
Registrar: docreg+hbs.edu
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