Why Berkeley?
The University of California at Berkeley offers the premier graduate program in Agricultural and Resource Economics.* Our objective is a graduate program that produces outstanding researchers in applied economics and policy, specializing in problems of agriculture, natural resources, and the environment, both domestically and internationally.
Why should you apply?
First, we provide top training in agricultural economics. Our faculty members are committed to teaching and working closely with our students. Our classes are small, and we have a strong tradition of one-on-one mentoring of each student. Our teaching stresses state-of-the-arts theory coupled with knowledge of the key policy issues of the day. Faculty of the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics have a distinguished research and public service record, have received numerous research awards, and have played a major advisory role in shaping agricultural and resource policies throughout the world.
Second, students can take advantage of outstanding courses throughout U.C. Berkeley. They can gain interdisciplinary training by taking courses in other departments within the College of Natural Resources, the Economics Department, the Haas Business School, and many others. Some students get a masters degree in Berkeley's top-ranked Statistics Department while they work on their PhD in our department. U.C. Berkeley was recently ranked as the world's second best university (see the Times of London: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-1343642,00.html). In a recent evaluation of graduate schools, the American Council on Education ranked Berkeley as number one in the country, "the best balanced distinguished university in the nation." Berkeley has had 18 Nobel laureates, including two of the most recent awards in Economics, and 143 members of the National Academy of Sciences.
Third, we have the best placement history of any agricultural and resource economics department in the world. Our graduates work in most of the top agricultural economics departments around the world. In addition, we have placed students in economics departments, policy programs, business schools, and other academic programs. Others of our graduates work in government agencies, nonprofit agencies, and business.
We are incredibly proud of the more than 500 graduates from our Ph.D. program. Our distinguished alumni include John Kenneth Galbraith, Philip Habib, Richard Just, Oscar Burt, Larry Klein, Zvi Griliches, Gardner Brown, Dennis Aigner, and Yair Mundlak. (For a more complete list of graduates, see ARE Alumni, of whom we're also very proud.)
Fourth, much of the research work in the Department is done collaboratively with students. Many papers are co-authored by students and faculty every year.
Fifth, there's no finer place to live than the San Francisco Bay Area. Berkeley itself offers the lively background of one of America's most culturally diverse and politically adventurous small cities. Local recreational opportunities abound, and many national parks are only hours away.
Because we can admit only a small number of candidates to the Ph.D. degree program, we are able to select some of the most outstanding minds from around the world. We strive for a talented and diverse class to enhance the student body on which the excellence of our teaching and research programs very much depends.
Thanks to resources the Department derives from the Agricultural Experiment Station, the Giannini Foundation, the University of California, endowed chairs, and ongoing research grants, we are able to provide fellowship support or Research Assistant appointments to most of our students. Please examine our web site to learn more about the structure of our graduate program, our faculty, and ongoing research activities.
Larry Karp,
Chair
*Perry, Gregory M. 1994. Ranking M.S. and Ph.D. Programs in Agricultural Economics. Review of Agricultural Economics 16:333-40.