"The Berry Center, backed by a $5 million commitment from alumnus Jim McWethy, is a distinctive academic enrichment program which places an emphasis on experiential learning. Through high-quality internships, off-campus study opportunities, and interaction with distinguished visiting executives and policy experts, we help students build the bridge between rigorous academic training and productive professional careers."

-- A'amer Farooqi, Professor of Economics & Business

Extraordinary Opps
A four-day visit to Chicago gave students an up-close view of risk management during Financial Markets Seminar.
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Why Study ECB at Cornell?

The Economics and Business Department combines two distinct yet related disciplines within the same major. Economics is concerned with the choices people make when faced with scarcity, and the rules, laws, and customs governing those choices. Economic reasoning is applicable to human choices within a broad context and can be extended to areas such as law, the environment, and personal decision making. Business is concerned with the systematic provision of the goods and services necessary to meet economic needs and with the decision-making processes involved.

Berry Center for Economics, Business and Public Policy

In 2006, the College launched the Berry Center for Economics, Business and Public Policy, which gives students from a range of majors real-world learning opportunities in applied economics and public policy. The Berry Center supports internships, visiting speakers, undergraduate research, student conference participation, reading groups, off-campus study, graduate study preparation, and more.

A few examples of these opportunities include:

  • Credit-earning internships for a block or longer at locations such as Merril Lynch in Chicago, Target Corporation in Minneapolis, and RenMax in Montevideo, Uruguay.
  • Courses in Chicago to study the financial markets up close, or to conduct first-hand historical research regarding The Pullman Company.
  • Distinguished campus visitors, including Nobel winner Robert Solow, and prominent young economists Jesse Shapiro, Emily Oster, and Kevin Murphy.
  • A campus book group reading of Freakonomics including President Garner and a visit to Chicago for a seminar with author Steven Levitt.
  • A visit to the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business to learn about post-graduate opportunities.

With our liberal arts tradition, dedicated faculty, and One-Course-At-A-TIme schedule, Cornell is ideally suited for the kinds of opportunities provided by the Berry Center. "The overall result," according to Berry Center founder James McWethy '65, "is graduates who are exceptionally well-prepared to be outstanding leaders in the world economy."

Graduate school preparation

Graduate schools, particularly M.B.A. programs, are looking for people who know how to think critically, communicate effectively, and have an interesting background.  What these programs care less about is hiring  traditional business majors because the intent is that quality people will learn the business skills they need on the  job and/or in their graduate studies.  Our graduates are very attractive because their liberal arts background prepares them very well in the areas of critical thinking, communication, breadth of experience, and experiential training. The following are a few of the places our recent alumni are studying:

  • University of California, Davis, Ph.D., Economics
  • University of Maryland, Ph.D., Economics
  • Johns Hopkins, Ph.D., International Relations 
  • Claremont Graduate University, M.A., Financial Mathematics
  • Harvard University, 2+2 M.B.A.

 

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