The EC345 requirement involves the completion of a substantial, original, analytical research paper. The paper should be written in the junior or senior year, after completing EC223 and EC224.  The paper should build upon concurrent or prior coursework taken at Colby and must be sponsored by a faculty member.  The requirement may also be satisfied by a Senior Scholars Project that is closely related to economics, but cannot be satisfied by a senior seminar paper.

Rising seniors who have not yet completed the EC345 requirement must pre-register during the spring of their junior year.  This process begins with a conversation with a member of the faculty about potential topics and to secure preliminary approval to work with them during the coming academic year. Then, from the Registrar's homepage, select Independent Study and choose EC345.  Inside the text box, indicate the semester that you plan to undertake the project, along with a brief description of the intended topic.  Identify your faculty sponsor and submit your registration.

Regardless of whether you plan to complete your EC345 project during the fall or spring of your senior year, it is your responsibility to pre-register during the spring of your junior year to reserve a place with your 345 advisor during the coming academic year.

Please be aware that given the number of majors and the fact that some faculty members will be on leave each year, your preferred faculty sponsor may quickly reach a ceiling in the number of 345s that he or she can reasonably direct. Furthermore, junior faculty may accept fewer 345 students. It is thus in your best interest to confirm your project with your faculty sponsor as early as possible.

Year-long Honors Projects are strongly encouraged for students who will achieve a 3.5 GPA in the major at the time of graduation.

Honors Projects are extensions of outstanding EC345 projects and require departmental approval. Students may enroll in the fall of their senior year (for those who complete their EC345 requirement as juniors) or in the spring of their senior year (for those who complete the EC345 requirement in the fall of the senior year).  Candidates must obtain the approval of their EC345 advisor prior to applying to the department to undertake an Honors Project.

Early during the reading period following the semester in which the EC345 project is undertaken, candidates who have obtained the support of their advisors will present their Honors Project proposals to the department faculty. These proposals normally include testable hypotheses and preliminary results, but may vary depending on the nature of the project. Upon approval by faculty vote, candidates must identify a second reader in the Department of Economics and may then enroll in EC482 in the following semester.

During the spring semester, Honors candidates are required to present their projects as part of the Colby Undergraduate Research Symposium. Department faculty will review the project at this time and will vote upon the conferral of Honors status.

Pending a successful vote of the department, a grade of A- or higher, and the achievement of a 3.5 GPA in the major, students will graduate with Honors in Economics. The Honors Project itself becomes part of the permanent collection of Miller Library.