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Student Numbers and Sustaining Courses and Fields in Ph.D. Programs

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 April 2015

George C. Davis
Affiliation:
Department of Agricultural Economics, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
Ernesto Perusquia
Affiliation:
Department of Agricultural Economics, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX

Abstract

Many agricultural economics departments are concerned about the vitality of their Ph.D. programs. A particular problem is insufficient student numbers to justify teaching certain courses or fields. As a consequence, much faculty time can be spent debating alternative program structures without any real idea of the likelihood that a proposed program structure will succeed. This article presents a framework for deriving some analytical and empirical results for alternative Ph.D. program structures. A downloadable program is used to generate some representative results that will hopefully help others minimize speculations and time spent in committee or departmental meetings.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Southern Agricultural Economics Association 2002

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