Program Outline

• How Does It Work?
• Preparatory Semester
• First Year—MA/PhD Courses at CERGE-EI
• Second year—Elective Courses and/or Erasmus Exchange at IES
• Transferring to the CERGE-EI PhD Program

How Does It Work? 

If you intend to continue with PhD program at CERGE-EI, the best option for you is as follows:

• Apply to the Economic Theory Master’s program at the IES, tick the Joint Masters option.
• Attend Preparatory semester at CERGE-EI
• 1st year: Take CERGE-EI core sequences (3 semesters from early September to mid June).
• End of 1st year: Pass CERGE-EI Core General Exams.
• 2nd year: Take the remaining IES courses, spend one semester at an Erasmus exchange abroad (optional), write your Master thesis.
• End of 2nd year: Pass IES state exams and defend the Master thesis. Transfer to the PhD program at CERGE-EI.

Preparatory Semester 

Before the start of each academic year, candidates for the MA/PhD program at CERGE-EI attend a summer Preparatory Semester, during which they receive intensive training in intermediate microeconomics, and macroeconomics, and mathematics. This is in view of the fact that a) many applicants do not have a background in modern economics equivalent to “western” standards and b) their knowledge of mathematics is frequently at different levels. The Preparatory Semester thus allows CERGE-EI to provide future students with a common background on which to build their graduate study.

Candidates must exhibit satisfactory performance in the Preparatory Semester in order to be admitted to the program. Along with providing an education in basic modern Economics, the Preparatory Semester serves as a selection process for the MA/PhD program. Typically, about 60 students attend the Preparatory Semester and about 30 students are offered admission to the MA/PhD program in the fall.

Joint Masters students may be required to attend the Preparatory Semester courses and take the Midterm and Final Examinations. However, if they do not succeed in passing midterm and/or final examinations, they cannot be admitted to the Joint Masters program but can continue with the Economic Theory Master's program at IES.

First Year—MA/PhD Core Courses at CERGE-EI 

There are three semesters of study in the first year at CERGE-EI: Fall, Spring, and Summer. In this first year, students follow a common curriculum designed to provide a strong foundation in the following areas:

• Microeconomics
• Macroeconomics
• Statistics
• Econometrics
• English Academic Writing (Spring and Summer only)

In order to recognize your credits, please, follow the instructions below:

• By the end of the respective examination period (end of January for Trimester 1, end of September for Trimesters 2 and 3) at latest, visit Master Program Director (Doc. Dědek) with the list of courses that you want to have recognized as equivalents. Use the form called “Protokol o uznání studijních povinností absolvovaných v dřívějším studiu”: http://intranet.fsv.cuni.cz/FSVINT-1274-version1-uznani_pred.doc
• Based on the information from the Study Department at CERGE-EI, Doc. Dědek will sign your list (Protokol). Then, you can deliver the list to the Study Department at FSV UK.
• Grading equivalents: A+, A, A-, account for 1; B+, B, B-, account for 2; C+, C, C- account for 3; F accounts for 4.
• Caution: If a student fails twice at any core exam at the IES (hence should leave out the IES), then the equivalent CERGE course will not be recognized. This is only to make explicit that this regime is not designed as an extra option for failing students.

Equivalent Courses

Thus, you may earn up to 86 credits (21 core credits, 30 track-obligatory credits, 23 AltA credits, 12 AltB credits).

CERGE-EI curriculum also includes English courses on Academic Writing, Advanced English—Combined Skills, and Research Methodology. You have the option to enroll into these courses as well. Two of them will be recognized as Alt B. If you do not take the English courses and later continue to the CERGE-EI Ph.D. program, the individual study plan will specify a minimum English curriculum (such that you complete at least 50% of the English curriculum of regular CERGE-EI students).

General Examinations

Students are strongly recommended to take final examinations after each semester and General Exams at the end of the academic year. Even though passing General Exams is not required to obtain the Masters degree from Charles University, it is required for continued study in the PhD program at CERGE-EI (one make-up is allowed for each exam). See the CERGE-EI PhD program outline for more details.

Second year—Elective Courses and/or Erasmus Exchange at IES 

Students take courses at IES in order to complete the IES Master program requirements. The courses include a few required courses and a large option of electives. Details are available at the IES website.

Transferring to CERGE-EI PhD Program 

Applicants who want to continue with the CERGE-EI PhD program shall go through the regular CERGE-EI application procedure during the 2nd year of Masters studies at IES. Students who complete all three core sequences (Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, and Econometrics) and pass all three Core General Exams may be admitted directly to the second year of CERGE-EI MA/PhD program. Those students who complete one or two sequences (for example, only Microeconomics) may, if approved, start the PhD program on an individual study plan, i.e. combining 1st year core and 2nd year field sequences.

Upon successful completion of the second year of CERGE-EI MA/PhD program students are granted a Master of Arts degree which is chartered by the New York State Board of Regents. While CERGE-EI MA degree has an absolute charter issued in the USA, PhD degree is fully accredited in the Czech Republic and has an absolute charter issued in the USA. However, only students who have a Master degree or its equivalent prior to coming to CERGE-EI may be awarded a Czech PhD degree upon completion of CERGE-EI PhD program.