The Department of Economics
The University of Lausanne has a proud history of scholarship in economics. It counts among its former faculty two towering pioneers of modern economic theory, Léon Walras (1834-1910) and Vilfredo Pareto (1848-1923). Lausanne continues to be an important seat of learning in economics, boasting an international and research-active faculty and a student population that is both lively and high-calibre. Leading economic researchers regularly visit Lausanneto give seminar presentations, to attend conferences or as visiting professors.
The Department of Economics was established in 1983 as one of the principal departments of HEC Lausanne, the business and economics faculty of the University of Lausanne.
The main role of the Department of Economics is to encourage economic research and to disseminate the resulting findings to a wider audience. Among the department's research-related activities are the publication of a working paper series (the "Cahiers de recherche économiques") and the organization of a weekly invited “advanced” seminar as well as of regular invited workshops in microeconomics and in macroeconomics.
In addition, the department coordinates the economics courses that are offered in the various undergraduate and postgraduate curricula of HEC Lausanne. It also manages its own postgraduate programme, the Master of Science in Economics (MScE).
