Economics

Economics is the social science that investigates all factors involved in the production, distribution and consumption of goods and services. Economics is the study of how relationships and lives are sustained by focusing on the distribution of the means that sustain life.

Its ultimate goal is to optimize all these actions, in order to improve the well-being of economic entities and consumers, which is also the purpose of accountants and financial experts.

Careers in Economics are very diverse with job roles covering everything from food and agriculture to business and banking. Depending on your area of interest, an economics degree will help you develop specialized analytical skills, enabling you to successfully enter multiple industries as a professional economist, or as another type of professional with an eye for economics.

But, what does it take to venture into an economics career in Kenya? For applicants to be eligible for admission into the Bachelor of Economics degree un most Kenyan Universities, they must have scored a mean grade of C+ in the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) with C in Mathematics or a Diploma in Accountancy and Business Administration of from a recognized institution.

Requirements to become an economist:

1. Key skills- key skills include math, analytical and writing skills. This means that
   math and the English are important for one to be an economist.
2. Computer skills- this includes spreadsheet, office and statistical software. Computer
   knowledge is important in becoming an economist.

English and math subjects are to be well performed for you to become an economist. It is
important to develop mathematical skills because economics is largely numerical (in
numbers). Critical thinking skills are also to be developed because it helps you understand
how everyday transactions contribute to greater economic trends.

An economist can work in various fields such as:

1. Education.
2. Insurance.
3. Auditing.

With an economics degree you can get various jobs such as:

1. Accountant – takes charge of managing the assets of a company and calculates the
   payroll.
2. Sales- economics helps you to understand the position of a consumer within a
   market economy,
3. Market research and analysis- it helps companies to make decisions and set
   priorities after studying data.
4. Economist – with a masters degree as well as a bachelors degree in business and
   finance, one analyzes production and distribution of scarce resources, including
   goods and services.
5. Actuary- this is a special type of accountant. They use advanced statistics,
   mathematics and financial theory to analyze risks and minimize cost of risks to their
   clients who are either individuals or corporations.

With an economics degree one can get a job with Safaricom, The Ministry of Health, The
Ministry of Finance, The Ministry of Education, a bank; such as Kenya Commercial Bank
(KCB), Barclays Bank, Equity Bank or Cooperative Bank, or at an insurance company such
as UAP, Concord Insurance.

The salary of an economist is approximately fifty thousand (50,000) Kenyan shilling.