About the Faculty of Economics, Business and Law
The School of Economics was formed in 1998. It incorportates the former Departments:
- Agricultural and Resource Economics was founded in 1957. It is now the premier academic centre for training and research in agricultural and resource economics in Australia and a national leader in the development of both agricultural and resource economics curricula. Its training and research programs have established an international reputation comparable with the major academic centres of Europe and North America.
- Economics offers units to students enrolled in a number of degrees within the University. There is increasing involvement in inter-disciplinary teaching; members of Economics teach cooperatively with members of other departments and schools, and teach units within the postgraduate programs of Public Policy, Peace Studies and Business Administration.
- Econometrics was founded in 1966 as the Department of Economic Statistics. In 1982 the name was changed to Econometrics to reflect the term which is commonly used for the discipline. The Former Department has a long history of high quality teaching. It offers quantitative units in all degrees in the Faculty of Economics, Business and Law and in a variety of post graduate programs. All of the programs are taught on campus and also by distance education mode.
- Economic History offers a wide range of units and opportunities for study for both undergraduate and graduate students. Economic History itself is one of the largest and most respected in Australia. The concentration of expertise on Asian economic history here is unrivalled in Australia (and, indeed, hard to match elsewhere), while a second area of particular strength is Australian economic history.
The School of Law was established in 1993. Its particular mission is in the area of distance educational though it is also strongly committed to internal teaching. The mission in distance education is consistent with the mission of the University of New England - a University which has an international reputation in this area. Approximately 45% of our students study on a distance education basis. Students from every state in Australia are enrolled in our Law programs. The School also has an increasing number of overseas students enrolled.
After 10 months of planning, and a merger of existing disciplines, the New England Business School (NEBS) was established in January 2003. It incorporates under the one umbrella 29 academic staff from the Schools of Accounting, Finance and Entrepreneurship and Marketing and Management, and will offer more integrated business education opportunities for its students. The aim of the School is to offer students a multidisciplinary perspective more in line with the demands of employers and the current business environment.
The Graduate School of Business, established only in 1991, is enjoying rapid growth in one of the most competitive fields in Australia and now offers a number of different streams within its MBA program. GSB specialises in full academic award programs: the Graduate Certificate in Management, the Graduate Diploma in Management and the Master of Business Administration (MBA). Our MBA program has been developed to meet the special needs of distance education students. Inherent in the program is the philosophy that, with proper guidance, adult students are capable and willing to learn and develop on their own. A complete self-contained set of teaching materials is placed at the student's disposal. This permits students to arrange their hours of study to meet lifestyle commitments.
Faculty staff from Economics, Business and Law are also involved in facilities at UNE such as the Centre for Water Policy Research; the Agricultural Business Research Institute; and Institute for Rural Futures.