Prerequisites of the Citation Program

Students must have completed a minimum of 12 semester hours or 18 quarter hours at a regionally accredited college or university with a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher; and have taken either a course in statistics or an intermediate-level course in microeconomics, and received a grade of "B" or better. Students must apply and be accepted as either an "Advanced Special Student" (for those with a bachelor's degree) or as a Transfer Undergraduate at the University of Maryland.


The Curriculum

The student first completes the semester-length credit-bearing course, Introduction to Economic Measurement (SURV 699L), earning a grade of "C" or better.  The student then completes eight different one or two-day short courses.  These must include the four core short courses -- Introduction to Survey Sampling, Introduction to Survey Estimation, Introduction to Survey Methods for Businesses and Organizations, and Analysis and Presentation of Economic Data. The student chooses four other short courses from the 6-8 short courses that JPSM offers each year that are designated as suitable electives for the Economic Measurement citation program. After completing the Introduction to Economic Measurement course and the four core short courses, the student takes a written examination that covers the material in the courses.


Introduction to Economic Measurement
(SURV 699L)

This course is designed as an introduction to the field of economic measurement, taught at the graduate level.  Sound economic data are of critical importance to the Federal Reserve System, the executive branch, the Congress, the business community, and others.  The course begins with an overview of the key uses and users of economic statistics and then provides a brief introduction to the creation of business registers; business survey sampling and estimation; and the collection of data from businesses.  The remainder of the semester is devoted to issues in the production of price statistics, employment and earnings statistics, and the national accounts and with the use of administrative data in producing economic statistics.  The discussion of these topics emphasizes the economic concepts that underlie key economic statistics and the translation of those concepts into operational measures.


Core Short Courses:

Introduction to Survey Sampling
This is a foundation course in sampling methods for survey research. It presents, in a non-technical manner, basic sampling techniques such a simple random sampling, systematic sampling, stratification, cluster sampling, and probability proportional to size selection. Opportunities to implement sampling techniques are provided by a series of exercises that accompany each topic. Group work is an integral part of the course. Participants can expect to become sufficiently familiar with basic techniques to be able to converse with sampling statisticians in an informed way.

Introduction to Survey Estimation
This short course provides an introductory exposure to producing estimates of population parameters from sample surveys. It treats concepts of uncertainty due to sampling and describes how the sampling errors of survey statistics vary as a function of sample design. It presents the basic tools of computing descriptive statistics, like means, percentages, and population totals from sample surveys. It examines statistical procedures used in comparing subgroups on attributes measured in the survey. It treats inferential issues in moving from sample-based statistics to describing the target population of the survey. It describes current practices in the presentation and description of descriptive statistics in sample surveys. Practical exercises during the short course reinforce the lecture materials and handouts. 

Introduction to Survey Methods for Businesses and Organizations
The course begins by providing an overview of the basic steps used to conduct business and organizational surveys.  It explains principles and practice in designing, implementing, evaluating and coordinating data collection from organizations.  It explores strategies used in ongoing data collections, contrasting current methods with alternative designs and modes of conducting surveys and censuses. The course is structured around the concept of Mean Square Error (MSE), which gives a systematic approach to evaluating problems and quality in data collection.  Sources of error that contribute to the MSE include:  1) specification error, 2) frame error, 3) non-response error, 4) measurement error, and 5) processing error.  During the course, each of these sources of error is illustrated using examples from organizational surveys that have been conducted for the federal government and private sponsors.   The course also discusses ways to evaluate and reduce error, especially non-sampling error, and describes techniques for understanding and improving data quality.   

Analysis and Presentation of Economic Data
This short course is designed to introduce producers of economic statistics to the tools they need to present those statistics effectively to the data user community.  The course begins with a discussion of the varied users and uses of Federal economic statistics.  Students are exposed to principles and practices for the construction of tables and graphs that display economic statistics in an objective, informative fashion.  Techniques for assessing and displaying trends in and relationships among economic data series are explored.  Key considerations in the preparation of press releases, bulletins, and analytic articles are discussed.  Practical group exercises augment and reinforce the lecture materials.


The Four Additional Short Courses can be chosen from the 6-8 short courses offered each year by JPSM that are designated as suitable electives for the Economic Measurement program. The short course schedule is updated each year. Offerings in recent years have included:

U.S. Federal Statistics as a System

Introduction to Survey Management

Sampling for Establishment Surveys

Model-Based Survey Sampling:  Theory and Practice

Introduction to National Accounts

The Role of Administrative Records in Federal Economic Statistics

Creating and Updating Price Indexes:  Theory and Practice

Quality Change and Hedonic Price Indexes

Measuring and Analyzing Trends in Productivity

Diagnosing and Treating Gaps in Economic Statistics

Statistical Analysis with Missing Data

Statistical Disclosure and Disclosure Limitation

Introduction to Small Area Estimation

Statistical Metadata:  Understanding Its Role in Survey Processes

Record Linkage

Words, Numbers, Symbols and Graphics

Model-Based Survey Sampling:  Theory and Practice

Questions for Standardized Measurement in Surveys