The Institute of Economics (IE) has its origin in the Department of Economics and Economic Planning (DEPE), of the Institute of Philosophy and Human Sciences (IFCH) at Unicamp, which started its activities in 1968, offering economics and economic planning disciplines at graduate level. That is considered as the date of birth of IE/Unicamp. The undergraduate course of Economics started in 1970 and the Master’s Degree and Doctorate Degree were formally implemented over that decade (1974 and 1977, respectively). In 1984, the DEPE transformed into the Institute of Economics and its institutionalization has been following its way ever since.

Since its early years, IE has sought to develop one original and singular interpretation on the formation and development of the Brazilian economy. Such an interpretation, born from the making and discussion of the seminal works of some of the founders Professors of IE in the 1970s, was not concerned only with explaining the economic events in Brazil at the time. It involved critical dialogue with the Latin American structuralist tradition and also original incorporation of a set of theoretical references (notably Marx, Kalecki, Keynes and Schumpeter), and a renewed effort in the decades following, by old and new generations of professors, to interpret the evolution of the Brazilian economy and the challenges for its development in an ever-changing global capitalism.

Over these decades, which are interwoven with Unicamp’s history, there have been many important contributions by IE to the formation of highly qualified staff for the Brazilian public and private sector, the participation of its students, professors and researchers in the public debate on major national issues, and the acknowledgment of its academic production.

The Institute of Economics (IE) currently has 55 faculty and 42 staff members. Undergraduate studies count with near 600 students enrolled. IE has two Graduate Programs with both Master and PhD Degrees: Economics and Economic Development. The latter unfolds into five thematic areas: Economic History; Social and Labor Economics; Applied, Agricultural and Environmental Economics; Regional and Urban Economics; and Comparative Development Patterns. From 2015 to 2019, 209 master’s dissertations and 127 PhD theses were defended, amounting to 336 completed works.

In the research area, IE is marked by a broad range of subjects, which translate into several research lines, led by professors in both individual and collective work, split into 10 Research Centers.

With respect to its infrastructure, IE shares a large area, with classrooms for undergraduate and graduate courses, research and administrative rooms, computer laboratories and a library with one of the biggest economics archives in Brazil.