Adding value to a Bachelors course in Economics

What is a B.A. in Economics worth today? Why do people opt for it? Most people to whom I've posed this question seem to think its just for the piece of paper which says they've completed an undergraduate education, which is a pre-requisite for being eligible for most jobs in the organised sector. They could just as well have opted for a Bachelors degree in history or sociology or any of the other myriad subjects.

Is there a way of adding value to a Bachelors degree in economics from the point of view of all the various constituents who have a stake in it? To do so would mean addressing the needs of the three main constituents

1. Students (and maybe parents when it is they who make decisions on the courses for their wards) who need to choose the course the want
   
2. Colleges that offers the Bachelors in Economics course
   
3. Employers who expect to hire people with a good set of skills and abilities,

and making a B.A. in economics highly desirable for all of them.

Here's an idea:

The institution turns publisher/consulting firm for local businesses and publishes a survey of the local economy and undertakes commissioned market surveys/studies and creates a new revenue stream for itself.

The students who opt for the B.A. Economics course go through a three step process, in addition to their regular course work, during their three years of study.

• First Year Students: Will collect the raw data and do a lot of field work and learn about data collection techniques, how to pose the right questions, how to ensure quality control in data collection and so on
• Second Year Students: Will analyse and interpret the data collected by the First Year Students to discern patterns/trends and arrive at conclusions about the local economy andr prepare commissioned reports for local businesses. They will learn analytical skills.
• Third Year Students: will publish an annual branded product (print+CD-ROM+Internet) and market it to make the product a revenue earner for their college. The students will learn how to package, price, promote and market the product on a commercial basis. They also learn to go and pitch to local businesses to do consulting work for them (generating customised reports and studies) and negotiate a fee for it.

The faculty will guide the Third Year Students who will in turn guide the Second Year Students, who will in turn guide the First Year Students.

The Benefits:

• The colleges open up a new source of revenue at zero or minimal cost (the students do all the work as part of their course work and don't get paid anything extra)
• The colleges create a brand and raise their profile in the community
• The students learn skills to seek and gather information, analyse and interpret the information and finally to package and market it as products of value to people to who would be willing to pay for it. These are precisely the skills that employers would be looking for and every student is trained in all of the above over the three years of their course. This makes the students highly desirable in the eyes of potential employers.
• The students learn how to work in a team and assign work to others, set standards and work towards a common goal of putting out a product. The product will be a tangible symbol of achievement for all.
• The employer community will have access to a large pool of trained people each year, with a set of skills backed by the experience of having dealt with the market.
• Local businesses will have access to a research and consulting firm (the local college) capable of providing relvant, high quality data and reports in a timely manner at a reasonable cost.