Delhi School of Economics

What Delhi School of Economics does

Delhi School of Economics (DSE) is the Department of Economics at the University of Delhi, a public central university established by Act of Parliament. Founded in 1949, DSE is one of India's oldest and most prestigious graduate economics teaching and research institutions. It offers undergraduate (B.A. Honours Economics, B.A. Programme), postgraduate (M.A. Economics), and doctoral (M.Phil. and Ph.D.) programs, and houses the Centre for Development Economics (CDE), which publishes a continuous series of working papers and runs the refereed Indian Economic Review journal in partnership with Springer.

The department serves graduate and undergraduate students, academic researchers, and visiting scholars. Its core activities are graduate-level economics instruction, dissertation supervision, applied development-economics research, and academic convening through seminars, the annual Winter School (which has hosted Nobel laureates Eric Maskin and Thomas Sargent), and international conferences. Distribution of education occurs exclusively through University of Delhi admissions processes; the department does not operate commercial products, has no proprietary technology stack, and is government-funded with minimal tuition contribution. As a department of a publicly funded university, DSE is led by Director Ram Singh under the Vice Chancellor's authority, with current initiatives including the CDE-IEDS International Conference 2026 and refreshed UGCF undergraduate curriculum frameworks.

The business model is non-commercial: DSE is funded through University of Delhi grants (derived from central government allocations) and nominal student fees. There is no external revenue model, no pricing structure, no investor base, and no independent ownership. The institution generates intellectual outputs (working papers, journal articles, conference proceedings) that contribute to India's academic and policy discourse — exemplified by the Director's concurrent seat on the RBI's Monetary Policy Committee — rather than commercial products or services.

Name

Delhi School of Economics

Legal name

Department of Economics, Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi

Website

https://econdse.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Delhi School of Economics is the Department of Economics at the University of Delhi, a public academic institution offering B.A., M.A., M.Phil., and Ph.D. programs in economics. It serves graduate and undergraduate students and academic researchers through teaching, applied development-economics research via the CDE, and convening activities including the annual Winter School.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Finance, Accounting & Economics Schools (EDAHAHAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Economic & Macroeconomic Research (BPAHALAD)

Keywords

• Economics education
• Graduate programs
• Academic research
• Development economics
• Doctoral programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Delhi

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Delhi School of Economics is the Department of Economics at the University of Delhi. It offers undergraduate (B.A. Hons. Economics), postgraduate (M.A. Economics), and doctoral (M.Phil. and Ph.D.) economics degree programs, conducts development economics research through the Centre for Development Economics (CDE), publishes the Indian Economic Review journal (with Springer) and CDE Working Papers, and hosts academic events including annual Winter Schools, seminars, and international conferences.

Product overview

Delhi School of Economics (DSE) is an academic department within the University of Delhi that offers graduate-level economics education and conducts economic research. It provides M.A. Economics, M.Phil., and Ph.D. programs, publishes the Indian Economic Review journal through Springer, produces CDE Working Papers, and organizes academic events including seminars, the annual Winter School, and international conferences. The institution does not offer commercial technology products or services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Centre for Development Economics (CDE): Research center within DSE focused on development economics research and publishing working papers
• Indian Economic Review

Products and services

• M.Phil./Ph.D. Economics Program Doctoral and pre-doctoral economics research degree programs for postgraduate students pursuing advanced research careers in economics.
• M.A. Economics Program Two-year postgraduate master's degree program in Economics for students with an undergraduate background in economics or related fields.
• B.A. (Hons.) Economics Program Undergraduate honors degree program in Economics under the UGCF framework, preparing students for postgraduate study and economics-related careers.
• B.A. (Programme) Economics Undergraduate economics program within the B.A. Programme structure, providing general economics training alongside other disciplines.
• Centre for Development Economics (CDE) Research Program Research center producing CDE Working Papers and hosting academic seminars on development economics topics.
• Indian Economic Review Journal Refereed academic journal of Delhi School of Economics, published by Springer, featuring peer-reviewed research in economics.
• Annual Winter School in Economics Annual capacity-building program hosting leading economists, including Nobel laureates, for lectures and research engagement.
• CDE Working Papers Series Regularly published academic working paper series in development economics and related fields by CDE researchers and collaborators.
• CDE-IEDS International Conference International academic conference co-organized with the Institute for Educational and Developmental Studies (IEDS), focused on economic development, demographic transition, and environmental sustainability.
• Placement Cell Services Career placement assistance for DSE students, supporting recruitment into academia, policy, and finance roles.

Quantifiable outcome

• Winter School has hosted Nobel laureates Eric Maskin (Harvard) and Thomas Sargent (NYU)
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Institute for Educational and Developmental Studies (IEDS)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 June 2026Co-organizing the CDE-IEDS International Conference 2026 on 'Economic Development, Demographic Transition, and Environmental Sustainability' at Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi from June 3-5, 2026. Prof. Surender Kumar and Prof. Pradeep K Joshi serve as Conveners.

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) - Department of Economics: Internationally benchmarked economics department with global reach, used as an international reference peer for DSE's research caliber and Nobel-laureate-affiliated seminar culture.

Direct peers

• Jawaharlal Nehru University - School of Social Sciences: Centre for Economics Studies and Planning at JNU is one of India's premier economics teaching and research departments, comparable to DSE in scale, postgraduate program depth, and contributions to Indian economic policy discourse.
• Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) - Delhi Centre: ISI's Delhi centre offers M.A. and Ph.D. programs in economics with quantitative emphasis — comparable to DSE in postgraduate economics training and research output, particularly in econometrics and applied economics.
• Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics: One of India's oldest economics research and teaching institutions, offering M.A. and Ph.D. programs with similar development economics orientation as DSE's CDE.
• Centre for Development Studies (CDS), Trivandrum: Trivandrum-based research and doctoral training institution focused on development economics — comparable to DSE's CDE in research orientation and academic standing in Indian development economics.
• Madras School of Economics: Chennai-based economics school offering postgraduate and doctoral programs with research focus on development and environmental economics — overlaps with DSE's CDE research agenda and Indian economic policy focus.
• Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR): Mumbai-based research institute offering M.Phil, Ph.D., and M.Sc. programs in economics with strong focus on development economics — directly comparable to DSE's CDE research and doctoral training.
• Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata: ISI Kolkata's Economics Research Unit runs M.A. and Ph.D. programs of similar stature to DSE, with comparable focus on quantitative and applied economics research in India.
• Department of Economics, University of Mumbai (Bombay School of Economics): Historic economics department of University of Mumbai with similar graduate and doctoral program structure, comparable to DSE as a major Indian state-university economics department.

Emerging players

• Ashoka University - Department of Economics: Newer private university (founded 2014) with an economics department that has rapidly grown its research output and faculty; an emerging challenger to DSE for top Indian economics students and faculty.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/UniversityofDelhi
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/delhi-school-of-economics

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Delhi School of Economics