About
The Strategic Economics program is designed for students who want to improve decision quality when the stakes are real and the environment is unforgiving. Strategy too often becomes a polished narrative; we train you to develop the habits that turn heat into clarity – choices that can withstand executive-level scrutiny, with clear logic, explicit assumptions, and measurable implications – in plain terms: from storytelling to accountable decision-making.
Our distinctive approach begins with the causal forces underlying business outcomes: incentives, information, bargaining power, market power, commitment, contracting frictions, and uncertainty. We still use classic strategy frameworks – but as a communication layer, not as an explanation in themselves. This helps you see what is truly driving performance (it’s economics!), what can be changed, and what must be managed.
The curriculum blends rigorous economic thinking (including game theory, behavioural insights, industrial organisation, and the economics of organisations) with applied work on recognisable strategic decisions - pricing, market entry, growth and platforms, key accounts, contracting and supply chains, and M&A logic. Across cases, simulations, and projects, you will practice translating ambition into disciplined analysis and monitoring. You will be trained to a professional standard of reasoning and communication – so strategy becomes a craft of responsible action.
For more information or to apply, please get in touch with the Faculty academic coordinator at:
Important admission note for non-EU/EFTA applicants: The gap since completing your Bachelor's degree must not exceed five years.
Schedule
At Strategic Economics, we recognize the diverse commitments of our students. That's why our classes are typically scheduled for weekday evenings, allowing you to effectively balance your educational and professional obligations. Our flexible schedule is designed to cater to the needs of both full-time students and working professionals, assuring you that you can pursue your academic goals without compromising on your professional responsibilities. Each semester is structured with modules focused on different strategic aspects, culminating in a comprehensive thesis defended in stages.
The studies occur weekday evenings from 5.45 to 9.00 PM (Lithuanian time). During each semester, 5-6 different subjects are studied. The Master's thesis is defended in three stages: the first, second, and third semesters.
You Will Learn
By enrolling in Strategic Economics, you will build durable capabilities that travel across industries and roles – because they are anchored in economic mechanisms, evidence, and decision discipline. You will become the kind of professional who can name the real trade-offs, quantify what matters, and defend a recommendation under challenge.
- Diagnose strategic situations by identifying the causal drivers at work (incentives, information, power, commitment, contracting frictions, uncertainty).
- Structure competitive moves and responses using game-theoretic reasoning as a practical tool for credible commitments, deterrence, and negotiation.
- Quantify value drivers by connecting demand, costs, and risk to decision-relevant metrics (e.g., unit economics, margins, elasticity, switching costs, option value).
- Pressure-test strategies by converting narratives into explicit assumptions, testable predictions, and “what would change my mind” evidence.
- Design decision-relevant KPIs that track whether a strategy is working for the right reasons – not just delivering short-term optics.
- Make strategy work under regulatory and stakeholder constraints, understanding how rules and institutions reshape incentives, entry, and competition.
- Communicate to senior stakeholders with crisp memos and presentations: transparent trade-offs, defensible analysis, and recommendations that remain robust when challenged.
Study Overview
The programme emphasises real-world application through interactive lectures, demanding case discussions, business simulations, and applied projects that reflect the tempo and constraints of managerial decision-making. You will repeatedly practice a disciplined workflow: question →economic mechanisms → model → evidence → recommendation → monitoring. The goal is not academic elegance alone, but decision-grade strategy – analysis that supports action under uncertainty.
Learning formats are designed to build both judgment and rigour. Cases and simulations force you to make choices with incomplete information, anticipate competitor reactions, and confront organisational frictions. Applied projects mirror consultancy-style work: scoping the problem, building a defensible analytical narrative, selecting fit-for-purpose metrics, and presenting recommendations that can be challenged and improved. Throughout, you will be trained to a clear standard – how to write, argue, measure, and revise strategy.
Distinctive features of the programme:
- Mechanism-first strategy training: economics as the engine; frameworks as the interface for communication, not a substitute for causal thinking.
- Decision-grade analytics: explicit assumptions, measurable implications, and a disciplined approach to evidence and trade-offs.
- Applied learning formats: challenging cases, simulations, and project-based work grounded in real strategic decisions (pricing, entry, growth, contracting, M&A).
- Interdisciplinary foundation: economics integrated with strategic management to develop both analytical depth and managerial judgment.
- Executive-standard craft: disciplined memo writing, evidence hygiene, and KPI design—stable core principles with a growing portfolio of cases and simulations.
Entry Requirements
Admission to the studies will be competitive, and priority will be given to university graduates with degrees in economics, with preference given to candidates with at least one year of work experience.
Applicants from other study fields must have accumulated at least 20 credits from fundamental subjects in economics, which they can acquire by attending complementary studies at VU FEBA. This requirement does not apply to applicants who have at least three years of relevant professional experience and submit a free-form certificate from their employer confirming their work tenure and position.
Lecturers
Antanas Laurinavičius
Robertas Zubrickas
Inga Blažienė
Christof Gellweiler
Giedrė Dzemydaitė
Arūnas Burinskas
Tom Hashimoto
Guillermo Hausmann Guil
Ona Marija Vyšniauskė
