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Dr. John McCollough, Ph.D. — Associate Professor

"Do not be afraid to think outside the box."

Degrees Held:

  • Ph.D. in Economics -- Temple University, 2001
  • MBA – Widener University, 1987
  • B.S. in Accounting – The Pennsylvania State University, 1981

Department: Business

Career highlights:

I worked in private industry for more than 15 years as a senior corporate financial accountant. After receiving my Ph.D. and while still working in accounting, I started to teach economics at night at Temple, St. Joe's and Drexel universities. In 2005, I left private industry to work full time in academia.

I worked for seven years at Penn State - Lehigh Valley. In 2012, I transferred to Lamar University.

My research is mostly in the field of environmental economics. I have over 10 manuscripts in peer-reviewed, scholarly journals. If any students are interested, they can gain access to some of my manuscripts in Google Scholar; search for “McCollough Sustainability.”

  • In which online degree programs do you teach?

    BBA MBA

  • Which classes do you teach online?

    ECON 2302: Principles of Economics II (Micro) ECON 5300: Microeconomic Principles

  • Why did you start teaching?

    I was a senior level corporate accountant, but after 15 years, I needed a change.

  • What's the best advice that you ever received?

    Your time is valuable, so watch out for people trying to steal your time.

  • What's the best advice that you could give your students?

    Do not be afraid to think outside the box.

  • What qualities make someone particularly successful in economics?

    You need to think of a research topic, then be able to analyze it and write about the results in a systematic but understandable way. In addition, you often don’t get the results you expect, so you must try different approaches until you find the results you can report on.

  • What is the one book you think everyone should read?

    “The Grapes of Wrath” by John Steinbeck.

  • Tell us something your students might not know about you:

    If I had to do it all over again, I would have entered the Ph.D. program earlier in my career. But I guess I am just built that way. The life of an academician is for me, but maybe not for everyone.

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  • Need More Info?

    Submit the form below, and a representative will contact you to answer any questions.

or call 866-223-7675

By submitting this form, I am providing my digital signature agreeing that Lamar University (LU) may email me or contact me regarding educational services by telephone and/or text message utilizing automated technology or a pre-recorded message at the telephone number(s) provided above. I understand this consent is not a condition to attend LU or to purchase any other goods or services.

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By submitting this form, I am providing my digital signature agreeing that Lamar University (LU) may email me or contact me regarding educational services by telephone and/or text message utilizing automated technology or a pre-recorded message at the telephone number(s) provided above. I understand this consent is not a condition to attend LU or to purchase any other goods or services.

  • Need More Info?

    Submit the form below, and a representative will contact you to answer any questions.

or call 866-223-7675

By submitting this form, I am providing my digital signature agreeing that Lamar University (LU) may email me or contact me regarding educational services by telephone and/or text message utilizing automated technology or a pre-recorded message at the telephone number(s) provided above. I understand this consent is not a condition to attend LU or to purchase any other goods or services.