several reasons
1. back then there were desperate students who wanted to do commerce at unsw and usyd. they didnt make it in and considered mq for economics/commerce as they thought it was decent.until they found out you can't do accg subjects in economics degree they thought it was bludgy. the economics degree at mq is considered quite bludgy considering there are only a few core subjects, you'll be doing electives > in fact too many its not really an economics degree. so most ppl will combine economics with another degree as a double degree.
2. there is no double major avaible for economics 3yr degree in economics/econometrics > that sucks big time! while other unis have it !!
3.in fact not many degrees have double major within 3yr single degrees.
4. lots of ppl are on double degrees at mq esp accounting/finance since these econ/comm degrees are second rate other than actuarial. but im sure some of the actuarials here will agree that some of the core subjects are NOT taught well, and have shitty exams. e.g isys123 being one of easiest subjects has difficult content in the final exam which was not and will not be covered in lecture material.> advanced excel formula! this is to lower people's grades with about over 50% of students getting a pass grades, around 50-60.
5.once the uai dropps it will keep dropping, ppl will understand that uai cutoffs are based on supply and demand. since its so low people will understand that's its either shit or not popular. dont do economics unless you are getting good grades.
6. lots of ppl transfer out to usyd and unsw after discovering its more Sh17 than expected.
the internal transfer system was put in place to retain existing students and is questionable whether it is ethical.
there are also some much older students who failed macroeconomics econ110 you will meet in tutorials. another reason why students dislike the uni.
university rankings dropped alot from around 95 to 160 this year.
Dont do economics at mq, some employers employ by soley in university rankings and/or prestigiousness.