Economics

This course will apply micro-economic theory and empirical methods to explore the role of gender in shaping economic outcomes, examining the inter-relationships between family formation (marriage and fertility), human capital investment, and labor market outcomes. Public policy applications will be emphasized.

Applies microeconomic theory to the analysis of legal rules and institutions. Includes the effect of economic forces on the development of law, and the effect of laws on the allocation of resources. Prerequisite: ECON 3010 or instructor permission.

Students will learn the mathematical tools economists use to model and analyze dynamic economic problems. Topics include transitional dynamics, optimal control theory and recursive dynamic programming. I will show you how to solve economic problems such as consumption/savings, investment and capital accumulation, optimal growth, industry dynamics, job search, portfolio choice, natural resource extraction, and dynamic games.

A course in business strategy for advanced undergraduates. Examines topics such as value creation and capture, industry structure, creating and maintaining competitive advantage, vertical structure of the firm, adapting to change, and long-run growth of the firm. Extensive use of business school cases and readings from the popular press.

Analyzes employment and wages, including the economics of education, unemployment, labor unions, discrimination and income inequality. Prerequisites: ECON 3010 or 3110, and ECON 3720, or instructor permission.

Uses microeconomic theory to examine the demand for health services and medical care, the market for medical insurance, the behavior of physicians and hospitals, issues pertaining to malpractice, and government policy. Prerequisite: ECON 3010 or ECON 3110 and ECON 3720 or ECON 4720.

The principles of microeconomics are used to examine decision making under uncertainty: finance, learning, savings, contracts, and oligopoly. Prerequisite: ECON 3010 or ECON 3110.

This course examines the meaning of risk and the history of risk management from the Bronze Age through the Digital Age. This course links together our natural aversion to loss and our attempts throughout history to mitigate loss and hedge risk. Students learn about markets designed to diversify risks such as futures, forwards, and insurance along with the co-evolution of probability theory as a tool to both understand and price risks.

Studies market structure, firm strategy, and market performance. Topics include strategic interactions among firms, as well as business practices such as mergers and acquisitions, price discrimination, advertising, product selection, innovation, vertical restraints, cartels, and exclusionary conduct. Prerequisite: ECON 3010 or 3110.

Empirical Industrial Organization examines various timely issues related to market structure, firm strategy, and market performance by combining the analysis of data and economic theory to develop and estimate econometric models. Prerequisites: ECON 301, ECON 372

Studies government regulation and control of business through public policies designed to promote workable competition. Prerequisite: ECON 3010. or ECON 3110

Studies the nature and determinants of international trade and factor movements; the effects of international trade on prices of goods and factors; the consequences of tariffs, quotas, customs unions, and other trade policies and agreements, national or international; and international trade and the balance of payments. ECON 3010 or 3110 AND ECON 3720 or ECON 4720 or STAT 3220

Studies fixed and floating exchange rate systems. Topics include determinants of a nation's balance of international payments; macroeconomic interdependence of nations under various exchange-rate regimes and its implications for domestic stabilization policies; and the international coordination of monetary and stabilization policies. Prerequisite: ECON 3020.

Examines various topics related to either international trade, Third World development, or interactions between the two. Examples include the effects of NAFTA, the WTO, multinational firms, child labor, rich country protectionism against Third World imports, volatile primary commodity markets, and how trade liberalization affects workers in rich and poor countries. The course will be structured on student presentations and directed-research projects. Prerequisite: ECON 3010 or ECON 3110, and either ECON 4210 or ECON 4610.

This course offers an introduction to the economics of immigration, with an emphasis on the effects of immigrants on receiving countries, including effects on workers, crime, inequality, and fiscal effects. The prerequisites are Econ 3010 and Econ 3720 (or equivalents), since the course will heavily use theory from intermediate micro and will do close readings of empirical studies.

Studies politics using economic analysis. Topics include the theory of voting rules, regulation, taxation, and interest groups; the growth of government; and the design of constitutions. Prerequisite: ECON 3010.

Studies the justifications for government activities, the design of programs consistent with these justifications, the effects of major existing and proposed expenditure programs and taxes, and positive and normative analyses of political systems. Prerequisite: ECON 3010 or 3110.

This course explores how economists think about cities. Why do cities exist? Why are they located where they are? Why do some cities grow and others decline? Within a city, what determines where people live, how they commute to work, and what they pay for housing? Topics to be treated include agglomeration economies, location theory, land use patterns and policies, urban housing and transportation, and local public goods.

Studies the theory and operation of financial markets and the role of financial assets and institutions in the economic decisions of individuals, firms, and governments. Prerequisite: ECON 3010 or 3110, 3030, and STAT 2120 or equivalent. .

Analyzes the theory of financing corporate operations and corporate decisions regarding the allocation of capital among alternative projects; includes the nature of financial instruments and the behavior of capital markets. Prerequisite: ECON 3010 or 3110, 3030, and STAT 2120 or equivalent.

Develops and tests models of asset pricing and allocation in finance, to determine both the validity of the theories and the extent to which they should guide us in financial decision-making. Prerequisite: Must have met the Financial Economics concentration declaration prerequisites.

Study the role and the importance of the financial system in the global economy. Construct general equilibrium models that encompass the financial markets as well as the rest of the economy. These models will be used to understand the recent subprime crisis, the European sovereign debt crisis, and many market phenomena such as extreme volatility and contagion. Prerequisites: ECON 3010 or 3110 (ECON 3020 is recommended).

Behavioral finance questions the efficient market hypothesis. In addition, this course explores noise trader models and the 'over and under reaction' debate. Readings are mostly from professional journals. Students should be quite serious about finance. Prerequisite: Econ 3010 or 3110 and ECON 4340

Course deals with theories explaining the nature of advertising, and evaluates market performance in this industry, using Game Theory and Oligopoly Theory. Calculus will be used extensively. Prerequisite: ECON 3010 or ECON 3110.

Comparative study of the historical development of selected advanced economies (e.g., the United States, England, Japan, continental Europe). The nations covered vary with instructor. Prerequisite: ECON 3020, or ECON 2010 and 2020 and instructor permission.