ECO - Economics

An economic analysis of the interactions between households, businesses and the government regarding the allocation of goods, services and resources. Topics include the theory of consumer behavior, production and cost determination, and resource pricing.

An introduction to aggregate economic analysis; use of the aggregate demand/aggregate supply model for the determination of output, employment and prices; use of the production possibilities curve analysis to illustrate opportunity cost and to show gains from trade applying the concept of comparative advantage; structure and functions of the Federal Reserve System; and conduct of monetary policy.

Labor economics examines the organization, functioning and outcomes of labor markets; the decisions of prospective and present labor market participants; and the public policies relating to the employment and payment of labor resources.

The course teaches students to use economic concepts to critically evaluate social, political and business decisions regarding environmental resource use, environmental regulation and environmental degradation. Students will gain insight into how to respond as business decision-makers to environmental regulations and to increased global competition for scarce resources.

This course is designed to provide students with an introduction and overview of development economics. The course will focus on the economies of countries other than the United States, explore the interaction between the developed and the less-developed economies of the world, and examine international trade and environmental issues in developing countries.

This course analyzes consumer choice theory; the theory of production; competitive, oligopolistic and monopolistic market structures; and behavioral economics.

This course is designed to analyze the domestic and international impacts of public policy on GDP, employment, inflation, the trade deficit and budget surplus, the international flow of capital, foreign exchange rate variations and international competitiveness.

Game theory is the study of behavior in the context of strategic interdependence. It is critical to understanding behavior and outcomes when an individual's welfare depends on both their own choices and the choices of others. This course introduces the core concepts of game theory, including modeling strategic interdependence, dominant, dominated, and rationalizable strategies, best replies, Nash equilibria in pure, continuous and mixed strategies, repeated games, extensive-form games and subgame perfection, imperfect and asymmetric information, auctions, voting, bargaining, mechanism design, and evolutionary game theory. Applications include topics in economics, business, politics, sports, and life.

Public Choice is the study of the economics of politics using applied microeconomics. It examines decision making within democratic political structures. The course examines the economics of voting, bureaucracy, political economy, and constitutional design, from the perspective of private individuals, elected officials, and special interest groups. The tools of the course are used to analyze contemporary policy issues including voting rights, political entrepreneurship, foreign aid/intervention, and taxation policy. Students are required to undertake individualized research projects, applying the core materials from the course to their own areas of interest.

The purpose of this course is to learn modeling techniques and apply them to current issues in modern economic research. Students will learn how to specify economic problems in terms of a mathematical model, solve them and interpret the results. Computational software programs are used in the course to solve these models and plot the results.

This course covers the core concepts of international trade and international finance. The first half of the semester is devoted to international trade, including the basis for trade, gains from trade, trade policy and factor mobility. The second half of the semester is dedicated to international macroeconomics-finance, including balance of payments, foreign exchange rates and international capital flows. There will be a continual focus on current events throughout the semester.

This course will examine major economic and financial issues related to emerging markets, with a particular emphasis on the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China). The following topics will be considered: economic liberalization programs undertaken by emerging markets in recent decades, growth drivers in the emerging markets, financial sector challenges facing key emerging markets, and monetary policy challenges faced by emerging markets.

The course introduces basic econometric techniques that are of value to economics and business majors. The emphasis will be on understanding the linear regression model, including some key extensions and relevant applications. Besides basic fundamentals of regression analysis, the course will cover panel data models, instrumental variables, causality, time series and forecasting. Students will be required to undertake a forecasting exercise as part of the requirements for completion of the course.

This course is designed to provide upper-level economics majors with a broad overview of key topics in economics. Areas of emphasis include U.S. and global economic conditions, monetary policy, economic growth and international economics. This is an applications course, relating the theoretical framework of economics to real-world economic developments. Students who successfully complete the course will have a good grasp of some of the fundamental economic issues and developments currently affecting the U.S. and global economies.

This internship exposes the student to a real-life learning experience. Students are hired by an organization for the specific objective of gaining work experience in that organization. The paid or unpaid internship should be relevant to the student's major, and is worked out between the organization and the student. May not be used to satisfy major requirements. Approval of the department chair required.

A course offered at the discretion of the economics department. Subject may focus on a topic of current interest in the field, training in a specific area of the field, or a topic that is of interest to a particular group of students.

A readings or independent study course taken for variable credit.

For graduate students only. This course covers current topics in income inequality and poverty within both developed and developing countries. For both inequality and poverty, students will study the various methods of economic measurement and identify recent dynamic trends. Empirical evidence will be used to scrutinize and explore current theoretical arguments aimed at explaining the trends. The course will analyze contemporary policies at both the country level and within global institutions (IMF, World Bank, bilateral aid programs) aimed at alleviating poverty and lessening inequality, and examine the linkages among inequality, poverty, growth, education technology and globalization.

For graduate students only. The course teaches students to use economic concepts to critically evaluate social, political and business decisions regarding environmental resource use, environmental regulation and environmental degradation. Students will gain insight into how to respond, as business decision-makers, to environmental regulations and to increased global competition for scarce resources.

For graduate students only. This course introduces students to the global economic environment within which all modern business firms operate. The external factors considered, which directly or indirectly impact business decision-making and operations, include: domestic and foreign interest rates, exchange rate policies, foreign investment, overseas economic conditions, and international trade and capital flows. A primary objective of the course is to introduce students to major contemporary economic issues that are of international significance.

For graduate students only. The course will examine major economic and financial issues related to emerging markets, with a particular emphasis on the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China). The following topics will be considered: Economic liberalization program undertaken by emerging markets in recent decades; Growth drivers in the emerging markets; Financial sector challenges facing key emerging markets; and, monetary policy challenges faced by emerging markets.

For graduate students only. The Economics of Organizations uses the business-related tenets of economics to generate a modern, consistent, formal framework for strategic decision-making. After introducing intermediate microeconomic theory, the course uses economic intuition to address cost issues ranging from outsourcing to the addition of new product lines, agency issues from explicit contract theory to the multi-task principle and team production, and imperfect competition issues ranging from Bertrand pricing to the assessment of Cournot strategic interactions. The international dimension is integrated throughout the course in establishing the competitive organizational form for the firm given the market in which it competes.

The course aims to provide business students with a broad overview of key topics in international macroeconomics and finance. The following aspects will be emphasized in the course: drivers of long-term economic growth and development; challenges posed by natural resource abundance; international business cycle fluctuations; cross-border interdependence and spillover; causes and consequences of global imbalances; and key aspects of international finance -  exchange rates, currency crises, and global monetary system. This course will emphasize applications - usage of basic frameworks of economics to analyze and understand real economic developments.

A course offered at the discretion of the ECO department. Subject may focus on a topic of current interest in the field, training in a specific area of the field, or a topic that is of interest to a particular group of students.

For graduate students only. Contemporary topics in economics.