I. Course Description

I. Course Description

See Undergraduate Coordinator. This course, required for all honors majors, is a two-semester two-c.u. course, with credit given in the spring semester only. Students conduct original research and write a thesis, under the supervision of a faculty advisor.

Traditionally, economics focuses on the study of existing markets.  Recently, regulators, entrepreneurs, and economists have been involved in the design of markets.  They have created institutionalized markets for new products, and have redesigned existing markets that were dysfunctional.  This course utilizes ideas from game theory and microeconomics to provide the theoretical underpinnings for design and analysis of such markets.  Further, via real world examples, we study the practical aspects of such market design and the institutional details which can deter

This course studies selected topics on developing economies related to models of growth and development, inequalities and poverty, population, human resources, the international sector and markets, institutions and policies.

Prerequisites: Economics 101 and Math 104 and Math 114 or Math 115.
Economics 103 is recommended.

In this course we learn how individuals make decisions in a world full of uncertainties, both normatively and descriptively. This theory will help us build skills in understanding and analyzing a choice problem with uncertainty in a systematic fashion, as well as deepening our understanding of the fundamental concept of a utility function, which plays a critical role in economic modeling. The course requires a substantial ability of abstract thinking. Homework is intended to be thought-provoking rather than skill-sharpening.

International monetary economics with emphasis on economic policy in an open economy. Topics covered in the course include: balance-of-payments adjustment, theories of exchange rate determination, the effects of exchange rate devaluation, macroeconomic policy under fixed and floating exchange rates, the Euro-dollar market, currency and balance of payments crises.

Prerequisites: Economics 101 and 102 and Math 104 and Math 114 or Math 115. A student who receives credit for Economics 252 may not receive credit for Economics 050.

The course analyzes the theories of International Trade for developed and developing countries. Topics covered will include direct investment, technology transfers and multinational firms. The course will examine the political economy of trade policy where both positive and normative arguments concerning free trade and restricted trade will be analyzed.

Prerequisites: Economics 101 and 102 and Math 104 and Math 114 or Math 115. A student who receives credit for Economics 251 may not receive credit for Economics 050.

This course will introduce students to the major mathematical tools that are used in modern economics, and these tools to various economic questions. The tools to be discussed may include constrained optimization, duality, dynamics, fixed point theorems, and optimal control theory.

Prerequisites: Econ 101, 102, Math 104 and Math 114 or 115

Fundamentals of modern macroeconomic modelling and applications for forecasting and policy analysis. Attention will focus on representing such macroeconomic phenomena as inflation, unemployment, the business cycle, productivity, and secular growth. Students will build a macro model. Topics will include how to simulate a range of fiscal and monetary policies and how to measure their effectiveness for stabilization and growth.

Prerequisites: Economics 101 and 102. Economics 103 is recommended and Math 104 and Math 114 or Math 115.