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Economics : Courses
ECO 181 Introduction to Macroeconomics
Credits: 4Semester(s): F Sp Su
Prerequisites: None
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC/DIS
Covers principles of employment, inflation, business cycles, and growth; also considers policies for economic stabilization and full employment. May be taken independently of ECO 182.
ECO 182 Introduction to Microeconomics
Credits: 4Semester(s): F Sp Su
Prerequisites: None
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC/DIS
Covers principles of price determination, creation of value, distribution of income, competition, and principles of international trade. May be taken independently of ECO 181.
ECO 205 Money and Banking
Credits: 3Semester(s): F Sp Su
Prerequisites: None
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Studies the U.S. monetary system; including roles of financial institutions; commercial banking; creation of money; the Federal Reserve and monetary policy; and the macroeconomic relationships among money, interest rates, inflation, and gross domestic product.
ECO 206 History of the American Labor Movement
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: None
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Examines the American labor movement from its beginnings in the early nineteenth century through the present day, and studies economic and social determinants of its development. LEC
ECO 207 Economic Classics
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: None
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Introduces the history of economic thought. Uses the original writings of prominent historical figures, such as Aristotle, Adam Smith, Karl Marx, Thorstein Veblen, and John M. Keynes.
ECO 208 Introduction to Environmental Economics
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: None
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Involves economic analysis of environmental problems. The course is issue-oriented; and considers such problems as air, water, and noise pollution; population growth; and environmental capacities.
ECO 209 Introduction to Urban Economics
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: None
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Explores how cities and a system of cities contribute to economic growth; the role of cities in developed and developing countries; how economic activity is allocated within cities; the economics of housing, transportation, pollution, property taxes, and zoning; racial and income segregation and discrimination in cities; and urban poverty. ECO 209 and ECO 421 cannot both be taken for credit.
ECO 210 Comparative Economic Systems
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: None
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Comparative analysis of economic and political systems of capitalism, socialism, and mixed economies. Topics covered include market efficiency, rent-seeking, and regulation, and discussion of economic consequences of anarchy, democracy, and dictatorship.
ECO 211 Introduction to Health Economics
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: None
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Conducts an economic analysis of the U.S. health-care delivery system; also considers the question of shortages or misdistribution of medical services, efficient production, medical care cost inflation, and alternative financing methods.
ECO 212 Current Economic Problems
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: None
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Uses elementary techniques of economic analysis to examine significant economic issues in order to provide insight into the issues and the consequences of policies advocated to address them. The issues examined are some of those current at the time the course is offered.
ECO 251 Government in the U.S. Economy
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: None
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Involves an empirical assessment of the size and scope of government activity in the United States; attempts a comprehensive and empirical understanding of the economic activities and influence of government in the United States.
ECO 263 Elements of Benefit-Cost Analysis
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: None
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Incorporates a benefit-cost criterion for comparing the relative economic merits of alternative public expenditure choices; also explores net present value, and the internal rate of return.
ECO 270 Regulation in the U.S. Economy
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: None
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Examines regulatory controls in the U.S. economy and their effects on entry by firms into an industry. Considers prices, profits, and quantity produced; product quality; and competitive structure of an industry.
ECO 276 Law and Economics: Equity and Efficiency
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: None
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Explores the relationship between the legal concept of equity and the economic concept of efficiency. Discusses efficiency with some reference to optimality and contrasts it with the goal of equity. Draws applications from criminal and accident law.
ECO 303 The Economics of Poverty
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 181, ECO 182 and MTH 121-MTH 122 or MTH 141-MTH 142
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Studies classes and groups that, in the economy, are characterized as 'impoverished'. Also studies causes of poverty and discrimination, and antipoverty and antidiscrimination socioeconomic policies.
ECO 304 Socialist Economies
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 181 and MTH 121-MTH 122 or MTH 141-MTH 142
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Examines the theory of socialism, and history and economic structures of socialist economies within the context of social relations, including social conflict, state planning, workers' control, and economic development.
ECO 405 Microeconomic Theory
Credits: 3Semester(s): F Sp
Prerequisites: MTH 121-MTH 122 or MTH 141-MTH 142
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Intermediate level. Examines economic theory dealing with the economics of price determination, value, distribution, and competition.
ECO 406 Topics in Microeconomics
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 405
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Introduces new theories and applied topics in microeconomics beyond the basic subjects studied in ECO 405. Covers a broad range of imperfect markets, including monopoly, oligopoly, and monopolistic competition. Also covers topics in game theory, uncertainty, investment and capital markets, general equilibrium analysis, externalities and public goods, and markets with asymmetric information.
ECO 407 Macroeconomic Theory
Credits: 3Semester(s): F Sp
Prerequisites: MTH 121-MTH 122 or MTH 141-MTH 142
Corequisites: None
Type: SEM
Intermediate level. Uses economic theory to explain the causes of inflation, business fluctuations, unemployment, and economic growth.
ECO 411 Health Economics
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 405
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Investigates economic behavior of the health-care industry, including hospital services, physicians, and health insurance; and considers rationales for government intervention in planning and insuring.
ECO 416 Economic Development
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 405, ECO 407
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Studies the issues of poverty, economic development, and economic growth in low-income countries. Introduces diverse aspects of empirical findings in development and offers theories of development and policy implications.
ECO 418 Economics of East Asia
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 181, ECO 182 and MTH 121-MTH 122 or MTH 141-MTH 142
Corequisites: None
Type: SEM
The world's fastest-growing economies in the postwar period are clustered in East Asia. Provides, through economic analysis, a deeper knowledge of East Asian economic growth and an understanding of the growth and development process through real-world applications. With the focus on East Asian economies, covers major issues in economic development, theories of growth and convergence, and some current macroeconomic issues of East Asian countries.
ECO 421 Urban Economics
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 405
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Explores theories of the existence and growth of urban economies, location and its relationship to industrial organization and trade, and the internal organization of cities. Further covers land and housing markets; pricing and resource allocation in urban transportation; the economics of local government, local public goods, property taxes, and zoning; and the economics of income and race segregation in urban areas. ECO 421 and ECO 209 cannot both be taken for credit.
ECO 425 Money and Financial Institutions
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 407
Corequisites: None
Type: SEM
The goal of this course is to enable students to learn the concepts and tools necessary to understand the interconnections between the financial side and the real side of the US economy and how the Fed impacts this through monetary policy.
ECO 426 Capital Markets and Financial Institutions
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 407
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Involves an overview of financial decision making and the functions of financial markets. The course first focuses on financial decisions made by individuals and firms and then investigates the way these decisions are implemented through financial systems. The key concepts are resource allocation over time, evaluation of cash flow, risk management, project evaluation, and asset pricing models.
ECO 434 International Finance
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 407
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Introduces the international financial system; including the spot and forward foreign exchange markets; triangular arbitrage, currency futures, interest arbitrage, the balance of payments, fixed vs. flexible exchange rates, devaluation and the balance of trade, measuring and managing foreign exchange exposure, and import and export financing.
ECO 435 International Economics
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 405
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Covers the classical law of comparative advantage; modern theories of trade (including the Heckscher-Ohlin and specific-factor models of trade); growth and trade; international factor movements; multinational corporations; trade-related international organizations; the effects of trade policies with tariffs, quotas, and other instruments; preferential trading arrangements; and topics in economic integration. Also covers briefly the balance of payments, foreign exchange markets, and the international monetary system.
ECO 436 Marxian Economic Theory
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 181 and MTH 121-MTH 122 or MTH 141-MTH 142
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
In-depth investigation of the Marxist theory of capitalism, centering on value and surplus value, accumulation of capital, and class struggle; also, this course considers the theory of pre-capitalist societies.
ECO 440 Economics of Education
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 405
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Analyzes various educational policies. Topics include returns to education, economics of class size, school quality effects, cognitive test achievements, school performance assessment, student dropout behavior and post-schooling labor market experience. This course is not aimed at addressing all questions in the economics of education. Instead, it provides basic concepts, tools, and economic intuition in addressing various educational issues from an economic point of view. Students should be able to apply these concepts and tools to other educational policy issues after completing this course.
ECO 443 Labor Economics
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 405, ECO 407
Corequisites: None
Type: SEM
Studies wage theory and the institutions that affect the supply of and demand for labor. Also examines wage differentials and such policy problems as unemployment, discrimination, and government regulation of wage-setting institutions.
ECO 445 Human Resource Economics
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 405, ECO 407
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Explores relationships among the techniques of human-capital formation (education, on-the-job training, financing, human-capital maintenance, health care, and job safety), human-capital mobility (occupational information, relocation), and economic performance.
ECO 455 Information and Internet Economics
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 405, ECO 407
Corequisites: None
Type: SEM
Focuses on economic issues involving both information and Internet technology. On the information side, the course covers the value of information, issues that arise from information asymmetry, and costs of producing and distributing information. On the technology side, it discusses business implications of the Internet by introducing topics concerning market structure, entry barriers, and conduct and performance of firms. Also addresses issues concerning patents and copyrights in the context of electronic commerce. In addition to discussions and lectures, the course relies on cases, guest speakers, and student projects.
ECO 461 Economic Fluctuation and Forecasting
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 405, ECO 407
Corequisites: None
Type: SEM
Considers alternative stochastic specifications of linear dynamic econometric models. Studies, among other topics, appropriate estimation techniques, the nature of the fluctuations (business cycles) of major economic variables (GNP, private investment, and so forth) implied by the models, and the problem of forecasting. Emphasizes time-series models.
ECO 464 Economics of the Public Sector
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 405
Corequisites: None
Type: SEM
Analyzes costs and benefits of government sector and taxation. Expenditure topics include public goods, public production of private goods, externalities, Coase theorem, and benefit-cost analysis. Revenue topics include tax incidence, neutrality, revenue productivity, and equity of alternative taxes.
ECO 468 Economics of Sports
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 405, ECO 407
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Investigates economics of the sports industry; including league rules and formation, salaries of players, and TV and gate receipts as a general equilibrium model.
ECO 469 Industrial Organization
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 405
Corequisites: None
Type: SEM
Studies structure of industries and firms in American and other advanced economies; price and production policies; relationships among structure, competition, efficiency.
ECO 470 Economics of Regulation
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 405
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Analyzes the economic criteria for regulatory policies and the effects of regulation in various sectors of the economy.
ECO 476 Economics of Legal Relationships: Property Rights
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 405
Corequisites: None
Type: SEM
Analyzes the emergence of ownership and property relationships and the effects of these on the production and distribution of products; also compares different property rights systems.
ECO 480 Econometrics I
Credits: 4Semester(s): F Sp
Prerequisites: MTH 121-MTH 122 or MTH 141- MTH 142
Corequisites: None
Type: SEM/DIS
Covers measures of central tendency and spread in economic data, probability, binomial and normal distributions, estimation, confidence intervals, testing of hypotheses, and analysis of variance. Also introduces and applies simple two-variable regression to real-world data using computer software.
ECO 481 Econometrics II
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 480 or permission of instructor
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Involves an in-depth analysis of basic general linear regression and several of its commonly used variants which allow for dummy variables, interaction terms, serial correlation, and heteroscedasticity, among other things. Additional topics include estimation and forecasting in the context of econometric time-series models,as well as simultaneous equation models. The course also covers index numbers and Chi-Square tests of independence in contingency models. Emphasizes empirically implementing most of the models on real-world data using standard computer software.
ECO 482 Computational Econometrics
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 480; ECO 481 recommended
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Uses SAS to demonstrate ways to analyze economic data utilizing various econometric techniques. Topics covered include basic linear regression models, binary choice models, and time series and simultaneous equation models. SAS programs are run, using real data. No prior knowledge of SAS is necessary.
ECO 490 Monetary Theory
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 407
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Presents an advanced theory of money and its effect upon interest rates, prices, employment, and output.
ECO 493 Topics in International Economics
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: ECO 405, ECO 407
Corequisites: None
Type: LEC
Presents special topics of current interest, such as an overview of recent developments in trade theory, optimal trade and industrial policies in models with imperfect competition, issues in current trade negotiations, issues in services trade, global e-commerce, economic globalization, GATT and the WTO, free trade areas, customs unions, regionalism vs. multilateralism, the European Union (EU), and the future world monetary system.
ECO 495 Undergraduate Supervised Teaching
Credits: 3Semester(s): N/A
Prerequisites: Details available at the department office
Corequisites: None
Type: TUT
The content of this course is variable and therefore it is repeatable for credit. The University Grade Repeat Policy does not apply.
Students who have at least junior status and satisfy the department's prerequisites may apply to serve as undergraduate teaching assistants for ECO 181 and ECO 182. Under the supervision of the professor, undergraduate teaching assistants lead discussion sections for the principles courses, reviewing core concepts and theories, answering questions from the students, and participating in the preparation of final grades.
ECO 496 Internship in Economics
Credits: 3Semester(s): F Sp
Prerequisites: ECO 405, ECO 407, and a minimum B average in economics
Corequisites: None
Type: TUT
Students arrange an internship in the private or public sector. As long as this position has a strong economics content, the student can apply to the director of undergraduate studies in economics for internship credit. Application must be made in advance and must be approved by the director of undergraduate studies.
ECO 498 Undergraduate Research
Credits: 3Semester(s): F Sp
Prerequisites: A minimum GPA of 3.0 in Economics and permission of the instructor
Corequisites: None
Type: TUT
The content of this course is variable and therefore it is repeatable for credit. The University Grade Repeat Policy does not apply.
Students with excellent records in Economics have the opportunity to participate in faculty research projects or to conduct their own original research under the supervision of a faculty mentor, thereby gaining first hand experience in economic research. Interested students should consult the Director of Undergraduate Studies or, if known, the faculty person with whom they wish to conduct research.
ECO 499 Independent Study
Credits: 1 - 6Semester(s): F Sp
Prerequisites: B average in all economics courses taken, a written project proposal, and a faculty member's prior approval and sponsorship of the project.
Corequisites: None
Type: TUT
The content of this course is variable and therefore it is repeatable for credit. The University Grade Repeat Policy does not apply.
Involves development of an individual project of inquiry into an economics area of particular relevance to the student's interest, and in a topic or depth not currently offered through regular coursework.
Last updated: Wednesday, 23-Apr-2008 15:42:54 EDT