Course Catalog

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Course Catalog

INTERMEDIATE MACROECONOMICS (EC3020)

Studies in depth factors influencing aggregate supply and demand, inflation, unemployment, interest rates, and international payments. Develops an analytic framework for the purpose of investigating the interrelationships among principal macroeconomic aggregates. Discusses current issues and controversies regarding macroeconomic policies.

THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF MONEY, DEBT, AND TAXES (EC3025)

What is money? Is money related to taxes? What is the role of public debt? Do money, debt, and taxes affect the economy? In this class we will learn how economists answer those questions. We will relate those answers to current and past historical events, as well as analyze how those topics affect global economic governance.

INSTITUTIONAL ECONOMICS (EC3030)

The course will introduce students to the role of institutions in economic life, exploring the different institutional arrangements that sustain the workings of contemporary market societies. After discussing alternative definitions of economic institutions and their different types – formal and informal rules, norms, organizations, etc. – we will proceed to a survey of different approaches to the study of institutional economics. Students will be introduced to classic readings from the original American institutional movement, discussing the legal and cultural foundations of modern capitalism. We will then cover a selection of topics in New Institutional Economics, including transaction costs theory, rent seeking and collective action, and long-run economic performance. Throughout the course, students will be stimulated to reflect on how the adoption of an institutional perspective calls into question some of the basic premises of standard economic theory. They will also explore how the study of institutions can open the door to interdisciplinary engagements between economics and other social sciences.

ECOLOGICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ECONOMICS (EC3031)

What are the environmental and ecological challenges economies face today? How can economic policy contribute to tackle those challenges? In this class we will answer those questions adopting the economists’ perspective. Economists have different ways of thinking about the environment and its relation to the economy. To better understand those different approaches, we will adopt a comparative perspective of environmental and ecological economics. The course will focus on the role of economic resources, biodiversity, and climate change in economic growth and equality. After introducing the sources of the discussion of environmental and ecological economics in the 19th century, we will discuss the 20th century debates between environmental and ecological economists on the issues of the limits of growth, natural capital, sustainable development. We will then cover the real-world application of those abstract economic theories by focusing on the different means to measure economic progress, the way the world economy deals with climate change, and on real-world examples of ecological economics. Throughout the course, students will be able to develop a comparative understanding of economic theories and see their importance and application in the real world.

ECONOMICS OF TECHNOLOGY (EC3033)

Focuses on the economic underpinnings of the economics of information and technological innovation. The course covers topics such as agglomeration and localization of innovative firms, impact of innovation on productivity gains, R & D and spillover effects, technology and globalization.

ECONOMICS OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP (EC3040)

The course provides an understanding of the theoretical and empirical underpinnings of the economics of entrepreneurship and innovation by identifying, examining and analyzing the economic, social and institutional drivers of entrepreneurial activities in an increasingly knowledge and technology driven economy. A particular emphasis is placed on technological change as the main engine behind economic growth.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (EC3042)

Examines the evolution of the concept of economic development and its means of assessment. The course studies the models explaining the process of economic development and the barriers to it. A critical analysis of the success and failure of development theories and policies is examined. A survey of neo-classical, dualist, structuralist, Third-Worldist, Marxist and IMF-based discourses of development and underdevelopment are undertaken.

ECONOMICS OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (EC3043)

This course familiarizes students with concepts and methods that are used in the analysis of the interaction between the economy, the environment and society, and studies the range of policies that can be applied to environmental and social problems. The key issue is how markets can be made to work for sustainable development.

INTERNATIONAL TRADE THEORY & POLICY (EC3052)

Combines study of classical and new theories of trade and analytical tools for evaluating the economic effects of tariffs and other forms of government intervention in trade with an in-depth examination of how governments regulate international trade in practice. Analysis covers goods and services, multilateral trade rules, developed and developing country experiences.

INTERNATIONAL MONETARY ECONOMICS (EC3053)

This course provides an analysis of trade theories and their monetary aspects in global and open economy. The course begins by explaining the rationale behind international trade and welfare gains that emanate from trade and proceeds to discuss the balance of payments accounts, price and output in an open economy, macroeconomic policy under different exchange rate regimes. A special emphasis is placed on the conduct of monetary and fiscal policy in an open economy, the balance of payment accounts and the determination of the exchange rate. Students will have the opportunity to get a more in-depth understanding of the origin and impact of monetary problems and financial crises in advanced and emerging economics (the United States, EU countries following Brexit, China and Latin America) using a policy approach.