Department of Economics - Undergraduate Course Descriptions

UNDERGRADUATE COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

Honors Courses

S201 Introduction to Microeconomics: Honors (3 cr.) Designed for students of superior ability. Covers the same core materials as E201.

S202 Introduction to Macroeconomics: Honors (3 cr.) Designed for students of superior ability. Covers the same core materials as E202.

S270 Introduction to Statistical Theory in Economics and Business: Honors (3 cr.) P: MATH M118. P or C: MATH M119 or 163. Covers the same core materials as E270 but with more involved applications in economics.

Non–Honors Courses

E100 Current Economic Topics (1 cr.) Discussion of socioeconomic issues from applied point of view through investigation and analysis of current topics of interest such as bank regulations, foreign policy, economics of defense, international trade and finance, ethics and economics, economics of crime, and economics of discrimination. Not open to those with previous college-level economics courses.

E101 Survey of Current Economic Issues and Problems (3 cr.) For nonmajors only. Basic economic principles applied to current social issues and problems. Topics covered will typically include inflation, unemployment, wage and price controls, welfare, social security, national debt, health programs, food prices, pollution, crime, mass transit, revenue sharing, multinationals, population, and energy. Not open to those with previous college-level economics courses.

E102 Economics of Personal Finance (3 cr.) For nonmajors only. Show how the state of the economy, prices, and interest rates should guide personal decisions about spending and saving, credit, investments, and insurance. Intended for non-Business students.

E111-E112 Topics in the Economic History of Western Civilization I-II (3-3 cr.) Selected topics in the economic history of Western civilization, including the growth of the market organization, industrialization, institutional growth and change, imperialism, and labor.

E201 Introduction to Microeconomics (3 cr.) P: sophomore standing. E201 is a general introduction to microeconomic analysis. Discussed are the method of economics, scarcity of resources, the interaction of consumers and businesses in the market place in order to determine price, and how the market system places a value on factors of production.

E202 Introduction to Macroeconomics (3 cr.) P: E201. An introduction to macroeconomics that studies the economy as a whole; the levels of output, prices, and employment; how they are measured and how they can be changed; money and banking; international trade; and economic growth.

E270 Introduction to Statistical Theory in Economics (3 cr.) P: MATH M118. Analysis and interpretation of statistical data in business and economics. Discussion of frequency distribution, measures of central tendency and variability, statistical inference, hypothesis testing, correlation, regression, and time series.

E303 Survey of International Economics (3 cr.) P: E201-E202. Survey of international economics. Basis for and effects of international trade, commercial policy and effects of trade restrictions, balance of payments and exchange rate adjustment, international monetary systems, and fixed vs. flexible exchange rates. Students who have taken E430 many not enroll in E303 for credit.

E304 Survey of Labor Economics (3 cr.) P: E201. Economics problems of the wage earner in modern society; structure, policies, and problems of labor organizations; employer and governmental labor relationships.

E305 Money and Banking (3 cr.) P: E201-E202. Money and banking system of the United States, including problems of money and the price level, proper organization and functioning of commercial banking and Federal Reserve System, monetary standards, and credit control. Recent monetary and banking trends.

E307 Current Economic Issues (3 cr.) P: E201 or permission of instructor. Current economic issues, problems, and research methods. Designed to explore in depth an economic issue currently before the public or to examine a particular aspect of the methodology of economics. Examples would be a study of the economic aspects of discrimination, a study of urban economic policy, or a study of simplified models in economics.

E308 Survey of Public Finance (3 cr.) P: E201-E202. Analysis of government expenditures and revenue sources, taxation and capital formation, public debt and inflation, growth in government spending, and intergovernmental fiscal relations.

E321 Intermediate Microeconomic Theory (3 cr.) P: E201-E202, MATH M119. Theory of demand; theory of production; pricing under different market conditions; allocation and pricing of resources; partial and general equilibrium theory; and welfare economics. Analysis of current economic problems and technology changes in firms and industries.

E322 Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory (3 cr.) P: E201-E202. Theory of income, employment, and price level. Study of countercyclical and other public policy measures. National income accounting.

E323 Urban Economics (3 cr.) P: E201-E202. Introduction to basic concepts and techniques of urban economic analysis to facilitate understanding of urban problems; urban growth and structure, poverty, housing, transportation, and public provision of urban services.

E325 Comparative Economic Systems (3 cr.) P: E201-E202. Essential economic theories and features of economic systems, including private enterprise, authoritarian socialism, and liberal socialism.

E326 Applied Research in Urban Economics (3 cr.) P: E201-E202 or permission of instructor. Field research in urban economics. Topics to be selected by students, covering such areas as human resource problems, transportation and housing surveys, demographic shifts, and income distribution issues.

E335 Introduction to Mathematical Methods in Economics (4 cr.) P: E201-E202, MATH M118-M119. Introduction to quantitative techniques used in economics, and instruction in the application of these techniques to the analysis of economics problems.

E337 Economic Development (3 cr.) P: E201, E202, and junior standing or consent of instructor. Characteristics of economically underdeveloped countries. Obstacles to sustained growth; planning and other policies for stimulating growth; examination of development problems and experience in particular countries.

E355 Monetary Economics (3 cr.) P: E305 or E322 or equivalents. Supply and demand functions for money in the context of models of the U.S. economy. Formulation of Federal Reserve policy decisions and effects on interest rates, prices, output, and employment. Current problems in monetary policy and theory.

E363 Environmental and Natural Resource Economics (3 cr.) P: E201-E202. Basic theory and policy of such topics as pollution, resource depletion, environmental risk, and resource conservation. Issues covered include limits to growth, quality of life, and the appropriate roles for the private market and federal control. Credit not given for both E363 and E463.

E380 Law and Economics (3 cr.) P: E201 or permission of instructor. The application of economic method to legal institutions and legal issues. Examples would be the optimum use of resources to prevent crime, the economic value of a human life, the economic consequences of regulating the business firm, the economics of property rights, torts, and contracts.

E385 Economics of Industry (3 cr.) P: E201 or permission of instructor. A theoretical and empirical analysis of the structure, conduct, and performance of major American industries. Emphasized is the degree of competition in various markets, how markets operate under conditions of competition or monopoly, and competition as a dynamic process over time.

E387 Health Economics (3 cr.) P: E201. This course applies economic theory to the study of policy issues in health economics. Specific issues included are: determinants of demand for medical services and insurance; training and pricing behavior of physicians; pricing behavior and costs of hospitals; market and regulative approaches.

E406 Senior Seminar (3 cr.) P: E321 and E322 or permission of instructor. Assessment of the current state of economic knowledge and discussion of how economics is applied to study the problems facing modern society.

E408 Undergraduate Readings in Economics (3 cr. maximum) P: permission of instructor. Individual readings and research.

E410 Selected Topics in U.S. Economic History (3 cr.) P: E201-E202. Analysis of selected topics, including transportation developments, government intervention, systems of property rights, slavery, economic growth, income distribution, economic stability, technical change, and others.

E414 Economics of the Nonprofit Sector (3 cr.) P: E201. The role of nonprofit organizations (universities, churches, hospitals, orchestras, charities, day care, research, nursing homes) in mixed economics. Public policy controversies such as regulation of fundraising, antitrust against universities, ‘‘unfair’’ competition with for-profit firms, and the tax treatment of donations.

E420 History of Economic Thought (3 cr.) P: E201-E202. Examination of main theoretical developments since the beginning of the systematic study of economics. Theoretical propositions and structures of the earlier writers will be interpreted and evaluated in terms of modern economic analysis.

E430 Introduction to International Economics (3 cr.) P: E201-E202. Forces determining international trade, finance, and commercial policy under changing world conditions; theory of international trade; structure of world trade; tariff and trade control policies; the balance of payments problem; evolution of international economic institutions; and monetary relations.

E441 Economics of Labor Markets (3 cr.) P: E201, E321, and E270 or equivalent. Analysis of the functioning of labor markets with theoretical, empirical, and policy applications in determination of employment and wages in the U.S. economy.

E447 Economics of the Labor Market (3 cr.) P: E201. Analysis of the functioning of the U.S. labor market. Labor force concepts, unemployment, mobility, wages, and current manpower problems and policies. Analysis of wage determination, wage policy, and their interaction with institutional factors.

E450 Business Conditions Analysis and Forecasting (3 cr.) P: E201-E202. This course examines sources of instability in industrialized economies. Various theories of the business cycle are examined and critiqued. In addition, the empirical determinant of aggregate demand, prices, and interest rates are discussed. Alternative forecasting techniques are considered and the use of these techniques is demonstrated.

E470 Introduction to Econometrics (3 cr.) P: E270, MATH M119. Application of regression analysis to economic and business data. Estimation and hypothesis testing of classical regression model. Heteroscedasticity, collinearity, errors in observation, functional forms, and autoregressive models. Estimation of simultaneous equation models. Credit will not be given for both E470 and E472.

E485 Economic and Social Control of Industry (Antitrust) (3 cr.) P: E201 or permission of instructor. This course is a study of the economic reasoning behind and consequences of the application of antitrust laws aimed at altering the structure, conduct, and performance of the American economy. Specific legal cases that have been brought under the Sherman Act, the Clayton Act, as amended, and the Federal Trade Commission Act are analyzed.