Spring 2005
Course Descriptions
ECON 190 – Principles of Economics
(4 semester hrs.)
Ankrom, Frost, Gwinn
An introduction to basic principles of economics. Topics covered include supply and demand, marginal analysis, competition, profit maximization, aggregate demand and supply, the level of employment, inflation, fiscal policy, monetary policy, and international trade. Students must have attained the math placement level 22 to enroll. Lecture/discussion format.
ECON 220C – Economics of Developing Areas
(4 semester hrs.)
Frost
Prerequisites – ECON 190
Development economics began as a specific field in economics after World War II, making it a relatively new area of inquiry for economists. In the past development economics concerns have been how to couple economic growth with fundamental structural changes in the real and financial sectors of an economy in order to obtain a permanent and sustained rise of incomes and life conditions for the whole population. More recently development economics has broadened to include a wider range of human development issues focusing on health, literacy, empowerment and equity. The focus of this course will be on the development experience of the low income nations in Asia, Africa, Central America and Eastern Europe ca. 1960 to the present. Each student will explore the development experience of a single country through structured data analysis. Lecture/discussion format.
ECON 250 - Urban and Regional Economics
(4 semester hrs.)
Ankrom
This course seeks to explain the emergence of cities and metropolitan areas and their functioning as economic units within an economy. Emphasis is given to the discussions of major urban problems including transportation, housing, poverty, and financial and environmental concerns. A detailed examination of the policies attempting to resolve these problems is undertaken.
ECON 280 – Managerial Economics
(4 Semester hrs.)
Tiffany
Prerequisites: ECON 190 and MGT 210
In this course, students will extend their understanding of microeconomic theory and its use in managerial decision-making. In addition to studying the theories of demand, production and cost, students will be introduced to the statistical method of regression analysis and its use in applying these theories to real-world problems. Theories of market structure and capital budgeting will also be considered.
The course will have a lecture/discussion format. Students will be evaluated on the basis of two or three midterm examinations, a final examination, and frequent homework assignments.
ECON 290C – Topic: Economics in Transition
(4 semester hrs.)
Frost
Prerequisite: ECON 190
Between 1979 and 1992 nearly 30 countries with approximately one-third of the world's population, voluntarily embarked upon a still unfolding experiment to move both resource decision-making and ownership from a central political authority toward private households, firms and local governments. Transition economics, a new field since the early 1990s, explores the process and results of the decisions of the nation states of the former Soviet Union, Eastern Europe and East Asia to move from centrally-planned toward market and from socialist toward capitalist economies. A central focus of the course will be the examination of the strategies pursued and progress of transition in these countries at the macro and sectoral levels, the institutions that have evolved, and the human welfare consequences of the transition process.
ECON 300 – Econometrics
(4 semester hrs.)
Gwinn
Prerequisites: ECON 190 and MGT 210 or its equivalent.
Econometrics revolves around constructing and statistically testing economic models. The lectures will focus on discussing methodology in economics and learning the fundamentals of regression analysis. In addition, a large portion of the course will be devoted to research projects in which students use a computer regression package to test economic theory against empirical evidence, analyze economic policies, and forecast economic variables. Writing Intensive.
ECON 311 – Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory
(4 semester hrs.)
Gwinn
Prerequisites: ECON 190 and MATH 120 or its equivalent.
This course builds on the ideas presented in ECON 190. Models that are used to analyze the national economy are developed in greater detail, with an emphasis on the distinction between short-run and long-run equilibrium, and on the various schools of thought. We discuss problems inherent in fiscal and monetary stabilization policy and their relationship to unemployment, inflation, and economic growth. A good understanding of algebra is necessary.
ECON 360 – Industrial Organization
(4 semester hrs.)
Tiffany
Prerequisites: ECON 280 or 310, or permission of the instructor.
This course will examine the economics of the firm, imperfect competition and market structure. The goal is to extend and deepen the student's understanding of microeconomics and to apply it to real world situations. We will begin with a review of the standard theory of the firm in a perfectly competitive market, and then consider a variety of models of imperfect competition. The course will have a lecture/discussion format. Students will be evaluated on the basis of a midterm examination, a final examination and a major research project, involving two writing assignments in which the student must demonstrate the ability to use microeconomic analysis. Some class time will be spent developing the skills necessary to write the paper. Depending on enrollment, the research project may be structured as a group project. Writing Intensive.
