International and Development Economics Courses
Advanced microeconomic theory is presented to analyze behavior of consumers and firms under national and international market conditions. Offered every Fall.
Advanced theory in macroeconomics in the context of an open economy. Offered every Spring. Prerequisite: ECON 615 Mathematics for Economists OR permission of instructor.
Applications of linear algebra and calculus to equilibrium, dynamic, and optimization models of economic theory. Offered every Fall.
Applications of differential equations, phase diagrams analysis, stability analysis, optimal control theory, calculus of variations, differential games, and dynamic programming in economics. Offered every other Spring.
Covers the essential econometric techniques for economic and business forecasting and decision analysis: regression theory and applications, time series analysis, and forecasting. Offered every Spring. Prerequisite: ECON 615 Mathematics for Economists or with permission of instructor.
This course is intended to be taken by Master's students in International and Development Economics in the Spring semester to prepare students for Summer field research. The course covers a variety of topics including sampling methods, field interview techniques, planning an empirical research strategy, ethical issues, importance of the protection of human subjects, and advice for maintaining proper health and safety during field research. Prerequisite: ECON 620 Graduate Econometrics.
This course, intended for graduate students, will help students learn how to find and manipulate statistical and economic data found on the Internet. The course is an especially important tool for graduate students who are about to enter the job market in areas such as macroeconomics and finance. This course will teach students how to find and utilize data such as that measuring GDP, inflation, and unemployment statistics.
A topics-oriented course exploring econometric issues and techniques specific to financial economics. Previous topics include facts of the Cap-M model and for random walks in financial markets. Offered every Fall. Prerequisite: ECON 620 Graduate Econometrics.
An applied econometrics course where students with a foundation in regression analysis learn to apply more advanced econometric techniques in their analysis of data. Topics covered include selection bias, simultaneity issues, panel data and time series regression. Prerequisite: ECON 620 Graduate Econometrics.
Advanced Applied Econometrics covers recent developments in econometrics in the areas of instrumental variable and panel data estimation, discontinuity design, non-parametric estimation, and time series analysis with an emphasis on applications in international and development economics.
Monetary policy, financial markets and institutions, competition, market efficiency, innovation and institutional changes, properties of various financial instruments, impact on savings, investment, and capital formation. Offered every Fall. Prequisite or Corequisite: ECON 601 Microeconomics: Theory/Application.
This course emphasizes the institutional structure of banking, government regulation of banking, and government control of the money supply and economic activity. We focus on the needs and processes underlying money and financial markets to understand how and why financial markets and institutions are in a constant state of evolution and the consequences for effective government policies. Offered every Spring. Pre- or Corequisite: ECON 602 Macroeconomics: Theory/Application.
Options, futures and other derivative contracts are widely used to manage risk by businesses and financial institutions. This course provides students with a solid understanding of 1) the economic functions of futures, forwards and options, 2) the operation of the futures and options markets, 3) the pricing of futures, options and other derivatives, and 4) basic strategies in trading options. Offered every Spring. Prerequisite: ECON 615 Mathematics for Economists.
This course introduces modern laboratory experimental methods to students with well-developed interests in economics and with an intermediate-level knowledge of microeconomics and statistics. The course will examine experimental techniques in detail and will survey recent applications in fields such as markets, development, choice under certainty and games. Students will use the lessons to conduct original research and set up their own experiment. Prerequisite: ECON 311 Intermediate Microeconomics OR permission of the instructor.
Law and Economics offers master's students an understanding of how economic theory provides a framework to analyze legal systems. It will also teach students the fundamental importance of the law in fostering economic growth and development. The economic foundations of both domestic and international institutions will be studied extensively.
A comprehensive survey course in the theory of international trade and an economic analysis of international trade policies. Offered every Fall.
The world monetary system: foreign exchange markets, risk reduction instruments and international capital markets in the context of open economy macroeconomics. Evaluation of policies, practices, and institutions in the field of international investments and international finance. Offered every Spring. Pre- or Corequisite: ECON 602 Macroeconomics: Theory/Application.
Development economics: theoretical and empirical investigations of economic development issues, policies, and strategies. Offered every Fall.
Advanced economic development theory and investment theory in an applied context, with particular emphasis on current issues and problems. Offered every Spring.
Quantitative economic techniques and computer software are used to develop simulation models, input-output models, and general equilibrium models for economic forecasting, business decision analysis and country-level economic policy appraisal and planning. Offered every Fall. Prerequisites: ECON 312 Intermediate Macroeconomics or ECON 602 Macroeconomics: Theory/Application.
This class will analyze the economics of foreign investment in emerging economies such as the newly industrializing economies of Asia and Latin America. Emphasis will be placed on understanding transnational capital flows, foreign direct investment, privatization of industry, the role of exchange rate and currency risk, and models of foreign portfolio investment.
Signs of environmental stress and of the depletion and extinction of natural resources abound in developing nations around the world. This course is for graduate students, especially students in the International and Development Economics Master's program, and will examine the issues surrounding changes in the environment of developing nations during the process of industrialization, trade-offs between economic growth and resource depletion, and issues surrounding sustainable development.
In most developing countries today planned development is being abandoned in favor of market-guided strategies. This course provides a political economy analysis of the relationship between government and the economy in developing nations. It examines the various paradigms and debates in the field of international political economy, and with case studies illustrates how domestic and transnational political economic structures have shaped development patterns in diverse third world settings.
Modern empirical approaches to development policy analysis, including intra-household resource allocation and gender issues; microeconomic determinants of fertility and population growth; labor markets in developing economies; schooling and education; and health and nutrition. Pre-requisites: Economics 672 and/or 673, 620. Economics 627 concurrent recommended.
This course focuses on current international economic policy issues, including the on-going global financial crisis, the challenges and opportunities of globalization for developing as well as developed countries, the stress in the current international monetary and trade systems resulting from the rapid development of India and China and the external adjustment problems of the United States, and the evolving role of the IMF.
A capstone course which emphasizes economic methodology and economic research. All students will carry out and present a research. Offered every Fall. Prerequisite: ECON 620 Graduate Econometrics.
Covers a variety of areas, the focus depending on the expertise of the instructor. May be repeated for credit each semester that a different topic is covered. Offered intermittently.
Project report based on an internship program with a department of a business, industry, or government. Must be arranged with a faculty member.
The written permission of the instructor and the dean is required. Must be arranged with a faculty member.
Directed research leading to the presentation of a master's thesis. Must be arranged with a faculty member.
Students develop a thorough knowledge of fundamental financial accounting principles and relationships. The emphasis is on the three basic financial statements, the components of each, alternative accounting methods, and the relationship between the three statements. The goal is to understand the strengths and weaknesses of accounting procedures for measuring the true economic state of a company.
We're often asked if we sell stock and the answer is, 'No.' But we need to understand the process, the mechanics of trading, different ways of investing as well as understanding capital markets, capitalization structures, the exchanges, the difference between buyside, sellside, bankers and brokers.
Every day is different. An entire day can be spent making and returning calls after an announcement. Another day can be spent meeting with different department heads and conducting research. Learn the nuts and bolts of IR in this course.
There are many ways to communicate with investors' phone, email, electronic, print. You will learn how to use different media to get your point across. You will also learn communications techniques when dealing with different events such as earnings, MandA, executive issues, crises, and other issues.
Corporate Governance is a hot topic. This course introduces you to working with legal departments in order to stay out of trouble. You will review cases where ethics and morality come into play. You will also learn how to work with the Board of Directors to ensure your company is transparent and compliant.
Analysts and investors are deluged with information. How do you write something they want to read, that has all the facts, and is compliant? You will learn how here.
Think of your stock as a product. Someone has to market it, and that person is you. We will look at understanding your constituents, buyside, sellside, individual investors, and global institutions. Learn the essentials of marketing, including targeting and peer analysis, in the context of Investor Relations.
10-Ks, 10-Qs, Reg FD' so many acronyms. This course will demystify SEC documents and regulations, and ensure you know which to file to stay out of trouble. You will also have an overview of the court cases that have impacted IR, reporting requirements for the public markets, and your obligations as an IRO.
In this capstone course, you will take all the knowledge and apply it to a final project. The final project will be a formal IR plan for your company.
This course allows students to receive credit for hands on experience working in an Investor Relations department of a company. The internship course is best if taken in the student's last semester as a compliment to the ECON 708 IR Capstone course.
This course examines how limited information, limited attention and limited rationality impact financial markets. After a review of 'heuristics and bias' literature, we discuss trading strategies in markets whose structure give rise to momentum, bubbles and segmented markets with limited arbitrage.
This course provides the foundation for quantitative risk models. The course emphasizes important probability distributions for returns, statistical measures of risk and return, the estimation and use of factor models for analyzing risk. The course introduces the concept of Value at Risk (VaR) models as a unified approach to evaluating risk across a variety of financial assets.
This course examines the different types of risk that arise across a variety of different assets due to the characteristics of the assets and the structure of the markets they trade in. Advanced Value at Risk models that capture the non-linear nature of certain derivatives and market structures are developed. Scenario analysis is examined as a way to evaluate "one-off" risks as well as a way to stress test VaR models and their assumptions in extreme scenarios.
This course develops models for market risk in fixed income assets including mortgage-backed securities. The role of advanced derivatives, such as special purpose vehicles and collateralized debt obligations, in hedging these risks is explored.
This course investigates the role of credit risk in fixed income portfolios. Models of default and recovery rates, counterparty risk in derivative contracts, and products such as credit default swaps are developed to assess and manage credit risk.
This course emphasizes the development and implementation of risk management systems to measure and mitigate corporate financial risk exposures. The focus is the correlations across market, credit and operational risks and the allocation of risk capital across the firm. The importance of regulatory requirements (Basel II and III) in this process is emphasized.
Develops advanced applications of the risk models developed in earlier courses. Applications include developing stress tests for VaR that meet Basel II and III standard scenarios, KMV models for credit risk modeling, risk management for CD's and case studies in model risk.
