Macroeconomics is the study of economic behavior in aggregate. We will examine how national wealth and well-being are determined, and we'll ask what (if anything) we can do to guide and adjust our aggregate economic fate. Along the way, we will consider theories of production, unemployment, inflation, long-run growth, investment and savings, business cycles (the "boom and bust cycle"), money, and international trade.
The course strives to give students a broad perspective in terms of the intellectual history of big-picture economic debates, as well as a data-driven discussion of the current state of the economy.
Course Requirements:
Grades are based on three non-cumulative exams, weekly homework assignments, daily classroom i>Clicker participation, and three short newspaper article analyses.
Intended Audience:
ECON 101 and 102 are required as prerequisites to the concentration and to upper-level courses in Economics. ECON 102 is useful to any student interested in social policy or the basics of the business environment.
Students are STRONGLY encouraged to take ECON 101 (Microeconomics) prior to taking ECON 102. The course is taught under the assumption that students are familiar with the basic tools and topics of ECON 101. While some time will be spent reviewing the most critical topics of ECON 101, this course should largely be seen as an extension of ECON 101 (and as a bridge to ECON 401). This course will expand your comfort in graphical and algebraic analysis.
Class Format:
Large-classroom lectures plus small-section problem solving.