Economics
Economics
courses
Economics department home page
Director of undergraduate studies: Benjamin Polak, 55 Hillhouse Ave., 432-9926 or 432-3574, qazi.azam@yale.edu
FACULTY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS
Professors
Joseph Altonji, Donald Andrews, Dirk Bergemann, Steven Berry, Truman Bewley, Donald Brown, Judith Chevalier, Eduardo Engel, Ray Fair, John Geanakoplos, Maitreesh Ghatak (Visiting), Itzhak Gilboa (Visiting), Pinelopi Goldberg, Timothy Guinnane, Philip Haile, Koichi Hamada, Gerald Jaynes, Yuichi Kitamura, Alvin Klevorick, Richard Levin, George Mailath, Robert Mendelsohn, Giuseppe Moscarini, Barry Nalebuff, William Nordhaus, Peter Phillips, Benjamin Polak, Miguel Ramirez (Visiting), John Roemer, Mark Rosenzweig, Herbert Scarf, T. Paul Schultz, Robert Shiller, Martin Shubik, Anthony Smith, T. N. Srinivasan, Shyam Sunder, Christopher Udry, Ernesto Zedillo
Associate Professors
Alan Dye (Visiting), Hanming Fang, Dino Gerardi, Stephen Ross (Visiting), Fumiko Takeda (Visiting), Nicholas Williams (Visiting)
Assistant Professors
Irene Brambilla, Bjoern Bruegemann, Justine Hastings, Dean Karlan, Fabian Lange, Taisuke Otsu, Melissa Tartari, Ebonya Washington
Lecturers
Irasema Alonso, Sigridur Benediktdottir, Michael Boozer, Philippe DeDonder, Cheryl Doss, Gauti Eggertsson, Howard Forman, Tolga Koker, Nicholas Perna, Michael Schmertzler (Visiting), David Swensen, Dean Takahashi
Economics concerns the wealth of nations, its origins in production and exchange, its allocation among competing uses, its distribution among individuals, and its accumulation or decline. Economics seeks to discern both the common features and the differences in the institutions by which societies throughout the world, today and in the past, have organized economic life. The approach is descriptive and analytical. Many issues of national and international policy are considered, and the focus is on social institutions and market outcomes rather than on individual economic performance. Thus economics at Yale is regarded and taught as part of a liberal education, not as a preparation for any particular vocation.
Nonetheless economics provides an especially relevant background for several professions. In recent years about three-quarters of majors in Economics have entered law school or have gone on to graduate work in economics, business administration, and other professional fields, often after having worked in a related field for two or three years before beginning graduate or professional education. About one-quarter have pursued careers with business firms, government, or other organizations without graduate or professional training.
Requirements of the major. Students majoring in Economics are required to take twelve term courses numbered 110 or above. Two of these may be introductory economics courses, one in microeconomics and one in macroeconomics. Students must also complete a mathematics course selected from the following: MATH 112a or b, 115a or b, 118a or b, or 120a or b. The remaining nine courses are in Economics. Seven of the nine must be economics courses taken at Yale. All majors must take the following core courses: one term of intermediate microeconomics (chosen from ECON 150a or b or 152a), one term of intermediate macroeconomics (chosen from ECON 153b or 154a or b), and one term of econometrics (chosen from ECON 161a or b or 163b). These required courses for the major should be completed prior to the senior year and are prerequisites for departmental seminars. Majors must also take two departmental seminars (courses in the 450–491 range), including at least one in their senior year, to fulfill the senior requirement for the major. One course in a related field, such as accounting, another social science, or advanced mathematics, may be counted toward the Economics major with written permission of the director of undergraduate studies. In order to receive such permission, a student must be a declared major. Related-course credit forms are due by midterm (as it appears in the Yale College calendar) of the term in which the course is offered. Once a related course is approved as a course counting toward the major, it must be counted toward the major. For the Class of 2008, a maximum of two courses taken on a Credit/D/Fail basis may be counted toward the requirements of the major. For the Class of 2009 and subsequent classes, courses taken on a Credit/D/Fail basis may not be counted toward the requirements of the major, except with permission of the director of undergraduate studies.
Introductory courses. These courses serve students considering a major in Economics as well as others who would like an introduction to the subject. Most students enroll in ECON 115a or b and 116a or b, lecture courses with a discussion section. ECON 115a or b is concerned with microeconomics and includes such topics as markets, prices, production, distribution, and the allocation of resources. ECON 116a or b covers such macroeconomic issues as unemployment, inflation, growth, and international economics. Students may take either term without the other, except that ECON 116b (but not 116a) has introductory microeconomics as a prerequisite. Students are encouraged to take the two-term sequence in order to obtain an introduction to the broad scope of economics.
ECON 110a and 111b are limited-enrollment alternatives to ECON 115a or b and 116a or b; they are open only to freshmen selected from those who preregister during the designated sign-up period. ECON 117a is an introductory microeconomics course with environmental applications. The substance of ECON 110a, 115a or b, and 117a is similar, and ECON 111b and 116a or b are similar as well. A student may receive credit for only one course each in introductory micro- and macroeconomics.
The department recommends that freshmen interested in majoring in Economics take introductory economics in the freshman year. They are also urged to meet the mathematics requirement during the freshman year. In order to make the introductory courses available to all freshmen and to students majoring in other subjects, the introductory courses do not have a mathematics requirement.
Exemptions from the introductory economics courses. Students who have a score of 5 on the Advanced Placement test for microeconomics and/or macroeconomics are exempted from the introductory courses and may enroll directly in intermediate courses. Students who have high scores in examinations in economics that are equivalent to Advanced Placement, such as the GCE A-level or Higher Level International Baccalaureate, may also be exempted from the introductory courses. Such students should consult the director of undergraduate studies regarding exemption.
Econometrics and mathematics recommendations. Students considering an empirical senior essay are advised to take the ECON 161a or b, 166b sequence or the ECON 162a, 163b sequence in econometrics. The department also recommends that majors complete MATH 118a or b, a term course covering the elements of multivariate calculus and linear algebra most relevant to economic theory. An alternative to MATH 118a or b is two term courses including MATH 120a or b (multivariate calculus) and MATH 222a or b or MATH 225a or b (linear algebra).
Advanced courses. Above the introductory level the department offers a wide selection of courses that explore in greater detail material presented in the introductory courses. Advanced courses are grouped in the following categories: (1) theory, quantitative, and mathematical economics; (2) market organization; (3) human resources; (4) finance; (5) international and development economics; (6) public sector; (7) economic history. Many of these advanced courses apply theory and econometrics to economic problems and institutions, and for this reason some advanced courses list one or more of the theory or econometric courses as prerequisites. Most advanced courses have as a prerequisite two terms of introductory economics and the one-term mathematics requirement.
Seminars. Although there is diversity in approaches in the various seminars, all have in common an emphasis on class interaction, the writing of papers, and the reading of journal articles. Seminars represent an opportunity for students to apply and extend the economics they have learned in the advanced courses.
There is preregistration for departmental seminars, and enrollment is limited. Applications are received in the Undergraduate Studies office, Room 101, 28 Hillhouse Avenue, during the designated sign-up period in the preceding term. Preference is given to senior Economics majors (including those in Economics and Mathematics) who have not yet completed two seminars. Students must take two of three core courses before enrolling in a seminar. Seminar enrollment lists will be posted outside Room 101, 28 Hillhouse Avenue, and on the Economics undergraduate Web page. The seminar requirement must be met by Yale Economics department seminars; seminars in other departments or taken elsewhere will not suffice. Residential college seminars do not count toward the major.
Senior requirement. In their senior year, majors are required to take two departmental seminars in economics (ECON 450–491), or, if they have taken a departmental seminar in their junior year, one such seminar. In all cases students must enroll in one seminar during their senior year. Enrollment in ECON 491a counts as one seminar.
To be considered for Distinction in the Major, students must meet the grade standards for distinction (see chapter I) and submit a senior essay written in ECON 491a, in 491a and 492b, or in a departmental fall seminar to the Economics department by April 7, 2008. One-term essays are completed only in the fall term. Students who fail to submit such a paper will not be considered for Distinction in the Major. (Note that the paper must be written during the senior year and that students may submit a senior essay only if they have an approved prospectus and a senior essay adviser.) Senior essays that are not submitted on time will receive a grade of Incomplete. Senior essays with grades of Incomplete without permission of the residential college dean are subject to grade penalties when submitted. Grade computation for distinction does not include the introductory economics courses or the required mathematics course. It does include, if taken, one course in a related field that is counted toward the major, as well as study abroad courses and transfer courses approved by the director of undergraduate studies. Courses elected on a Credit/D/Fail basis count as non-A grades. Meetings for seniors to discuss the senior essay will be held on Wednesday, September 5, at 4.30 P.M. and Thursday, September 6, at 4.30 P.M. in Room 106, 28 Hillhouse Avenue. Details regarding calculations for Distinction in the Major will be discussed in these meetings, and senior essay guidelines will be distributed. Senior essay prospectus forms are due October 8, 2007.
Graduate courses. Well-qualified students who have acquired the requisite background in undergraduate courses may, with written permission of the instructor, the director of undergraduate studies, and the director of graduate studies, be admitted to graduate courses and seminars. A selective choice of graduate courses will usually meet the needs of undergraduates interested in graduate instruction.
Students who are planning graduate work in economics should take additional mathematics courses beyond the one-term course required for the major. Many graduate programs in economics require courses in multivariate calculus and linear algebra. Students are urged to discuss their plans for graduate work with the director of undergraduate studies as early in their college careers as possible.
Combined B.A./M.A. program. Students interested in the B.A./M.A. program in Economics may submit a preliminary application in the fall of their junior year to the directors of undergraduate and graduate studies. Admission to this program is limited to students who have achieved A grades in at least two-thirds of all of their undergraduate courses and have also achieved A grades in at least two-thirds of courses relating to the major. If granted permission, applicants take two of the following three graduate courses: ECON 500a, 510a, and 550a. Only students who earn a grade of at least A– in each course will be considered for candidacy in the B.A./M.A. program. Applications are forwarded to the Yale College Committee on Honors and Academic Standing at the end of the fall term. This committee makes the final decision on admission of students to the program. It is not possible to enter the B.A./M.A. program except in the fall of the junior year. If admitted to the program, a student completes eight term courses of graduate work in the junior and senior years; these eight courses include the two required for candidacy in the program as well as two chosen from the six core courses in the graduate sequence of microeconomics, macroeconomics, and econometrics. In addition, the student must complete the two-term senior departmental essay by enrollment in ECON 491a and 492b. All students in the program must complete an approved one-term undergraduate or graduate course in econometrics. It is recommended that students complete the distributional requirements before the senior year. Appropriate graduate theory courses may be substituted for the core Economics courses 150a or b and 154a or b as well as the one-term econometrics course required of majors. The eight graduate courses must not be entirely concentrated in the final two terms, and students in the program must take at least six term courses outside the major during their last four terms at Yale and at least two undergraduate courses during their last two terms. Course schedules must be approved each term by both the director of undergraduate studies in Economics and the director of graduate studies in Economics. To receive the M.A. as well as the B.A. at the end of the senior year, the student must receive two terms of A in the graduate courses, an average of B in the remaining graduate courses, and a reader's grade of B or higher on the senior essay.
Students interested in this program should see the director of undergraduate studies before or during registration for the first term of the junior year.
Faculty representatives. The Economics department has faculty representatives in the residential colleges. Students majoring in Economics should secure written approval of their course selection from their college representative. Changes in their major program must be approved by the representative. Questions concerning the major or programs of study should be directed to the college representative. For 2007–2008 the college representatives are as follows:
| BK | K. Hamada | MC | G. Jaynes | |
| BR | F. Lange | PC | D. Bergemann | |
| CC | T. P. Schultz | SY | T. Bewley | |
| DC | S. Berry | SM | A. Smith | |
| TD | D. Andrews | ES | to be announced | |
| JE | J. Hastings | TC | D. Gerardi | |
REQUIREMENTS OF THE MAJOR
Prerequisites: None
Number of courses: 12 term courses numbered 110 or above, incl 2 sems
Distribution of courses: 2 term courses of intro econ: 1 of microeconomics, one of macroeconomics; 1 from MATH 112a or b, 115a or b, 118a or b, 120a or b; 2 dept sems (ECON 450–491), at least 1 in senior year
Specific courses required: ECON 150a or b or 152a; 153b or 154a or b; 161a or b or 163b
Substitution permitted: 1 related course in another dept, with written DUS permission once major is declared
Senior requirement: Senior dept sem or senior essay
Introductory Courses: ECON 110a, 111b, 115a or b, 116a or b, 117a
Theory, Quantitative, and Mathematical Economics: ECON 150a or b, 152a, 153b, 154a or b, 155a, 156b, 159a, 161a or b, 162a, 163b, 166b, 454b, 455b, 480b, 485b, 488a
Market Organization: ECON 200b, 453a, 455b, 477a
Human Resources: ECON 225a or b, 274a, 462b, 467a or b
Finance: ECON 251a, 252b, 450a, 451a, 456a or b, 457b, 459a, 484b
International and Development Economics: ECON 182b, 300a, 301b, 325a, 329b, 429a, 460b, 463a, 466a, 468b, 470a, 476a
Public Sector: ECON 275a, 276b, 330b, 482b, 489b
Economic History: ECON 182b, 187a, 470a, 481a
