UCL - Applied macroeconomics

[ECON2313]

[30h] 5 credits

Teacher(s):

Language: French

Level: Second

Aims
Main themes
Content and teaching methods
Other information (prerequisite, evaluation (assessment methods), course materials recommended readings, ...)

Aims

The course builds on the core course in macroeconomics. It provides an experience in the modeling of a small open econ-omy and therefore should yield a better understanding of its functioning, a better appreciation of the magnitude of key ratios and elasticities and their implications for economic policy.

Main themes

In the first part of the course, we shall study the main behavioral equations of a standard macroeconomic model: aggregate supply and factor demands, consumption (and saving), external trade, wages and prices. The emphasis will be on the eco-nomic foundations of the econometric specifications (including the global coherence of the model and its characteristics on a steady state growth path), the interpretation and the policy implications of the results.
Next, we shall select and discuss some important issues in (applied) macroeconomics, integrating case studies and pub-lished papers.

Content and teaching methods

To a large extend, the course will adopt learning by doing scheme. Each student will work on a given component of the model with regular discussions with the professor. Each student will also present to the group one paper relevant for the problems examined in the second part of the course.
As the course focuses on the specification of the equations and the interpretation of the results, and hardly on econometric techniques, the requirements do not exceed the basic course on applied time series. However, students are supposed to be able to use an econometric software and some meetings may take place in the computing room.

Other information (prerequisite, evaluation (assessment methods), course materials recommended readings, ...)

There will be an exam at the end of the term. Personal work accounts for at least 60% of the course grade