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University of Calgary Calendar 2022-2023 COURSES OF INSTRUCTION Course Descriptions E Economics ECON
Economics ECON

For more information about these courses, see the Department of Economics: arts.ucalgary.ca/economics.

Junior Courses
Economics 201       Principles of Microeconomics
Principles of choice under scarcity and the role of institutions, especially markets, for the production and distribution of goods and services: what and how much gets produced, how is it produced, and who gets what is produced.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-1T)
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Economics 203       Principles of Macroeconomics
Measurement of economic activity, economic growth, money and financial systems, international economy and exchange rates, business cycles, unemployment and inflation, and macroeconomic policies.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-1T)
Corequisite(s):
Prerequisite or Corequisite: Economics 201.
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Economics 209       Engineering Economics
The basic tools and methodology of engineering economic studies. Topics include investment decisions, theory of replacement, economies of scale, externalities, social decision making and government regulation. Examples are drawn from engineering projects.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-1T)
Prerequisite(s):
Admission to the Schulich School of Engineering with second-year standing or higher.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 209 and Engineering 209 will not be allowed.
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Senior Courses
Economics 301       Intermediate Economic Theory - Microeconomics I
Economic methodology, consumer theory, theory of the firm, competitive markets, efficiency, and the role of economics in public policy.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-1T)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201 and 203; and 3 units from Mathematics 249, 265 or 275.
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Economics 303       Intermediate Economic Theory - Macroeconomics I
Determination of national output, unemployment, interest rates, inflation, and exchange rates. Analysis of short-term economic fluctuations, the role of expectations and stabilization policies.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-1T)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201 and 203; and 3 units from Mathematics 249, 265 or 275.
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Economics 311       Computer Applications in Economics
Use of spreadsheets for economics applications, including project evaluation with financial-economic functions, oil and gas prospect evaluation, investment portfolio management with database functions, database retrieval, and various topics in micro and macroeconomics.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201.
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Economics 321       The Global Trading System
Introduction to the theory of international trade; provides a basis for examining Canadian trade policy, and regional and world trade institutions such as the WTO and NAFTA. Topics include: tariffs, non-tariff barriers and enhancements, countervail and anti-dumping action, multinational enterprises and international joint ventures.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201.
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Economics 323       Natural Gas Markets
Operation of the natural gas industry in North America. Economics of exploration, development, production, marketing and transportation of natural gas. Impact of government regulations and deregulation.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201.
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Economics 328       Petroleum Economics
Crude oil production and markets in North America and globally. Refining economics and markets for refined products. Government policy including royalty regimes, trade quotas, transport infrastructure, conservation and the environment.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 328 and 325 or 327 will not be allowed.
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Economics 329       Electricity Markets
Economic analysis of the deregulated electric power industry including the pricing of power, energy and capacity, power supply and demand, market structure, market architecture, and the design and testing of market rules.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201.
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Economics 337       Development Economics
An introduction to developing economies: the meaning, significance and purpose of economic development, major theories of economic development, economic problems of developing countries.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201 and 203.
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Economics 339       Canadian Economic History
The growth and development of the Canadian economy in relation to the endowment of natural resources, changing market conditions and technology, and Canadian public policy.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201 and 203.
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Economics 341       Money and Banking
Operation of financial markets and institutions: the principles of money creation, interest rate determination, and central banking.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201 and 203.
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Economics 345       Economic Analysis of Law
An introduction to the relationship between law and economics. Economic theory will be used to analyze property and tort law.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201.
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Economics 349       The Economics of Social Problems
Contribution that economic analysis can make to the understanding of selected current social issues such as poverty, aging, crime, drug abuse and discrimination.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201.
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Economics 353       Chinese Economy
Survey of the economic institutions and processes shaping the Chinese economy, including but not limited to fiscal and monetary policy, financial institutions and financial sector reforms, the restructuring of state-owned enterprises, and the provision of social welfare.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201 and 203.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 353 and Economics 399.02 will not be allowed.
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Economics 355       Canadian Public Finance
Examination of the institutions behind and economic rationale for Canadian government policy relating to public expenditures and taxation. Topics include the history and present structure of government spending and taxation, tax expenditures, the budgetary process, inter-jurisdictional issues, and program design.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201 and 203.
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Economics 357       Intermediate Economic Theory - Microeconomics II
Intertemporal choice and choice under uncertainty. General equilibrium and the welfare theorems. Public and social choice theory. Market failures: imperfect competition, externalities, public goods, and informational asymmetries.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-1T)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 301.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 357 and either 309 or 529 will not be allowed.
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Economics 359       Intermediate Economic Theory - Macroeconomics II
Macroeconomic analysis based on microeconomic foundations. Analysis of short-term economic fluctuations under flexible and sticky prices, and the role of government policies. Theories of long-term economic growth.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-1T)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 301 and 303.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 359 and either 313 or 531 will not be allowed.
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Economics 371       Economic Analysis of Transportation
Modal choice by passengers, location choice by firms, capital investment choice. Cost, demand, and market structure related to the determination of transportation rates. Cost/benefit analysis of transportation projects. Analysis will be related to contemporary aspects of ocean shipping, air, rail, trucking, pipelines and urban transportation.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201.
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Economics 373       Game Theory and Strategic Thinking for the Social Sciences
Principles of game theory utilizing a non-mathematical and intuitive approach. Strategic reasoning and the use of game theory to explain social interaction. Game theory analysis is illustrated using applications and examples from economics and other social sciences.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201.
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Economics 377       Economics and the Environment
Analysis of environmental problems from an economic perspective. Efficient allocation of resources and its implications for air and water quality, waste management, biodiversity and endangered species will be addressed from local as well as global perspectives.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201.
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Economics 379       The Economics of Health
Theories and evidence regarding demand for health and health care, consumer and physician behaviour, asymmetric information in health care markets, and economic evaluation of health care programs.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201.
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Economics 387       Introduction to Mathematical Economics I
Mathematics for economics with an emphasis on economic modeling and equilibrium analysis. Multivariate calculus including comparative statics, unconstrained and constrained optimization, and their applications to resource allocation problems.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-1)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201, 203 and 3 units from Mathematics 249, 265 or 275.
Corequisite(s):
Prerequisites or Corequisites: Economics 301 and 303.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 387 and either 304 or 521 will not be allowed.
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Economics 389       Introduction to Mathematical Economics II
Application of linear algebra to economic analysis and optimization. Integration and differential equations and their application in economic analysis.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-1)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 387 and Mathematics 211.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 389 and 304 will not be allowed.
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Economics 395       Introduction to Econometrics
Two-variable and multi-variable linear regression models are introduced, developed and evaluated. Topics include basic data manipulation, econometric estimation of economic relationships, model specification and evaluation, hypothesis testing, and binary variables.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-1)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201, 203, Statistics 213 and 217.
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Economics 399       Introductory Topics in Economics
Examination of a particular topic. Examples include the economics of sports, the economics of the wine industry, and the economics of popular music.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 201 and 203.
MAY BE REPEATED FOR CREDIT
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Economics 401       Public Sector Economics: Expenditures
Theory of government spending. May include the nature of public goods and externalities, the pricing of public services, causes of growth of public expenditures, expenditure incidence, social insurance, social decision procedures, and political and bureaucratic influences.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357 and 359.
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Economics 403       Public Sector Economics: Taxation
Theory of taxation. May include the rationale for and the incentive effects of taxation, efficiency and equity aspects of taxation, partial and general equilibrium tax incidence, open economy effects, choice of governing instruments, and tax reform.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357 and 359.
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Economics 405       Political Economy of Public Policy
Introduction to the economic foundations of political economy and economic models of public sector policy formation. May include the role of institutions in policy design, theories of bureaucracy, political business cycles, the formation and behaviour of interest groups, and the strategic use of government debt.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357 and 359.
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Economics 411       Computational and Data Methods in Economics
Economic application and utilization of computational methods, programming, and data management. Introduction and use of programming in economic analysis, examples include VBA, R, Python, Mathematica, and MATLAB.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 311, 357, 359 and 395.
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Economics 423       International Macroeconomics
Foreign exchange markets, and international macroeconomic connections with trade in assets as well as goods and services. May include: alternative exchange rate regimes; monetary and fiscal policy responses to problems of unemployment and inflation; balance of payments adjustment mechanisms; international debt; and Euro-dollar markets.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357 and 359.
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Economics 425       International Trade
The general equilibrium treatment of the gains from trade, comparative advantage and trade patterns provides a basis for examining topics such as: trade policy under imperfect competition, trade policy and the environment, trade policy and economic growth, and preferential trading arrangements.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357 and 359.
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Economics 427       Energy Economics and Policy
Microeconomic analysis of the allocation of energy resources with a focus on policy issues including the environment, OPEC, national security, price and entry regulation, market design, and the potential for new energy sources.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357, 359 and 395.
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Economics 429       Advanced Electricity Markets
Market design of electricity markets; transmission regulation, investment and pricing; ancillary service demand, procurement, and regulation; retail competition; and distribution and distributed generation.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 329 and 471.
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Economics 431       Labour Economics
Economic analysis of migration, labour force participation, education, fertility, human resources policy, and the measurement and treatment of unemployment.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357 and 359.
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Economics 443       The Economics of Financial Markets
Basic functions and structure of financial markets. Economic analysis of trading strategies in financial markets and determinants of equilibrium prices. Institutional features, and analysis, of bond, stock, options, forward and futures markets.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 311, 341, 357 and 359.
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Economics 453       Cost-Benefit Analysis
Theoretical basis for social cost-benefit analysis, appraisal techniques for investment projects and public policies, and selected applications.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357 and 359.
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Economics 457       The Economics of Business Fundamentals
The application of microeconomic theory to business practice with a focus on accounting and finance practice. Critical assessment of financial statements, financial markets, corporate finance, and project evaluation.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 311, 357 and 359.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 457 and either 397 or 499.57 will not be allowed.
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Economics 471       Industrial Organization
Behaviour of firms in imperfectly competitive markets. May include the theory of strategic competition; dynamic price competition and tacit collusion; product differentiation, product selection, and preemption; entry deterrence and capacity competition; information, reputation, and predation; the economics of research and development; international trade and imperfectly competitive markets.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357 and 359.
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Economics 475       Economics of Natural Resources
Application of economic theory to the problems of natural resource pricing, allocation and conservation. Rent theory, location theory, intertemporal maximization. Natural resource policy formulation. Contemporary Canadian resource problems.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357 and 359.
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Economics 477       Regulatory Economics
An introduction to economic regulation, its rationale, form and effects with a focus on the economic theory of regulation and on the practice, structure, and evolution of Canadian regulatory institutions.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 471.
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Economics 479       Experimental Economics
Introduces students to the use of and insights gained from experiments in economic research. As part of the course, students will be participating in a variety of in-class experiments.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-1)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357, 359 and 395.
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Economics 481       Behavioural Economics
Major factors underlying economic behaviour including: various views of the role of rationality in economic analysis and in the economic decision making of individuals and institutions; determinants of individual preferences and decision making procedures; the experimental analysis of economic behaviour; inter-relations between the operation of the economic system and feelings of subjective well-being.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357 and 359.
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Economics 483       History of Economic Thought
Traces the evolution of economic ideas from the earliest times up to and including the contributions of the classical economists and Marx. Emphasis will be on understanding these contributions both in terms of their historical context and their relationship to present-day theories and controversies.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357 and 359.
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Economics 485       Economics of the Welfare State
The focus is on ideas and economic analysis relevant to understanding the economics of the welfare state, where issues of income redistribution and social insurance are central.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357, 359 and 395.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 485 and 599.10 will not be allowed.
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Economics 487       Environmental Economics
Applies microeconomic theory to the examination of market failures as the source of environmental problems, and to designing and evaluating environmental policies to correct them.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357, 359 and 395.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 487 and 499.77 will not be allowed.
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Economics 489       Economics of the Movie Business
Applies microeconomic theory to the motion-picture industry, focusing on how information and extreme uncertainty shape the structure of economic transactions. The historical and institutional illustrations are set in the context of Hollywood.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357, 359 and 395.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 489 and 499.63 will not be allowed.
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Economics 491       Managerial and Decision Economics
Systematic economic analysis in managerial decision-making. Application of practical ideas to business decisions, integrating global business issues and practices with conceptually rigorous economic analysis.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357, 359 and 395.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 491 and 499.80 will not be allowed.
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Economics 493       Empirical Energy Economics 
Students will study and learn how to apply methods of data analysis that are particularly useful in the context of energy economics.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 427.
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Economics 495       Intermediate Econometrics
Theory and application of the multivariable linear regression model in time-series, panel data and limited dependent variable models. Least squares and maximum likelihood estimation. Identification issues, fixed and random effects, and instrumental variables.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-1)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357, 359 and 395.
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Economics 497       Advanced Econometrics
Advanced application of statistics and mathematical modeling to make inferences and estimate the magnitude of causal effects.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 495 and Mathematics 211.
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Economics 499       Intermediate Topics in Economics
Examination of a particular topic. Examples include advanced game theory, ethics and economics, water resources, and selected topics from other fields of economics.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357, 359 and 395.
MAY BE REPEATED FOR CREDIT
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Economics 527       World Oil Economics
Analysis of the world oil industry in the post-World War II period.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 328 and 471.
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Economics 538       Trade, Growth and the Environment
Advanced examination of the linkages between international trade, the environment, and economic growth.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 395 and 3 units from Economics 425, 475 or 487.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 538 and 537 will not be allowed.
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Economics 541       Monetary Theory
A survey of recent work in monetary theory with primary emphasis on financial issues.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 341, 357 and 359.
Corequisite(s):
Prerequisite or Corequisite: Economics 395.
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Economics 557       Advanced Microeconomic Theory 
Advanced study of optimal decision rules, equilibrium, and efficiency. Partial and general equilibrium, fundamental welfare theorems, social choice theory, and market failures including market power, public goods, externalities, and asymmetries of information.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357, 359 and 389.
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Economics 559       Advanced Macroeconomics
Methodological principles and models that underlie modern analysis of macroeconomics. Advanced study and modeling of the determination of aggregate economic activity and its fluctuations, stabilization policy (fiscal and monetary), the determinants of economic growth, the effects of policy on economic growth, and unemployment and the labour market.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357, 359, 389 and 395.
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Economics 571       Competition Policy
The law and economics of competition policy. An examination of the economics, jurisprudence and history of competition policy towards mergers, price fixing, vertical restraints, and monopolization, primarily in Canada and the United States.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 471.
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Economics 588       Digital Economics Capstone
Digital economics research project. Students will use economic reasoning and apply econometric approaches to data to conceptualize and develop a data-based tool that provides value to an organization.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 411 and 495.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 588 and 599.88 will not be allowed.
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Economics 599       Advanced Topics in Economics
Examination of a particular topic. Examples include trade policy, monetary economics, time-series econometrics, and analysis of current issues in other fields of economics.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 357, 359, 395 and consent of the Department.
MAY BE REPEATED FOR CREDIT
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Graduate Courses
Economics 605       Computational Optimization and Economic Applications
Explores the theory and numerical implementation of mathematical programming, covering basic classes of optimization problems — linear programming, non-linear programming and complementarity problems — as ways to operationalize models of individual choice and decentralized equilibrium behaviour from economics. Applications will vary.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 609       Political Economy
Provides a selective overview of modern political economy.  Gives an introduction to the basic theoretical models, empirical methodologies, and substantive findings in political economy. Covers theoretical and empirical research and the links between the two. Also treats a number of selected topics on the research frontier.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 611       Special Topics in Economics
Topics will vary from year-to-year. Consult the timetable or the Department for the topics available in a given year.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
MAY BE REPEATED FOR CREDIT
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Economics 615       Econometrics

Provides a foundation of econometric theory relevant for empirical work in economics. Covers classical estimation and inference procedures, including linear regression, linear instrumental variables, differences-in-differences, and linear panel data techniques. Also covers the problem of causality and identification in empirical economics.


Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Admission to the Master of Arts Economics program or permission of the Department.
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Economics 619       Empirical International Trade
Examines issues from the economic literature on international trade. Focuses on quantitative and empirical analysis. Specific topics include the factor content of trade, firm level and multinational behaviour, empirical testing of political economy determinants of protection, and assessing the environmental impact of trade agreements.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 621       International Trade
Focuses on the microeconomic aspects of international economics with emphasis on general equilibrium models commonly employed in international economics. Specific topics covered include theories of international specialization and exchange, trade policy and economic welfare, international factor movement, trade and growth, under both perfect competition and imperfect competition, and selected problems of trade policy in the international trading system.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 627       Energy Economics
Applies the tools of microeconomics, institutional economics, and econometrics to energy markets and policies. Focuses on empirical studies of the energy business including markets for natural gas, crude oil, gasoline, electricity and coal.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 633       Labour Economics
Emphasizes empirical implementation of theoretical models through the use of data and econometrics. Topics include labor supply theory, search theory, wage determination theories, and numerical methods for the estimation of dynamic models.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 635       Regulatory Economics
An in-depth study of regulatory economics, defined as price and entry regulation. Price and entry regulation occurs when the state restricts who can provide services and approves the terms of service. A considerable part of the course will address regulatory restructuring in network industries, with case studies on electricity reform, local telecommunications, and pipelines.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 641       Financial Economics
A review of  the main themes of financial economics and an introduction of  a number of frontier ideas that have marked the recent evolution of the discipline. The main focus is on asset pricing and the application of financial econometrics to modelling and prediction of financial data.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 649       Empirical Public Economics
Focuses on empirical research on the economics of the public sector, including material on taxation, public expenditures and social insurance. Gives a broad overview of this growing field and prepares for research in public economics.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 649 and 611.48 will not be allowed.
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Economics 651       Redistribution and Social Insurance
A focus on the economics of public expenditure programs designed to redistribute income or to provide social insurance against risks faced by households.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 653       Public Revenue Analysis
A focus on the revenue side of public finance, primarily in the form of taxation. The equity and efficiency aspects of different taxes are considered, as is optimal tax design. Possible topics include the taxation of labour and capital, the impact taxation on savings and risk taking, and environmental and resource taxation.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 655       Cost/Benefit Analysis
Theoretical and applied aspects of the use of cost-benefit techniques and applied welfare analysis in the evaluation of investment projects and public policies.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 657       Microeconomic Theory
Introduction to advanced microeconomic theory. Topics include consumer theory, theory of the firm, general equilibrium, uncertainty, game theory, and informational economics.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Admission to the Master of Arts Economics program.
Notes:
Students in other departments can take this course with permission of the Department of Economics.   
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Economics 659       Macroeconomic Theory
Introduction to the analysis of macroeconomics at an advanced level. Provides an overview of theories addressing the major questions of macroeconomic phenomena. Some coverage of applied topics, such as economic growth and government policy.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Admission to the Master of Arts Economics program.   
Notes:
Students in other departments can take this course with permission of the Department of Economics.
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Economics 661       Behavioural Economics
Survey of research incorporating psychological evidence into economics. Topics include fairness, altruism, prospect theory, self-control, biases in probabilistic judgment, mental accounting, and the relationship between markets, incentives, and attention and various cognitive processes.

Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 667       Industrial Organization
A focus on market power: its acquisition, maintenance, and exercise. Both theory and application, with an emphasis on how industrial organization does, and should, inform competition policy and antitrust law, will be examined.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 669       Empirical Industrial Organization
Firm behaviour in oligopolistic markets, as well as consumer and firm behaviour in environments with asymmetric information. Strong emphasis on combining economic models with econometric techniques to answer economic questions. Models of demand and supply, discrete static and dynamic games, production function estimation, single agent dynamic models and matching models.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 669 and 611.71 will not be allowed.
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Economics 675       Natural Resource Economics
Examines economic models of the structure and nature of natural resource industries and their interaction with the rest of the economy. Includes non-renewable and renewable resources and applies methods from capital theory, growth theory, public economics, and industrial organization to the study of natural resources.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 677       Environmental Economics
Environmental economics describes the ways in which people interact with their natural environment and the policies that best achieve society's goals in this context. Topics vary from year-to-year and may include benefit-cost analysis, non-market valuation, choice of policy instruments, environmental taxation, trade growth and the environment, global warming and international environmental treaties.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 679       Health Economics
An overview of topics in health economics. An introduction to economic principles and techniques used in analyzing and planning health policy, in particular the delivery of health services, and for understanding the health behaviour of individuals.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Also known as:
(Community Health Sciences 661)
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Economics 691       Research Methods I
Survey of research methods in economics. For course-based MA students.
Course Hours:
1.5 units; (3-0)
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Economics 693       Research Methods II
Survey of research methods in economics. For course-based MA students.
Course Hours:
1.5 units; (3-0)
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Economics 695       Research Methods III
Master's research project. Identify an interesting and feasible research question, carry out an extensive literature review of the problem area, develop an economic/econometric model to address the problem, identify and collect appropriate data for empirical research.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Admission into the Master of Arts Economics (course-based) program.    
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 695 and 611.55 will not be allowed.
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Economics 697       Research Methods IV
Master's research project. Continuing from Research Methods III, the economic/econometric model is fully developed with specific attention to identification issues and testable hypotheses. Appropriate econometric analyses, validation and testing are carried out, leading to a research paper reporting the problem, the model and the results.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Admission into the Master of Arts Economics (course-based) program.    
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 697 and 611.57 will not be allowed.
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Economics 705       Advanced Econometrics I
Devoted to rigorous treatment of asymptotic theory as it applies to econometric practice. Provides a detailed treatment of the theory and practice of classical estimation procedures, including linear regression and instrumental variables, Maximum Likelihood, the Generalized Method of Moments, as well as an extension to simulation-based methods. The theory of hypothesis testing is also covered.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Admission to the PhD program in Economics.
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Economics 707       Advanced Microeconomic Theory I
Introduction to advanced microeconomic theory. Topics include consumer theory, theory of the firm, and general equilibrium.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 709       Advanced Macroeconomic Theory I
Introduction to the basic structure of the dynamic general equilibrium framework that forms the backbone of most modern macroeconomics research. Selected topics include growth, business cycles, and monetary and labor economics.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Economics 711       Independent Study

Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
MAY BE REPEATED FOR CREDIT
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Economics 715       Advanced Econometrics II
Focuses on the problem of causality and identification of treatment effects in empirical work in Economics. Topics include but are not limited to randomized trials, causality, instrumental variables, difference in differences, regression discontinuity designs. Students are introduced to empirical applications of these different approaches.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 705.
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Economics 717       Advanced Topics in Econometrics
Studies cutting edge econometric tools used to evaluate the impacts of policies, extrapolate their effects to new environments, and predict the effects of policies that have never been tried. Methods from both the structural and treatment effect paradigms of policy evaluation will be considered.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 705.
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Economics 723       Trade, Growth and the Environment I
Covers relevant theoretical work on the environmental consequences of trade liberalization and economic growth, and the relationship between resource use and globalization, focusing on newly published research.  Participants are expected to present and discuss research. The specific choice of topics will be made based on research interests of the class.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3S-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Economics 723 and 611.10 will not be allowed.
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Economics 725       Trade, Growth and the Environment II
Covers relevant empirical work on the environmental consequences of trade liberalization and economic growth, and the relationship between resource use and globalization, focusing on newly published research.  Participants are expected to present and discuss research. The specific choice of topics will be made based on research interests of the class.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3S-0)
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Economics 757       Advanced Microeconomic Theory II
Building on Economics 707, a comprehensive treatment of game theory, the economics of uncertainty and information, and the theory of incentives will be introduced.  Other topics may be included as time and interest allow.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 707.
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Economics 759       Advanced Macroeconomic Theory II
Building on Economics 709, a survey of the ideas, controversies, and techniques that constitute modern macroeconomics. The principal issues it covers lie at the heart monetary and fiscal policy and of such important social problems as business cycles and unemployment. The empirical study of key issues raised in theoretical and political debates is also emphasized.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 709.
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Economics 791       PhD Research Workshop
Survey of research methods in economics.
Course Hours:
1.5 units; (1.5-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Admission to the PhD program in Economics.
MAY BE REPEATED FOR CREDIT
NOT INCLUDED IN GPA
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Economics 793       PhD Research Workshop II
Survey of research methods in economics.
Course Hours:
1.5 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Economics 791 and admission to the PhD program in Economics.
MAY BE REPEATED FOR CREDIT
NOT INCLUDED IN GPA
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