Courses by semester
Courses for
Complete Cornell University course descriptions are in the Courses of Study .
| Course ID | Title | Offered |
|---|---|---|
| ECON1001 |
Principles of Micro-Economics Supplement
Reviews lecture material presented in ECON 1110 lectures; provides problem-solving techniques, study tips, and additional problems to prepare for exams and problem sets; provides additional time for questions and discussion of concepts. Provides additional instruction for students who need reinforcement.
Full details for ECON 1001 - Principles of Micro-Economics Supplement |
Fall, Spring, Summer. |
| ECON1002 |
Principles of Macro-Economics Supplement
Reviews lecture material presented in ECON 1120 lectures; provides problem-solving techniques, study tips, and additional problems to prepare for exams and problem sets; provides additional time for questions and discussion of concepts. Provides additional instruction for students who need reinforcement.
Full details for ECON 1002 - Principles of Macro-Economics Supplement |
Fall, Spring, Summer. |
| ECON1110 |
Introductory Microeconomics
Explanation and evaluation of how the price system operates in determining what goods are produced, how goods are produced, who receives income, and how the price system is modified and influenced by private organizations and government policy.
|
Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer. |
| ECON1120 |
Introductory Macroeconomics
Analysis of aggregate economic activity in relation to the level, stability, and growth of national income. Topics may include the determination and effects of unemployment, inflation, balance of payments, deficits, and economic development, and how these may be influenced by monetary, fiscal, and other policies.
|
Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer. |
| ECON2300 |
International Trade and Finance
One-semester introduction to international economic principles and issues. Begins by surveying key topics such as the elements of comparative advantage, tariff and nontariff barriers, and multilateral institutions. The second part of the course treats selected topics in international finance, including exchange rates, balance of payments, and capital markets. Discusses current issues such as the effects of trade liberalization, trade and economic growth, and instability in international capital markets. Designed as a less technical introduction to concepts developed at a more advanced level in AEM 4300 and ECON 4510-ECON 4520.
Full details for ECON 2300 - International Trade and Finance |
Spring. |
| ECON3030 |
Intermediate Microeconomic Theory
The pricing processes in a private enterprise economy are analyzed under varying competitive conditions, and their role in the allocation of resources and the functional distribution of national income is considered.
Full details for ECON 3030 - Intermediate Microeconomic Theory |
Fall, Spring, Summer. |
| ECON3040 |
Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory
Introduces the theory of national income and determination and economic growth in alternative models of the national economy. Examines the interaction and relation of these models to empirical aggregate economic data. Reviews national accounts, output and employment determination, price stability and economic growth, in the context of alternative government policy programs and the impact of globalization.
Full details for ECON 3040 - Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory |
Fall, Spring, Summer. |
| ECON3110 |
Probability Models and Inference for the Social Sciences
This course provides an introduction to probability and parametric inference. Topics include: random variables, standard distributions, the law of large numbers, the central limit theorem, likelihood-based estimation, sampling distributions and hypothesis testing.
Full details for ECON 3110 - Probability Models and Inference for the Social Sciences |
Fall, Spring. |
| ECON3120 |
Applied Econometrics
Introduction to the theory and application of econometric techniques. Emphasis is on both development of techniques and applications of econometrics to economic questions. Topics include estimation and inference in bivariate and multiple regression models, instrumental variables, regression with qualitative information, heteroskedasticity, and serial correlation. Students are expected to apply techniques through regular empirical exercises with economic data.
|
Fall, Spring, Summer. |
| ECON3140 |
Econometrics
Introduction to the theory and application of econometric techniques. Emphasis is on foundations and development of econometric models, focusing on how a theoretical economic model can be placed into a statistical framework where data is used for the purposes of prediction/forecasting, measurement, and/or testing of economic theory. Topics include estimation and inference in bivariate and multiple regression models, instrumental variables, regression with qualitative information, heteroskedasticity, serial correlation.
|
Spring. |
| ECON3300 |
Development of Economic Thought and Institutions
Examines the causes and consequences of sustained economic growth, and the development of economics as a discipline, from pre-industrial mercantilist thought through the economics of John Maynard Keynes. Stresses the relationship between the consequences of 19th-century economic growth and the evolution of economic thought.
Full details for ECON 3300 - Development of Economic Thought and Institutions |
Fall or Spring. |
| ECON3430 |
Compensation, Incentives, and Productivity
Examines topics in labor economics of particular relevance to individual managers and firms. Representative topics include recruitment, screening, and hiring strategies; compensation (including retirement pensions and other benefits); training, turnover, and the theory of human capital; incentive schemes and promotions; layoffs, downsizing, and buyouts; teamwork; and internal labor markets. Focuses on labor-related business problems using the analytic tools of economic theory and should appeal to students with strong quantitative skills who are contemplating careers in general business, consulting, and human resource management as well as in economics.
Full details for ECON 3430 - Compensation, Incentives, and Productivity |
Fall or Spring. |
| ECON3485 |
New Technologies and the Labor Market
This course examines economic approaches to how new technologies impact the labour market. We will study how robots and digital technologies affect the nature of jobs and tasks, how technological developments affect the nature and flexibility of work contracts, as well as how firms and workers search and find each other. We will discuss the emergence of flexible work arrangements (gig economy, teleworking). The goal is to learn how economists approach and analyse these phenomena, both theoretically and empirically.
Full details for ECON 3485 - New Technologies and the Labor Market |
Spring. |
| ECON3550 |
Economics of Developing Countries
The goal of this course is to expand students' understanding of the economics of developing countries. We will address questions like: why do some countries grow quickly and others slowly? What factors prevent countries, households, and individuals from escaping the cycle of poverty? How do policymakers balance economic growth and environmental sustainability? Why don't financial markets work well in most developing countries, and do informal institutions fill the gap? How do we analyze the challenges facing small-scale farming households, and how do decisions by those households influence migration, labor markets, and the growth of industry? How do we evaluate policies and programs in order to understand what works for development? The approach in this course will be primarily microeconomic, although a basic understanding of macroeconomics is important for some topics. Emphasis will be on theory, real-world examples, and reading and interpreting research and policy papers.
Full details for ECON 3550 - Economics of Developing Countries |
Spring. |
| ECON3670 |
Behavioral Economics and Public Policy
Standard economic theory assumes that individuals are rational decision-makers; however, that is often not the case in the real world. Behavioral economics uses findings from psychology to determine ways in which individuals are systematically irrational to improve upon existing models. The first part of this course reviews these theories, while the second part of the course focuses on how these findings have been used to design better education, health, and tax policies as well as many others.
Full details for ECON 3670 - Behavioral Economics and Public Policy |
Spring. |
| ECON3770 |
Inequality in U.S. Higher Education
Is the U.S. college system a great equalizer or a cause of growing inequality? Improved access to higher education has brought millions of Americans into the middle class, and yet rising selectivity has meant that a disproportionate share of the economic elite come from a few top colleges. This course will explore the three big parts of the college experience --- (1) admissions and the college-going decision; (2) education while in college; and (3) college completion and labor market entry --- and ask how each part contributes to inequality in economic outcomes. Lectures and readings will focus on simple economic theories of higher education as well as the empirical methods used to test these theories.
Full details for ECON 3770 - Inequality in U.S. Higher Education |
Spring. |
| ECON3825 |
Networks II: Market Design
Networks II builds on its prerequisite course and continues to examine how each of the computing, economic, sociological and natural worlds are connected and how the structure of these connections affects these worlds. In this course, we will construct mathematical models for and analyze networked settings, allowing us to both make predictions about behavior in such systems, as well as reason about how to design such systems to exhibit some desirable behavior. Throughout, we will draw on real-world examples such as social networks, peer-to-peer filesharing, Internet markets, and crowdsourcing, that illustrate these phenomena.
|
Spring. |
| ECON3855 |
Urban Economics
This course introduces the concepts and methods used by economists to study not only cities, regions and their relationships with each other, but, more generally, the spatial aspects and outcomes of decision-making by households and firms. Areas examined include determinants of urban growth and decline, land and housing markets, transportation issues, segregation and poverty, and the allocation and distribution of urban public services.
|
Spring. |
| ECON3860 |
Resource Economics
This course introduces students to the economics of renewable and nonrenewable natural resources. Topics covered include the valuation and use of land; water economics, management, and conservation; the extraction and management of nonrenewable resources such as minerals, rare earth elements, and energy resources; renewable and nonrenewable sources of energy; forest management; fishery economics; groundwater; natural resource markets, demand, and supply; and sustainability. Students will learn how to use dynamic models to analyze decision-making over time, and to solve dynamic optimization problems analytically and numerically. Students will also learn how to analyze and explain the intuition and logic behind the theory and concepts. Students will apply the methods, quantitative tools, and concepts to analyze natural resource issues at global and local levels, to introspectively reflect on their own lives and future aspirations, and to draw lessons and implications for leadership, management, and policy.
|
Spring. |
| ECON3865 |
Environmental Economics
This class will focus on the role of the environment in the theory and practice of economics. It will make use of microeconomic analysis at the intermediate level and will incorporate real-world examples. It examines market failure, externalities, benefit-cost analysis, nonmarket valuation techniques, and cost-effective policy instruments.
|
Spring. |
| ECON3875 |
Policy Analysis: Welfare Theory, Agriculture, and Trade
The first half of the course surveys the theory of welfare economics as a foundation for public policy analysis. Major issues addressed include the problem of social welfare measurement, the choice of welfare criteria, and the choice of market or nonmarket allocation. Basic concepts covered include measurement of welfare change, including the compensation principle, consumer and producer surplus, willingness-to-pay measures, externalities, and the general theory of second-best optima. The second half focuses on public policy analysis as applied to domestic agricultural policy and international trade. The domestic policy component examines major U.S. farm commodity programs and related food and macroeconomic policies and analyzes their effects on producers, consumers, and other groups. The international trade component examines the structure of world agricultural trade, analytical concepts of trade policy analysis, and the principal trade policies employed by countries in international markets.
Full details for ECON 3875 - Policy Analysis: Welfare Theory, Agriculture, and Trade |
Spring. |
| ECON4020 |
Game Theory I
Studies mathematical models of conflict and cooperation in situations of uncertainty (about nature and about decision makers).
|
Spring. |
| ECON4130 |
Statistical Decision Theory
Statistical Decision Theory provides a normative framework to think about how to best use data to aid decision making under uncertainty. The goal of this course is to provide an undergraduate introduction to Statistical Decision Theory. At the end of the course, the students will be able to define Statistical Models, Statistical Decision Problems, Statistical Decision Rules, Risk Functions, and to describe different optimality criteria for statistical decision making (Bayes risk minimization, the minimax principle, and the minimax regret principle). The course will present different applications to Economics, Econometrics, and Machine Learning.
|
Fall or Spring. |
| ECON4210 |
Money and Credit
A systematic treatment of the determinants of the money supply and the volume of credit. Economic analysis of credit markets and financial institutions in the United States.
|
Spring. |
| ECON4270 |
State and Local Public Finance
This course provides an introduction to state and local public finance. The course has two goals: first, to provide institutional detail about U.S. state and local governments and their policies, and, second, to use economic theory to analyze public policy issues that arise in the state and local government setting. The course is divided into eight parts. Parts I and II provide background by reviewing key theoretical concepts in public finance and public choice: Part I covers the normative economic theory of the role of government in a market economy and Part II covers some standard positive theories of policy-making. Part III introduces the theory of fiscal federalism, which seeks to provide guidance on the appropriate role of state and local governments. Parts IV and V discuss different ways in which the provision of state and local goods and services are financed: Part IV deals with non-tax sources of finance and Part V covers commonly used taxes. Part VI explains the budget process of state and local governments. Part VII describes how three of the most important state and local government responsibilities are organized: education, transportation, and health and welfare. Finally, Part VIII discusses state and local government policies towards residential and business development.
|
Fall or Spring. |
| ECON4280 |
Applied Political Economy
This course will provide an overview of recent empirical research in political economy, which applies the toolbox of economic and econometric analysis to the study of politics. It will cover the following topics: (1) Voters' behavior; (2) Politicians' behavior; (3) Information and mass media; (4) Political distortions and capture; (5) Political institutions. The course will be based on the reading of research papers and the in-depth discussion of their theories, methods, results, and implications.
|
Fall or Spring. |
| ECON4997 | Cross-Cultural Work Experiences | |
| ECON4999 |
Independent Study in Economics
Independent study.
|
Fall, Spring. |
| ECON6100 |
Microeconomic Theory II
Topics in consumer and producer theory, equilibrium models and their application, externalities and public goods, intertemporal choice, simple dynamic models and resource depletion, choice under uncertainty.
|
Spring. |
| ECON6110 |
Microeconomic Theory III
Topics in Non-Cooperative Game Theory.
|
Spring. |
| ECON6115 |
Applied Microeconomics II: Game Theory
This course teaches the fundamentals of non-cooperative game theory and classic applications used in applied work in economics and related fields such as finance, marketing, operations, and accounting. The course begins with a brief primer on non-cooperative game theory that covers pure versus mixed strategies, Nash equilibrium, and various equilibrium refinements. Coverage then turns to basic frameworks that utilize game theory to model a wide range of settings in economics and related fields. These include agency analysis, classic asymmetric information models such as adverse selection and signaling, time inconsistency, and repeated games and reputation.
Full details for ECON 6115 - Applied Microeconomics II: Game Theory |
Spring. |
| ECON6140 |
Macroeconomics II
Covers the following topics: dynamic programming; stochastic growth; search models; cash-in-advance models; real business-cycle models; labor indivisibilities and lotteries; heterogeneous agents models; optimal fiscal and monetary policy; sustainable plans; and endogenous growth.
|
Spring. |
| ECON6200 |
Econometrics II
A continuation of ECON 6190 covering statistics: estimation theory, least squares methods, method of maximum likelihood, generalized method of moments, theory of hypothesis testing, asymptotic test theory, and nonnested hypothesis testing; and econometrics: the general linear model, generalized least squares, specification tests, instrumental variables, dynamic regression models, linear simultaneous equation models, nonlinear models, and applications.
|
Spring. |
| ECON6410 |
Health Economics I
This course teaches the economic approach to studying risky health behaviors such as cigarette smoking, drug use, alcohol abuse, risky sex, and poor diet and physical inactivity (leading to obesity), and suicide. We will examine in detail the research literature on the demand for health, economic models of addiction, the economic causes and correlates of risky health behaviors (e.g. education, prices, peers), and policies for modifying risky behaviors (e.g. taxes and other financial incentives, and providing information).
|
Fall. |
| ECON6990 |
Readings in Economics
Independent study.
|
Fall, Spring. |
| ECON7230 |
Semi and Non Parametric Econometrics
Analyzes the ways identification problems limit the conclusions that may be drawn in empirical economic research and studies how identified and partially identified parameters can be estimated. In the first part of the course, the focus is on nonparametric models. Ways data can be combined with weak assumptions to yield partial identification of population parameters are discussed.
Full details for ECON 7230 - Semi and Non Parametric Econometrics |
Spring. |
| ECON7245 |
Topics in Econometrics and Machine Learning
This course discusses recent developments in Econometrics and Machine Learning. The topics covered will vary every year.
Full details for ECON 7245 - Topics in Econometrics and Machine Learning |
Fall or Spring. |
| ECON7300 |
Applied Bayesian Time Series Methods
The course introduces students to Bayesian time series methods. Students will learn how to make likelihood-based inference about unobserved quantities, e.g. model parameters, policy impacts or future outcomes, conditional on the observed data. Applications include structural vector autoregressions, state space models and linearized dynamic stochastic general equilibrium macro models. Student will become familiar with numerical posterior simulation techniques such as Gibbs sampling and the Metropolis-Hasting algorithm. The course is useful for any students interested in empirical work that involves time series and/or structural likelihood-based estimation.
Full details for ECON 7300 - Applied Bayesian Time Series Methods |
Spring. |
| ECON7335 |
Introduction to Information Economics
Many economic decisions have to be made in settings in which many interacting agents have imperfect and diverse information about pay-off relevant variables. This course gives an overview of existing research in macroeconomics and finance that deviates from settings with perfectly informed rational agents. The course will cover both methodological and substantial aspects of the existing literature.
Full details for ECON 7335 - Introduction to Information Economics |
Spring. |
| ECON7465 |
Advances in Labor Economics
This course aims to provide an in-depth perspective on three important themes in modern labor economics: (1) Job search, (2) Technological change and new forms of work, (3) Sorting of workers and firms. Both micro and macro perspectives will be considered.
|
Fall. |
| ECON7580 |
Behavioral Economics I
This course provides an overview of the field of behavioral economics. The course reviews evidence on how human behavior systematically departs from the standard assumptions of economics, and discusses how one might formally model alternative assumptions based on this evidence. The course then examines attempts to empirically test these theories. The goal is not merely to point out problems with traditional economic assumptions, rather, it is to develop alternative assumptions and to investigate whether these alternative assumptions can be usefully incorporated into mainstream economics.
|
Fall or Spring. |
| ECON7650 |
Development Microeconomics Graduate Research Seminar
Graduate students and the instructor present draft research proposals, papers, and preliminary thesis results for group review and discussion. Students who actively participate by offering written and oral comments on others' work receive 1 credit. Students who also present their own proposal or paper receive 2 credits. Presentations last 75 minutes and thus represent a substantial investment of time. Students who present a second proposal or paper receive 3 credits.
Full details for ECON 7650 - Development Microeconomics Graduate Research Seminar |
Fall, Spring. |
| ECON7841 |
Econometrics Workshop
Research workshop featuring guest lecturers.
|
Fall, Spring. |
| ECON7842 |
Microeconomic Theory Workshop
Research workshop featuring guest lecturers.
|
Fall, Spring. |
| ECON7843 |
Industrial Organization Workshop
Research workshop featuring guest lecturers.
Full details for ECON 7843 - Industrial Organization Workshop |
Fall, Spring. |
| ECON7845 |
Workshop in Labor Economics
Research workshop featuring guests lecturers. Presentations of completed papers and work in progress by faculty members, advanced graduate students, and speakers from other universities. Focuses on the formulation, design, and execution of dissertations.
|
Fall, Spring. |
| ECON7846 |
S.C. Tsiang Macroeconomics Workshop
Research workshop featuring guest lecturers.
Full details for ECON 7846 - S.C. Tsiang Macroeconomics Workshop |
Fall, Spring. |
| ECON7848 |
Public Economics Workshop
Research workshop featuring guest lecturers.
|
Fall, Spring. |
| ECON7849 |
Behavioral Economics Workshop
Research workshop featuring guest lecturers.
|
Fall, Spring. |
| ECON7851 |
Third Year Research Seminar II
Ph.D. students in the Field of Economics are required to take this year-long research seminar, and receive a grade of Satisfactory, in order to remain in good standing in the Ph.D. program. Students present and discuss each second-year paper, which must be completed before the semester opens and Economics 7850 meets for the first time. Students also present at least two additional papers or paper plans. These are intended to be part of the core of the student's thesis proposal, which must be given as part of the student's A Exam prior to the start of the fourth year of graduate study in the economics Ph.D. program. Economics 7851 ends with a mini-conference, attended by faculty and other Ph.D. students, in which each student makes a formal presentation in standard economics conference format, and each student discusses one of these presentations. Professional writing and presentation coaching is also provided.
|
Spring. |