Economics
(ECON)
101—Macroeconomics, 3 Cr.
Students learn about the aggregate
behavior of national and international economies, and how to measure aggregate
levels of production, consumption, employment, and inflation. Issues discussed
in the class include how countries can benefit and lose from international
trade; what are the immediate, short run, and long run effects from shocks to
the economy such as exogenous changes in aggregate spending, factors affecting
production, or government intervention; and what are the goals of fiscal and
monetary policy, and what are some of their positive and negative impacts on
the economy. Prerequisite: 102 or 60 completed credits.
102—Microeconomics, 3 Cr.
Students learn about scarcity,
opportunity costs, and production possibilities; the supply and demand behavior
of markets; and optimal behavior of consumers and producers under market
structures perfect competition, monopoly, and monopolistic competition. Students
learn about how labor markets behave, including an understanding of how labor
demand and labor supply curves are derived, and how government intervention can
influence employment and wages. Students learn conditions for optimality of
unregulated markets, and examine roles for government intervention concerning
market failures such as externalities and public and common goods.
300—Environmental Economics, 3 Cr.
This course will apply an economic
analysis to resource use while focusing on the economics of the environment and
the economics of exhaustible resources. Students will examine the economic
aspects of natural resources and environmental issues.
350—Latin America in a Global Economy,
3 Cr.
The study of economic policies and
principles is a combination of politics and social science. We will examine the
basic economic principles including scarcity, resource allocation, supply and
demand, economic models and the influence of international trade as it relates
to Latin American countries. Most of the course deals with economic
development; the successes, failures, and prospects in Latin American
countries.
400—Personal Economics, 3 Cr.
The purpose of this course is to
strengthen personal life management skills by providing students with a complete
perspective on personal economics. This topical course features financial
planning, budgeting, cash and credit management, housing decisions, balancing
work and home life, major purchasing decisions, investments, social
responsibility, tax planning, retirement planning, estate planning, community
service, and related ethical and legal issues. Students with little background
in finance, economics, or mathematics welcome.