Economics Course Descriptions
Economics 100 Courses
ECON 100 - The Economic Environment (3 units)
Prerequisite: None.
Application of economics to the problems of unemployment and inflation, the distribution of income, competition and monopoly, the role of government in the economy, other policy issues. Not open to pre-business, business administration majors or minors, economics majors or minors or international business majors
Economics 200 Courses
ECON 201 - Principles of Microeconomics (3 units)
Prerequisite: None.
Principles of individual consumer and producer decision-making in various market structures, the price system, market performance and government policy. One or more sections may be offered in any online format.
ECON 202 - Principles of Macroeconomics (3 units)
Prerequisite: None.
Principles of macroeconomics analysis and policy, unemployment and inflation, financial institutions, international trade, economic growth, comparative systems. One or more sections may be offered in any online format.
Economics 300 Courses
ECON 305 - Economics, Causality, and Analytics (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 100, ECON 201 or ECON 202.
Modern economic analysis, which centers around causal inference - how X causes Y. How economists and social scientists identify causal effects without experiments, how to diagram causality and how to implement casual methods using R.
ECON 310 - Intermediate Microeconomic Analysis (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 201, ECON 202, MATH 135. Corequisites: BUAD 301, ISDS 361A.
Rational decision-making behavior of consumers and firms, price and output determination in markets. Primarily for economics majors, but open to all students who qualify.
ECON 315 - Intermediate Business Microeconomics (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 201, ECON 202, MATH 135. Corequisites: BUAD 301, ISDS 361A.
Business decisions in alternative market structures with special emphasis on problem solving in a business context using economic concepts and methods. Not open to economics majors. Students may not receive credit for both ECON 310 and 315. One or more sections may be offered in any online format.
ECON 320 - Intermediate Macroeconomic Analysis (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 201, ECON 202, MATH 135. Corequisites: BUAD 301, ISDS 361A.
Determinants of the level of national income, employment and prices, and monetary and fiscal policies.
ECON 330 - Comparative Economic Systems (3 units)
Prerequisite: ECON 100 or ECON 201
Alternative economic systems; their theoretical foundations, actual economic institutions, and achievements and failures. Contrast between socialist and capitalist systems.
ECON 332 - Economies of the Pacific Rim (3 units)
Prerequisite: ECON 100 or ECON 201
Dimensions of industrialization, agriculture, investment, human resources and trade in economies of the Far East (including Japan and China), India and related nations of the Pacific Rim.
ECON 333 - Economic Development: Analysis and Case Studies (3 units)
Prerequisite: ECON 100 or ECON 201
Processes of economic growth with references to developing areas. Capital formation, resource allocation, relation to the world economy, economic planning and institutional factors, with case studies. One or more sections may be offered in any online format.
ECON 334 - Economics of Latin America and the Caribbean (3 units)
Prerequisite: ECON 100 or ECON 201. Corequisite: BUAD 301
Regional economic problems within an international context: dependence, industrialization and the international corporation; agriculture; regional cooperation; inflation; trade and debt problems.
ECON 335 - The International Economy (3 units)
Prerequisite: ECON 100 or ECON 201
Theory, practice and institutions of the international economy. International trade and investment, balance of payments, foreign exchange rates, multi-national enterprise, international economic policy. Current trade issues: European Community, trade with developing countries, Eastern Europe and the states of the former Soviet Union; General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT); and others. One or more sections may be offered in any online format.
ECON 336 - Economies of the Middle East (3 units)
Prerequisite: ECON 100 or ECON 201
Economic circumstances and challenges in the Middle East. xTopics include population and education, dependence on oil exports, state control of the economy, and the potential for economics growth and stability in the region. One or more sections many be offered in any online format.
ECON 340 - Economic Research Methods (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 201, ECON 202, ISDS 361A
Basics of applied economic research. How to access existing economic knowledge, locate and compile economic data, and analyze economic problems using theory and quantitative methods. One or more sections may be offered in any online format.
ECON 350 - American Economic History (3 units)
Prerequisite: ECON 100 or ECON 201
Development of American economic institutions; economic problems, economic growth and economic welfare.
ECON 351 - European Economic History (3 units)
Prerequisite: ECON 201
European economic institutions and the development of industry, commerce, and finance from the fall of the Roman Empire to the Industrial Revolution. It traces the historical path which culminated in European economic hegemony.
ECON 355 - Economics of Gender and Work (3 units)
Prerequisites: completion of G.E. category D.1 and junior or senior standing
Economic analysis of demographic trends and changing gender roles and experiences in paid and unpaid work, education, earnings and market discrimination using economic theory. International comparisons. (ECON 355 and WGST 355 are the same course.)
ECON 361 - Urban Economics (3 units)
Prerequisite: ECON 100 or ECON 201
Theory and analysis of the urban economy, urban economic problems and policy.
ECON 362 - Environmental Economics (3 units)
Prerequisite: ECON 100 or ECON 201
Economic analysis of environmental problems and related issues: externalities, property rights, social costs and benefits, user cost, rent and decision making under uncertainty.
Economics 400 Course
ECON 410 - Industrial Organization (3 units)
Prerequisites: BUAD 301, ECON 310, not CBE pre-major or undecided/undeclared major; or CBE graduate standing and not pre-MBA
Business organization, conduct and performance; rationale and impact of public policy on business and business activities, including the regulated industries, sick industries and antitrust policy.
ECON 411 - International Trade (3 units)
Prerequisites: BUAD 301, ECON 310 or ECON 315, not CBE pre-major or undecided/undeclared major; or CBE graduate standing and not pre-MBA
Theories of international trade. Gains from trade, effects of tariff and non-tariff barriers, and conduct of commercial policy. Balance of payments, the theories of exchange rate determination and other international economic issues.
ECON 412 - Labor Economics (3 units)
Prerequisites: BUAD 301, ECON 310, ECON 340 or equivalent
Labor supply and demand, labor force participation, employment, unemployment, human capital, wage differentials, disadvantaged labor market groups, discrimination and wage-related income transfers.
ECON 413 - Law and Economics (3 units)
Prerequisites: BUAD 301, ECON 310 or ECON 315, not CBE pre-major or undecided/undeclared major; or CBE graduate standing and not pre-MBA
Economic analysis of the common law - property, contract and tort - focusing on the use of microeconomic theory to study the economic efficiency characteristics and effects of these laws. Analyze specific legal cases.
ECON 415 - Economics of Health (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 340
Application of economic reasoning to the analyses of health-related issues, markets, practice, education, research and policy within social and political contexts.
ECON 416 - Benefit Cost and Microeconomic Policy Analysis (3 units)
Prerequisites: BUAD 301 or equivalent, ECON 201; or graduate standing
Application of economic models to public policy. Cost-Benefit analysis of public projects. Estimation of benefits and costs in a market economy. Concepts of economic welfare, efficiency, and equity. Applications to selected policy areas.
ECON 417 - Public Finance (3 units)
Prerequisites: BUAD 301, ECON 310
Government finance at the federal, state and local levels; impact of taxation and spending on resource allocation, income distribution, stabilization and growth.
ECON 418 - Behavioral Economics (3 units)
Prerequisite: ECON 310 or ECON 315
Integrates insights from psychology into economic models. Review evidence of violations of standard economic assumptions, learn theories that can explain those violations and apply them to real-world examples.
ECON 419 - Economics of Education (3 units)
Prerequisites: BUAD 301, ECON 310 or ECON 315, and ECON 340. ECON 440 is recommended but not required.
This course is an introduction to the economics of education. In this class we will use the tools of economic theory and econometrics to study the educational system, mostly the educational system of the United States. This is largely a literature class, and we will be reading heavily from the literature. Please note that this is not a class about how to teach economics, nor is it (purely) a class on educational finance.
ECON 420 - Money and Banking (3 units)
Prerequisites: BUAD 301, ECON 320, not CBE pre-major or undecided/undeclared major; or CBE graduate standing and not pre-MBA
Money supply process and impact of monetary policy on economic activity.
ECON 421 - Monetary and Fiscal Policy (3 units)
Prerequisites: BUAD 301, ECON 320
Techniques of monetary and fiscal policy and their relative roles in promoting economic stability and growth.
ECON 431 - International Macroeconomics and Growth (3 units)
Prerequisites: BUAD 301, ECON 320 not CBE pre-major or undecided/undeclared major; or CBE graduate standing and not pre-MBA
Macroeconomic analysis of the open economy: impact of stabilization policies in a global economy, role of the balance of payments, international monetary system and growth in less developed countries.
ECON 433 - The Less Developed Countries and the World Economy (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 310, ECON 315 or ECON 515, ECON 320 or ECON 521
Development and underdevelopment in the poorer countries in the context of a changing international economic order. Neo-classical and political economy approaches. Includes case studies from Asia, Africa and Latin America.
ECON 440 - Introduction to Econometrics (3 units)
Prerequisites: BUAD 301, ECON 340, ISDS 361A, not CBE pre-major or undecided/undeclared major; or CBE graduate standing and not pre-MBA
Economic measurement: specification and estimation of econometric models; statistical methods in economic research.
ECON 441 - Introduction to Mathematical Economics (3 units)
Prerequisites: BUAD 301, ECON 201, ECON 202, MATH 135, not CBE pre-major or undecided/undeclared major; or CBE graduate standing and not pre-MBA
Economic theory from microeconomics and macroeconomics. Content varies; constrained optimization problems and rational decision-making.
ECON 450 - History of Economic Thought (3 units)
Prerequisites: BUAD 301, ECON 310 or ECON 320
Major schools of thought and of leading individual economists as they influenced economic thought and policy.
ECON 461 - Ecological Economics (3 units)
Prerequisites: BUAD 301; ECON 310 or ECON 315; ECON 340
Application of economic concepts and methods to understanding the ways in which human economic behavior contributes to environmental and ecosystem degradation; the use of economic approaches to evaluate and manage these impacts; the design of sustainable economic policies. One or more sections may be offered in any online format.
ECON 462 - Natural Resource Economics (3 units)
Prerequisites: BUAD 301, ECON 310 or ECON 315; ECON 340
Concepts and principles in the application of economics to issues in natural resource economics. Issues will include uncertainty and risk in investment, depletion over time, cartelization, the role of technological innovation and government intervention related to fuels, water, land, etc. One or more sections may be offered in any online format.
ECON 490 - Economics Capstone (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 310, ECON 320, ECON 340; ECON 440 or ISDS 361B or a 400-level Economics elective
Taken in the last semester of studies. Students demonstrate proficiency in economic theory and quantitative methods and the ability to apply those to economic issues, including analyzing news reports, summarizing scholarly journal articles, writing policy and/or conducting original research.
This course not available for Graduate Credit.
ECON 495 - Internship (1-3)
Prerequisites: economics major, BUAD 301, ISDS 361A, ECON 310 or ECON 320; international business major, ECON 202, ECON 335, ISDS 361A; consent of the department internship adviser; at least junior standing; 2.5 GPA and one semester in residence at the university
Planned and supervised work experience. May be repeated for a maximum of 6 units. Credit/No Credit only.
ECON 496 - Tutorial (1-3)
Prerequisites: Economics major or concentration, BUAD 301, ECON 310, ECON 320 senior standing; 3.0 GPA; consent of department chair
Learn through teaching (tutoring) other students enrolled in principles and intermediate economics courses. Consult Student-to-Student Tutorials in this catalog for more information. May not be used to satisfy the elective requirements for the major or concentration in business economics. May be repeated for a maximum of 3 units. Credit/No Credit only.
ECON 499 - Independent Study (1-3)
Prerequisites: economics major or concentration, BUAD 301, ECON 310, ECON 320 senior standing; consent of department chair
Directed independent inquiry. May be repeated for a maximum of 3 units. Not open to students on academic probation.
Economics 500 Courses
ECON 502 - Advanced Microeconomics (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 310, ECON 441, graduate standing in Economics
Advanced treatment of decision-making by individuals and firms. Optimal resource allocation in partial and general equilibrium contexts. Topics include choice and preferences, duality, utility maximization, profit maximization, risk and uncertainty, information economics, and market power.
ECON 503 - Advanced Macroeconomics (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 320, ECON 441, graduate standing in Economics
Advanced treatment of long run economic growth models. Short run economic fluctuations and business cycle models. General equilibrium models. Dynamic inter-temporal optimization. Theories of consumption and saving. Models of unemployment and inflation. Monetary and fiscal policy.
ECON 504 - Advanced Microeconometrics: Causality and Policy Evaluation (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 440, graduate standing in Economics
Advanced estimation techniques of microeconomic data and panel data. Treatment Effects. Sample selection. Instrumental variables estimation. Limited dependent variable models. Use of econometric and statistical computer softwares.
ECON 505 - Advanced Macroeconometrics: Time Series and Forecasting (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 440, ECON 441, graduate standing in Economics
Advanced estimation techniques of macroeconomic data. Economic forecasting. Time series econometrics. Stationarity and unit roots. Deterministic and stochastic processes. Vector Autoregressive Analysis. Macroeconomic applications. Use of econometric and statistical computer softwares.
ECON 506 - Economics of Aging (3 units)
Prerequisites: GERO 501 or ECON 340; and admission into the Gerontology M.S. Program or classified BAE status
Economic consequences of population aging and the economic status of the aged. Income adequacy in old age: dependency, work income, retirement planning, social security, employer-sponsored pensions and financing health care. Economic security today and tomorrow. International comparisons. (ECON 506 and GERO 506 are the same course.)
ECON 515 - Microeconomic Perspective for Managers (3 units)
Prerequisites: MATH 135t or graduate standing; not open to Economics graduate students
Behavior of demand-side consumers and supply side producers. Market structures, such as perfect competition, monopoly and oligopoly. Features of firm’s organizational architecture. Game theory. Pricing strategies. Uncertainty and risk. Economics of information.
ECON 521 - Macroeconomic Perspective for Managers (3 units)
Prerequisites: CBE graduate standing
National income, inflation and unemployment. Short run economic fluctuations and business cycles. Monetary and fiscal policy. The financial system and financial crises. Open economy, the exchange rate and the trade balance. Macroeconomic policy making. Economic forecasting using macroeconomic indicators. Not open to Economics graduate students or students with credit for ECON 320.
ECON 528 - Seminar in Financial Economics (3 units)
Prerequisite: ECON 310, ECON 320; or graduate standing and not pre-MBA major
Valuation or corporate liabilities and other securities. Economic decision-making under uncertainty and asset pricing theories are analyzed rigorously. Other topics may include optimal capital structure, the market for corporate control, or macroeconomics aspects of finance. (ECON 528 and FIN 528 are the same course.)
ECON 531 - Seminar in International Economics (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 310, ECON 320; or graduate standing and not pre-MBA major
Advanced treatment of macro or micro international economic issues. Topics may include international trade, trade policy, international finance, currency value, exchange rate regimes, macroeconomics of an open economy, international business cycles, offshoring and foreign direct investment, and globalization issues.
ECON 533 - Seminar in Development Economics (3 units)
Prerequisite: ECON 310, ECON 320; or graduate standing and not pre-MBA
Advanced treatment of macro or micro economic determinants of economic prosperity. Topics may include institutions, geography, culture, globalization, governance, conflict, inequality, corruption. Appropriate techniques used to address the core questions in the field of the deep determinants of economic development.
ECON 590 - Seminar in Economic Analysis (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 310, ECON 320; or graduate standing and not pre-MBA
Special topics in microeconomic and macroeconomic analysis. Different topics in various microeconomic and macroeconomic fields.
ECON 595 - Current Research in Economics (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 502, ECON 503; ECON 504 or ECON 505
Read, present and replicate scholarly research published in peer-reviewed journals covering a variety of topics in economics. Receive guidance as to research methodology, composing a research paper and professional presentation. Attendance at departmental research seminars required.
ECON 598 - Thesis Research (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 502, EDAD 503, ECON 504; classified graduate status in economics. Corequisite: ECON 505
Selection and approval of topic; outline; methodology; literature survey; data collection and analysis; presentation of results. Award of the grade is contingent upon the completion and acceptance of the thesis.
ECON 599 - Independent Graduate Research (3 units)
Prerequisites: ECON 502, ECON 503; ECON 504 or ECON 505; graduate standing in Economics; consent of instructor, department chair and graduate studies committee
Directed advanced independent inquiry. May not be repeated for credit. Not open to students on academic probation.