Dr Ethan Ilzetzki 32L 1.10

This course is compulsory on the Master of Public Administration. This course is available on the MPA Dual Degree (LSE and Columbia), MPA Dual Degree (LSE and Hertie), MPA Dual Degree (LSE and NUS), MPA Dual Degree (LSE and Sciences Po), MPA Dual Degree (LSE and Tokyo) and MSc in Political Science and Political Economy. This course is available with permission as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit.

An introductory graduate course providing an economics background suitable for high-level public policy-making. The emphasis is on acquiring sound models and methods suitable for appraising policy-making issues and applicable in a wide variety of contexts. The first term (MT) covers microeconomics and the second term (LT) covers macroeconomics.

MT: Microeconomics: Demand and Supply in Competitive Markets: Consumer Optimisation: Demand for Goods: Consumer Optimisation and Labor Supply: Firms' Optimisation, the Supply of Goods and the Demand for Labour: Monopoly: Uncertainty and Insurance: Markets and Asymmetric Information: Monopolistic Competition and Game Theory: Externalities in Consumption and Production: Public Goods.

LT: Macroeconomics: Understanding Macroeconomic Data; Long-run Economic Growth; Business cycles; Aggregate Demand; Money, Inflation and Monetary Policy; Stabilization Policy;  Fiscal Policy and Government Debt; the Labour Market and Unemployment; Exchange Rates and International Economic Policy; the Financial System and the Macroeconomy.

20 hours of lectures and 10 hours of seminars in the MT. 20 hours of lectures and 10 hours of seminars in the LT. 2 hours of lectures in the ST.

Additionally, a 90-minute drop-in support class runs in weeks 2-11 of MT and LT.

Students will complete weekly problem sets. Some of these will be marked to to provide indicative assessment.

A full reading list will be distributed at the beginning of the course.

Exam (70%, duration: 3 hours, reading time: 15 minutes) in the main exam period.
Continuous assessment (30%) in the MT and LT.