1
UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA ECONOMICS 582-B1 MACROECONOMIC THEORY II
Winter Term 2015
Instructor: Dr. R. Todd Smith Office: Tory 9-27
Office Hours: MW 12:30-1:30, or by appointment ([email protected]) Classes: MW 11:00-12:20, Tory B-100
PURPOSE OF COURSE
This course is the second in the sequence of graduate macroeconomic theory. This course covers advanced topics and techniques designed to prepare students for the PhD
Comprehensive Exams and to do academic research. THIS COURSE IS FOR PhD STUDENTS ONLY.
ASSESSMENT
Assessment will be based on a midterm examination and a final examination as well as some assignments. The midterm is worth 30 percent, the assignments are worth 20 percent in total, and the final exam is worth 50 percent of your final grade. You may discuss the assignment questions with your fellow students, but your work must be your own. Rules regarding cheating and plagiarism apply to exams AND assignments. The final exam covers all the material in the course. The midterm exam will take place during the scheduled class on February 25. The final examination will be two hours and is tentatively scheduled for 9AM on April 21 in the regular classroom. Please confirm the final exam date when exam dates are finalized by the University. You may not use any electronic device during an exam except a standard calculator (NOT a calculator app on a Smartphone, tablet, etc.; you cannot access such devices during the exam and you cannot take one with you if you must go to the washroom during an exam.)
Students that are absent for a midterm exam shall, upon provision of satisfactory evidence for why the student was absent, have the weight of that exam moved to the final examination.
Regarding absences from final examinations, as stated in 23.3(2)c of the Calendar, “A deferred examination will not be approved if a student (a) has not been in regular attendance where attendance and/or participation are required, and/or, (b) excluding the final exam, has completed less than half of the assigned work.”
2
Sample examinations and supplementary material is available on Google Drive. I will send you the link.
UNIVERSITY POLICIES (i) Prerequisite and/or co-requisite enforcement
Prerequisites: ECON 581 or equivalent.
Please note that the current University registration system does not accommodate pre- requisite checking.
(ii) Renumbered courses
This course has not been renumbered.
(iii) Academic Integrity
''The University of Alberta is committed to the highest standards of academic integrity and honesty. Students are expected to be familiar with these standards regarding academic honesty and to uphold the policies of the University in this respect. Students are particularly urged to familiarize themselves with the provisions of the Code of Student Behaviour (online at www.governance.ualberta. ca) and avoid any behaviour that could potentially result in suspicions of cheating, plagiarism, misrepresentation of facts and/or participation in an offence. Academic dishonesty is a serious offence and can result in suspension or expulsion from the University."
Because of the seriousness of plagiarism and cheating, students are advised that the Code of Student Behaviour should be reviewed since ignorance is not acceptable as a defense in cases of academic offences. Students should be informed that when cheating and/or plagiarism has been determined to have occurred, a number of sanctions can be imposed, such as lowering a grade or expulsion from the University (outlined in Section 30.4.2 of the Code).
All students must read and familiarize themselves with the Code of Student Behavior, found at this link:
http://www.governance.ualberta.ca/CodesofConductandResidenceCommunityStandards/Cod eofStudentBehaviour/COSBIndividualHyperlinkedSections.aspx
(iv) Course Outlines
“Policy about course outlines can be found in ' 23.4(2) of the University Calendar.” (GFC 29 SEP 2003).
3
(v) "Audio or video recording of lectures, labs, seminars or any other teaching environment by students is allowed only with the prior written consent of the instructor or as part of an approved accommodation plan. Recorded material is to be used solely for personal study, and is not to be used or distributed for any other purpose without prior written consent from the instructor."
(vi) You must show your student ID card at midterms and final exams.
GRADING
Grading of term work will be computed on the 100 point scale. Your final letter grade in the course will be determined by the following mapping from your percentage average to the letter grades. The overall average in the course may be scaled upward prior to applying this conversion from percentage grades to letter grades. However, there is no guarantee what the overall average grade in the course will be.
Letter grade percentage average
A+ 88-100
A 84-88
A- 80-83
B+ 75-79
B 70-74
B- 66-69
C+ 61-65
C 56-60
C- 51-55
D+ 46-50
D 41-45
F below 40
TEXTBOOKS and READINGS
There is no single textbook that covers all of what we will discuss in this course. The following books may be referred to (some are available in electronic form). All books are available from the main on-line book sellers. I would recommend that you buy at least one of these books (and more if you can afford it).
Daron Acemoglu (2009). Introduction to Modern Economic Growth. Princeton University
4 Press.
Lars Ljungqvist and Thomas Sargent (2004). Recursive Macroeconomic Theory, 2nd Edition. The MIT Press.
Carl Walsh (2010). Monetary Theory and Policy, 3rd. The MIT Press.
Maurice Obstfeld and Kenneth Rogoff (1996). Foundations of International Macroeconomics. The MIT Press.
David Romer (2012). Advanced Macroeconomics, 4th Edition. McGraw-Hill Irwin.
I will distribute material throughout the course which underlies my lectures. This material may be accessed on the Google Drive link I will share with you.
MAIN TOPICS 1. Dynamic Optimization Methods
2. Business Cycles 3. Fiscal Policy
4. Monetary Economics 5. Financial Topics
6. New Keynesian Models
7. Quantitative Tools for DSGE Models
