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PROGRAMS OF STUDY & COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
Economics (ECO)

Major: Yeshiva College
ECO 1011, 1021, 1101, 1201 (or 1221); STA 1021; 18 additional credits in ECO courses. FIN 1408 and up to 6 additional credits in courses in the Sy Syms School may count toward the major. Courses in management information systems do not count toward the economics major. Students planning graduate study in economics are advised to take ECO 1421 and MAT 1412, 1413.

Minor: Yeshiva College
Eighteen credits including ECO 1011, 1021.

Please note that the Introductory courses (ECO 1011 and 1021), Intermediate Microeconomics (ECO 1101), and Money and Banking (ECO 1221) are offered every semester. Intermediate Macroeconomics (ECO 1201) is offered only in the spring semester. Generally, other electives are offered at most once a year on a rotational basis. Check with the economics professors for the courses planned over the next year.

1011 or 1011H Introductory Macroeconomics. 3 credits.
Introduction to the role of the price system in various economic systems; rudiments of supply and demand, theory and applications; role of government in the modern capitalist economy; national income, accounting and theory; monetary and fiscal policy; public debt; inflation, unemployment.

1021 or 1021H Introductory Microeconomics. 3 credits.
Elementary theory of demand and the firm; consumer behavior; market structure, input theory, distribution of income, government regulations, theory and policy; theory of international trade.

1101 Intermediate Microeconomics. 3 credits.
Theory of elasticity; indifference curves and applications; cost of production; output markets; externalities; input markets; linear programming; optimization theory with use of calculus.
Prerequisite: ECO 1021.

1170 Contemporary Microeconomic Issues. 3 credits.
Use of economic tools to explore issues of public policy and private decision making. Topics vary by term but may include uncertainty and information in economics, crime, government regulation of business, education, charity, immigration, contracts, discrimination, medical care, transportation, congestion, geographic location, income distribution.
Prerequisite: ECO 1021.

1177 Game Theory. 3 credits.
Development of models of rational behavior in interactive situations through the theory of noncooperative, cooperative and evolutionary games. Game theory is used for decisions and strategy whenever people interact to strike mutually agreeable deals or to resolve conflicts in such diverse fields as international relations, economics, business, politics, psychology, philosophy, or even evolutionary biology.
Prerequisite: ECO 1021.

1201 Intermediate Macroeconomics. 3 credits.
National income accounting; national income determination models; consumption functions; investment theory; business cycle theory; stabilization policy; LM-IS-BP analysis; aggregate demand and aggregate supply analysis; economic growth and development theories.
Prerequisite: ECO 1011.

1221 Money and Banking. 3 credits.
Nature of money; organization and functioning of the commercial banking system; description of financial markets and financial institutions; hedging mechanisms, yield curves, Federal Reserve System and financial intermediaries; national income determination models; monetarist-fiscalist debate; LM-IS-BP analysis; role of money in international finance.
Prerequisite: ECO 1011.

1301 History of Economic Thought. 3 credits.
Ancient and medieval economic thought; mercantilists and physiocrats; classical and neoclassical schools; institutional school; Keynesian economics.
Prerequisite: ECO 1021.

1421 Econometrics. 3 credits.
Application of regression techniques to the problem of testing and forecasting in economics. The two-variable regression model is fully developed; analysis is extended to consider the multivariate model, functional form issues, dummy variables, and distribution lag models. Covers problems associated with autocorrelation, multicollinearity, heteroskedasticity, and system models.
Prerequisites: ECO 1011, STA 1021.

1501 Public Finance. 3 credits.
Social balance, personal and corporate income taxes; sales and property taxes; current economic thought on taxation and public debt, expenditure analysis, energy, transportation, housing, education, pollution control, poverty, and quotas; externalities, public goods, public choice.
Prerequisites: ECO 1011, ECO 1021.

1701 International Economics. 3 credits.
The theory of international trade, international finance, commercial policy, balance of payments, the foreign exchange market, competitiveness in the global economy, international macroeconomics, and foreign direct investment. Emphasis on the determinants and effects of international linkages, including the roles of consumers, firms, and government policies, in the context of the international economic environment.
Prerequisites: ECO 1011, ECO 1021.

2005 Economics of the Law. 3 credits.
The relationship of legal institutions and laws to economic efficiency and social goals, such as justice. Economics of property rights, environmental control, administrative processes, contracts, and liability; public utility and antitrust regulation; individual rights and discrimination.
Prerequisite: ECO 1011.

2201 Labor Economics. 3 credits.
Labor’s place in the American economy; factors affecting supply and demand for labor; wage determination; unionism as a response to labor problems; industrial relations; public policy toward labor.
Prerequisite: ECO 1021.

(2330 Economics of Energy).

2401 Industrial Organization. 3 credits.
The application of microeconomic theory to industrial markets. Considers such areas as structure of the American economy, motivation of the firm, identification and measurement of monopoly power, oligopolistic behavior, patents, concentration, and government regulation.
Prerequisites: ECO 1011, ECO 1021.

2531 Health Economics. 3 credits.
Application of economic tools and concepts to the analysis of the health care field. Effects of health care on health, hospital behavior, health workforce supply, demand for health care. Role of demographic changes in health care systems. Methodology employed by economists to determine the economic losses suffered in cases involving death and disability. Emphasis on the United States and its current situation. Comparison with other countries.
Prerequisites: ECO 1011, ECO 1021.

2701 Managerial Economics. 3 credits.
Analysis of the firm’s decisions regarding prices, output and input, advertising, etc., under various market conditions; applications to production, financial, and marketing operations. Attention given to the formulation of economic models to analyze management problems.
Prerequisite: ECO 1011, ECO 1021.

3005 or 3005H Forensic Economics. 3 credits.
Quantitative analysis techniques to estimate the economic damages sustained from unlawful actions under both tort and discrimination law. Detailed examination of economic and legal aspects of various calculation methodologies through the relevant literature and data sources. Exploration of potential areas of ethical conflict and the nature of the adversarial legal process. Also reinforces student writing, computer, research, and oral presentation skills through preparation of economic loss appraisal reports for real-life personal injury and wrongful death cases, employment discrimination, lost business, lost pleasure of life (hedonic damages), etc.

3006 or 3006H Economics and Ethical Issues. 3 credits.
Comparison of the economic efficiency and Jewish law approaches to business ethics; advertising and promotional activities; business pricing policies; labor relations; government regulation of the economy; social welfare; speculation.

3501 Economics of the Middle East. 3 credits.
Economic growth of Israel until the Yom Kippur War; stagnancy and inflation since 1974; new economic policies since 1985; Middle East oil, OPEC, and the economies of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, and Syria.
Prerequisite: ECO 1011.

(3511 The Economy of Israel).

3601 or 3601H Economic Perspectives. 3 credits.
Topics are based mainly on symposium themes of the Journal of Economic Perspectives and reflect the most recent work, but may include the following: fiscal policy, revision of LM-IS analysis, advanced consumption theory, regulation of the stock market and hedge funds, organizations and economics, economics and electronic commerce, the economics of higher Education, health care reform, state vs. private ownership.
Prerequisites: ECO 1011, ECO 1021; and ECO 1201 or 1221.

4901 Independent Study.

4911 Guided Project.
Meet with the Yeshiva College academic dean.