International & Development Economics, MA (4+1)

Program Learning Outcomes

1. Understand the application of modern micro and macroeconomic theory to the key problems of economic development, trade and finance in the context of an increasingly globalized economy, where this includes an analysis of market failures, poverty traps, the structure of incentives, the use of game theory to model economic behavior, open economy models of trade, models of natural resource use, migration, foreign direct investment, financial markets, and exchange rate determination.
2. Design a master’s thesis research project based on summer fieldwork, including formation of an original research question, planning of an effective methodology, development of field protocols / survey instruments, and data collection in a developing or transition country. Students should develop a command of the relevant research tools needed to address a given poverty or globalization problem and test specific hypotheses.
3. Develop the capability of conducting an original quantitative empirical analysis of an international or development economics problem. Specifically, students should be able to understand the necessary empirical methods needed to identify causal relationships, especially related to international and development issues; determine the appropriate estimation method for an empirical model; utilize statistical software to conduct such estimation; and meaningfully interpret the results.
4. Effectively communicate technical research both in writing and orally, including compilation of a professional literature review, clear presentation of theoretical and empirical models, econometric analysis, and the relevance of the study’s principal findings and implications for international and/or economic development theory and policy.

Major Requirements (48 units)

• ECON 601 - Microeconomics: Theory & Appl
• ECON 602 - Macroeconomics: Theory & Appl
• ECON 620 - Graduate Econometrics
• ECON 623 - Field Research Methods
• ECON 628 - Adv Applied Econometrics
• ECON 625 - Econometrics of Fin Markets

• or

• ECON 627 - Applied Econometrics
• ECON 679 - InternationalEconomics Seminar

• or

• ECON 690 - Development Economics Seminar