Department of ECONOMICS

College of Social Sciences

Chair: James Cobbe; Professors: Benson, Canterbery, Cobbe, Fournier, Gwartney, R. Holcombe, Ihlanfeldt, Isaac, Macesich, Macpherson, Marquis, Norrbin, Rasmussen, Sass, Schlagenhauf, Serow, Sliger; Associate Professors: Beaumont, Mason, McCaleb, Prasad, Schmertmann, Zuehlke; Assistant Professors: Burke, Lee, Salmon, Young; Visiting Assistant Professor: Garriga; Service Professor: Laird; Courtesy Professors: Elzie, Fabricant, L. Holcombe, Piette, Rust, Stratis; Professors Emeriti: Downing, Rockwood, Sorensen

The Department of Economics offers an excellent curriculum that is as diversified as the discipline itself. The program strives to make undergraduates aware of the critical issues in economic science and policy, to provide them with a basic understanding of the tools needed to analyze those issues, and to prepare them for academic or professional opportunities beyond the baccalaureate degree. There are two undergraduate majorsthe traditional "economics" major and an "applied economics" major.

The Department of Economics cooperates in the following interdivisional programs: international affairs, interdisciplinary program in social science, Asian studies, Russian and East European studies, African American studies, demography, and economic policy and government.

The department's home page can be found at: http://www.fsu.edu/~economic.

State of Florida Common Course Prerequisites

The State of Florida has identified common course prerequisites for this University degree program. Specific prerequisites are required for admission into the upper-division program and must be completed by the student at either a community college or a state university prior to being admitted to this program. Students may be admitted into the University without completing the prerequisites, but may not be admitted into the program.

The following lists the common prerequisites or their substitutions necessary for admission into this upper-division degree program:

Economics - Social Sciences

1) ECO X013 and ECO X023 or six (6) semester hours in economic courses (ECO prefix).

Note: The Florida State University does not offer an Economics ­ Business major.

Requirements

Admission

Admission to the undergraduate program is based upon the availability of faculty and space and upon academic performance. Students with fifty-two (52) or more acceptable semester hours, both ECO 2013 and 2023 completed with a grade of "C" (2.0) or better, and in good standing with the University will receive priority consideration but are not guaranteed admission to the program.

Students are expected to complete the principles sequence (ECO 2013, 2023) before declaring economics or applied economics as a major. The courses may be taken in either order. The department allows students to take the courses in the same semester, but neither recommends nor encourages it.

Majors

Majors in economics or applied economics must take at least six (6) semester hours of economics each term until the requirements for the major have been completed. Majors must also complete two of the three required core courses in economic theory by the end of their second term in the major, and the third of the core courses must be completed by the end of the third term as a major. Failure to meet either of these conditions may result in students being dropped from the economics program, in which case such students will have to be accepted in another major before they can register again for classes.

An overall grade of "C" (2.0) average in economics and supporting courses is required of majors. Majors will not receive credit toward the major requirements for courses in which a grade of less than "C­" has been received. A minimum of fifteen (15) semester hours in economics courses must be taken at The Florida State University.

A student majoring in economics or applied economics must complete the minor requirements specified by a supporting academic department. The selection of a supporting department is subject to the approval of the undergraduate adviser. Students in the applied major may complete a minor in business with only an additional six (6) semester hours of College of Business courses.

Undergraduate students who intend to major in economics should take ECO 2013, 2023, and the supporting courses before completing liberal studies. Students not completing these requirements in lower division who wish to major in economics must complete all the requirements no later than the end of the junior year.

Major in Economics

Beyond ECO 2013 and ECO 2023, the economics major requires ECO 4101, 4203, 4421, and an additional fifteen (15) semester hours of upper-division economics electives, including six (6) semester hours in one economics specialty area. Majors will also complete the supporting courses STA 2023 and MAC 1105. Calculus is recommended especially for students comtemplating graduate study.

Major in Applied Economics

In addition to ECO 2013 and ECO 2023, the major in applied economics requires ECO 3104, 3223, and 4431; twelve (12) additional semester hours of upper division economics courses; and the supporting courses ACG 2021, ACG 2071or FIN 3403, MAC 1105, and STA 2023. Precalculus Algebra (MAC 1140) is recommended. Students in applied economics are encouraged to earn three to six semester hours of credit through the department's internship program, which requires simultaneous registration in ECO 4944r and ECO 4922r; arrangements and approval must be obtained before the semester in which they are to be taken.

Degrees/Certificates

Majors in economics may be awarded either the bachelor of science or the bachelor of arts degree upon completion of all University requirements for those degrees.

An economics department certification of subject area concentration will be given upon request to economics majors.

Honors in the Major

The Department of Economics offers honors in the major to encourage talented juniors and seniors to undertake independent and original research as part of the undergraduate experience. For requirements and other information, see the "University Honors Program and Honor Societies" section of this General Bulletin.

Minor in Economics

A minor requires fifteen (15) semester hours in departmental courses, including ECO 2013 and 2023, with a grade of "C" or better and at least one course selected from ECO 3104, 3223, 4101, 4203, 4421, or 4431. Students will not receive credit towards the minor for courses in which a grade less than "C­" has been received.

Economics minors must have at least a "C" (2.0) grade point average in their economics course work. ECO 2000 will not count toward the minor. No more than six (6) semester hours of transfer credit will be accepted toward the minor.

Definition of Prefixes

ECO - Economics
ECP - Economic Problems and Policy
ECS - Economic Systems and Development

Undergraduate Courses

ECO 2000. Introduction to Economics (3). A survey of the discipline for people taking only one economics course. Historical perspective and major principles of theory are presented. Not to be taken by students who have had or who must take ECO 2013 and 2023. Not applicable to the economics major or the economics minor.

ECO 2013. Principles of Macroeconomics (3). Aggregate economics and national income determination, money and monetary theory, present macroeconomic conditions, and aggregative policy alternatives; theory of international trade and the balance of payments; economic growth and development.

ECO 2023. Principles of Microeconomics (3). The course covers consumption, production, and resource allocations considered from a private and social point of view; microeconomic problems and policy alternatives; economics of inequality, poverty; and comparative economic systems.

ECO 3004. Debating Economic Issues (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. Economic analysis applied to current economic policy issues. Topics may include financial markets, Social Security, debt finance, health care, immigration, global climate change and environmental policy, regulation, welfare reform, labor market discrimination, drug policy, and topics selected by students.

ECO 3104. Applied Microeconomic Analysis (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2023; STA 2023. Applications of microeconomic theory for business and policy analysis. Topics include the theory of the firm, valuation techniques in the absence of market prices, empirical research with accounting, financial and administrative data, theory of supply and business strategy, cost-benefit methods.

ECO 3223. Financial Markets, the Banking System, and Monetary Policy (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. The functions of money, bank creation of deposits, and credit; Federal Reserve control of money supply; and monetary theory and policy questions.

ECO 3303. History of Economic Ideas (3). Prerequisite: any 2000-level ECO course. The evolution of economic ideas from ancient Greece to the modern period emphasizing the relationship between developments in economic analysis and cultural/technological changes. Critique of modern economic theory in terms of its sources and logical content.

ECO 3622. Growth of the American Economy (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. Factors in the development of economic forces, resources, institutions, and ideas relating to American economic growth analyzed through growth theories and issue debates on economic history.

ECO 3933r. Special Topics in Economics (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. This course code is used for special topics of current interest or to benefit from the specialties of visiting faculty. May be repeated to a maximum of six (6) semester hours. May be repeated within the same semester.

ECO 3949r. Cooperative Education Work Experience (0). (S/U grade only.)

ECO 4101. Intermediate Microeconomic Theory (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. Supply, demand, cost of production, theory of the firm, factor price determination, and other microeconomic resource allocation questions.

ECO 4203. Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory (3). Prerequisite: ECO 2013, 2023. The basic model of income determination is built emphasizing the roles of real and monetary sectors of the economy. Results of empirical work are surveyed.

ECO 4224. Issues in Money and Banking (3). Prerequisite: ECO 3223. The role of monetary policy in various macroeconomic theories is emphasized. Focus on controversy over the effects monetary policy has on employment, inflation, and interest rates.

ECO 4400. Games and Decisions (3). Prerequisite: ECO 2023. A non-technical introduction to strategic decision-making. Focuses on situations involving conflict and cooperation and on decision-making under conditions of uncertainty and ignorance. Applies game theory and decision theory to such topics as bargaining and negotiations, contracting, auctions, and voting.

ECO 4401. Introduction to Mathematical Economics (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023, college calculus. Uses mathematical techniques such as probability, matrix algebra, and calculus to better understand fundamental principles of economics. Applies these techniques to policy analysis.

ECO 4421. Introduction to Econometrics (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023; STA 2023. This course introduces statistical inference, estimation theory, model building, and forecasting methods. Emphasis is on model building and policy analysis. Extensive use is made of PC econometric software.

ECO 4431. Introduction to Economic Forecasting (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023; STA 2023. Provides a hands-on survey of forecasting methods used in business and economics. Students work extensively with computer-based statistical software to solve actual cases encountered in the business world.

ECO 4455. Experimental Economics (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. This course is an introduction to the use of laboratory experimental economics, a relatively new method of economics research in which the classic model of laboratory experimentation is applied to microeconomics. The course is presented using both traditional lecture format and hands-on participation in different experimental economic formats.

ECO 4504. Public Sector Economics (3). Prerequisite: ECO 2023. The logic of collective actions, principles of government expenditures, theory and practice in taxation, shifting and incidence of taxes.

ECO 4532. Economic Analysis of Politics (3). Prerequisite: ECO 2023 or permission of instructor. Economic models are used to analyze political decision making. A theory of constitutions is developed and applied to the U.S. Constitution. Models of majority rule decision making and bureauractic supply are used to develop an understanding of supply and demand in the public sector.

ECO 4554. Economics of State and Local Government (3). Prerequisite: ECO 2023. State and local revenues, expenditures, and borrowing; intergovernmental relationships.

ECO 4704. International Trade (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023; ECO 4101 recommended. Theory of international trade, the gains from trade, tariffs and other trade restrictions, cartels.

ECO 4713. International Finance (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023; ECO 3223 or 4203 recommended. Balance of payments; disequilibrium and adjustments; birth, evolution, and demise of the Bretton Woods System; the managed float; international monetary reform; multinational corporations.

ECO 4905r. Directed Individual Study (1­3). May be repeated to a maximum of six (6) semester hours.

ECO 4922r. Professional Development in Economics (1­3). Prerequisite: permission of instructor. Corequisite: ECO 4944r. Covers issues that economics students encounter in the workplace: ethics, presentation skills, data gathering and analysis, as well as problems encountered in students' field study course work are discussed.

ECO 4933r. Senior Tutorial in Economics (1­3). (S/U grade only.) Prerequisites: Senior economics major or minor; or instructor's permission. This course will cover selected topics in economics. Maximum enrollment of five (5) students in each tutorial. Repeatable one time to a maximum of six (6) semester hours.

ECO 4934r. Honors Work (3). May be repeated to a maximum of nine (9) semester hours.

ECO 4944r. Field Study in Economics (1­4). Prerequisite: Permission of instructor required. Corequisite: ECO 4922r. Students receive credit toward the economics major for applied and practical experience working in a variety of organizations such as state agencies, banks, and finance departments. May be repeated to a maximum of four (4) semester hours.

ECP 3113. Economics of Population (3). Determinants and consequences of world population growth and changes, components of population growth in more- and less-developed countries, population and food supply/nonrenewable resource interrelationships.

ECP 3143. Afro-Americans in the American Political Economy (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. Examines the market, institutional, governmental, and social processes that have contributed to the economic well-being of African-Americans. Also covers theoretical material related to wage determination, labor market discrimination, and marriage and transitions in family structure, as well as interaction between race and class as determinants of the life chances of African-Americans.

ECP 3203. Labor Economics (3). Prerequisite: ECO 2023 or instructor's approval. Theoretical and empirical examination of wage determination, income maintenance programs, labor force, employment, unemployment, functioning of labor markets, and manpower programs.

ECP 3213. Economics of Industrial Relations (3). Industrial relations in the public and private sectors examined from the perspective of history, theory, and institutions.

ECP 3302. Economics of Natural Resources, Energy, and the Environment (3). Prerequisite: any 2000-level ECO class. The relationship between natural resource availability and growth, capital theory, economics of the environment, the U.S. energy problem and alternatives for the future, an economic appraisal of U.S. energy policy.

ECP 3322. Economics of Living Marine Resources (3). The economic role of commercial and recreational fishing industries in the U.S. and world, fishery management schemes, resources depletion and environmental deterioration, issues on current and potential food from the sea. An interdisciplinary course with no previous economics courses required.

ECP 3403. Business Organization and Market Structure (3). Prerequisite: ECO 2023. An introduction to the economic analysis of industry, a survey of market structures, oligopoly and collusion, a variety of commercial practices under imperfect competition, the welfare consequences and policy approaches to the problems of monopoly.

ECP 3451. Economics and the Law (3). Prerequisite: ECO 2000 or 2023. The course is focused on the impact of the legal system on economic activity and the role of economic analysis in assessing the relative efficiency of alternative legal rules and institutions.

ECP 3530. Economics of Health (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. The course provides an overall view of the U.S. health care system, focusing on the following topics: demand for medical care, health insurance, hospitals, physician services, regulation versus competition for cost containment, alternative delivery care systems, financing uncompensated care, Medicare prospective payment system, long-term care, and economic issues concerning health-related behavior (i.e., alcohol, tobacco).

ECP 3703. Business Economics (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. Economic decision making by the firm in relation to the industry and to the economic and regulatory environment in which it operates.

ECP 4003. Public Policy and the Quality of Life (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. This course examines the differences between market allocation of resources and government planning to allocate resources, and illustrates how the market mechanism can be used to improve the quality of life in areas where government allocation is often advocated. These include environmental protection, land use planning, the regulation of product quality, health care, education policy, and more.

ECP 4118 Introduction to Economic Demography (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. This course focuses on the acquisition of demographic and related socioeconomic data and provides an introduction to the analytical tools and skills necessary to understand and interpret the data.

ECP 4160 Economics of Aging (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. This course considers the factors which cause populations to become older and systematically analyzes the economic consequences of this aging. Topics considered include social security and health care financing.

ECP 4413. Government Regulation of Business (3). Prerequisite: ECO 2023. An introduction to the economic analysis of antitrust law and regulation. Topics include price fixing, monopolization, predatory pricing, exclusive dealing, tie-ins, price discrimination, mergers, antitrust enforcement policies, and case studies in economic regulation.

ECP 4505. Economics of Crime (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. This course examines crime and criminal justice policy using the tools of economics. The focus is on crimes against persons and property, and drug policy. Rational behavior, opportunity cost, markets, bureaucratic behavior, and policy analysis are studied in this context.

ECP 4613. Urban Economics (3). Prerequisite: ECO 2023. Trends in urban economies in the U.S. and elsewhere. Introduction to economic and demographic data sources for analysis of urban areas. Issues confronting contemporary urban places.

ECP 4623. Regional Economics (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. The economics of subareas of nations with special emphasis on regional economic developments. Includes the theory of the location of industry.

ECS 3003. Comparative Economic Systems (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. Theoretical and practical aspects of the principal forms of economic organization. Emphasis on the varieties of market-based systems, and economies in transition from centrally-planned toward market economies.

ECS 4013. Economics of Development (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. Economic development as a process, description and analysis; alternative overall theories of development; particular problems and policy responses to them; strategic choices in development policy. Main focus on third world economies.

ECS 4333. Transition of Soviet and Eastern European Economies (3). Prerequisites: ECO 2013, 2023. Describes and analyzes the formerly centrally planned soviet economy and its transformation. Case studies include Russia, members of the Commonwealth of Independent States and Eastern European countries. Analyzes the successes and failures of the transition process, particularly privatization and marketization.

Graduate Courses

• ECO 5005. Economic Principles for International Affairs (3).
• ECO 5111. Intermediate Microeconomic Theory (3).
• ECO 5114. Applied Microeconomics I (3).
• ECO 5115. Product Markets and the Theory of the Firm (3).
• ECO 5116. Imperfect Competition, Factor Markets, and Income Distribution (3).
• ECO 5117. Applied Microeconomics II (3).
• ECO 5204. Macroeconomic Theory I (3).
• ECO 5205. Money and National Income Determination (3).
• ECO 5206. Macroeconomic Theory, Practice, and Policy (3).
• ECO 5207. Macroeconomic Theory II (3).
• ECO 5208. Global Macroeconomics (3).
• ECO 5226. Issues in Money and Banking (3).
• ECO 5281. Financial Economics I (3).
• ECO 5282. Financial Economics II (3).
• ECO 5305. History of Economic Thought (3).
• ECO 5403. Static Optimization in Economics (3).
• ECO 5405. Introduction to Mathematical Economics (3).
• ECO 5408. Computational Economics I (3).
• ECO 5416. Theory of Statistics (3).
• ECO 5420. Basic Applied Econometrics (3).
• ECO 5423. Econometric Theory (3).
• ECO 5424. Simultaneous Equation Models (3).
• ECO 5425. Time Series Analysis (3).
• ECO 5427. Limited Dependent Variable Models (3).
• ECO 5434. Economic Forecasting (3).
• ECO 5505. Public Economics (3).
• ECO 5533. Public Choice (3).
• ECO 5705. International Trade (3).
• ECO 5706. Seminar in International Trade Theory and Policy (3).
• ECO 5715. International Finance (3).
• ECO 5716. Seminar in the Theory and Policy of International Finance (3).
• ECO 5906r. Directed Individual Study (3). (S/U grade only.)
• ECO 5907r. Directed Individual Study (3).
• ECO 5914. Supervised Research (1­6). (S/U grade only.)
• ECO 5932r. Graduate Tutorial in Economics (1­3).
• ECO 5935r. Seminar in Political Economy (1­3).
• ECO 5936r. Special Topics (1­3).
• ECO 5940r. Supervised Teaching (1­6). (S/U grade only.)
• ECO 5972. Extended Master's Paper (3). (S/U grade only.)
• ECO 6209. Topics in Macroeconomics (3).
• ECO 6936. Topics in Microeconomics (3).
• ECO 6938r. Doctoral Workshop (0­3). (S/U grade only.)
• ECO 6939r. Teaching Workshop (0­3). (S/U grade only.)
• ECP 5115. Seminar in the Economics of Population (3).
• ECP 5116. Applied Economic Demography (3).
• ECP 5117. Mathematical Demography (3).
• ECP 5205. Labor Markets (3).
• ECP 5238. Labor Compensation, Contracts, and Collective Bargaining (3).
• ECP 5312. Natural Resource Economics II (3).
• ECP 5405. Industrial Organization (3).
• ECP 5415. Social Control of Business (3).
• ECP 5536. Seminar in Health Economics (3).
• ECP 5705. Economic Concepts for Business Decisions (3).
• ECS 5005. Seminar in Comparative Economics Systems (3).
• ECS 5015. Economic Development: Theory and Problems (3).
• ECS 5028. Economics in Transition (3).