Seminar Signup Rules

Seminars listed below are only open to CC and GS undergraduate economic majors. All prerequisites (Econ W3211, W3213, W3412) must be completed before the seminar may be taken—not after and not concurrently, otherwise the seminar will not be counted towards the major. Check the CC/GS bulletin for all seminar prerequisites.

W4911 (Sec. 1) Seminar in Microeconomic Theory
Instructor: Prof. Sunil Gulati
Thurs. 4.10-6.00 pm
Topic: Economics and Sports
This seminar will focus on an economic analysis of the sports industry. Topics covered will include economics of sports leagues, the labor market for professional athletes, sports marketing and broad-casting, economic impact of teams & stadiums and anti trust policies. A number of guest speakers from the sports world (including the professional leagues and media industry) will be featured.  Previous guest speakers include: David Stern (Commissioner-NBA), Tom Clark (President, Nike), Jonathan Kraft (President, NE Patriots), David Downs (President, Univision Sports), Bob Batterman (General Counsel, NHL) and Mark Abbott (President, MLS).  One textbook and a number of separate readings will be assigned. Students are expected to actively participate in class discussions, make an in class presentation and write a term paper on an agreed upon topic.

W4911 (Sec. 2)
Instructor: Prof. Michael Riordan
Tues. 11.00-12.50 pm
Topic: Microeconomics in Theory and Practice
This seminar applies microeconomic theory to better understand the market provision of product variety, the U.S. movie industry, the Microsoft antitrust case, and business strategy.

W4911 (Sec. 3)
Instructor: Prof. Lena Edlund
Tues. 9.00-10.50 am
Topic: Gender and Economics
The seminar will focus on gender and economics. It will analyze sources and implications of various gender gaps, such as income, education, wealth, and political preferences. In addition to economics tools, it will introduce concepts from evolutionary biology, family law and anthropology pertaining to different marriage systems and their implications for women's property rights, investments in children and growth, dowry and bride price, sex ratios, and son preference.

W4911 (Sec. 4)
Instructor: Prof. Graciela Chichilnisky
Wed. 4.10-6.00 pm
Topic: Globalization and Its Risks
The evolution and future prospects of globalization capture public attention and polarize public opinion, reflecting real opportunities for gain as well as serious risks of an uncertain future. Globalization has positive and negative aspects, and both dominate the political and economic agendas across the world because they are key to human welfare, and even to our survival. Our world is being transformed by persistent and dramatic increases in the flows of people and commerce across nations and international trade in natural resources, goods, services, and knowledge. The opportunities for gains are mostly in private sectors, such as international commerce, where the industrial countries dominate, while the risks are mostly public concerns about poverty, the global environment and the distribution of knowledge, all public goods issues that affect mostly the developing word. Many of the opportunities for gain and the associated risks are tied to a historical phenomenon, a division of the world into the industrialized and the developing nations. This North - South divide amplifies both the gains and the risks of globalization, and it highlights the needs and the opportunities for new global institutions to resolve pressing global problems.

W4913 (Sec. 1) Seminar in Macroeconomic Theory
Instructor: Prof Robert Mundell
Mon. 11.00-12.50 pm
Topic: Macroeconomics and the Stock Market
Description: Global Macroeconomic Disequilibrium: Competing Theories of Macroeconomics: Classical, Keynesian, New-Classical, Supply-Side Economics; International Macroeconomics: Mundell-Fleming model; Global Equilibrium and Disequilibrium; Special Role of the Dollar and US Monetary Policy in the World Economy; Stages and Alternative Approaches to the Balance of Payments; the Creation of the Euro; Making a World Currency.

W4913 (Sec. 2)
Instructor: Prof Edward Steinberg
Thurs. 6.10-8.00 pm
Topic:  Tracking the US Economy
This seminar will focus on the meanings, strengths, and weaknesses of the major macroeconomic indicators, such as employment, unemployment, the Consumer Price Index, and GDP, and students write a paper on a related topic. The seminar will consider questions such as: In what ways is the unemployment rate an imperfect measure of the health of the U.S. economy and of how much hardship people are experiencing in the labor market? Why does the government publish two separate measures of employment each month, and why do the two measures sometimes paint different pictures of how the economy is doing? Why do different price measures tell different stories about the rate of inflation? Possible paper topics include “The Recent Behavior of the Household and Payroll Measures of Employment” and “The Index of Leading Indicators as a Forecasting Tool.”

W4913 (Sec. 3)
Instructor: Prof Jaromir Nosal
Wed. 9.00-10.50 am
Topic:  Consumer Bankruptcy
Over the last few decades we have witnessed dramatic changes in the market for unsecured credit. In particular, a new product emerged: credit cards. They provide access to uncollateralized borrowing in a new form of revolving credit lines. At the time of the huge increase of availability of credit cards, personal bankruptcy and the volume of debt sky-rocketed. In this course we will analyze the market for unsecured borrowing, and its relation to the macroeconomy. We will study the cases of the major credit issuers and also discuss some of the competing stories for the reasons behind rising bankruptcy.

W4918 (Sec. 1) Seminar in Econometrics
Instructor: Prof. Jushan Bai
Mon. 2:10-4:00 pm
Topic: Panel Data Econometrics
Panel data consist of repeated observations over time for individuals.  Here, individuals may be workers, firms, households, countries, etc.  Panel data econometrics uses cross-sectional and temporal variation within such a data set to conduct empirical research. Topics include structure of panel data, pooling cross sections across time, two-period panel data analysis, unobserved heterogeneity, endogeneity, instrumental variables, fixed effects and random effects, multiple-period panel data models, dynamic panel data models, and policy analysis with panel data.