Welcome to Modern Macroeconomics!
This is the website of an intermediate macroeconomics course taught in several Programs at ISCTE-IUL. In the period we live in, the teaching of modern macroeconomics should make wide use of computational tools that have become available over the last decade. Therefore, we introduced a little flavor of computation by extensively using Pluto notebooks and the Julia programming language in classes and the assessment process. Students will not learn computation in this course but will learn how to interact with data, figures, and real macroeconomic problems by using notebooks and the computer. It is offered to students majoring in economics, management, finance & accounting.
Syllabus
The course is structured in twelve weeks of classes covering the following topics:
| Week | Topic |
|---|---|
| 1 | Introduction to Julia & Pluto |
| 2 | Introduction to Macroeconomics |
| 3 | Measuring Macroeconomic Data |
| 4 | The IS Curve |
| 5 | Monetary Policy and Aggregate Demand |
| 6 | The Central Bank Balance Sheet & Monetary Policy Tools |
| 7 | Aggregate Supply and the Phillips Curve |
| 8 | The Aggregate Demand & Supply Model |
| 9 | Macroeconomic Policy: Aggregate Demand & Supply Analysis |
| 10 | Rampant Inflation vs Fear of Deflation |
| 11 | Fiscal Policy & the Government Budget |
| 12 | Rounding off topics & controversies |
Textbooks
- Frederic Mishkin (2014). Macroeconomics: Policy and Practice, 2nd Edition, Pearson, Addison-Wesley.
- Stephen G. Cecchetti and Kermit L. Schoenholtz (2017). Money, Banking, and Financial Markets, 5th Edition, McGraw-Hill.
Assessment
Option A
- Attendance of at least 75% of the classes
- Midterm test (covering the topics from week 1 to week 6): 50%
- Endterm test (covering all the topics, but with more emphasis on the materials of weeks 7 to 12): 50%
- The grade in any of these tests cannot be lower than 8 out of 20 points
Option B
- One Final Exam covering all the topics: 100%
Re-sitting Exam
There will be a Re-sitting Exam accounting for 100% of the grade and covering all the topics for those who fail the course.