ECON 239D: Directed Reading
May be repeated for credit.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr, Sum
| Units: 1-10
| Repeatable
for credit
Instructors:
Abramitzky, R. (PI)
;
Allcott, H. (PI)
;
Alsan, M. (PI)
;
Althoff, L. (PI)
;
Auclert, A. (PI)
;
Bagwell, K. (PI)
;
Bernheim, B. (PI)
;
Bilal, A. (PI)
;
Bloom, N. (PI)
;
Bocola, L. (PI)
;
Boskin, M. (PI)
;
Brynjolfsson, E. (PI)
;
Casey, K. (PI)
;
Chandrasekhar, A. (PI)
;
Cuesta, J. (PI)
;
Duggan, M. (PI)
;
Einav, L. (PI)
;
Gentzkow, M. (PI)
;
Hall, R. (PI)
;
Hong, H. (PI)
;
Hoxby, C. (PI)
;
Hsiao, A. (PI)
;
Imbens, G. (PI)
;
Jackson, M. (PI)
;
Jagadeesan, R. (PI)
;
Kehoe, P. (PI)
;
Kleinman, B. (PI)
;
Klenow, P. (PI)
;
MaCurdy, T. (PI)
;
Mahoney, N. (PI)
;
Milgrom, P. (PI)
;
Morten, M. (PI)
;
Niederle, M. (PI)
;
Persson, P. (PI)
;
Piazzesi, M. (PI)
;
Pistaferri, L. (PI)
;
Redding, S. (PI)
;
Romano, J. (PI)
;
Roth, A. (PI)
;
Schneider, M. (PI)
;
Segal, I. (PI)
;
Somaini, P. (PI)
;
Sorkin, I. (PI)
;
Taylor, J. (PI)
;
Voena, A. (PI)
;
Wolak, F. (PI)
;
Wright, G. (PI)
ECON 241: Public Economics I
Design of tax systems, transfers intended to alleviate poverty, the effect of taxes on earnings, fees intended to internalize externalities like pollution, school finance and other forms of fiscal federalism, local public goods such as schools, policy evaluation with behavioral decision makers. Students will learn to apply sophisticated applications of frontier applied econometric techniques including synthetic controls, regression discontinuity, advanced instrumental variables methods. Prerequisites:
ECON 202-204,
ECON 210,
ECON 270,
ECON 271, or equivalent with consent of instructor.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 2-5
Instructors:
Hoxby, C. (PI)
ECON 242: Public Economics II
The first part of the course concerns inequality and the design of social insurance. We also explore questions in the intersection of public and family economics such as the unit of taxation, and the interaction between social insurance and intra-family insurance. The second half of the course covers local public policy and urban economics, and includes topics such as spatial equilibrium, placed-based policies and housing policy. Prerequisites:
Econ 202, 203, 204, 210 or equivalent with consent of instructor. Recommended:
Econ 241.270, 271, or equivalent with consent of instructor.
Terms: Win
| Units: 3-5
Instructors:
Allende Santa Cruz, C. (PI)
;
Persson, P. (SI)
ECON 243: Public Economics III
This class will cover topics in public economics. Research themes include the regulation of consumer financial markets and the health care sector. The course will also study how firms respond to public policies, including corporate taxes, stimulus policies, and environmental regulations. The class will cover recent publications, with the intention of preparing students to conduct their own research. Prerequisites:
Econ 202, 203, 204, 270, 271, or the consent of the instructor. Recommended:
Econ 241 and 242.
Terms: Spr
| Units: 3-5
Instructors:
Mahoney, N. (PI)
;
Suarez Serrato, J. (PI)
ECON 244: Models Meet Data: The Economics of The Family
This class will focus on structural labor economics, with applications to the economics of the family. The goal is to provide students with tools to develop, solve, and estimate models of family decision-making, including education decisions, labor supply, savings and consumption choices, and intra-household allocations. 1st year PhD sequence in microeconomics, macroeconomics, and econometrics is required.
Terms: Spr
| Units: 2-5
Instructors:
Voena, A. (PI)
ECON 245: Economics of Gender (FEMGEN 245)
The class will cover advances in the study of gender from Behavioral, Experimental and Labor Economics, e.g. traits in which women and men differ and what impact this may have for education and labor market outcomes. It will also examine gender differences in labor market outcomes and the role of policies and institutions in affecting these differences.
Last offered: Winter 2025
| Units: 2-5
ECON 246: Labor Economics I
Topics in the determination of earnings and job mobility. Classes of models include: search, human capital, Roy, sorting, learning, imperfect competition, discrimination and compensating differentials. Basic models as well as contemporary empirical work will be discussed. The course is open to PhD students only.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 2-5
Instructors:
Sorkin, I. (PI)
ECON 247: Labor Economics II
Recent topics in applied micro, focusing on papers from top journals (QJE, AER, JPE, Econometrica and REStud) over the last ten years. Broad overview of current topic and techniques in applied-micro research - one student nicknamed this 'the greatest hits of applied micro'. Topics include inequality, polarization and skill-biased technical change, discrimination, technology adoption and the spread of information, management practices, field experiments, peer effects and academic spillovers. Combination of student and faculty presentations. Additional sessions on general presentations, paper writing and research skills to prepare for job market. Students write a term-paper.
Terms: Win
| Units: 3-5
Instructors:
Bloom, N. (PI)
ECON 248: Labor Economics III
This class covers Empirical Strategies in Labor Economics. Topics include: Causal effects vs. economic mechanisms; RCTs, social experiments and Audit studies; Selection on observables: Matching and Propensity Score estimators, Selection on unobservables: IV estimators, Control function estimators; Selection on unobservables without exclusion restrictions/instruments: Regression Discontinuity and Bunching estimators; Bounding forms of selection, Decomposition methods, Network/peer effect models; Panel data and beyond: Natural experiments, Diff-in-diff, Error component models, Vignettes and Elicited data; Structural estimation vs Reduced form models: SMM, Indirect Inference, (X)MD, Sufficient statistics ideas.
Terms: Win
| Units: 3-5
Instructors:
Pistaferri, L. (PI)
ECON 249: Topics in Health Economics I (HRP 249, MED 249)
Course will cover various topics in health economics, from theoretical and empirical perspectives. Topics will include public financing and public policy in health care and health insurance; demand and supply of health insurance and healthcare; physicians' incentives; patient decision-making; competition policy in healthcare markets, intellectual property in the context of pharmaceutical drugs and medical technology; other aspects of interaction between public and private sectors in healthcare and health insurance markets. Key emphasis on recent work and empirical methods and modelling. Prerequisites: Micro and Econometrics first year sequences (or equivalent). Curricular prerequisites (if applicable): First year graduate Microeconomics and Econometrics sequences (or equivalent)
Terms: Aut
| Units: 3-5