Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics

This is a complete listing of all economics courses. Not all courses are offered each year.
Click here for a list of currenly offered courses.

14.451 Macroeconomic Theory I
Prereq: 14.06, permission of instructor
Introduction to the theories of economic growth. Topics will include basic facts of economic growth and long-run economic development; brief overview of optimal control theory and dynamic programming; basic neoclassical growth model under a variety of market structures; human capital and economic growth; endogenous growth models; models with endogenous technology; models of directed technical change; competition, market structure and growth; financial and economic development; international trade and economic growth; institutions and economic development. Half-term subject. Class size limited.

14.452 Macroeconomic Theory II
Prereq: 14.451, permission of instructor
Basic dynamic general equilibrium models, from the Ramsey model to Real Business Cycle models, to New Keynesian models. Focus on fluctuations, and co-movements in output, employment, prices, and money. Half-term subject. Class size limited.

14.453 Macroeconomic Theory III
Prereq: 14.452, permission of instructor
Consumption and savings decisions under certainty and uncertainty. Aggregate savings, wealth, and fiscal policy. Portfolio choice and asset pricing. Investment and finance decisions. Half-term subject. Class size limited.

14.454 Macroeconomic Theory IV
Prereq: 14.453, permission of instructor
Macroeconomic implications of frictions in labor, capital and goods markets. Half-term subject. Class size limited.

14.456 Topics in Macroeconomics (New)
Prereq: 14.454
Advanced subjects on topics of current research interest in macroeconomics.

14.461 Advanced Macroeconomics I
Prereq: 14.122, 14.452
First part focuses on monetary economics. Second part focuses on information and coordination problems: recent advances in global games; the impact of expectations about one another's actions; welfare effects and policy implications; applications to financial crises (currency attacks, bank runs, etc.), monetary policy, and business cycles. Other topics may include recent work on incomplete markets, capital accumulation, and wealth inequality.

14.462 Advanced Macroeconomics II
Prereq: 14.461
Shocks. Reallocation and unemployment, across countries and across time. Dynamic stochastic general equilibrium models. Ss models. Liquidity and financial frictions. Bubbles.

14.462 Advanced Macroeconomics III
Prereq: 14.451
Advanced topics of current interest in macroeconomics. 2007 focus: economic growth and long-run economic development. Exact set of topics adjusted according to the interests of the group.