THE UNIVERSITY of EDINBURGH

DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2024/2025

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DRPS : Course Catalogue : School of Economics : Economics

Undergraduate Course: Fiscal Policy, Macroeconomics and Inequality (ECNM10104)

Course Outline
SchoolSchool of Economics CollegeCollege of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) AvailabilityAvailable to all students
SCQF Credits20 ECTS Credits10
SummaryThis course is about the role of the government in the economy. The main goals of this course are to provide an understanding of the reasons for government intervention in the economy, and to analyze its consequences while taking into account the response of economic agents to the government¿s actions.
Course description This course is about the role of the government in the economy. The main goals of this course are to provide an understanding of the reasons for government intervention in the economy, and to analyze its consequences while taking into account the response of economic agents to the government¿s actions.

The course starts with covering basic notions and results of welfare economics (rationales for government intervention, Pareto efficiency, Fundamental Welfare Theorems). The second part will introduce students to a broad analysis of fiscal policy (taxation, government spending, social security).

We will focus particularly on the design of tax and transfer systems, the theory of optimal taxation, analyzing the impacts of different tax policies on agents¿ decisions, inequality, and the economy as a whole.

Emphasis will be given to the current policy debates on taxation and inequality. By the end of the course, students will acquire the necessary theoretical tools and the economic theory point of view to analyze important public policy issues.
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites Students MUST have passed: Economics 2 (ECNM08006)
Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Other requirements None
Information for Visiting Students
Pre-requisitesNone
High Demand Course? Yes
Course Delivery Information
Academic year 2024/25, Available to all students (SV1) Quota:  60
Course Start Semester 2
Timetable Timetable
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) Total Hours: 200 ( Lecture Hours 20, Seminar/Tutorial Hours 6, Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 170 )
Assessment (Further Info) Written Exam 70 %, Coursework 30 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Additional Information (Assessment) Mid-term exam - 25%
Class Participation - 5%
Final exam - 70%
Feedback Not entered
No Exam Information
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  1. Demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of principles and models used in the analysis of fiscal policy and the role of government in the economy, associated mathematical and statistical techniques, along with applications and implications of those models.
  2. Demonstrate research and investigative skills such as problem framing and solving and the ability to assemble and evaluate complex evidence and arguments.
  3. Demonstrate communication skills in order to critique, create and communicate understanding.
  4. Demonstrate personal effectiveness through task-management, time-management, dealing with uncertainty and adapting to new situations, personal and intellectual autonomy through independent learning.
  5. Demonstrate practical/technical skills such as, modelling skills (abstraction, logic, succinctness), qualitative and quantitative analysis and general IT literacy.
Reading List
None
Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills Not entered
Keywordsfiscal policy,macroeconomics,inequality,government
Contacts
Course organiserMr Vasilis Karaferis
Tel:
Email: vkarafer@ed.ac.uk
Course secretaryMiss Laura Gasull Lopez
Tel:
Email: lgasull@ed.ac.uk
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