Intermediate Macroeconomics

Fall 2012, Economics 220:321, Section 13

September 4th – December 11th

Tuesday & Friday 11:30am - 12:50pm

Murray Hall 114, College Ave

Instructor: Georgia Bush

Office: Room 408, New Jersey Hall, College Ave.

Email: gbush@econ.rutgers.edu Office Hours: Tuesdays 10:30–11:30am, 2:30–3:30pm or by appointment. Exam dates: Midterm: October 23rd or October 26th, during class time Final: December 20th, 8-11am. Course level: Core course Economics Department Learning Objectives: This class analyzes general equilibrium models of a monetary economy. Along the way, a student should gain a thorough understanding of the IS/LM model, the effect of monetary and fiscal policy on output and prices, the factors effecting economic growth, and issues related to the long-run solvency of the fiscal sector. Course goals: In this course you will learn the basic macroeconomic concepts (aggregate production, savings and investment, money and inflation) and the dynamics of key aggregate variables (GDP, inflation, unemployment, interest rates) in order to understand -how economists analyze the short-run dynamics of the aggregate economy, -what issues are involved in the conduct of monetary and fiscal policy, and -what drives long-run economic growth. Textbook: Macroeconomics: Policy and Practice, Frederic S. Mishkin, 2011, 1st edition (value edition is acceptable) ISBN-10: 0321436334 | ISBN-13: 978-0321436337

Prerequisites: 220:102 Intro to Micro and 220:103 Intro to Macro, and Calculus I (640:135 or 640:151, or equivalent) Syllabus subject to change as the course progresses. Grading: Midterm 40% Final 40% Weekly quizzes 20% Grade ranges: 90+ = A, 85-89.9 = B+, 80-84.9 = B, 75–79.9 = C+, 70-74.9 = C, 60-69.9 = D, below 60 = F Check sakai.rutgers.edu regularly for course info. Contact me if you don’t know how to access Sakai. If I don’t hear from you, I will assume you do have access.

Intermediate Macro, Fall 2012 220:321:13 Instructor: Georgia Bush

Miscellaneous: No makeup exams unless under extraordinary circumstances and with substantiation. Grade of 0 for missed exams or quizzes. No makeup exams for travel conflicts. No cheating, cheating will be reported. See the following links on Student conduct: http://www.rci.rutgers.edu/~judaff/code.htm Academic integrity: http://academicintegrity.rutgers.edu/files/documents/AI_Policy_9_01_2011.pdf

Violations include: cheating, fabrication, plagiarism, denying others access to information or material, and facilitating violations of academic integrity.

Students are expected to attend all classes. If you expect to miss one or two classes because of illness or a family emergency, please use the University absence reporting website https://sims.rutgers.edu/ssra/. Indicate the date and reason for your absence. An email is automatically sent to me. Course Outline: I: Introduction Chapter Week Intro, Measuring Macro Data Ch 1,2 1 (9/4) II: Basics Aggregate Production and Productivity Ch 3 2 (9/11) Saving and Investment, Money and Inflation Ch 4,5 3 (9/18) III. The Short-Run Intro to Business Cycles, The IS Curve Ch 8,9 4 (9/25) Monetary Policy and Aggregate Demand (AD curve) Ch 10 5 (10/2) Aggregate Supply and the Phillips Curve (AS curve) Ch 11 6 (10/9) AD-AS: The Aggregate Demand and Supply Model Ch 12 7 (10/16)

MIDTERM 8 (10/23) IV. Policy Macro Policy and AD-AS analysis Ch 13 9 (10/30) Fiscal Policy and the Government Budget Ch16 10 (11/6) The Role of Expectations in Macro Policy Ch21 11 (11/13) Modern Business Cycle Theory (time permitting) Ch22 12 (11/20) VI. The Long-Run The Sources of Growth and the Solow model Ch 6 13 (11/27) Drivers of Growth: Technology, Policy, and Institutions Ch 7 14 (12/4) Last Day 15 (12/11)

December 20th FINAL EXAM FINAL

Key dates: Tuesday, September 4: First day of classes

Tuesday, October 23 MIDTERM

or Friday October 26:

Wednesday, October 29: Last day to drop with a “W” grade

Wednesday, November 21: Change in designation class day: FRIDAY CLASSES MEET

Th., Nov. 22 - Sun., Nov. 25: Thanksgiving recess; no classes

Thursday, December 20: FINAL EXAM