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Dr Diana Weinhold CON 7.10

This course is available on the MRes/PhD in International Development. This course is not available as an outside option.

This course is available as an option for students enrolled in the MRes/PhD in International Development only.

This course explores the foundations of applied macroeconomic policy analysis by combining a rigorous introduction to advanced quantitative methods with applications to the theory and empirics of long-run growth in developing countries.  Throughout the course, lectures provide analytical but non-technical overviews of broad themes in long-run growth and development policy, with a strong emphasis on how the body of knowledge has evolved over time via the synthesis of theoretical advances and rigorous empirical testing. Topics including growth theory, institutions and history, economic geography, globalization, balance of payments and financial crises, environmental policy and international finance. Classes in the first half of term will focus on building analytical skills to read, interpret, and critique econometric approaches to causal identification commonly used in the academic development literature. The emphasis will be on developing rigorous intuition rather than technical details; we focus on teaching students from a broad range of backgrounds to understand and critically consume high-level applied research in a sophisticated manner.  The seminars in the second half of term give students an opportunity to repeatedly practice and improve their skills by working through problem sets based on top academic journal articles addressing issues from the lectures on macroeconomic development.  While some background in economics and statistics is helpful, the course is designed to be engaging and challenging for students from a broad variety of backgrounds, from those with no economics and statistics to those with more advanced skills in either one or both areas.  Strong analytical skills (whether quantitative or not) and a sturdy work ethic are the best predictors of success.

20 hours of lectures and 15 hours of seminars in the MT.

Students will be expected to produce 1 piece of coursework in the LT.

A plan for the research paper (1500-2000 words) on which the student will receive feedback and topic approval

Indicative reading: The bulk of the course will be taught using journal articles. A reading list will be handed out by the lecturers at the beginning of their sessions. Useful reference texts include "Mastering Metrics" by Angrist and Pischke, which will serve as the course text, and W Easterly, The Quest for Growth.

Essay (100%, 5000 words) in the ST.