Graduate Curriculum Committee Course Proposal Form
for Courses Numbered 6000 and Higher
Note: Before completing this form, please carefully read the accompanying instructions.
Submission guidelines are posted to the GCC Web site: http://www.ecu.edu/cs-acad/gcc/index.cfm
1. Course prefix and number:
ECON 8111
2. Date:
09/12/2011
3. Requested action:
X New Course
Revision of Active Course
Revision & Unbanking of a Banked Course
Renumbering of an Existing Course from
from
to
#
X
Required
#
Elective
4. Method(s) of delivery (check all boxes that apply for both current/proposed and expected
future delivery methods within the next three years):
Current or
Proposed Delivery
Method(s):
X
On-campus (face to face)
Expected
Future Delivery
Method(s):
X
Distance Course (face to face off campus)
Online (delivery of 50% or more of the instruction is offered online)
5. Justification (must cite accreditation and/or assessment by the graduate faculty) for new course
or course revision or course renumbering:
The graduate faculty of the Department of Economics identified the need in government,
the private sector, and in academia for PhD graduates with advanced analytic and
technical skills necessary for analysis, mitigation, management and regulation of risk—
both environmental and financial. This requires an understanding of the underlying
individual decision maker and firm behavior and their interaction within market and
nonmarket settings. Theoretical modeling and empirical analysis complete the picture
and allow for the identification of effective public policy and regulation. This doctoral
program is unique within the state of North Carolina because it emphasizes risk modeling
and analysis over a broad scope of applications that range from financial markets to
natural hazards. Students with training from this program will be well equipped to
qualify for high level positions within Federal and State Agencies that deal with natural
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hazards and regulation of risk, as well as businesses for management and mitigation of
risk.
The assessment process of the Economics Graduate Faculty has determined that this is a
necessary first course of a two course economic theory requirement for a Ph.D. program
in Economics.
6. Course description exactly as it should appear in the next catalog:
8111. Economic Theory I (4) Fundamental models and methods of economic analysis:
theory of choice; consumer and producer behavior; behavior under uncertainty; general
competitive equilibrium, welfare, and efficiency; equilibrium with uncertainty.
7. If this is a course revision, briefly describe the requested change:
NA
8. Course credit:
Lecture Hours
3
1
3
1
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
Studio
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
s.h.
Practicum
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
s.h.
Internship
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
s.h.
Lab
s.h.
s.h.
Other (e.g., independent study) Please explain.
s.h.
4
Total Credit Hours
s.h.
6
9. Anticipated annual student enrollment:
10. Changes in degree hours of your programs:
Degree(s)/Program(s)
Changes in Degree Hours
PhD/Economics
NA
11. Affected degrees or academic programs, other than your programs:
Degree(s)/Program(s)
Changes in Degree Hours
12. Overlapping or duplication with affected units or programs:
x Not applicable
Documentation of notification to the affected academic degree programs is
attached.
13. Council for Teacher Education (CTE) approval (for courses affecting teacher education):
x Not applicable
Applicable and CTE has given their approval.
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14. University Service-Learning Committee (USLC) approval:
x Not applicable
Applicable and USLC has given their approval.
15. Statements of support:
a. Staff
x Current staff is adequate
Additional staff is needed (describe needs in the box below):
b. Facilities
x Current facilities are adequate
Additional facilities are needed (describe needs in the box below):
c. Library
x
Initial library resources are adequate
Initial resources are needed (in the box below, give a brief explanation and an
estimate for the cost of acquisition of required initial resources):
d. Unit computer resources
x
Unit computer resources are adequate
Additional unit computer resources are needed (in the box below, give a brief
explanation and an estimate for the cost of acquisition):
e. ITCS resources
x
ITCS resources are not needed
The following ITCS resources are needed (put a check beside each need):
Mainframe computer system
Statistical services
Network connections
Computer lab for students
Software
Approval from the Director of ITCS attached
16. Course information (see: Graduate Curriculum and Program Development Manual for
instructions):
a. Textbook(s) and/or readings: author(s), name, publication date, publisher, and
city/state/country. Include ISBN (when applicable).
Required Texts:
Mas-Colell, A., Whinston, M. D., & Green, J. R. (1995) Microeconomic Theory. New
York, NY: Oxford University Press. ISBN: 978-0195073409
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Jehle, G. A., & Reny P. J. (2001). Advanced Microeconomic Theory (2nd ed.) Boston,
MA: Addison, Wesley. ISBN: 978-0321079169
Recommended Texts:
Rubinstein, A. (2006) Lecture Notes in Economic Theory: The Economic Agent
Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. ISBN: 978-0691120317
Bewley, T. (2007) General Equilibrium, Overlapping Generations Models, and
Optimal Growth Theory. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Press. ISBN: 978-0674022881
b. Course objectives for the course (student – centered, behavioral focus)
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:
 Critically analyze the fundamental models of economic analysis;
 Demonstrate mastery of fundamental economic theory;
 Apply those models and results to economic problems;
 Develop economic analytic tools applicable in other areas of economics.
c. Course topic outline
1. Introduction to Microeconomic Theory and its Mathematical Tools
2. Theory of Choice: Rationality, Preferences, and Utility
3. The Consumer’s Problem: Demand, Indirect Utility, and Expenditure
Functions; Duality, Comparative Statics, and Revealed Preference
4. Choice under Uncertainty
5. Theory of Production: Technology Representations, Profit and Cost Analysis
6. Theory of the Competitive Firm: Supply, Factor Demand, and Partial
Equilibrium Analysis
7. Introduction to General Equilibrium and Welfare Analysis
8. The Pure Exchange Model: Existence of Equilibrium and The Fundamental
Welfare Theorems
9. Economies with Production: Existence and Welfare Theorems
10. Extensions of Equilibrium Analysis: Uncertainty and Time
d. List of course assignments, weighting of each assignment, and grading/evaluation system
for determining a grade



Problem sets (40%)
Mid-term Exam (25%)
Comprehensive Final Exam (35%).
Evaluation System
A
90% to 100%
B
89% to 80%
C
79% to 70%
F
Below 70%
Outstanding Performance
Acceptable Performance
Inadequate Performance
Failure
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