ECON 250 - Labor Economics

Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)

This course examines classical and contemporary topics in labor economics. The class begins with a systematic development of the theory of labor supply and labor demand, which provides a foundation for understanding unemployment, wages, and the effects of income tax and related policy interventions (e.g., unemployment benefits, tax breaks for families). The class continues with a survey of modern literatures surrounding human capital. Topics include economics of education (how human capital is formed), inequality (how human capital is differentially rewarded), and household economics (how humancapital is pooled within household). Throughout, the course emphasizes the interaction between theoretical foundation and empirical methods. Students benefit from familiarity with basic statistics or econometrics, but this is not required. All necessary empirical methodologies are taught without assuming previous knowledge. Zhengren Zhu.

Prerequisite(s): ECON 102.

Two 75-minute periods.

Course Format: CLS