MICROECONOMICS
- Overview
- Assessment methods
- Learning objectives
- Contents
- Full programme
- Teaching methods
- Contacts/Info
There is no prerequisite for attending the course, except for those needed to access the degree program.
Students are evaluated according to a written exam. There are two formats:
a) The exam can be taken as two partial exams. Duration of each partial exam: 60 minutes. When opting for this format, three out of four questions (true/false choice) and two out of three problem sets must be addressed in each exam. It is necessary to pass both exams (each with a score larger than 18). The final mark is computed as the rounded-up average of the two results obtained in the partial exams. The mark obtained in the first partial exam can be rejected (more below). If a student does not pass one of the partial exams or rejects a mark he/she has to take the exam with format b. Partial exams can be sat only on two specific dates dedicated to partial exams.
b) Alternatively, the exam can be taken as a single general exam at the end of the course. Duration of the general exam: 90 minutes. With this format, it is required to address 6 questions (true/false choice) and three problem sets. The first general exam takes place at the beginning of June.
PLEASE NOTE: in order to sit an exam it is compulsory to be registered online. Students who are not registered will not be admitted to the exam. To avoid being excluded due to technical problems, we strongly recommend printing the screenshot proving the successful registration. A student can reject a mark within 5 days from its publication through the online platform. After 5 days the mark is automatically accepted without any further possibility to reject it.
The goal of the course is to introduce the student to the main concepts, tools, and theories for analyzing the decision making of economic agents (consumers and producers), and their interaction through markets, both competitive and non-competitive. At the end of the course, the student will be able to understand the key features of economic decision making and the main problems concerning the functioning of markets. Moreover, by applying the concept of economic efficiency, the student will be able to perform a normative analysis of market performance and government interventions.
The course addresses the following topics:
Basic concepts
Consumer choice.
Intertemporal decision making.
Decision making under uncertainty.
Strategic interaction.
Behavioral economics.
Production.
Profit maximisation.
The analysis of competitive markets: equilibrium, efficiency, intervention.
The analysis of non-competitive markets: monopoly.
Externalities
Asymmetric information.
TA sessions: 5 + 5 hours.
See E-learning.
The course consists of lectures (68 hours) and TA sessions (10 hours); in the TA sessions problems related to the topics addressed during the lectures are discussed and solved.
• Textbook: B.D. Bernheim e M.D. Whinston, Microeconomia, quarta edizione, MacGraw-Hill, customised edition for Università dell'Insubria.
• Workbook (NOT COMPULSORY): M. Bonacina e P. De Micco, Microeconomia – Esercizi, Egea, Milano, quinta edizione.
• Slides and exercises provided by the instructors.