SØK 3520 Microeconomics
SØK 3520 Microeconomics
Through the study of microeconomics students will learn the fundamentals of how markets and economic institutions function.
The course is a thorough study on price formation and the production and income distribution in markets. The analysis covers both markets for consumer goods and markets for production resources. There is a special emphasis on the analysis of price trends and industry development in short and long term.
Furthermore, criteria for economic efficiency and high value added are discussed. In particular the course discusses if conditions for individual economic decisions are leading to effective utilisation of community resources. One sees here both the decisions in competitive markets and decisions in markets with limited competition.
During the course students will:
- Acquire understanding of the basic relationships between individual economic decisions and the social consequences in different market situations. Students will understand the basic principles of how changes in some markets have ripple effects to other markets.
- Understand the distinction between descriptive and normative theory.
After completed course students should:
- Master basic economic models system, and understand the distinction between exogenous and endogenous variables.
- Be able to descrobe economic optimisation problems related to individual choices and firms' production and price decisions.
Students will be able to identify welfare and distributional consequences of a market economy. They will be aware of the trade-offs between efficiency and other considerations not captured by the basic economic models.
- Introduction to microeconomic analysis
- Market economics: supply and demand.
- Individual choices: available choices, the budget constraint, and preferences.
- Applications:
- Choice of labor supply - economic valuation of time.
- Savings and consumption over time.
- Effects of changes in prices and income.
- Demand functions and elasticities.
- Firms' economic decisions: Technology, costs, and production:
- Technology: The production function.
- The cost function.
- Maximization of profit.
- Short and long run adaptation.
- Market theory:
- Price formation under different cost structures.
- The formation of prices and income in the short and long run.
- Sectoral dynamics.
- How taxation affects the market equilibrium - prices and production.
- Economic efficiency.
- Limited competition: Monopolies and market power.
- Innovation and productivity.
The course consists of 36 lecture hours + 6 hours of plenary assignment review and feedback in plenary.
E-learning
In course delivery as online courses, lecturer will, in collaboration with the student administration, organize an appropriate course implementation, combining different learning activities and digital elements on the learning platform. Online students are also offered a study guide that will contribute to progression and overview. Total recommended time spent for completing the course also applies here.
Higher Education Entrance Qualification
Covid-19
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, there may be deviations in teaching and learning activities as well as exams, compared with what is described in this course description.
MET 2910 Mathematics or equivalent
| Mandatory coursework | Courseworks given | Courseworks required | Comment coursework |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mandatory | 1 | 1 | The work requirement is a written assignment. The assignment will be given early in the semester and shall be handed in the last part of the course. Details about time for handout and submission will be given on Itslearning. The assignment must be approved by the lecturer in order to be allowed to take the final exam. |
| Assessments |
|---|
Exam category: Submission Form of assessment: Written submission Invigilation Weight: 100 Grouping: Individual Support materials:
Duration: 5 Hour(s) Exam code: SØK35202 Grading scale: ECTS Resit: Examination every semester |
| Activity | Duration | Comment |
|---|---|---|
Teaching | 36 Hour(s) | |
Feedback activities and counselling | 6 Hour(s) | Review of assignments in plenary |
Prepare for teaching | 42 Hour(s) | |
Group work / Assignments | 55 Hour(s) | Working with tasks in the aftermath of lectures |
Student's own work with learning resources | 56 Hour(s) | |
Examination | 5 Hour(s) |
A course of 1 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of 26-30 hours. Therefore a course of 7,5 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of at least 200 hours.