Summer Online Course Information

The Economics Department at Michigan State University offers a wide variety of online courses in the summer.  A full slate of courses is offered every summer.  We offer courses at all levels: introductory courses that provide you with a foundation of knowledge that allows you to move on and take advanced courses; and advanced courses that provide surveys of key areas in economics and delve more deeply into the economic issues of the day. You can also take one (or more) of our specialized courses that cover topics as varied as the Economics of Sports and Introduction to Econometric Methods.

If you are interested in our online courses, please visit our registration information page. You need not be a Michigan State student to take our courses. If you are currently enrolled at another college or university and would like course credit transferred to your institution, we strongly encourage you to contact your own institution’s registrar to ensure transferability before you enroll. You can also take our courses just to learn more about economics. You need not reside in the Lansing area either – provisions can be made that will allow you to take our courses from anywhere in the country. If you have any questions, please contact us at courseinfo@econ.msu.edu.

Click here for information on registration.

Summer 2023 Courses:

   Economics 201: Introduction to Microeconomics - Offered Sessions I&II

Economics 201, Introduction to Microeconomics. The pedagogical approach in Introduction to Microeconomics online is aid learning by providing many different but mutually reinforcing learning materials. In that spirit, the course authors offer a multifaceted approach to learning that includes a textbook, other additional readings, online video streaming lectures, individualized problem sets, practice quizzes, and an asynchronous discussion forum. (more...)

   Economics 202: Introduction to Macroeconomics - Offered Sessions I&II

Developed by Professor Norman Obst and updated by Professor Luis De Araujo.  The severe economic downturn that began in 2008 has increased interest in economy-wide assessment of economic activity.  The persistent high levels of unemployment and high national debt levels have challenged policy makers to implement workable solutions.  Will the economy experience deflation, or falling price levels, as a result, or will high growth rates of monetary measures lead to inflation rate increases?  Economics 202 online provides a foundation for economic analysis along with a framework with which national economic measures can be understood.  The financial markets are examined (more...)

   Economics 301: Intermediate Microeconomics - Offered Sessions I&II

Developed by Professor Stacy Dickert-Conlin. This course covers the theory of consumer behavior, the theory of production and cost, the theory of the firm in competition and monopoly, and game theory. (more...)

   Economics 302: Intermediate Macroeconomics - Offered Session I

Developed by Professor Luis de Araujo. Economics 302 online is an intermediate level course in macroeconomics. The objective of the course is to introduce students to facts and models that will help them improve their understanding of fundamental macroeconomic and public policy issues regarding inflation, unemployment, business cycles, monetary and fiscal policies.. (more...)

   Economics 310: Economics of Developing Countries - Offered Session I

Developed by Professor Chris Ahlin. Why are some countries rich and some countries poor? What policies can poor countries undertake, if any, to transition from poor to rich? How does globalization, including the rise of international trade and capital flows, affect poor countries' prospects for economic development? What role does the financial sector have to play in economic development? What role does foreign aid play? What explains the phenomenally high rates of growth of some poorer countries in past few decades? Is the world as a whole moving toward greater or less poverty? Are poor countries getting poorer and rich countries getting richer, or vice versa; and why? How does poor countries' economic growth impact rich countries' growth opportunities? Must economic growth eventually die out, or is it sustainable in the long-run; and if so, how? (more...)

   Economics 340:  Survey of International Economics - Offered Sessions I&II

Developed by Professor Steven Matusz. Hourly compensation for the average U.S. manufacturing employee was $33.53 in 2009.  In that same year, hourly compensation for the average Chinese worker employed in manufacturing was $1.74, yet the United States managed to export more than 50 billion dollars worth of manufactured goods to China.   How is that possible?  Similarly, in 2009, U.S. imports from all countries exceeded exports to all destinations by more than $350 billion, but the value of American aircraft exports was more than four times the value of aircraft imports.  What determines a country’s overall trade balance, and how is it possible for high-wage countries to compete in the world market?  Does competition in the world marketplace benefit all participants, or does it create winners and losers? (more...)

   Economics 370:  The Economics of Sports - Offered Sessions I&II

Developed by Professor Lawrence Martin.  All sports fans make bold statements. “I was so hot yesterday.  I knew that I couldn’t miss.”  “Papa Grande is great in save situations, but he is terrible otherwise.” “Drive for show, putt for dough.”  “A-rod is overpaid.” “Athletes always try their best whether there is money or not.”  “Discrimination is a thing of the past.” “Referees are biased.” “It’s not wise to go for it on fourth down.” “The Big Ten is better than the SEC.” “I can beat the betting market.”  Economists have studied sports for several decades and have developed ways to think through such statements and assess their validity.  This course studies the economic approach to sports.  It deepens understanding of strategies, rules, performance, money and many other aspects of sports. (more...)

   Economics 402:  Advanced Macroeconomics - Offered Session II

Developed by Professor Luis De Araujo. Economics 402 online is an upper level course in macroeconomics, aimed at students with a solid background in basic models of business cycles (IS-LM Model) and basic models of Economic Growth (Solow Model), and with the objective of further advance their knowledge of fundamental macroeconomic and public policy issues regarding inflation, unemployment, business cycles, monetary and fiscal policies. (more...)

   Economics 410: Issues in the Economics of Developing Countries - Offered Session II

Developed and taught by Prof. Leo Murembya. Topics in development economics, such as growth, technological change, structural transformation, poverty and inequality, investment in human resources, trade, international capital flows, and the political economy of policy formation and governance. (more...)

 

   Economics 420:  Introduction to Econometric Methods - Offered Session II

This course teaches the basic methods used by economists to analyze statistical data, methods that  are also used in other data-based fields, such as marketing research and public health, and are increasingly valued by private sector employers. The on-line version of the course was developed by MSU professor Jeff Wooldridge, based on his textbook Introductory Econometrics: A Modern Approach, which is the world’s most highly respected and widely used Econometrics textbook. (more...)

 

   Economics 485: Economics of Education - Offered Session I

Developed by Professor Scott Imberman. Did you know that economists study education? Sure you may be aware that we look at how education affects growth or the wage returns to education but there is so much more. So many questions in education policy are actually about economic policy. How do we incentivize teachers to work more effectively? How does adding competition to the education system help or hurt? Why has the use of student loans increased so much and what should be done about it?  (more...)