London School of Economics

The course provides a precise and accurate treatment of introductory probability theory, statistical ideas, methods, and techniques.  Topics covered are data visualization and descriptive statistics, probability theory, random variables, common distributions of random variables, multivariate random variables, sampling distributions of statistics, point estimation, interval estimation, hypothesis testing, analysis of variance (ANOVA), linear regression, nonparametric tests, goodness-of-fit, and independence tests. 

The course offers critical reflection on the design and evaluation of public policies from the perspective of moral and political philosophy. To this end, students learn a range of theories and concepts that are used in policy evaluation. They evaluate them by focusing on specific policy proposals. 

The course analyses accounting practices and processes from the point of view of investors. The course examines revenue recognition, tangible and intangible assets, the reporting of financial instruments, off-balance-sheet accounting, stock-based compensation, as well as, issues related to the differential approaches to measurement including historical cost and fair values. However, the exact composition of the topics may vary from year to year driven by the latest developments in financial reporting, standard-setting and related debates. The course enhances students’ understanding of contemporary issues in financial accounting. Throughout the course, taken-for-granted “wisdoms” are evaluated and challenged. 

Students are introduced to data science and its practice: how it works and how it can produce insights from social, political, and economic data. It combines accessible knowledge of data science as a field of study with practical knowledge about data science as a career path. By combining case studies in applications of both with the study of the content of data science, it covers data science that is both pedagogic but accessible, as well as fundamentally applied and practical. The course combines three perspectives: inferential thinking, computational thinking, and real-world relevance.

The course teaches quantitative techniques that guide evidence-based managerial decision-making. Students examine whether the predictions of managerial, social, or economic theory are supported by empirical evidence. Particular emphasis is on (a) the many ways in which evidence is abused in the academic or managerial debate, and (b) the causality in the relationship between variables. The approach is both formal, as the course makes extensive use of econometric theorems and techniques, and solidly grounded in intuition, as it provides numerous examples of tests of real-life relations. Many of these examples are illustrated using the STATA software package, and students learn the basics of data manipulation and regression techniques.

In this course students learn how to evaluate a brand strategy and how to use defined models and analytical tools to improve upon it. It covers the complete process, from consumer research, competitor analysis and positioning, to bringing the brand to life through design and activations. The course is based on the latest academic insights and infused with examples from our daily lives. It helps you prepare for a future as a marketeer, brand strategist, or entrepreneur.

This course examines, from a philosophical perspective, what is known about the minds of other animals - and what this means for the ethics of how people treat them.

This course teaches microeconomic analysis to let you explore important contemporary questions and special emphasis is given to the question how public policy can change (economic) outcomes.  Students will learn how to understand economic problems by focusing on their key characteristics, choosing the relevant microeconomic mechanisms and developing a solid intuition. The use of mathematics is minimal (in particular, with no calculus) and the emphasis of instruction is on graphical analysis and economic intuition. Precise topics and readings will be announced and are selected to be of current interest, such as the impact of the pandemic and environmental concerns.

This course offers an introduction to international macroeconomic theory and develops the main tools for macroeconomic policy analysis. Students study the balance of payments and the causes and consequences of global imbalances, followed by an in-depth study of the determination of exchange rates, money, and prices in open economies. They discuss the costs and benefits of different nominal exchange rate regimes and their sustainability, as well as examine the causes and consequences of debt and default, speculative attacks, and financial crises.