Economics

Economics underlies all business decisions, from pricing, to product development, to negotiations, to understanding the general economic environment. This course provides an introduction to economic analysis with a particular focus on concepts and applications relevant to business. It addresses how individual consumers and firms make decisions and how they interact in markets. It also introduces a framework for understanding and analysing the broader economic and public policy environment in which a business competes. The course provides a rigorous platform for further study and a major in economics as well as providing valuable tools of analysis that complement a student's general business training, regardless of their area of specialisation.

The extensive independent study field research paper produced by the student is both the centerpiece of the intern's professional engagement and the culmination of the academic achievements of the semester. During the preparatory session, IFE teaches the methodological guidelines and principles to which students are expected to adhere in the development of their written research. Students work individually with a research advisor from their field. The first task is to identify a topic, following guidelines established by IFE for research topic choice. The subject must be tied in a useful and complementary way to the student-intern's responsibilities, as well as to the core concerns of the host organization. The research question should be designed to draw as much as possible on resources available to the intern via the internship (data, documents, interviews, observations, seminars and the like). Students begin to focus on this project after the first 2-3 weeks on the internship. Each internship agreement signed with an organization makes explicit mention of this program requirement, and this is the culminating element of their semester. Once the topic is identified, students meet individually, as regularly as they wish, with their IFE research advisor to generate a research question from the topic, develop an outline, identify sources and research methods, and discuss drafts submitted by the student. The research advisor also helps students prepare for the oral defense of their work which takes place a month before the end of the program and the due date of the paper. The purpose of this exercise is to help students evaluate their progress and diagnose the weak points in their outline and arguments. Rather than an extraneous burden added to the intern's other duties, the field research project grows out of the internship through a useful and rewarding synergy of internship and research. The Field Study and Internship model results in well-trained student-interns fully engaged in mission-driven internships in their field, while exploring a critical problem guided by an experienced research advisor.

This course examines the concepts, models, and theories that measure and explain the dynamic forces of economic growth. Topics include: formal contrasts of the endogenous growth theory; education, social capital, and economic growth; technology, trade, and economic growth; growth and efficient institution framework; growth, distribution, and democracy.

This course offers a thorough introduction to the theory, empirics, and practice of monetary policy and central banking. Basic understanding of microeconomics, macroeconomics, and statistics is required. 
 

This course introduces general insights and basic theories in the area of corporate finance to develop skills and knowledge essential to the financial management of the corporations. Topics include capital budgeting and valuation, corporate financing, capital structure, payout policy, real options, mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, etc. The course uses case studies to present certain topics including corporate investment decisions, corporate management structure, mergers and acquisitions, and more.

This course introduces the sub-discipline of economic sociology and discusses how this field is related both to other branches of sociology and to economics. It introduces core concepts and approaches in contemporary economic sociology, particularly sociological perspectives on markets, money, and the social embeddedness of these phenomena. The course also analyzes various types of social and economic phenomena by means of economic sociological concepts and theories. It is structured around the reading of Mark Granovetter’s SOCIETY AND ECONOMY: FRAMEWORK AND PRINCIPLES (2017), which in an exemplary fashion rehearses many of the key concepts in contemporary economic sociology. The readings are supplemented with research papers that exemplify some of the issues dealt with in the book as well as additional concepts and perspectives in economic sociology. In parallel with the reading of course literature, students develop an economic sociological analysis of a case of their own choosing, applying and discussing core concepts in economic sociology.