Florida International University                                             Thomas Snyder

Department of Economics                                                      Fall 2009

 

 

ECO 3202 SECTION U08

APPLIED MACROECONOMICS

 

Lecture:                       Saturday 9:30AM-12:15PM

Lecture Room:            Green Library (GL) 100B

 

Instructor:                   Thomas J. Snyder       

Phone:                         305-348-2317

E-mail:                         tsnyd001@fiu.edu

Website:                      http://www.fiu.edu/~tsnyd001

Office:                         Classroom / D.M. 308A (TA Office)

Office Hours:              Saturday 12:15PM-3:15PM or by Appointment

_______________________________________________________________

 

Course Objective:

 

The objective of this course is to further your understanding of the macroeconomic phenomena.  You should become knowledgeable of business cycles, inflation, unemployment, balance of trade, fiscal and monetary policies, long-run growth, and short-run instability.  An emphasis will be placed not just on the formal models, but also on some real-world applications.  

 

Grading Policy:

 

There will be 3 exams, each worth 30% of your grade.  The 3 exams consist of 2 midterms and a cumulative final exam.  The remaining 10% of your grade will be from 5 Quizzes.  6 Quizzes will be given, and the lowest quiz grade will be dropped.  The lowest Exam grade will NOT be dropped.

 

Grading Scale:

 

Grading Scale

A

92-100

A-

90-91.9

B+

88-89.9

B

82-87.9

B-

80-81.9

C+

78-79.9

C

72-77.9

C-

70-71.9

D+

68-69.9

D

62-67.9

D-

60-61.9

F

0-59.9

 

Exams:

 

Expect 25-35 multiple choice questions on Midterm Exams, and about 50 questions on the Final exam.  Exam 1 will cover chapters 1, 2, 3, and 4.  Exam 2 will cover chapters 7, 8, 9, and 11.  The Final Exam will be given during the final examination period, and it will cover all of the chapters that we covered in class. No makeup exams will be permitted.  If you miss Exam 1 or Exam 2 with a valid excuse, then that exam will not count toward your final grade.  The final will be worth 60% of your grade, and the one midterm that you took will be worth 30%.  The final exam must be taken.

 

 

Quizzes:

 

I will give 6 quizzes during the semester.  Your top 5 quizzes will count for your grade.  No makeup quizzes will be given.  If you miss a quiz, then expect that one to be the quiz that will be dropped.  However, if you know you will miss a quiz for a valid reason, then you can request an early makeup quiz  (before the scheduled quiz).

 

Text:

 

The required text for the course is Macroeconomics, 6th ed., Andrew B. Abel, Ben S. Bernanke and Dean Croushore, Adison Wesley Publishers, 2008, ISBN 0-321-41554-X.  The Companion Website for the text is http://wps.aw.com/aw_abelbern_macroecon_6. Please use the companion website for practice quizzes.  They may be very similar to questions on the quizzes in class.

 

 

Course Policies:

 

Exam policies:  No books, notes, problem sets, cell phones, Blackberries, laptop computers, nor any other materials may be consulted during exams.  You may not wear baseball caps, any other head gear, or iPods to the exam.  You must also bring your Student ID to the exam.

 

Cheating will not be tolerated.  Any student caught cheating on an exam or engaging in unethical behavior will receive a grade of F for the course and the dean will be notified and asked to pursue further action.

 

Makeup policies: No makeup exams or quizzes will be given after the exam or quiz has taken place.  Excuses for absences from exams are limited to verifiable illness and emergencies.  If the absence from a midterm exam is excused, the final exam will be appropriately re-weighted (60% for final, 30% for the midterm).  An unexcused absence from any exam will result in a score of zero.  A business-related absence does not qualify as an excused absence, but may qualify for an early make-up.  The final exam must be taken.

 

 

Tentative Schedule

Date

Lecture

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Ch 1

Saturday, September 05, 2009

Ch 2

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Ch 3 / Quiz 1 (ch. 1 and 2)

Saturday, September 19, 2009

Ch 4 / Quiz 2 (ch. 3)

Saturday, September 26, 2009

Ch 7 / Quiz 3 (ch. 4)

Saturday, October 03, 2009

Exam 1 Covering Ch 1-4 / Lecture on Ch 8

Saturday, October 10, 2009

Ch 9 / Quiz 4 (ch. 7)

Friday, October 16, 2009

Last Day to Drop Course

Saturday, October 17, 2009

Ch 9

Saturday, October 24, 2009

Ch 11 / Quiz 5 (ch. 8 and 9)

Saturday, October 31, 2009

Ch 12

Saturday, November 07, 2009

Exam 2 Covering Ch. 7-9, 11 / Lecture on Ch 14

Saturday, November 14, 2009

Ch 14/ Ch 15

Saturday, November 21, 2009

Ch 15 / Quiz 6 (ch . 11,12, and 14)

Saturday, November 28, 2009

No Class

Saturday, December 05, 2009

Review

Saturday, December 12, 2009

Possible Final Exam Date.  Final is Cumulative