COURSE CURRICULUM

The master program in Policy Economics is designed to equip students with the economic theory and empirical tools necessary to become highly skilled policy economists. The curriculum combines rigorous core courses, electives, seminars, and a master’s thesis to provide a comprehensive training in policy analysis and economic research. Core courses include Advanced Public Economics, Applied Econometrics, and Advanced Macroeconomics, while students may also choose from courses such as Economics of Organisations, Industrial Organisation, or Advanced Money, Credit, and Banking. Elective courses allow students to tailor their studies to specific interests, including Policy Issues in Public Spending on Labour, Education and Health, Advanced Political Economy, and Advanced Development Economics.Two intensive seminars form a key component of the program. In the first seminar, students learn applied research techniques, including econometric methods for policy evaluation, cost-benefit analysis, and field experiments, while discussing contemporary cases. In the second seminar, students can choose between Seminar Economic Policy, which addresses pressing policy issues such as the euro crisis, globalisation, income inequality, and taxation, or Seminar Quantitative Macroeconomics, which focuses on analysing and estimating modern macroeconomic models. Throughout the program, students work collaboratively on assignments, papers, and presentations to develop analytical and communication skills.The curriculum is structured with a balance of theory, empirical analysis, and applications, comprising 33% theory, 38% empirics, and 29% practical applications. For example, in Advanced Public Economics, students work in pairs to calculate optimal income tax schedules for a chosen country using Nobel laureate James Mirrlees’ model in Excel, explaining the rationale behind the tax design. The program culminates in an individual master’s thesis, allowing students to integrate and apply their acquired knowledge to a research question in economic policy.