| Day | Date | Time | Room |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday | 10/09/19 | 02:00 PM - 05:00 PM | D4.0.144 |
| Wednesday | 10/16/19 | 02:00 PM - 05:00 PM | D4.0.144 |
| Wednesday | 10/23/19 | 02:00 PM - 05:00 PM | D4.0.144 |
| Wednesday | 10/30/19 | 02:00 PM - 05:00 PM | D4.0.144 |
| Wednesday | 11/06/19 | 02:00 PM - 05:00 PM | D4.0.144 |
| Wednesday | 11/13/19 | 02:00 PM - 05:00 PM | D4.0.144 |
| Wednesday | 11/20/19 | 02:00 PM - 05:00 PM | D4.0.144 |
| Wednesday | 11/27/19 | 02:00 PM - 05:00 PM | D4.0.144 |
| Friday | 01/31/20 | 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM | D4.1.001 |
Advanced Microeconomics I is an advanced course that teaches selected fundamental topics in microeconomics in more detail. The course starts with an introduction to relations and preference relations, leading to a model of decision-making under risk. It then turns to welfare economics and studies social welfare functions, continuing with utilitarianism and Pareto efficiency. Finally we consider the topic of mechanism design, using auctions as an example. The material is continued in Advanced Microeconomics II.
1. relations and preference relations
2. ordinal utility functions
3. uncertainty and risk
4. preferences over lotteries
5. expected utility
6. welfare economics
7. social welfare functions
8. Arrow’s theorem
9. efficiency and utilitarianism
10. mechanism design
11. efficient auctions
12. dominant-strategy incentive compatibility
After attending this course, students will be able to:
The attendance requirement is met, if a student is present at least 80%. Therefore, students are allowed to be absent for one teaching unit.
Students should have a good knowledge of introductory microeconomics and game theory. The most important requirement, however, is the willingness to engage with formal (axiomatic) reasoning and proofs.
NOTE: Advanced Microeconomics I is continued by Advanced Microeconomics II. It is in principle possible to only complete the first course (e.g. for exchange students who need just 4 ECTS), but it is not recommended. There's a single exception: This course has 4 ECTS. However, students who are enrolled in the "old" Master program can write an additional seminar thesis and then use this "enhanced course" as a substitute for the old "Advanced Microeconomics" (carrying 6 ECTS) which is no longer offered.
Slides and exercises will be uploaded on learn@wu. Students are requested to prepare for each class with the provided material.
There will be three short quizzes (20%) and a written final exam (70%). The remaining 10% can be gained by active participation, i.e. by answering questions raised during the course or contributing to the discussion thoughtfully. A retake of the final exam will also be offered for those not reaching 50% in total.
Students who are enrolled in the "old" Master program can write an additional seminar thesis and then use this "enhanced course" as a substitute for the old "Advanced Microeconomics" (carrying 6 ECTS) which is no longer offered. For those students, the weighting scheme is: Quizzes 20%, final exam 50%, active participation 10%, and seminar thesis 20%.