ECON 5020G
Microeconomic Theory
2016 Fall
Instructor: Jiankang Zhang
Office: D887 Loeb Building
Phone: 613-520-2600 ext. 3774
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.carleton.ca/~jzhang
Email: [email protected]
Classes:
When: Mondays
11:35-14:25 (Lecture)
Wednesdays 18:05-19:25 (Tutorial)
Where: TBA
(Lecture)
TBA
(Tutorial)
Office Hours: 16:10-17:40 (Mondays or by
appointment)
_______________________________________________________________
Welcome to Microeconomic Theory.
Objectives: This course is an introduction to graduate-level microeconomic theory,
including topics such as utility maximization and individual choice, decision-making
under uncertainty, producer theory (technology, costs, and profit maximization),
alternative market structures (competition, monopoly, and oligopoly), general
equilibrium, and the economics of information.
Precludes additional credit for ECON 5000 (no longer offered) and ECON 5001 (no
longer offered).
Textbook
The required textbook for this course is
Microeconomic Theory by A. Mas-Colell, M. Whinston, and J. Green
Oxford University Press, 1995
Other helpful textbooks
Advanced Microeconomic Theory (3rd edition) by G. Jehle, and P. Reny
Microeconomic Analysis (3rd edition) by H. Varian
A Course in Microeconomic Theory by D. Kreps
Course Outline
I.
Consumer Theory
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Preferences
Utility maximization and indirect utility function
Expenditure minimization and expenditure function
Marshallian and Hicksian demand functions
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ECON 5020G - Microeconomic Theory
2016 Fall
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 Slutsky equation and Slutsky matrix
 Aggregate demand
 Revealed preferences
 Risk and uncertainty
Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4a, b, and 6
II.
Theory of the Firm
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Production set
Profit maximization and profit function
Cost minimization and cost function
Input demand and output supply functions
Aggregation
Chapter 5
III.
Equilibrium and Efficiency
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Perfect competition
Equilibrium in competitive market systems
Imperfect competition
The fundamental theorems of welfare economics
Pareto optimality and social welfare optima
Chapters 10, 15, 16, and 17a, b
IV.
Information Economics
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Adverse Selection
Moral Hazard
Chapters 13 and 14
Grading Scheme
Each student’s grade in the course will be determined in terms of their “math” mark
earned in ECON 4995 during the Summer-Fall Intersession as well as their “micro” mark
calculated as follows:
1. Two in-class midterm exams
20%, 30%, respectively
2. Final exam
50%
● The first midterm examination will be held after finishing Chapter 2.
The second midterm examination will be held after finishing Chapter 3.
● There will be no deferred mid-term exams. If you miss a midterm exam due to an
emergency or illness and provide proper documentation, the assigned weight will be
added to the final exam. Otherwise you will receive zero marks for it.
● A maximum of one missed midterm is permitted. As a result, a maximum weight of
80% will be given to the final examination.
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ECON 5020G - Microeconomic Theory
2016 Fall
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● The final examination will be a three-hour examination, scheduled by the Scheduling
Office.
● The final exam will be cumulative and cover the entirety of the course material.
The student’s final grade for ECON 5020 will be calculated as their micro mark plus a
bonus component calculated as follows. The bonus points = max{0, 0.1× (grade-70)}
where the grade is for the math part of the ECON 4995.
Standing in a course is determined by the course instructor, subject to the approval of the
Faculty Dean. This means that grades submitted by the instructor may be subject to
revision. No grades are final until they have been approved by the Dean.
There will be no deferred mid-term exam. If you miss it due to an emergency or illness
and provide proper documentation, the assigned weight will be added to the final exam.
Otherwise you will receive zero marks for it.
Tutorials
Weekly tutorials will be conducted to demonstrate the applications of concepts and
theories presented in classes.
Practice Problems
Students are encouraged to work through as many textbook problems as possible, since
these are the best way to learn the course and prepare for the exams as well. Moreover, I
will provide four sets of practice problems.
Plagiarism: Please be aware that plagiarism is serious offence at Carleton and should be
recognized and avoided. For further information on how to do so, please see “Pammett on
Plagiarism and Paraphrasing” at http://www.carleton.ca/economics/courses/writingpreliminaries/.
Accommodation: Students with disabilities requiring academic accommodations in this
course must contact a coordinator at the Paul Menton Centre for Students with
Disabilities to complete the necessary Letters of Accommodation. After registering with
the PMC, make an appointment to meet and discuss your needs with me in order to make
the necessary arrangements as early in the term as possible.
For Religious
Obligations
For Pregnancy
To be worked out on individual basis with instructor. Consult
Equity Services Website or an Equity Advisor (ext. 5622) for Policy
and list of Holy Days (www.carleton.ca/equity)
Contact Equity Services (ext. 5622) to obtain letters of
accommodations
If you have any problems and questions, please do not hesitate
to ask me for help.
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