ECON 318 Syllabus Fall2020 PDF

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Maggie Switek [email protected]

Fall 2020 ECON 318

Course Syllabus ECON 318 Introduction to Econometrics TTh: 8:00am-9:50am Zoom link: Link-Econ318-Lecture Meeting ID: 913 0008 0503 Password: 1122 Office Hours: Tuesday 9:30am – 11:30am and Thursday: 2:30pm – 4:00pm Zoom link: https://usc.zoom.us/j/8538994683 Meeting ID: 853 899 4683 If you cannot make it to regular office hours, you can email me for additional appointments. TA Contact and Office Hours: Lidan Tan: [email protected] Office Hours: Wednesday and Friday 2pm to 4pm Zoom link: https://usc.zoom.us/j/5960831173 Meeting ID: 596 083 1173 Text and Materials: Theory: -

Jeffrey M. Wooldridge, “Introductory Econometrics,” 6th Edition.

Software: -

Stata IC, Statistical/Data Analysis, available at https://itservices.usc.edu/stats/stata/ Stata User’s Guide available at: https://www.stata.com/manuals13/u.pdf

Course Description and Objectives: This course will introduce you to the basic econometric models used in economic research. The course combines an overview of the statistical foundations underlying econometric models with an introduction to the practical applications of these models using empirical data. The practical applications are carried out using a standard statistical computer program (Stata) often used in economic research. Through this course you may expect to achieve the following objectives: -

Develop your understanding of the statistical foundations underlying econometric modeling. Learn which econometric models are most appropriate for different types of data. Learn the basic functions of Stata that can be used to manage and analyze real world data.

Prerequisites: Economics 317.

Maggie Switek [email protected]

Fall 2020 ECON 318

Grading:      

Quizzes: 15% Discussion Exercise Completion: 5% Homework Assignments: 10% Mid-term 1: 25% Mid-term 2: 25% Final project: 20%

Class Procedure: Students are expected to complete all assigned readings prior to each class. The lecture will cover both theoretical concepts and practical applications. Empirical data skills will be developed during the Discussion sessions – please bring laptops to all discussion sessions. Attendance to Discussion sessions is mandatory. After weeks some lectures (marked on syllabus) there will be a short quiz that you can complete within 24-hours of the end of the lecture (i.e. by 10am Pacific US time the following day). The quizzes allow multiple attempts and are worth 15% of your grade. Homework assignments consist of exercises from the book and are due during lecture on the days marked on the syllabus, unless otherwise announced. Late homework assignments (turned in on the due date but after the lecture) will be given partial credit. No credit will be given to homework assignments turned in after the due date. There will be two mid-term exams on weeks 8 and 13, and no final exam. Instead of a final exam, there will be a final individual project. Course Schedule and Assignments: The table below provides a tentative breakdown of the topics that will be covered in class and of homework assignments. Week/Day

Topics Introductions

Readings

Homework Assignments Problems 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10

1 – 8/19

2 – 8/26

Review of mathematical functions and calculus Random variables, distributions, expected value, mean, variance, covariance and their properties

Appendix A (all)

Conditional statistics, normal and related distributions, random sampling, estimators and estimates

Appendix B4e-B5 and Appendix C1 and C2a

Problems 4 and 8 (Due 9/2)

Maggie Switek [email protected]

Fall 2020 ECON 318 Appendix C2b-C4c

Appendix C5-C6

Problems 6 and 8 parts i and ii (no need to do part iii) (Due 9/9)

Chapter 1 (all)

Chapter 1: Problems 2 and 4 (Due 9/16)

an estimator, approaches to

3 – 9/2

4 – 9/9

Confidence intervals and hypothesis

Introduction to econometrics, nd

Chapter 2.1-2.2 and 2.4

5 – 9/16

6 – 9/21

6 – 9/23 7 – 9/28 7 – 9/30

Properties of OLS, functional forms, expected values and variances of OLS estimators: Multiple linear regression (MLR) model: motivation, interpretation and unbiasedness of MLR

Chapter 2.3 and 2.5

Assumptions and properties of MLR: biases, variance, efficiency: QUIZ 3 The t-test and confidence intervals:

Chapter 3.3-3.5

Testing hypotheses about a single linear combination of parameters, the F-test, R2 and its interpretation: QUIZ 4

Chapter 4.4-4.6

8 – 10/5

Review Session

8 – 10/7

Mid-term 1

Chapter 3.1-3.2

Chapter 4.1-4.3

[OPT] Listen to William Byers on the Blind Spot, Science, and Uncertainty: https://www.econtalk.org/b yers-on-the-blind-spotscience-and-uncertainty/ Chapter 2: Problems 4 and 6 (Due 9/23)

Chapter 3: Problems 2, 4, and 8 (Due 9/30)

Chapter 4: Problems 2, 4, 6 and 10 (Due 10/7) [OPT] Listen to John Ioannidis on Statistical Significance, Economics, and Replication: https://www.econtalk.org/j ohn-ioannidis-onstatistical-significanceeconomics-and-replication/ Decide and submit project topics (Due 10/14)

Maggie Switek [email protected]

Fall 2020 ECON 318

9 – 10/12

Overview of asymptotics

Chapter 5

9 – 10/14

Effects of data scaling Industry guest: Sampling and Shapley Values

Chapter 6.1

10 – 10/19

Logarithmic and quadratic models, interaction terms

Chapter 6.2

10 – 10/21

Adjusted R2, prediction and residual analysis: QUIZ 5 Qualitative variables, use of dummies, introduction to program evaluation

Chapter 6.3-6.4 Chapter 7.1-7.3

Chapter 7: Problems 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 (Due 11/4)

Interactions between dummies, testing between different models, more on policy analysis

Chapter 7.4 and 7.6

[OPT] Listen to Austin Frakt on Medicaid and the Medicaid Oregon Study: http://www.econtalk .org/archives/2013/05/frakt _on_medica.html

11 – 10/26

11 – 10/28

12 – 11/2

Linear probability model and its interpretation: QUIZ 6

Chapter 7.5 and 7.7

12 – 11/4

Chapter 8.1-8.3

13 – 11/9

Consequences of heteroskedasticity, robust inference, testing for heteroscedasticity: QUIZ 7 Review Session

13 – 11/11

Mid-term 2

Chapter 5: Problem 3 (Due 10/21) [OPT] Listen to “Weapons of Math Destruction”: https://www.econtalk.org/c athy-oneil-on-weapons-ofmath-destruction/ Chapter 6 Problems 3, 4, 8 and 10 (Due 10/28)

[OPT] Jim Manzi on the Oregon Medicaid Study, Experimental Evidence, and Causality: http://www.eco ntalk.org/archives/2013/05/ jim_manzi_on_th.html Chapter 7: Problems 7 Chapter 8: Problems 1, 2 and 4 (Due 11/11) No homework...