Required in stage
Optional in stage
First term
Both terms
Not organised
This year
Next year
Alternating years
External
Prerequisites
Identical coursesIntroduction to Economics of the EU (B-KUL-S0K85A)
English
26 
Second term
Cannot be taken as part of an examination contractCannot be taken as part of a credit contract
N. Aims
This course is reserved exclusively for students in the Bachelor of European Studies programme. Students of other programmes are not allowed to take this course in their programme.
At the end of the course, students will be able to:
- Demonstrate the ability to use basic economic concepts and diagnostic methods to analyze the growth of the European economy, its international flows and its competitiveness.
- Demonstrate the ability to describe the economic basis of common polices, both at the micro and industrial level (e.g., competition policy) as well as at the macro level (e.g., fiscal and monetary policies).
- Demonstrate the ability to search for economic information from European countries, as well as the ability to apply that information to relevant economic problems.
Previous knowledge
No prior knowledge is required for this course.
Is included in these courses of study
Activities
2 ects. Introduction to Economics of the EU: lectures (B-KUL-S0K85a)
Content
Eight lectures (2,5 hours each), in eight weeks
Lecture 1. Welfare and economic growth: trends and cycles
Lecture 2. Population, labour markets and inequality
Lecture 3. Industrial specialization and international trade
Lecture 4. Economic integration
Lecture 5. The economics of common policies
Lecture 6. The economics of monetary integration
Lecture 7. Fiscal and budgetary policies
Lecture 8. The economic challenges of the EU
Course material
Slides (pdf), exercises (doc and xls) and additional materials on virtual campus. Statistical sources and additional documents: students should deal with Eurostat database as a departing point to discuss the topics analyzed during the course. Statistics Explained (Eurostat) provides a valuable support, particularly the “Statistics 4 beginners” section.
2 ects. Introduction to Economics of the EU: seminars (B-KUL-S0K86a)
Content
Four seminars (2,5 hours each), in four weeks. Each seminar covers the topics delivered in the two previous Lectures.
Seminar 1: Exercises on Lectures 1 & 2
Seminar 2: Exercises on Lectures 3 & 4
Seminar 3: Exercises on Lectures 5 & 6
Seminar 4: Exercises on Lectures 7 & 8
Course material
Short exercises provided by the teacher and accessible in the virtual campus. Solutions provided in excel format.
Statistical sources and additional documents: students should deal with Eurostat database as a departing point to discuss the topics analyzed during the course. Statistics Explained (Eurostat) provides a valuable support, particulary the “Statistics 4 beginners” section.
Evaluation
Evaluation: Introduction to Economics of the EU (B-KUL-S2K85a)
Explanation
The evaluation is based on three parts:
- 4 individual online tests taken at the beginning of each seminar (20%)
- 4 group assignments (30%)
- exam during the examination period (50%)
The final mark will be the weighted average of the online tests, group assignments and the final exam, with the previously specified weights. No thresholds are applied to each part for the final grade. In other words, it is not necessary to have a minimum grade in any of these parts to pass the course.
The student will always receive a final numerical grade if any of the following conditions are met: i) he/she has taken at least three of the on-line partial tests, ii) he/she has handed in at least two of the group assignments, iii) he/she has taken the final exam. The same rules apply for the extraordinary (retake) exam. Only if none of these conditions is fulfilled will the student receive a NA (nor taken) grade.
Information about retaking exams
Students who do not pass the course, repeat the exam during the retake examination period. The results of the online tests and the assignments will be maintained, regardless of the result. The same weightings will apply for the final mark, but the grade of the final exam will be replaced by the grade of the retake exam.