I. General Information
1. Course Title:
Principles of Economics-Microeconomics
2. Course Prefix & Number:
ECON 2402
3. Course Credits and Contact Hours:
Credits: 3
Lecture Hours: 3
Lab Hours: 0
4. Course Description:
This course studies the functioning of the market in the free-enterprise economy and the various factors that affect market conditions and market structures. Included in the study are the price system, consumer behavior, business firm behavior, resource markets, income distribution, and other microeconomic concepts.
5. Placement Tests Required:
| Accuplacer (specify test): |
Reading College Level CLC or Reading College Level |
Score: |
|
6. Prerequisite Courses:
ECON 2402 - Principles of Economics-Microeconomics
There are no prerequisites for this course.
9. Co-requisite Courses:
ECON 2402 - Principles of Economics-Microeconomics
There are no corequisites for this course.
II. Transfer and Articulation
1. Course Equivalency - similar course from other regional institutions:
St. Cloud State University, ECON 206 Principles of Microeconomics, 3 credits
University of MN Duluth, ECON 1023 ECON 206 Principles of Microeconomics, 3 credits
Winona State University, ECON 201 ECON 206 Principles of Microeconomics, 3 credits
2. Transfer - regional institutions with which this course has a written articulation agreement:
This course is a part of the Economics Transfer Pathway AA
III. Course Purpose
1. Program-Applicable Courses – This course is required for the following program(s):
This course is a part of the Economics Transfer Pathway AA
2. MN Transfer Curriculum (General Education) Courses - This course fulfills the following goal area(s) of the MN Transfer Curriculum:
Goal 5 – History and the Social and Behavioral Sciences
IV. Learning Outcomes
1. College-Wide Outcomes
| College-Wide Outcomes/Competencies |
Students will be able to: |
| Demonstrate written communication skills |
Apply microeconomic theories to understand the structure and process of the World Economy. |
| Demonstrate reading and listening skills |
Read assigned material, listen and take notes using a study-guide in lectures, and listen to classmates during class discussion and economic topic debate. |
| Apply abstract ideas to concrete situations |
Create and interpret a graph to describe a given economic situation. |
2. Course Specific Outcomes - Students will be able to achieve the following measurable goals upon completion of
the course:
- Explain the basic economic problem (scarcity, opportunity cost, choice) (MnTC Goal 5);
- Explain markets and price determination (determinants of supply and demand, utility, elasticity, price ceilings and floors) (MnTC Goal 5);
- Apply theories of the firm (revenues, costs, marginal analysis, market structures) (MnTC Goal 5);
- Explain factor markets (revenues, costs, marginal analysis, market structures) (MnTC Goal 5);
- Explain the role of government in a market economy (public goods, maintaining competition, externalities, taxation, income redistribution, public choice) (MnTC Goal 5); and
- Explain elements of International Economics (comparative advantage, trade barriers) (MnTC Goal 5).
V. Topical Outline
Listed below are major areas of content typically covered in this course.
1. Lecture Sessions
- What is the Economic Way of Thinking?
- Scarcity and opportunity cost
- Micro and macro economics
- Normative vs. positive economics
- Factors of production
- Production Possibilities (Production Possibilities Curve)
- The concept of opportunity cost
- The fundamental economic questions (what, how, and for whom)
- Economic growth – technology and investment
- The process of marginal analysis
- Law of Demand
- Price change – change in quantity demanded
- Non-price determinant – change in demand
- Examples of non-price determinants:
- Number of buyers
- Tastes and preferences
- Income (normal and inferior goods)
- Substitute and complementary goods
- Law of Supply
- Price change – change in quantity supplies
- Non-price determinant – change in supply
- Examples of non-price determinants:
- Number of sellers
- Technology
- Resource prices
- Taxes and subsidies
- Future expectations
- Law of Supply and Demand
- Equilibrium
- Surpluses and shortages
- Markets in Action
- Increases in demand creates a higher equilibrium
- Increases in supply creates a lower equilibrium
- Price ceilings and floors
- Market Failures
- Positive and negative externalities
- Public goods
- Lack of competition
- Income inequality
- Price Elasticity
- Elastic vs inelastic demand
- Unitary elastic demand
- Perfectly elastic demand
- Perfectly inelastic demand
- Production Costs
- Explicit vs. implicit costs
- Economic vs. normal profit
- Fixed inputs vs. variable inputs
- Total fixed cost (TFC)
- Total variable cost (TVC)
- Total cost (TC)
- Marginal cost (MC)
- Average fixed cost (AFC)
- Average variable cost (AVC)
- Average total cost (ATC)
- Long run average cost curve
- Short run average cost curve
- Law of diminishing returns
- Economies of scale
- Market Structure
- Perfect Competition
- Price taker
- Perfectly competitive firm’s short run supply curve
- Perfectly competitive industry’s short run supply curve
- Monopoly
- Price maker
- Natural monopoly
- Price discrimination
- Arbitrage
- Monopolistic Competition and Oligopoly
- Product differentiation
- Price leadership
- Non-price competition
- Cartel
- Mutual interdependence
- Game theory
- Labor Markets and Income Distribution
- Marginal revenue product (MRP)
- Demand curve for labor
- Derived demand
- Supply curve for labor
- Human capital
- Collective bargaining
- Poverty line
- Comparable worth
- In-kind transfers