Econ 140 – Managerial Economics (REMOTE)

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Econ 140 – Managerial Economics (REMOTE)
University of California, Irvine
Spring, 2020
Instructor: Dr. Neerja Aggarwal
Email: [email protected]
Course web page: https://canvas.eee.uci.edu/courses/25737
Textbook: Managerial Economics and Strategy by Jeffrey Perloff and James Brander,
Student Value Edition Plus Mylab Economics with Pearson eText – Access Card
Package, 3
rd Edition. ISBN – 9780135640982.
Prerequisites: ECON 100B (see the university website for further details.)
Course Objectives: Managerial Economics is a course about making sound managerial
decisions. An effective manager must identify goals, understand incentives, understand
markets, use marginal analysis and understand the time value of money. Keeping these
objectives of a manager in mind, this course shows you how economics can help a
manager effectively manage the resources of a business. You’ll learn how the
economics-tools from intermediate microeconomics, game theory, and industrial
organization are used in making managerial decisions, thus running an effective
management.
Course Grade Criteria: The final grade is based on Assignments (10%), Excel Projects
(10%), Midterm (35%), and Final (45%).
Scale: A+ : 96% ; A : 93% ; A- : 90% ; B+ : 87% ; B : 83% ; B- : 80% ; C+ : 77% ; C : 73% ; C- :
70% ; D+ : 67% ; D : 63% ; D- : 60% ; F : Below 60%
Assignments: Assignments will be assigned for each chapter/topic on Pearson MyLab,
and you are required to submit these assignments by the due dates. Late submissions
are allowed, these are however subject to a penalty of 25% for every late day. The
lowest score on these assignments will be dropped.
Excel Projects: There will be two excel projects assigned on Pearson MyLab, and you
are required to submit these projects by the due dates. (The lowest score on these projects
will not be dropped).
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Each project will have multiple algorithm based excel questions, with separate
downloadable instructions provided for each question. You are required to follow these
instructions and steps carefully before plugging in your answers. More specifically, first
you need to download the instructions for each question. This folder consists of an excel
file having two sheets – Problem and Instructions. You’ll need to work on the problem
in this excel file only, and then submit your answers. If you work in a different excel file
than this, your answers won’t get auto-graded by the software.
These assignments require Office 2013/2016 or newer version installed in your laptop.
Teaching Videos: As this class will be held remotely, there is no face-to-face interaction.
This course will be taught asynchronously through recorded videos. These videos will
be posted on Canvas on weekly basis. Be sure to learn the topics by watching these
videos and stay updated with the course.
Discussion Forums: The discussion forums for the course will be activated on Canvas.
Please post your course related non-personal questions in these forums and help the
fellow students with their queries.
Email: For any other course related queries, please email and ask your TA first; due to a
large volume of emails I may not be able to reply promptly to your email.
Exams: There are two exams for this course: midterm and non-cumulative final. These
exams will be held online on Pearson Mylab on the scheduled days. There will be no
makeup exams. In case you are unable to take a scheduled exam due to some
documented sickness/emergency, you should contact me or the TAs so that an
alternative arrangement/option can be considered.
Additional information: Keep yourself updated with the announcements and course
materials posted on the course website.
Students with Disabilities: If you anticipate needing any type of an academic
accommodation in this course or have questions about physical access, please discuss
this with me during the first week of class AND please register with the Disability
Services Center.
Academic Dishonesty: The minimum academic penalty for cheating on a homework
assignment or exam is a zero grade for the assignment or exam in question and the
maximum academic penalty will be a failing grade for the course. Additional
administrative penalties may be imposed by the university. I will not hesitate to report
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suspected cheaters to the Office of Academic Integrity & Student Conduct. Review the
University’s policies at: https://aisc.uci.edu/index.
Copyright: All course content created by the course instructor including but not
limited to this document, lecture slides, homework assignments, exams, and answer
keys are copy- righted by the course instructor. Unauthorized distribution or sale of
copyrighted course materials, for example by uploading content to sites like Course
Hero, violates the UCI student code of conduct. Students found to be in violation will
be reported to the university administration.
Effective in Spring Quarter 2020 ONLY, students may enroll in this course P/NP
(Pass/Not Pass). Enrolled students will be able to change from the letter-grade option to
P/NP until 4:59 PM on Friday of the 10th week. A “P” (Pass) will count toward
satisfaction of a major requirement that normally must be satisfied with a letter
grade. If you enroll in this course P/NP, you will need to earn the equivalent to a C
grade or higher. If you enroll in this course P/NP and earn the equivalent to a C- grade
or lower, you will receive an NP on your transcript (no credit). P/NP does not factor
into your GPA.
Outline (subject to change)
1. Introduction
2. The Basics of Managerial Economics (Ch. 1)
3. Managerial Decisions – Production (Ch. 5)
4. Managerial Decisions – Costs (Ch. 6)
5. Firm Organization and Market Structure (Ch. 7)
6. Pricing with Market Power, Part I (Ch. 10, until pg. 334)
7. Pricing with Market Power, Part II (Ch. 10, pg. 334 – 344)
8. Oligopoly Models (Ch. 11, until pg. 370)
9. Managerial Decisions Using Game Theory (Chs. 12 and 13)
10. TBA
Exam Dates: Here are the strict dates and windows for the two exams.
• Midterm:
o Will be for one hour and fifteen minutes and available on Pearson MyLab
from Friday, May 1st
, 8:00 am – Saturday, May 2nd, 8:00 am
• Final:
o Will be for two hours and available on Pearson MyLab from Wednesday,
June 10th, 8:00 am – Thursday, June 11th, 8:00 am
Holidays (see the UCI academic calendar for details): Monday, May 25th (Memorial Day)