Introductory Macroeconomics

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An Introduction to Economic Growth, Microfoundations and Business Cycles

This course provides the most comprehensive and serious overview of first-year University Macroeconomics (and, technically, way more than first-year Macroeconomics) available, to date, on Udemy.

I don't have to be here. But if I am going to be here, I am going to do it right and set the benchmark as to how Economics should be taught. Because I take students and their exams and their personal development seriously (on that note, feel absolutely free to reach out for any question or doubt that may arise as you delve into the material). Because, when I was taken seriously by my professors, everything became clearer and more engaging. Because the world is in dire need of engaged, curious people who act according to the brains instead of their stomach, people who let serious social science guide their gaze upon the surrounding world instead of random nonsense. A thoughtful world is a better world. I am strongly convinced that a resolute, serious study of proper economics helps moving toward that end. I am going to guide you at every step of the way, but excellence requires your resolute and serious effort as well: you shall take out only what you shall put in.

In this course, I set out to introduce the main ideas and models in Macroeconomics. Its purpose, shared by the other "Introductory" courses too, is to lay the foundations for deeper and more comprehensive studies in Economics. Hence, I spend little time dwelling on the mathematical derivations and statistical nuances, covering only the bare minimum, and more time trying to convey the intuition, the concept and, essentially, why should you care. The course is divided in three parts. In the first, we cover the long run aka Economic Growth. I carefully introduce Exogenous Growth models, early Endogenous Growth models and full-fledged Endogenous Growth models (including models which are usually tackled only in a first or second year PhD Macroeconomics course) before moving on to the Political Economics of Growth. In the second, we cover the medium run aka the Microfoundations, which I have never seen covered in a first-year course but, considering that the last 30 years of Macroeconomics are built on them, this course (and any other Macroeconomics course) could be neither comprehensive nor serious without providing at least a brief overview of them. In the third, we cover the short run aka Business Cycle Theories. I introduce you to the earliest and simplest models of Business Cycles (the IS-LM and AD-AS), I sketch out the more recent IS-MP model before moving onto Financial Macroeconomics, which is the area in Macroeconomics that has seen most developments in the past 15 years. I cap the course off by analysing the 2007-2009 Financial Crisis and the 2010-2012 Euro Crisis through the models that we have introduced in the hope that seeing their analytical firepower shall fire your curiosity up. Which is the only thing that matters.

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