Archive: detailed course information for the winter semester 2016/2017

 

040131 Introductory econometrics

 

·       In the unit on October 5, we convened the date of November 7 for the first test. Material for this test was anything taught in class until October 24. This test carries 25 % of the course grade. Results of this test have been sent to participants. 96 persons took part in this test. These 96 define the cohort of participants, i.e. those who will receive a grade at the end of the course.

·       Participants have been mailed the first two sets of slides for this course: a section on the simple linear regression model, and a section on multiple linear regression. In case you did not receive any of these slide sets, kindly contact me by e-mail.

·       Participants have voiced their interest in a role-model test for the first midterm. In 2014, the test that is downloadable here served as the first midterm test. Please note that course material and emphasis on topics may change over the years.

·       In the unit on November 9, we convened December 7 as the date for the second midterm test. This test carries 35 % of the course grade.

·       Material for this test was anything taught until (and including) November 23. This implies that the test focuses on the second and third slide sets (multiple linear regression, heteroscedasticity).

·       A role-model second midterm test from last year is downloadable here.

·       There were no course units on November 28 and 30 and on December 12.

·       91 students were present at the second midterm test on December 7. Results have been communicated to participants.

·       There were no course units on January 23 and 25.

·       The last course unit on January 30, 2017 (16:45-18:15 in Hörsaal 6) was also the date for the third and final test. This test carries 45 % of the course grade.

·       A role-model final test from last year can be downloaded here. Please note that course material and emphasis may change over the years. Material for this year’s final test is the slide sections #1 to # 6 that have been taught in class.

·       Participants have been informed on their performance in this course on February 6. The course is to be regarded as closed now.

 

 

040054 Forecasting

 

·       In the first unit on October 4, the organization of the course was discussed. The course proceeded as outlined above. The test was on December 6. In January, there were presentations on empirical projects or on pieces of the forecasting literature. Projects have been done in groups of up to three persons.

·       Participants have been mailed five sets of slides for this course: an introductory section; extrapolation methods; univariate models; trend in data; multivariate models. In case you did not receive any of these slide sets, kindly contact me by e-mail.

·       Participants have expressed their interest in the data and Stata batch files that are being used in the course. The Austrian monthly unemployment rates are downloadable here, and the code that applies single exponential smoothing to this data is downloadable here.

·       A role-model test from last year is accessible here. Please note that the course material may develop over the years. Emphasis on certain aspects may also vary.

·       Material for the test on December 6 was by default everything taught in the course except the last unit before the test. In this case, this comprises the slide sets #1 to #4, without the parts on nonlinear models and on seasonality and outliers that have not been taught in the course.

·       Regarding empirical projects, please note the following: An empirical project in a forecasting course is supposed to focus on forecasting, not on economic theory or econometrics. Projects without a time-series frame (such as “predicting” a variable y from another one x) are not acceptable.

·       In the unit on December 13, it was decided to reserve January 17 and January 24 for presentations of empirical projects or of academic articles related to forecasting. Participants have been asked to inform me on the structure of their group (remember, up to three persons) and on the project topic.

·       We had three presentations on January 17, and four more presentations on January 24.

·       In any case, written reports on empirical projects were due by January 31. Remember that these reports carry 60 % of the course grade and that presentations are rewarded with a bonus of up to 5 %.

·       The unit on January 31 was canceled.

·       Participants have been informed on their performance in this course by e-mail on February 6. The course is to be regarded as closed now.

 

 

040216 Macroeconomics (MA, International Business Economics)

 

·       This is a lecture course (VO) and requires no registration. This implies, however, that I will not know your names and addresses. If you are not registered but would like to receive the slides, kindly contact me via e-mail.

·       Participants have been mailed seven sets of slides for this course. In case you did not receive these slides, kindly contact me by e-mail.

1.     The demand side of the economy

2.     The supply side of the economy

3.     Monetary policy and the three-equations model

4.     Banking and money

5.     Financial cycles and crises

6.     The open economy

7.     Demand and supply in the open economy

·       There were no course units on November 28 and on December 12.

·       The final exam on January 30, 9:45-11:15 in Hörsaal 1, comprised all material taught in class until and including the unit on January 16. This material includes all slide sections #1 to #6 completely and the first four slides of #7.

·       The final exam is like all other comparable exams: closed book, i.e. apart from dictionaries no tools allowed; four to six questions. Explicitly, this is not a ‘multiple choice’ test.

·       The unit on Monday, January 23, was dedicated to some training for the exams. Here you can have a look at 10 questions that were discussed in class. In fact, we only did the first seven of them. Some tentative answers to the remaining three can be downloaded here.

·       Participants in the exam on January 30 have been informed on their performance on February 7 by e-mail.

·       A second date for a final exam has been fixed at March 6, 18:30, Hörsaal 14. This final exam comprises all material taught in class during the winter semester. This material is reflected in the slide sections #1 to #7.