Introduction to Microeconomics

Study Board of Business Economics

Teaching language: English
EKA: B220033432, B220033402
Censorship: Second examiner: None
Grading: Pass/Fail, 7-point grading scale
Offered in: Soenderborg
Offered in: Autumn
Level: Bachelor

Course ID: B220033401
ECTS value: 5

Date of Approval: 14-04-2021


Duration: 1 semester

Course ID

B220033401

Course Title

Introduction to Microeconomics

Teaching language

English

ECTS value

5

Responsible study board

Study Board of Business Economics

Date of Approval

14-04-2021

Course Responsible

Name Email Department
Birgitte Sloth bsl@sam.sdu.dk Institut for Virksomhedsledelse og Økonomi

Offered in

Soenderborg

Level

Bachelor

Offered in

Autumn

Duration

1 semester

Recommended prerequisites

Mathematics level B from upper secondary school. 

Aim and purpose

The purpose of the course is to provide the students with fundamental knowledge of central microeconomic principles and tools viewed from the company's perspective. It aims at giving the students a wide analytical understanding of the basic decisions of the company regarding profit maximization and optimization of production (including resource procurement) in a market with utility maximizing consumers. The course thereby provides students with the prerequisites to analyze basic economic problems while also forming a theoretical basis for the more advanced courses in managerial economics and business administration. The course makes use of methods and skills acquired through the course Mathematics and Statistics.

Content

- Markets characterized by perfect competition 
- Market equilibrium under perfect competition
- Consumer theory. Utility maximization with rational consumers
- Demand (individual, market)
- Theory of production and costs. Optimization
- Supply (individual, market)
- Introduction to economic efficiency, consumers- and producers surplus

Learning goals

The student must demonstrate knowledge and abilities in relation to the subject field and be able to:
. 

Description of outcome - Knowledge

General goals: 
- Explain concepts and definitions within the subject area of the course. 
- Explain and relate these concepts and definitions to economic decision problems 
- Explain and discuss the significance of the assumptions underlying the models.    

Specific goals: 
- Describe and analyze price determination in a market under perfect competition. This includes analyzing the demand curve, the supply curve and the impact of different elasticities.  
- Describe and analyze how taxation affects price formation and welfare.  
- Describe and analyze consumers’ choice and welfare, and the impact of prices and income  
- Describe and analyze, the decisions and profits of a profitmaximizing firm, and the impact of prices and technology on costs and production in the short and long run. 

Description of outcome - Skills

 Describe and analyze economic mechanisms graphically and mathematically  
- Apply mathematical analysis (derivatives, optimization, Lagrange) for numeric and parametic analysis in economic models 
- Analyze specific economic models mathematically, and calculate economic consequences in models 
- Choose relevant models for analyzing specific exemplary markets and decisions, and identify the limitations in such analysis 

Description of outcome - Competences

- Apply graphic and mathematic modelling of firms and markets in business economic contexts, including reflections on the possibilities and limitations of this apporach

Literature

The course will be based on a textbook, e.g., Perloff J.M.: Microeconomics with MyEconLab, Global Edition 8/E (including access to MyEconLab).

Teaching Method

The student is expected to gain knowledge of the course subjects through independent study of literature. These studies will be supported by lectures in the subjects of the course. The purpose of the lectures is to give an overview of the curriculum and to facilitate the understanding of complicated subject areas.


The skills that are obtained in the course, the student will learn through independent work solving exercise problems given in the course. This work can be carried out alone, but it is recommended to work in a study group. The students will be supported in exercise classes, where solutions to the exercises posed will be shown and discussed based on the students’ suggestions  


Furthermore, the student has the possibility of solving individual online problem sets throughout the semester in MyEconLab, an online system connected to the course textbook.

This will give students an opportunity to test their knowledge and obtained skills during the course and highlight the importance of working with the subjects.  


Finally, the student must participate in a mock exam held half-way through the semester, for which feedback is given as peer-feedback via peergrade.io.

Workload

Schedueled classes:
Two lectures and two exercise sessions per week in the first 6 weeks. 
Two lectures and one exercise session åer week in the remaining weeks

Teaching is in English. Two lectures and one exercise session lesson per week. The lecturer may decide to have 2 exercise lessons every other week instead. 

Workload:
Students will be required to do approximately 135 hours of work, which is expected to be spent as follows:

Lectures: 28 hours.
Exercise sessions: 19 hours.
Preparation for lectures/syllabus: 48 hours. 
Preparation for exercise sessions: 21 hours. 
5 sets of assignments: 15 hours. 
Mock exam and peer-feedback: 2 hours. 
Examination: 2 hours.

Examination regulations

Exam

Name

Exam

Timing

Exam: 
Peer-feedback part 1: 1st exam attempt is held during the semester.
Written examination part 1: Ordinary exam in January.

Reexam:
Peer-feedback part 1: During the semester.
Written examination part 1: February

Tests

Peer-feedback part 1

Name

Peer-feedback part 1

Form of examination

Compulsory assignment

Censorship

Second examiner: None

Grading

Pass/Fail

Identification

Student Identification Card - Date of birth

Language

English

Duration

Mock exam 1 hour.
The feedback part can be done within a given time-frame of up to 5 days.

Examination aids

All exam aids allowed. It is not allowed to communicate with others during the exam.

Assignment handover

Hand-out via "Digital Exam".

Assignment handin

Via peergrade.io. The feedback must also be given via peergrade.

ECTS value

1

Additional information

Mandatory mock exam with peer-feecback.
A change in the examination form will be announced no later than 14 days prior to the re-exam.

EKA

B220033432

Written examination part 1

Name

Written examination part 1

Form of examination

Written examination on premises

Censorship

Second examiner: None

Grading

7-point grading scale

Identification

Student Identification Card - Exam number

Language

English

Duration

2 hours.

Length

No limit.

Examination aids

All exam aids allowed.

Assignment handover

Digital hand-out via "Digital Exam".

Assignment handin

Only digital submission, via "Digital Exam".

ECTS value

4

Additional information

The topics and objectives worked on during the first semester are tested in Written examination part 1. 
A change in the examination form will be announced no later than 14 days prior to the re-exam.

EKA

B220033402

External comment

NOTE - This course is identical with the former course 83304301.
Used examination attempts in the former identical course will be transferred.
Courses that are identical with former courses that are passed according to applied rules cannot be retaken.

Courses offered

Offer period Offer type Profile Education Semester

URL for Skemaplan

Sønderborg
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