Microeconomics is the study of individual, human decision-making. In this course, you will learn to think like an economist, using conceptual frameworks such as preferences, incentives, supply, demand, competition, markets, and prices to understand human behavior. The tools of economic analysis provide a powerful lens to evaluate government policies, understand business strategies, and make decisions in your own life.
Economists use the tools of microeconomics to study all aspects of life, ranging from business to the environment, and even to dating and marriage! How should a firm decide how much output to produce and what price to set? How can one evaluate the tradeoffs between economic outputs and environmental costs? We will discuss the applied economics of these and many other real-world examples throughout the course.
After this class, students will be able to:
- Apply the conceptual frameworks of Microeconomics (e.g., supply, demand, incentives, etc.) to understand phenomena in public policy, business, and everyday life.
- Communicate and understand the ideas of microeconomics at a professional level.
- Think critically about economics.
This course has online tests, class exercises, and homework assignments. You must have access to a computer and a stable internet connection. If your internet connection prevents you from turning in an assignment, please notify the TAs ASAP.
Textbook and Achieve Homework System
Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers. Principles of Microeconomics, 3rd edition (2025). Macmillan. (NOT the 1st or 2nd editions)
You must purchase the textbook from the publisher or from the bookstore to get access to the online homework system Achieve. A physical copy of the textbook is not required. If you do not purchase a copy of the textbook and cannot complete the homework, you will not receive credit for the assignment, so please do not delay purchasing the textbook.
While you are waiting for the textbook access code to arrive, you can start a free trial or “grace” period. See the instructions on Canvas for more information.
You can access the Achieve homework system within the course’s Canvas site in the Macmillan Learning tab.
There might also be additional lab software required – I will notify you as the semester progresses. If so, the cost will be modest (it should be less than $25).
Zoom
If we need to have any virtual meetings or if you are sick and still want to attend online, we can use Zoom. You can access the Zoom download link for free: https://gatech.service-now.com/home?id=kb_article_view&sysparm_article=KB0028579
Graded assignments and tests serve three purposes (among others):
- To serve as a mechanism to incentivize and facilitate student effort and learning.
- To provide feedback to the instructor about instructor effectiveness and to provide feedback to the student about current performance in the course.
- To certify student achievement to the Institute and to future employers.
Thus, I will assign problems that are graded as a pass/fail for completion (LearningCurve homework assignments) to incentivize you to read the course materials, graded Homework Quiz and TLE Podcast Quiz assignments to engage you in learning and to provide feedback before exams, and exams to evaluate your overall performance in the course. In addition, Extra Credit is available for taking the weekly Economics Podcast Quizzes and for attending (and participating in!) our weekly in-person class meetings. Attendance Extra Credit can also include Econ Club meetings, econ-related lectures (e.g., a speaker discussing the effectiveness of economic sanctions against rogue nations), etc.
Graded Material
Weight
Thinking Like an Economist Podcast & Questions for Each Chapter
5%
LearningCurve Homework Assignments for Each Chapter
10%
Weekly Homework Quiz Assignments for Each Chapter
10%
Midterm Exams (2 planned)
50%
Final Exam
25%
Total:
100%
Extra Credit
Weekly Podcast Quiz - Extra Credit
0.5%
Class Attendance & Special Econ-Related Events / Activities (e.g., Econ Club Meetings, special speakers, econ seminars, submissions to the Undergraduate Econ Journal, etc.) – Extra Credit
0.8%
CIOS End-of-Semester Student Evaluation Class Participation Goal
Extra Credit Points depend on the entire class’s response rate
(see CIOS Course Survey Extra Credit section below for details)
0.5%
Your final grades transfer to the Georgia Tech grading system as follows:
A
4.0
Excellent
90.00% - 100.00%
B
3.0
Good
80.00% - 89.99%
C
2.0
Satisfactory
70.00% - 79.99%
D
1.0
Passing
60.00% - 69.99%
F
0.0
Failure
< 60.00%
Note that grades are not rounded up (e.g., 89.99% is still a B). At the end of the semester your final grade cannot be changed with additional extra credit or makeup opportunities; this is for fairness to all students. Any requests for grade revisions to weekly Homework Quiz / LearningCurve / TLE Podcast and Midterm must be submitted before the Final Exam.
Pass/Fail Policy
If you are taking the class pass/fail, you must achieve a C grade to earn a pass in the class. Please reach out to me at the beginning of the semester if you are taking the class pass/fail.
Class Attendance
There are two live class sessions per week. There will be an Attendance Survey conducted during each class (so you'll need a phone, tablet, or laptop); this survey will be used to track attendance Extra Credit. Note, answering the Attendance Surveys are covered by the GA Tech Honor Code and certifies that you attended class in-person.
You can also attend via a live Zoom session, but Zoom attendance does NOT result in attendance credit (unless you have made provision with me or the TA which requires advance notice and coming off of mute and participating in that day’s class discussion).
Homework Policy
LearningCurve, TLE Podcast Quizzes, and Homework Quiz assignments are completed via the online homework system Achieve associated with the textbook.
LearningCurve assignments are graded on a pass/fail basis. Each question you answer correctly earns points toward a target score. When your score meets or exceeds the target score, you will get full credit for the assignment. If you want more practice, you can continue answering LearningCurve questions after you have achieved the target score. There is one LearningCurve assignment per chapter of the textbook. In some weeks we will cover two chapters; therefore, there will be two LearningCurve assignments and two Homework Quizzes and TLE Podcast Quizzes in those weeks.
Homework Quiz assignments are assessed by the accuracy of your answers. You can attend Office Hours (with either the TAs or myself) before you submit a Homework Quiz to get clarification on any difficult questions – This strategy will allow you to get full credit on Homework Quizzes.
All homework assignments are due by 11:59 pm ET on their due date. I will accept a late graded homework assignment but there will be a daily Late Penalty (e.g., 3% points per day) – If there is a change in the Late Penalty policy during the semester, I will announce it via Canvas. Note, there are NO dropped assignments – You are responsible for doing all weekly chapter LearningCurve, TLE Podcast Quiz, and Homework Quiz assignments.
Extra Credit Podcasts
There are Extra Credit podcasts that are available on a weekly basis:
- I have chosen interesting podcasts on topics in Economics – one podcast in each weekly Module (except test review weeks).
- Answer the associated questions to earn the Extra Credit points for that week’s Module (on Canvas).
Podcasts are one of the most enjoyable ways to learn about economics. To incentivize you to explore economics podcasts without making them stressful or a time burden, I am offering extra credit for listening to these economics podcasts every week related to interesting topics in the field.
The podcasts are assigned weekly with the rest of the course materials and are due by 11:59 pm ET on their due date. Late podcast quizzes do not count and there are no makeup opportunities.
Weekly Feedback
I value your feedback – it helps to improve this course. At the end of each week’s Module in Canvas, the last item is a short feedback question: What did you like about this week’s material and what could be improved? I appreciate your feedback, and I act on your suggestions whenever possible. Note, answering the Weekly Feedback unlocks the next week’s Module in Canvas.
CIOS Course Survey Extra Credit
At the end of the semester, GA Tech issues a CIOS Course Survey. To encourage you to fill out this anonymous survey and keep response rates high, I will give extra credit to the whole class based on the CIOS response rate for the entire class. Note, since the CIOS survey is anonymous, I can only give Extra Credit based on the entire class’s response rate; I have no visibility to individual submissions. The following Extra Credit will be added to each person’s course grade:
Extra Credit Added to Everyone’s Course Grade
Class CIOS Response Rate
+0.5%
100%
+0.4%
90.00% - 99.99%
+0.3%
80.00% - 89.99%
+0.2%
75% - 79.99%
+0.1%
70% - 74.99%
0%
< 70%
I will set the CIOS completion deadline for this Extra Credit offer on the day after the Final Exam at 11:59 pm.
Testing Policy
Tests will be taken in class using the Lockdown Browser – Be sure to bring your laptop and charger to class (with a fully charged battery!) and check that its Internet connection is working! Also bring three sheets of scratch paper, a pen, and a standalone calculator (not a calculator application on a phone, tablet, or laptop). I will provide a LockDown Browser EquipmentCheck practice test in advance so you can check that everything is working properly in the Lockdown Browser environment before the test.
Exams must be taken on the assigned date. If there is a verifiable emergency or approved athletic absence, we can work out an appropriate alternative. For illness, injury, or other emergency, provide appropriate documentation to the Office of the Dean of Students (https://studentlife.gatech.edu/content/class-attendance). False doctor’s notes fall under the Academic Honor Code.
Collaboration
In this course, group work and discussion are allowed on homework assignments. When turning in homework assignments, each student must turn in an individual submission via Achieve. The midterm and final exams are not to be discussed between students and must be completed individually. The table below summarizes these policies.
Type
Group or Individual Work
Turn in
Homework assignments
Group discussion and collaboration allowed
Each student makes his or her own online submission.
Podcast quizzes
Group discussion and collaboration allowed
Each student makes his or her own online submission.
Exams
Individual work only. No discussion and no collaboration allowed.
Exams will be in-class using the Lockdown Browser.
Each student makes his or her own online submission.
I trust you to complete exams individually. Cheating on exams is very serious and results in a zero grade and a report to the Office of Student Integrity and Dean of Students. See the section on Academic Integrity.
There are two live class sessions per week. While attendance is not required, it is highly encouraged and provides Extra Credit. Students who attend in-person have better understanding of the concepts and get better grades. There will be an Attendance Survey conducted during each class (so you'll need a phone, tablet, or laptop); this survey will be used to track attendance Extra Credit. Note, answering the Attendance Surveys are covered by the GA Tech Honor Code and certifies that you attended class in-person.
You can also attend via a live Zoom session, but Zoom attendance does NOT result in attendance credit (unless you have made provision with me or the TA which requires advance notice and coming off of mute and participating in that day’s class discussion).
Students are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. All work submitted must be original and properly cited. Plagiarism, cheating, or any form of academic dishonesty will result in immediate consequences as outlined in the university's academic integrity policy.
“I commit to uphold the ideals of honor and integrity by refusing to betray the trust bestowed upon me as a member of the Georgia Tech community.”
Georgia Tech aims to cultivate a community based on trust, academic integrity, and honor. Students are expected to act according to the highest ethical standards. For information on Georgia Tech's Academic Honor Code, please visit http://www.catalog.gatech.edu/policies/honor-code/ or http://www.catalog.gatech.edu/rules/18/. Academic integrity is extremely important to me.
Any student suspected of cheating or plagiarizing on an exam or assignment will be reported to the Office of Student Integrity, who will investigate the incident and identify the appropriate penalty for violations.
The Honor Code also applies to submitting Attendance Surveys in class – Assisting others who did not attend class in-person would be considered an honor violation.
This is a Core IMPACTS course that is part of the Social Sciences area.
Core IMPACTS refers to the core curriculum, which provides students with essential knowledge in foundational academic areas. This course will help master course content, and support students’ broad academic and career goals.
This course should direct students toward a broad Orienting Question:
- How do I understand human experiences and connections?
- Students will effectively analyze the complexity of human behavior, and how historical, economic, political, social or geographic relationships develop, persist or change.
- Intercultural Competence
- Perspective-Taking
- Persuasion
Completion of this course should enable students to meet the following Learning Outcome:
Course content, activities and exercises in this course should help students develop the following Career-Ready Competencies: