Seminar Management Method

In general, this seminar will start with a number of sessions introducing basic economic theories and statistics. Specific topics to be covered can be decided based on students’ interests.
3rd year students: Students are expected to familiarize themselves with key concepts in economics and statistics throughout the first year of this seminar. One semester will focus on discussions of the economic approach to answering questions, covering various topics, using the assigned textbook. Another semester will focus on learning how to use basic statistics and practicing using data analysis tools, such as statistical software R. The main goal is for students to understand how to plan their research framework based on statistical methods and economic ways of thinking. Another important objective is for students to enhance their presentation skills. Students are expected to start narrowing down their research questions by studying and reporting existing literature related to their topic of interest.
4th year students: Focus will be on presenting and writing papers based on economic concepts and previous research on their topics, using empirical research methods. A great focus will be on brushing up students’ writing skills. Students are to give oral presentations of their findings and finish writing their thesis.
Throughout the course, students are expected to present and prepare papers outlining key features of their thesis starting with a literature review, among others including a working title, background and motivation, research design and references. We will subsequently move on to structuring, drafting, revising and finalizing the thesis under the instructor’s guidance.

Term Paper 40%

Continuous Assessment 60%
(Evaluation of Everyday Performance in Class)
Presentation and class participation