**Both modules are half a Summer semester.
ECO 406 – Topics in Microeconomics
Instructor: Dr Sandeep Bhaskar
Textbook: Theory of Industrial Organization, Jean Tirole, 1st Edition, MIT Press
Introduction: ECO 406 will be the last advanced Economics module that you will take before being able to clear your course-specific requirements to graduate. Being the last module, Professor Sandeep deems this to be the most difficult module to teach, though not necessarily the hardest for us to do well in. He mentioned that his students have particularly performed well for this module relative to his other modules. Overall, I would say that this module is not as difficult as Econometrics. There are still some math involved in this module but that too is manageable.
Since this is your last module with Professor Sandeep, make an effort to get to know him! Dig into his brilliant mind – he is incredibly insightful and will probably have something to say about a particular career choice. I will say this: Prof Sandeep is my favourite professor in UB and I will miss him.
Here, you will learn about the following: (1) Theory of the Firm, (2) Market for Lemons (information asymmetry in used goods market) (3) Quality Selection (Monopoly v.s. Competitive quality selection), (4) Price Discrimination, (5) Oligopoly (Bertrand, Cournot, Stackelberg competition model), and (6) Labour Market Signalling.
Assessment:
I would think that at this point you should be fairly familiar with how Professor Sandeep structures and conducts his classes. It is not that different here. Prof has said multiple times that his modules are not designed to ‘kill’ you. You should be able to do fairly well as long as you put in consistent effort.
Our class spent half of the module online before moving back to physical classes. Because of the midway transition, Professor Sandeep had to shift the order of the syllabus around. I believe he did not have time to go through some material in class. As a result, we had more readings to do as normal. He would release typed notes and would test material there in exams and homework assignments.
Exam 1 / 2 / 3 (45%): Exams 1, 2 and 3 are 10%, 15% and 20% respectively. Our class had to take the first two exams online (respondus lockdown) because of the COVID-19 restrictions. Papers are not entirely difficult. It mainly comprises of what he goes through in class, so as long as you attend lectures + pay attention to what prof says, you should be good!
Term Paper (25%): Like other modules, you will be required to choose your own topic that you want to write on. It has to be somewhat related to the material that he goes through in class. My tip for you here would be to START EARLY. List out possible topics, write a skeleton for each topic and then consult Professor Sandeep for his advice. He will direct you on how best to approach the topic. This will make your life SO MUCH EASIER. Please don’t procrastinate and do it last minute.
Homework Assignments (15%): A total of 3 homework assignments weighted equally. Meaning, 5% each. Professor Sandeep will do his best to release the questions early to give you more than 1 week to complete the assignment. Nothing particularly difficult here, you have some time to refer to materials (textbook + Professor Sandeep’s typed lecture notes) to find the answer to the question. Homework assignments tend to be due 1-2 days before your exam, so it serves to be some form of revision.
Class Attendance & Participants (15%): A total of 8 class quizzes conducted at random days. Your best 6 quizzes will be taken towards your 15% while your worst 2 are foregone. Some leeway here, just that you have to put in some effort in turning up (early) to class and revising what was discussed in previous lessons before each class.
PSY 331 – Social Psychology
Instructor: Professor Craig Brinkman
Textbook: Social Psychology by Kassin, Fein, and Markus (10th ed.)
Introduction: I’ll start by saying that I took this module to clear my UB Curriculum requirements. When comparing what modules I wanted to take, this sounded the most interesting. A pre-requisite to take this module is PSY 101 (Introduction to Psychology), something some majors (including Economics) need not take. Do I have any regrets taking this module? Absolutely not! As a non-psych/soci major, this module was interesting and enlightening. PSY 331 was able to provide me with explanations as to why I, and the people around me, behave in certain ways in different social contexts. I had many moments “Ohhhh” when Professor Brinkman brought us through social psychology concepts and gave us relatable examples. Another reason why I enjoyed the module was because of Professor Brinkman. He is a rather young professor and makes a lot of pop culture references. Many of them are funny! Professor Brinkman makes the concepts really simple to understand and provides hilarious examples that are still ingrained in my memory. Even when setting up the exam papers, he would also include questions with an element of satire. I would highly recommend taking this module!
Here are some things you can expect to learn for this module: (1) Self-Identity (Self-Esteem, Self-Complexity), (2) Stereotypes, Prejudice, Discrimination, (3) Group Behaviour, (4) Interpersonal Attraction, Intimate Relationships, (5) Aggression.
Assessment:
Textbook Quizzes (25%): This is one part of the module that I do not entirely enjoy. Under this component, you will be required to purchase the e-textbook (I spent $59) so that you will be able to get the access code for the MindTap lessons and textbook chapter quizzes. There would be a quiz due every lesson day and they are 15 MCQ questions. So, apart from having to watch lecture videos, you would also be required to read the entire textbook chapter associated with that lesson. This is immensely tedious. However, the quizzes are open book… and does not have a time limit… and you are able to redo the quiz after submitting the first time and seeing where you went wrong. Another thing is, since this textbook is widely used by other schools as well, you can easily find the answers to the quizzes online. So, this should not be that difficult!
Participation (10%): Since I did the module during the COVID-19 pandemic, our lectures were asynchronous (pre-recorded). Participation consisted of having to watch the lecture videos and complete the quizzes embedded on the video. Again, nothing to difficult here. I am not sure if it is just me, but Professor Craigman may have intentionally/unintentionally enabled the quiz redo button. So, that means that if you were to get the question wrong, you have the chance of redo-ing the quiz and get full mark for this section so long as you do it before the system captures the score (when the component is due).
Doing well: This module was perhaps one of the chillest, interesting and enlightening modules that I took during my entire time in UB. Participation and Textbook Quizzes can be secured rather easily, so that is 35% already in the bank. What is important in this course is CONSISTENCY. You will need to input a consistent level of effort in watching the many lecture videos, completing the quizzes there, and then also doing the MindTap quizzes. There is a due date for each quiz so it would require your regular attending. The part that is relatively more out of your control would be the exam. This would require you to put in more effort in studying and further understanding the concepts. Still, however, everything about this module is manageable. It should not be difficult for you to score an ‘A’ if your consistency is there.
My SIM-UB Academic Journey 