Seminar: Public Economics
Course content
The seminar invites students to analyze theoretical and
empirical issues within public economics. Possible topics include:
- Labor supply and taxation
- Optimal income taxation
- Universal basic income
- Inequality and the tax system
- Public good provision and marginal cost of public funds
- Optimal commodity taxation
- Individuals’ understanding of and preferences for public
interventions.
- Taxation of multinational firms
- Taxation and regulation of the financial sector
- Tax havens
- Tax evasion
- Green taxes
- Taxation of sin goods (tobacco, alcohol etc.)
- Optimal social insurance (unemployment, disability, etc.)
- Retirement and taxes / public transfers
- Tax competition
- Border trading
- Taxation and international migration
- Tagging
Students are encouraged to write papers in pairs. Examples of
what papers may do include:
- A thorough review of related articles on a specific topic
- An independent extension of an existing theoretical model
- Simulations of a theoretical model with the aim of, e.g., testing
estimation strategies or policy recommedations.
- A replication and extension of the empirical analysis of a
published article using the article’s dataset
- An independent empirical analysis using, e.g., data available
through one’s work or publicly available data
- A policy paper on a relevant topic of economic policy
The seminar is primarily for students at the MSc of Economics
After completing the seminar the student is expected to be able to fulfill the learning outcome specified in the Curriculum:
Knowledge:
After completing the seminar, the student is expected to be able
to:
• Define and discuss the differences between a research question
and strategy.
• Define and discuss the structure of a good (seminar) paper.
• Identity relevant literature.
Skills:
After completing the seminar, the student is expected to be able
to:
• Use existing knowlegde to analyze new theoretical or empirical
problems.
• Evaluate the feasibilty of a research strategy.
• Present a research project to peers.
Competences:
After completing the seminar, the student is expected to be able
to:
• Independently plan and execute a research project.
At the seminar the student is trained independently to
- identify and clarify a problem,
- seek and select relevant literatur,
- write a academic paper,
- present and discuss own paper with the other students at the
seminar.
Mandatory activities in the seminar:
- Kick-off meeting
- Finding literatur and defining the project
- Writing process of the seminar paper
- Presentation of own project and paper
- Giving constructive feedback to another student´s paper
- Actively participating in discussions at the presentations and
other meetings.
The aim of the presentations is, that you use the presentation as
an opportunity to practice oral skills and to receive feedback at
the paper. The presentations are not a part of the exam and will
not be assessed.
The seminar project paper must be uploaded in Absalon before the
presentations, as the opponents and the other seminar participants
have to read and comment on the paper. It is important that you
upload a paper that is so finalized as possible due to the fact
that the value of feedback and comments at the presentation is
strongly associated with the skill level of the seminar paper.
The teacher defines what materials may be used for the
presentations.
After the presentations, you can with a few corrections improve the
seminar paper by including the feedback and comments emerged during
the presentations. It is NOT intended that you rewrite or begin the
writing of the seminar paper after the presentation has taken
place.
Pandemic:
In case of a pandemic like Corona the teaching in this seminar may
be changed to be taught either fully or partly online. For further
information, see the course room on Absalon.
For relevant literature, please refer to the syllabuses of the courses Public Finance and Tax Policy as well as top journals (American Economic Review, Quarterly Journal of Economics etc.), top field journals (American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, Journal of Public Economics) and the journals Journal of Economic Perspectives and Journal of Economic Literature.
The student will benefit from attending the courses Public Finance and/or Tax Policy before taking the seminar.
BSc in Economics or similar
Schedule:
Spring 2021:
• Kick-Off meeting: 1 hour in week 6
• Extra meetings/Introductory classes/guidings: 3 hours at the
beginning of March (depends on the number of students)
• Deadline for submitting commitmentpaper/ project description: Not
later than March 1st or as specified by the lecturer.
• Deadline of seminar paper uploaded to Absalon: Not later than one
week before the presentations or as specified by the lecturer.
• The presentation-meetings: Approx. 1-3 full or Half days. 2 full
days in mid-May (depends on the number of students). Exact dates
are made in agreement at the Kick-Off meeting.
General information:
It is strongly recommended that you think about and search for a
topic before the semester begins, as there is only a few weeks from
the kick-off meeting to the submission of the project
description/agreement paper.
There is no weekly teaching/lecturing and the student cannot expect
guidance from the teacher. If the teacher gives a few introduction
lectures or gives the opportunity for guidance, this as well as
other expectations are clarified at the kickoff meeting.
All information regarding the seminar is communicated through
Absalon including venue. So it is very important that you by
yourself logon to Absalon and read the information already when you
are registered at the seminar.
For enrolled students: More information about registration, schedule, rules etc. can be found at Master (UK) and Master (DK ).
More information about seminars is available at Seminars (UK) and Seminars (DK).
Read about the study programme and curricula at MSc in Economics
- ECTS
- 7,5 ECTS
- Type of assessment
-
Written examinationA seminar paper in English that meets the formal requirements for written papers stated in the curriculum and at KUNet for seminars.
_____ - Aid
- All aids allowed
for the seminar paper.
The teacher defines the aids that must be used for the presentations.
____
- Marking scale
- 7-point grading scale
- Censorship form
- External censorship
_____
Criteria for exam assessment
Students are assessed on the extent to which they master the learning outcome for the seminar and can make use of the knowledge, skills and competencies listed in the learning outcomes in the Curriculum of the Master programme.
To receive the top grade, the student must with no or only a few minor weaknesses be able to demonstrate an excellent performance displaying a high level of command of all aspects of the relevant material.
- Category
- Hours
- Project work
- 186
- Seminar
- 20
- English
- 206
Kursusinformation
- Language
- English
- Course number
- AØKK08340U
- ECTS
- 7,5 ECTS
- Programme level
- Full Degree Master
- Duration
-
1 semester
- Schedulegroup
-
and venue:
Go to "Remarks"
Exam and re-sits: Go to "Exam" - Capacity
- max. 1 class of 20 students
- Studyboard
- Department of Economics, Study Council
Contracting department
- Department of Economics
Contracting faculty
- Faculty of Social Sciences
Course Coordinator
- Jakob Egholt Søgaard (3-6e69774469677372326f7932686f)
Teacher
Jakob Egholt Søgaard
Timetable
Are you BA- or KA-student?
Courseinformation of students