Credits: 3
Pre-requisites: None
Core / Optional: Optional
Aim(s):To introduce necessary macroeconomics and microeconomics principles for engineering decision-making.
Intended Learning Outcomes:
- describe the key ideas that define the economic way of thinking.
- analyse how demand and supply determine prices.
- explain the relationship between a firm’s output and costs.
- analyse the impact of government interventions in markets.
- analyse the effect of international trade on the microeconomics of organisations.
- appraise economic effects on engineering projects.
Course Content (Only main topics & subtopics):
- Basic Economic Concepts: Scarcity, thinking on the margin; opportunity cost; the power of trade; comparative advantage; production possibilities.
- Allocation of Resources: Demand, supply, demand and supply shifters; equilibrium; elasticity; price ceilings and floors; the labour market.
- Cost and Production: Profit and loss ratios; how much should a firm produce; production function.
- Government and the Macroeconomy: Public goods and private goods; economics of environment; GDP; unemployment; inflation; the role of central banking; other measures of development system and welfare economics.
- International Trade and Globalization: Trade between countries; growth of globalization; the role of free trade; multinational companies; foreign exchange and its impact on stability.
- Group Project: Case Study Presentation.
Time Allocation:
| Learning component | Hours |
|---|---|
| Theory | 22 |
| Small group activities | 16 |
| Assignments | 18 |
| Practical | – |
| Independent Learning | 94 |
Marks Allocation:
| Assessment | Percentage Marks |
|---|---|
| Continuous Assessments | 50% |
| Final Assessment | 50% |
Recommended Reading:
- Coaver, T. & Takevie, A. (2015). Modern Principles of Economics, 3rd Edition, Worth Publishers, New York.
- Marko, M.S. (2021). Principles of Economics. Pearson Education, 9th Edition, Cengage, UK.
- Master, D., Koppock, L. and O’Reale, B. (2016). Essentials of Economics. Norton & Co.
- Parkh, M. (2010). Macroeconomics. Pearson Education, UK.