Baltic International Academy

“European studies” programme, Course outline of

“Empirical Research in Economics and Integration”

Admission requirements

This course assumes knowledge of quantitative research methods and socio-economic

policy analysis at third-year bachelor level.

Description

In this course students master modern methods of applied empirical research. We focus
on empirical methods that uncover the causal impact of public policies. For example,
what is the impact of subsidized childcare on female labor participation, or what is the
impact of an extra year of schooling on your salary? Students also learn how to apply
these methods using a ‘hands-on’ approach. Indeed, the quantitative part of the course
has two elements. First, we review the modern methods in a series of lectures, where we
illustrate the methods with real life examples, and at the end of the lectures there is
written Mid-Term Test. Next, students then apply one of the methods to study the causal
impact of a public policy, using a data set that will be handed to them by the instructors
or using a data set that the students plan to use for their thesis. During this part of the
course we will have weekly consultation sessions. At the end of the course students give
a presentation where they present their research. Students do not have to write a paper.

Course objectives

Introduction to working with software for automated Form processing

Identify appropriate methods of analysis and research techniques to answer a specific

research question

Understand modern applied empirical methods and the underlying assumptions

Work with relevant statistical software packages on real world data sets

Automated data acquisition

Data analysis with SPSS

Test survey: create questionnaire, conduct survey, collect data conventionally;

Independently carry modern empirical methods to study the causal effects of public
policies

Effectively report and present the results of their analyses in the field of Economics and
Governance

Timetable

On the Public Administration front page of the E-guide you will find links to the
website and timetables.

Mode of instruction

The course has the following setup: i) During the first four weeks we have lectures and
a written Mid-Term Test. Specifically, we start with an introductory lecture and then
will cover chapters 1 to 5 of the recent textbook MasteringMetrics: The Path from
Cause to Effect’ by Joshua Angrist and Jörn-Steffen Pischke in a series of lectures
during the first three weeks of the course. We illustrate the methods with examples of
the empirical economics literature that considers the impact of public policies The
written Mid-Term Test on this series of lectures is in the fourth week of the course. ii) In
the remaining weeks students apply one of the modern empirical research methods to a
particular policy using a real life data set, and present their results. We introduce the
software and the data sets (students can also use the data set that they plan to use for
their thesis). Subsequently, students will work with the software and the data set on their
own. During the research period we will have weekly consultation hours. At the end of
the research period students present their research.

Course Load

The total course load is 140 hours:

Hours spent on attending lectures: 12 hours

Seminars: 5 hours

Consultation: 3 hours

Self-study: 60 hours

Mid-Term Test: 3 hours

Empirical research: 55 hours

Assessment method
The assessment of this course is based on two elements:

• Mid-Term Test quantitative research methods (50%)

• Presentation and slides empirical research (50%)

To pass the course, the weighted average of the grades of all three elements has to be
5.5 or higher. Furthermore, the grade for the Mid-Term Test qualitative research
methods has to be 5.5 or higher and the grade for the Mid-Term Test quantitative
research methods has to be 5.5 or higher. We will offer a re-take for the Mid-Term Test
qualitative research methods, the Mid-Term Test quantitative research methods, and for
the presentation and slides of the empirical research at the end of the next block.

Attendance of the lectures on quantitative research methods and the final session with
presentations is obligatory, we will deduct 0.3 points from the final score for each
lecture that is not attended.

Registration

Use both uSis and Blackboard to register for every course.

Register for every course and workgroup via uSis. Some courses and workgroups have
a limited number of participants, so register on time (before the course starts). In uSis
you can access your personal schedule and view your results. Registration in uSis is
possible from four weeks before the start of the course.

Also register for every course in Blackboard. Important information about the course is
posted there.

Contact

Dr. Vladislav Volkov.