Macroeconomics: Institutions and Policy 5 credits

About the course

The principal objective of this course is to equip the student with the tools and ideas necessary to analyse fundamental theories of economic growth. These include the ability to derive and explain the theory of exogenous and endogenous growth models, and to "take the models to the data" to assess how well they can explain observed trends in growth among both developed and developing countries. Particular attention is given to the decline in the labour share of national income observed in developed countries since the 1980's, and whether this trend can be explained by the rise of automation technologies. The role of institutions, such as democracy and the rule of law, in explaining cross-country differences in growth is also covered.

To this end, the course will depart from the Solow model and identify its strengths and weaknesses in explaining established macroeconomic facts and recent trends in economic growth. In a second stage, the weaknesses identified will be addressed in different augmentations of the Solow model and in endogenous growth models. The student will learn to solve these models algebraically, program it, and simulate it. Finally, the course will explore the role of technology and market power in explaining how the material welfare of economic growth is distributed among workers of different occupations, and across workers and capital owners.

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Spring 2027
- Macroeconomics: Institutions and Policy
  
  Offered as a part of a Degree programme
  
  VT27 / Umeå / English / On site
  
  Application opens 15 September 2026
  
  Save education at universityadmissions.se
  
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  Starts
  19 February 2027
  
  Ends
  24 March 2027
  
  Number of credits
  5 credits
  
  Type of studies
  On site
  
  Study pace
  67%
  
  Teaching hours
  Daytime
  
  Study location
  Umeå
  
  Language
  English
  
  Application code
  UMU-2N00V
  
  Eligibility
  
  60 credits completed courses whereof 45 credits in Economics. Proficiency in English equivalent to the Swedish upper secondary course English 6/level 2.
  
  Selection
  
  Guaranteed admission for students at SGPOL, SGEKA, SGIEK, SYCEK, SGSAV.
  
  Application
  The online application opens 15 September 2026 at 09:00 CET. Application deadline is 15 October 2026.
  
  Application and tuition fees
  As a citizen of a country outside the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland, you are required to pay application and tuition fees for studies at Umeå University.
  
  Application fee: SEK 900
  
  Tuition fee, first instalment: SEK 8,050
  
  Total fee: SEK 8,050
  
  Details about tuition, fees and funding

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