This course is an introduction to rigorous and policy-relevant impact evaluation techniques for postgraduate students in economics and public policy. The course’s main emphasis is on evaluating the effect of a policy or a naturally occurring event on the economic and social well being of individuals who are exposed to the event. The course has a strong focus on applications – although students will be expected to fully understand the conceptual underpinnings of each technique.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
On completion of the course, students will:1. Understand the reasoning behind and the rationale of major impact evaluation techniques.
2. Understand published empirical research on policy evaluation and critically assess the validity of causal claims in quantitative research.
3. Be able to determine the appropriate technique in order to rigorously evaluate the impact of an event.
4. Be equipped to apply those techniques in a real-world setting.
5. Be able to use statistical software for applying impact evaluation techniques.
6. Conduct empirical research using modern econometric techniques for policy evaluation.
Overall, at the end of the course, a student should have developed the skills needed to conceive, organize, conduct and present empirical research.
Indicative Assessment
Research paper (50%), Stata problem sets (15%), referee report (20%), presentation (15%).
In response to COVID-19: Please note that Semester 2 Class Summary information (available under the classes tab) is as up to date as possible. Changes to Class Summaries not captured by this publication will be available to enrolled students via Wattle.
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Workload
Lecture of 2 hours per week.Tutorial of 1 hour per week, to train students in using Stata, a popular data analysis software.
Prescribed Texts
Various academic journals, book chapters, and technical papers on relevant issues
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
If you are a domestic graduate coursework or international student you will be required to pay tuition fees. Tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 3
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are an undergraduate student and have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). You can find your student contribution amount for each course at Fees. Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2020 | $4500 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2020 | $6000 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.
Second Semester
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7853 | 27 Jul 2020 | 03 Aug 2020 | 31 Aug 2020 | 30 Oct 2020 | In Person | View |