ECON 4750/6750: INTRODUCTION TO ECONOMETRICS

Fall 2023
Department of Economics, University of Georgia
TR 12:45-2pm, Journalism 0514

INSTRUCTOR: Prof. Jim Berry

OFFICE: Amos B416
E-MAIL: [email protected]
OFFICE HOURS: R 2-3 (or R 1-2 during 3100 OH)
and by appointment

TEACHING ASSISTANT: Mingzhou Wang

E-MAIL: [email protected]

The course syllabus is a general plan for the course; deviations announced to the class by the
instructor may be necessary.

1 Course Description
This course introduces econometric techniques and tools. The course focuses on causal reasoning:
evaluating the causal effects of policies or other economic variables on outcomes of interest. It
will demonstrate how causal reasoning and econometrics are applied in microeconomics research.
Econometric techniques will be put into practice through data analysis using statistical software.

1.1 Learning Objectives

• Interpret the results and critique the methods used in a typical empirical research article in
applied economics. This will serve as a foundation that can be applied in advanced elective
courses.

– Reinforce understanding of hypothesis tests.

– Gain an understanding of causal inference, as applied to both comparisons of means
and regression.
– Understand and implement bivariate and multivariate regression models.

1
 – Understand more advanced techniques to analysis of data that are commonly used in
economic research.

• Be able to apply techniques to actual data using R software.

2 Assignments, Exams, and Grading

2.1 Grades:
Grades in this course will be based on the following:

1. 10 almost-weekly problem sets, counting towards 35% of the final grade. The lowest
problem set score is dropped automatically. One additional problem set score will be dropped
if you do at least 9 problem sets and show effort on all of them. Problem sets will be graded
on a 10-point scale, and the minimum you can get if you show effort on every problem is
6/10.
Problem sets will be due at 5pm on the due date. Late problem sets will not be accepted.
Computer exercises must include the R code that you produce.

2. 3 tests counting towards 50% of the final grade (evenly weighted). Two of these tests will
be during class time, and the third is during final exam period:

Test 1: Thursday, September 19

Test 2: Thursday, October 24
Test 3: Thursday, December 5 12pm (During Final Exam period)

Tests will be on paper and in person.

3. Class participation counts for 15% of the final grade.

2.2 Grading FAQ:

• How are grades determined? Grading is determined by computing a weighted score based
on the weights listed above. The weighted scores are then assigned letter grades based on
my assessment of what warrants a particular letter grade. However, a weighted score of 90
or above is guaranteed an A; a weighted score of 80 or above is guaranteed a B.

• What is “class participation”? I thought this was a statistics class not a discussion-
based class. It is true that the nature of the material doesn’t lend itself to a lot of free-form

2
 discussion. But there are still a lot of opportunities to participate. Your participation grade
will be based on the following.

– Attending class. I will be tracking attendance.

– Asking questions in class. Class is a lot more interesting for everyone when students
ask questions. If you are not sure what I am talking about, please let me know. Instead
of spending time evaluating whether your question is relevant, it’s best to just ask.
– “Check-off” assignments/activities. There may occasionally be assignments or activ-
ities that are not given grades, but you will get 1 point on the participation grade for
doing them.
– Asking questions in office hours. Utilizing office hours shows that you are putting in
effort. **Note that you do not have to come to office hours to get a high participation
grade, but it can substitute for asking questions in class.

2.3 6750 Students

Students taking the 6750 flavor of this class will be required to complete a replication paper. More
information will be provided in the first few weeks of class.

2.4 Excuses for Problem Sets and Exams

Below is the general policy for problem sets and exams. If you have any questions, please don’t
hesitate to ask.
Problem Sets. Late problem sets may be accomodated for illness or personal emergency. Be-
cause one problem set is dropped automatically, I generally do not consider other excuses for
missed problem sets.
Exams: there are several excuses I will consider.

1. Religious observances. Please bring these to my attention in a timely manner, preferably in

the first two weeks of the semester.

2. Athletics and Extracurricular Activities. Your coach/advisor needs to notify me in writing of

the dates you will be missing in the first two weeks of the semester.

3. Illness or family or personal emergency. As with problem sets, please let me know.

4. Employment interviews may be excused if the student presents evidence of the interview and
establishes that (s)he has no control over the timing of the interview.

3
2.5 Exam Regrades
While we take care to grade exams as fairly and consistently as possible, on rare occasions there
may be grading mistakes. If you feel that your test has been graded incorrectly, you must submit
it to the professor (not the grader), along with an explanation of the issue. You need to explain
precisely why the specific problem/problems were incorrectly graded. You must do this within 2
weeks of the exam being returned (not the date you pick it up) for it to be regraded. The entire
exam will be regraded, and as a result it is possible for your grade to go down as well as up.

2.6 Scheduling Adjustments

There will be no in-person classes on October 8 or October 10. Instead, there will be a single
recorded lecture for the week.

3 Academic Integrity and Sharing of Course Materials

3.1 Academic Integrity

UGA Student Honor Code: "I will be academically honest in all of my academic work and will not
tolerate academic dishonesty of others." A Culture of Honesty, the University’s policy and proce-
dures for handling cases of suspected dishonesty, can be found at www.uga.edu/ovpi. Examples
of prohibited conduct are listed at https://honesty.uga.edu/Academic-Honesty-Policy/
Prohibited_Conduct/.

3.2 Sharing of Course Materials

Don’t post course materials to the web.

3.3 Use of AI Technology

Unless explicitly stated, artificial intelligence-based technologies, such as ChatGPT, must not be
used to generate responses for student assignments.

4 Mental Health and Wellness Resources

UGA Well-being Resources promote student success by cultivating a culture that supports a more
active, healthy, and engaged student community.

4
 Anyone needing assistance is encouraged to contact Student Care & Outreach (SCO) in the
Division of Student Affairs at 706-542-8479 or visit sco.uga.edu. Student Care & Outreach
helps students navigate difficult circumstances by connecting them with the most appropriate re-
sources or services. They also administer the Embark@UGA program which supports students
experiencing, or who have experienced, homelessness, foster care, or housing insecurity.
UGA provides both clinical and non-clinical options to support student well-being and mental
health, any time, any place. Whether on campus, or studying from home or abroad, UGA Well-
being Resources are here to help.

• Well-being Resources: well-being.uga.edu

• Student Care and Outreach: sco.uga.edu
• University Health Center: healthcenter.uga.edu
• Counseling and Psychiatric Services: caps.uga.edu or CAPS 24/7 crisis support at 706-
542-2273
• Health Promotion/ Fontaine Center: healthpromotion.uga.edu
• Disability Resource Center and Testing Services: drc.uga.edu

Additional information, including free digital well-being resources, can be accessed through
the UGA app or by visiting https://well-being.uga.edu.

5 DEI Statement
The Terry College is committed to promoting diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging among its
students, faculty, and staff. This class welcomes the open exchange of ideas and values freedom
of thought and expression. This class provides a professional environment that recognizes the
inherent worth of every person. It aims to foster dignity, understanding, and mutual respect among
all individuals in the class.

6 Lectures and Handouts

6.1 Devices in Class

In light of my own experience, and recent research showing detrimental effects of electronic device
usage in college classes (see, e.g., here and here), I restrict the usage of computers and phones
during lecture. The policy is as follows.

5
 1. Computer use is only allowed when we are demonstrating empirical exercises.

2. Use of phones, tablets, smart watches, etc is not allowed at any time.

6.2 Handouts
When we start each topic, I will post lecture notes on eLC. These notes will provide an outline of
the material covered in class. However, there will be some material covered in lecture that does not
appear on the lecture notes, and thus reading the lecture notes should not be viewed as a substitute
for attending class.

7 Textbooks, Statistical Software and Other Course Materials

7.1 Textbooks
There will be two textbooks for this course. The first is Mastering ’Metrics, by Angrist and Pischke.
This book provides a descriptive, intuitive treatment of econometrics, with a special emphasis on
how applied economists use econometric tools, particularly for policy evaluation. It costs much
less than a standard textbook too.
The second textbook is Introduction to Econometrics by Stock and Watson. This is a standard,
popular undergraduate econometrics textbook. We’ll use it for reviewing and extending some of
the more technical material from the prerequisites.
I am aware of how much this book costs. The latest version is the 4th edition, but any other
version will suffice. You can save a lot of money by buying used or versions other than the 4th
edition. You do not need any of the electronic or online material that comes with a new, full-price
book. You could also rent the textbook, although it is a good reference to have around after the
course is over.
My lectures generally follow the books, but the textbooks often give a different treatment/discussion
of the material in lecture. The textbooks should be used as complements (NOT substitutes) to lec-
ture.

7.2 R Statistical Software

In order to become skilled in applied econometrics, you need to be doing it in practice. Hence,
most problem sets will contain computer exercises. For this class we will be using the R statistical
software package.
Class on Tuesday, August 20 will consist of an R tutorial.

6
 R has a learning curve, but the big advantage is that you can use it for free on your Windows
or Mac computer. And once you have some of the basics down, you start to feel like a cool
programmer. Please take advantage of office hours to ask questions. I can also schedule extra time
to cover issues with R during the semester if there is demand.

7.3 eLearning Commons

Everyone enrolled in the class should be automatically enrolled in the course’s eLC site. I will
use eLC for posting announcements, lecture notes, assignments, and grades. Please email me with
questions rather than using eLC discusssions or comments.

8 Course Outline
The outline below gives the relevant readings from Stock and Watson (SW) or Angrist and Pischke
(AP) from each topic. Each lecture note will also contain the readings that pertain to it.

1. Review of Statistics (SW Chapters 2-3)

2. Introduction to Policy Evaluation; Randomized Trials (AP - Chapter 1)

3. Bivariate Regression (SW - Chapter 4-5)

4. Multivariate Regression (AP - Chapter 2; SW - Chapter 6 - 7)

5. Data mining, p-hacking, and other mischief (Resources TBA)

6. Dummy Variables: (SW - 8.3; 11.1)

7. Instrumental Variables (IV) Estimation (AP - Chapter 3)

8. Differences-in-differences and Basic Panel Data (AP - Chapter 5; SW Chapter 10)