Development Economics

Econ UA-323 (002), GCASL-388, T-Th 09.30-10.45 am, NYU Fall 2023

Debraj Ray, Room 608, 18 West 4th Street
debraj.ray@nyu.edu, Office Hours M2.30-5.00pm or preferably by appointment

Course Assistant: Ludovica Ciasullo developmenteconfall23@gmail.com
Room 617, 19 West 4th Street; Office hours: M5:30pm-6:45pm.

Examinations:There will be three examinations: on Tuesday, October 03, Tuesday, November 07 and Thursday, December 14. All examinations will be closed-book. No calculators or electronic equipment will be permitted.

Important Note: I will not permit a makeup examination unless you have a very good reason for the makeup. In case of illness, I will need a medical certificate from the doctor; in the case of a family emergency a letter from a parent will be needed. Avoid calling me to cancel an exam on the day of that exam or the night before.

Problem Sets: I will hand out problem sets, and later the answers. These will be graded "lightly" for making sure you are putting in adequate effort. Of course, apart from the grade, they will be good practice for the exams.

Grades: The problem sets count for 20% of your course grade, exam 1 for 25%, exam 2 for 27% and exam 3 for 28%.

The exams are somewhat cumulative in two ways. First, some of the earlier concepts are needed for later parts of the course. In addition, I reserve the right to ask you simple questions about concepts taught (without giving you detailed questions based on that material). This is why the later exams count for a somewhat higher percentage of the grade. Every bit of class material, including slides, handouts and spoken lectures, is fair game for the exam. So are the readings, except for those parts that contain additional material not discussed in class. You will only need to have a broad idea of this additional material, such as what the main concepts are (rather than algebra details).

Grader: Your grader is Ludovica Ciasullo, developmenteconfall23@gmail.com. She is not a teaching assistant so she will not hold recitations, but she will have office hours (see header). If you have concerns about your grading, email her and set up a time to meet. Any unresolved matter will be passed on to me.

Office Hours: My office hours are listed above. But it is best to email me and set up a time, even if it is during my regular office hours. In addition, emailing me is the best way to find a time outside office hours. You will find me to be flexible about meetings, but you have to email me first.