Postgraduate course 2022/2023

Quantitative Approaches to Policy Evaluation and Impact Assessment

Type: Elective course

Area of studies: Economics

Delivered by: Department of Applied Economics

Where: Faculty of Economic Sciences

When: 2 year, 2 semester

Mode of studies: offline

Open to: students of one campus

Instructors: Elena Kotyrlo

Language: English

ECTS credits: 4

Contact hours: 40

Course Syllabus

Abstract

The aim of the course is to provide students with knowledge and skills of quantitative methods of ex ante and ex post policy evaluation. The course focuses on complexity of identifying the precise effects of a policy. It provides a comprehensive overview of methods and approaches in designing and evaluating programs and policies under uncertainty and confounding conditions. Several reform cases and their evaluation that will be presented in the course. The topics of the study are aimed to review various areas of economics, where policy evaluation can be implemented. The cases will be mostly based on Russian experience. As ex ante evaluation, a simulation and calibration of general equilibrium model will be demonstrated. Classes will include discussion on data sources and their quality, practice in empirical estimation of treatment effects, modelling of ex-ante impact assessment, and presentations of empirical research papers from the evaluation literature. The course will include the use of STATA, MS Excel, and GAMS. Use of R and other statistical analysis software is optional.