ECON 1200 - Big Data and Social Issues

Goals: The course has three principal learning objectives: 1) to introduce students to social science research on key social and economic issues, 2) to teach students how to analyze data using quantitative methods, and 3) to show students to how practitioners are using data to analyze social problems.

Content: This course will show how “big data” can be used to understand and explore some of the most important social and economic problems of our time. The course will give students an introduction to research in applied economics and social science that does not require prior coursework in Economics or Statistics. Topics include equality of opportunity, education, health care, climate change, and crime. In the context of these topics, the course will also provide an introduction to basic statistical methods and data analysis techniques using R (statistical software).

Credits: 4