Macroeconomics

This course is an introductory level course in macroeconomic theory and policy. Macroeconomics studies the aggregate behaviour of the economy. The list of topics covered include gross domestic product, economic growth, unemployment, inflation, exchange rates, balance of payments, business cycles, fiscal and monetary policy tools and objectives. The course will build on macroeconomic relationships to develop basc models explaining various interactions within the economy, providing students with a framework for understanding and interrogating the workings of the economy. The course emphasizes relevant and current issues in the context of South African economic history. We also explore South Africa?s relationship with the rest of the world.

DP requirements: You are required to attend the assigned tutorials. If you do not attend and submit 70% of these you will be refused a DP, i.e., you will not be entitled to write the examination. You year mark contributes a half of your final total for the course. If your year mark is below 30% you will not be permitted to write the final examination. If you choose not to submit your essay or not to write a test you will be given a mark of zero for that component of the course, but will be allowed to write the examination provided your year mark is above 30%.

Assessment: Coursework: 50%; Exam: 50%. The course outline will detail the breakdown for submission weightings and variation for exemptions and absences.

The University of Cape Town awards credits based on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) to determine course and contact hour recommendations per course. 1 NQF credit represents roughly 10 notional hours of work which includes study time, assignments and examinations. Notional hours may very per courses depending on the course level and modality therefore, CEA recommends using NQF credits as a basis to determine U.S. equivalencies (1 NQF=.222 semester credits)