THE INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY

VNU-HCM

SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

(BA117IU)

INTRODUCTION TO
MICROECONOMICS

COURSE GUIDELINE

Sep 2010

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 CONTENT
COURSE STAFF..........................................................................................................................4
Communication with Staff............................................................................................................4
INFORMATION ABOUT THE COURSE..................................................................................4
Teaching times and Locations......................................................................................................4
Perquisite and Parallel courses.....................................................................................................4
Relationship of this course to other course offerings...................................................................4
Approach to learning and teaching...............................................................................................5
COURSE OBJECTIVES AND OUTCOMES.............................................................................5
Course objectives..........................................................................................................................5
Student learning and outcomes ....................................................................................................5
Teaching Strategies.......................................................................................................................5
STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES AND CONDUCT..................................................................6
Workload ......................................................................................................................................6
Attendance ...................................................................................................................................6
General Conduct and Behavior.....................................................................................................6
Keeping informed.........................................................................................................................6
LEARNING ASSESSMENT.......................................................................................................6
Assessment details .......................................................................................................................6
Assignment Submission Procedure .............................................................................................7
Late submission ...........................................................................................................................8
Assignment Format.......................................................................................................................8
ACADEMIC HONESTY AND PLAGIARISM .........................................................................8
STUDENT RESOURCES............................................................................................................8
Course Resources.........................................................................................................................9
COURSE SCHEDULE ................................................................................................................9

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COURSE STAFF
Teaching Staff: Dr. Vuong Hung Cuong
Room: 709
Phone: 09 48 39 96 69
Email: vuonghungcuong@yahoo.com
Consultant times: To be advised/ also by appointment

Tutor:
Room:
Phone:
Email:
Consultant times: To be advised/ also by appointment

Communication with Staff

Student are advised to contact staff during consultant times, or by arranging an appointment.

INFORMATION ABOUT THE COURSE

Teaching times and Locations

Week Activity Day Time Room Note

1–7 Lecture Thurs 8 – 11 am A402 GROUP A
Fri 1 – 4 pm A402 GROUP B
Tutorial
8 Mid-term
9 – 13 Lecture Thurs 8 – 11 am A402 GROUP A
Fri 1 – 4 pm A402 GROUP B
Tutorial
14 Reserve
15 Final Exam

1.2. Units of Credit

UOC value for the course: 3

Perquisite and Parallel courses

Not applicable

Relationship of this course to other course offerings

This is core required course for all majors in the Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA).
It focuses on the basic principles of market economy.

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Approach to learning and teaching
The teaching and learning adopted in this course is learner-center, and consequently, requires
active student participation and contribution. Through a range of interactive activities and
teaching strategies, it seeks to engage students in the learning. It also seeks to facilitate
independent learning through individual tasks and research, and fosters collaborative learning
through a range of group activities. It considers prior learning through a range of group
activities.

COURSE OBJECTIVES AND OUTCOMES

Course objectives
This course seeks to provide an in-depth understanding of basic economic concepts and scare
resources, market in which supply, demand and prices are examined in connection with
consumers as well as producer behavior. The students can also evaluate various types of
market structures as well as the Government intervention into the market. The subject also
provides the students with necessary abilities to evaluate economic variables of efficiency. All
of the help students plan for a company’s short-run and long-run development more effectively
with consideration of effects of the government’s policies.

Student learning and outcomes

By the end of this course, students should be able to:
- Demonstrate an understanding of the concepts of economics, the allocation of scare
resources
- Analyze and evaluate the factors that affect supply, demand, and price of a good in a
market and the elasticity
- Demonstrate an understanding of the government intervention into the market of a
particular product such as price ceiling and floor, tax and subsidy. etc
- Recognize and demonstrate and understanding of various kinds and market structures
and the strategies of firms in these market structures.

Teaching Strategies

The teaching and learning approach in this course is highly inter-active, requiring student
participation and contribution. To this end, and prior to each class, students must:
- The weekly lecture and tutorial outline will be sent via emails. Pls. note that the Lecture
Notes will be posted before each class.
- Prepare your weekly readings (from the textbook and other distributed course
materials)
- Prepare your responses to set discussion questions and cases
- Be prepared to participate in the class discussions, group work

The general format of classes in this course will be as follows (with some variations)
- Lecture (3.0 hours): theories and conceptual framework, discussions and group
presentations
- Tutorial (1.0 hours): case studies, group discussion, exercises and assignments

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STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES AND CONDUCT

Workload
It is expected that you will spend at least 8 hours per week studying this course. This time
should be made up of reading, working on exercises and problem, group assignment and
attending class lectures and tutorials. In periods where you need to complete assignment or
prepare for examinations, the workload may be greater.

Attendance
Your regular and punctual attendance at lectures and related seminar (if any) is expected in this
course. University regulations indicate that if students attend less than 80% of scheduled
classes they may be refused final assessment. Regular attendance is essential for successful
performance and learning in this course, particular in view of the interactive teaching and
learning approach adopted. Please inform your lecture if you are unable to attend the class, and
arrange for a classmate to collect any handouts.

General Conduct and Behavior

You are expected to conduct yourself with considerable and respect for the needs of your
fellow students and teaching staff. Conduct that unduly disrupts or interferes with a class, such
as ringing, or talking on mobile phones, or chatting on internet, is nor acceptable and students
may be asked to leave the class.

Keeping informed
You should take note of all announcements made in lectures, tutorials or on the course website.
From time to time, the University will send important announcements to your through website,
course website and/ or Announcement Board (of School of Business and/ or Academic Affair)
without providing you with a paper copy. You will be deemed to have received this
information.

LEARNING ASSESSMENT
Assessment details
To pass this course, student must:
- attempt ALL FOUR assessment tasks
- submit/ complete all assessment tasks on time
- attain an overall pass mark of 50% in the course

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Assessment Tasks:

Tasks Marks Date/ Notes

1. Assignment Group report + presentation 30% On the beginning of presentation
(cases); or exercises date
2. Mid-term Test 25%
3. Final Test 45%

1. Assignment & Group presentation:

The group will include 3-4 members and will present the cases (that is specified in the Course
schedule). Due to the large number of groups and the limited of time, the groups that have the
same topic should prepare the presentation (Power Point file) and one group will be random
selected for presentation. The presentation will be taken in 5 – 10 minutes, questions and
discussions are in 10 minutes.

The requirements for this assignment are:

- Present the case (and ensuring that you are well understanding that case).
- Provide your own thinking about the case, for example: whether you like it or hate it
and why? Can you think about an extension ?...
- Apply into Vietnamese economic context (you can find the appropriate example in
Vietnamese environment)
The group is strongly recommended to consult with lecturer and tutor before make the
presentation.

In case of exercises, students are asked to take some short tests (about 15minute each). The
requirements of the tests are: understanding and well explaining the concepts of economics,
making economic analysis, and mathematical economics.

2. Mid-term Test
The midterm test will be 60 – 90 minutes in length and will be in the form of multiple choices
questions and essay (problems). This is open book test.

3. Final Test
The final test will be 90 – 120 minutes in length during Final Exam Period. The paper will
consist of 2 parts: the first part is multiple choices questions, that usually take 50 – 60%, and
the second part is case study and/ or open questions. This is close book test.

Grading
The letter grade will be followed by the University suggested rule:
90-100: A+, 80-90: A, 70 – 80: B+, 65 – 70: B, 55 – 65: C+, 50 – 55: C, 30 - <50: D+,
10 - <30: D

Assignment Submission Procedure

It is essential that you submit all your assignment tasks on time via the appropriate procedures.
You should submit your written assignment to the tutor or lecturer in the beginning of class
that your group will present.
Procedure

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i) Attach a copy of the Assignment Cover Sheet to be found at the end of this document
ii) Make the copy of the assignment for safe keeping
iii) Hand in your assignment to the tutor or lecturer
iv) You may not submit assignment via email or by fax

Late submission
Request for late submission of assignments or absent in the session that your group will present
must be made in writing to the course lecturer. Extensions will be granted on medical grounds
only, or on compassionate grounds under special circumstances. Medical certificates or other
supporting documents may be required. Late submissions may incur a penalty of 5% of the
assignment mark per day.

Assignment Format
See page 10

ACADEMIC HONESTY AND PLAGIARISM *

The University regards plagiarism as a form of academic misconduct, and has very strict rules
regarding plagiarism.

Plagiarism is the presentation of the thoughts or work of another as one’s own. Examples
include:
- direct duplication of the thoughts or work of another, including by copying work, or
knowingly permitting it to be copied. This includes copying material. Ideas or concepts
from a book, article, report or other written document (whether published or
unpublished), composition, artwork, design, drawing, circuitry, computer program or
software, web site, Internet, other electronic resource, or another person’s assignment
without appropriate acknowledgement;
- paraphrasing another person’s work with very minor changes keeping the meaning,
form and/ or progression of ideas of the original;
- piecing together sections of the work of others into a new whole;
- presenting an assessment item as independent work when it has been produced in
whole or part in collusion with other people, for example, another student or a tutor;

The inclusion of the thoughts or work of another with attribution appropriate to the academic
discipline does not amount to plagiarism.

Students are also reminded that careful time management is an important part of study and one
of the identified causes of plagiarism is poor time management. Students should allow
sufficient time for research, drafting and the proper referencing of sources in preparing all
assessment items.

STUDENT RESOURCES

*
Used with kind permission from the University of New South Wales

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Course Resources
The following text and references are essential for the course.

Textbook:
N. Gregory Mankiw (2004 or new edition), Principles of Economics, 3rd edition, Thomson
South-Western

References:
David Begg, Economics, Stanley Fischer
Paul A. Samuelson & William D. Nordhaus, Economics, 14th Edition, Mc.Graw-Hill, Inc.

Lecture Notes:
Will be distributed by Dr. Vuong Hung Cuong via email

Useful Websites:

1. Open Courseware, Fulbright Economics Teaching Program:

http://ocw.fetp.edu.vn/index.cfm

2. Mankiw Xtra! Website: http://mankiwxtra.swlearning.com

(Username: Maiphuong
Password: quynhmai)

3. Vietnam Economic Times: http://vneconomy.vn/home.htm

4. Dominique Salvatore, Managerial Economics Website

http://www.swlearning.com/economics/salvatore/salvatore5e/salvatore5e.html

5. ECO 100 Online

http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~reak/eco100/

The students are encouraged to add more reference resources into this list

COURSE SCHEDULE
Week Topic Readings: Mankiw
1 - Course Introduction Chapter 1
- Basic Concepts of the Reading: Chapter 1 &
Economics Chapter 2 (Textbook)
2 Basic Concepts of the Chapter 1
Economics (con’t) Reading : Chapter 1 &
Chapter 2 (Textbook)
3 Supply – Demand & Chapter 2-Lecture
Market Prices Notes/ Chapter 4,
Chapter 6, Chapter 7
(Textbook)
Case study
(Textbook: Mankiw)
Case 1:
Who has a comparative
advantage in
producing lamp, p.54
Case 2:
- Two ways to reduce
the quality of smoking
demanded, p.70

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4 Supply – Demand &
Market Prices (con’t)
Chapter 2-Lecture Case 3:
Notes/ Chapter 4, Lines at the gas pump,
Chapter 6, Chapter 7 p.116,
(Textbook) Case 4:
Rent control in the
Short run and Long
run, p.117

5 Elasticity and Its Chapter 3-Lecture Case 5:

Applications Notes/ Chapter 5 Should there be a
(textbook) market in organs, p.152

6 Elasticity and Its
Applications
Case 6:
- Pricing Admission to
a Museum, p.98
Chapter 3-Lecture Case 5:
Notes/ Chapter 5 Should there be a
(textbook) market in organs, p.152

Case 6:
- Pricing Admission to
a Museum, p.98
7 Theories of Consumer Chapter 4-Lecture Case 7:
Choice Notes/ Chapter 21 Income Effect on Labor
(Textbook) Supply: historical
trends, Lottery winners
and the Carnegie
conjecture, p. 472
8 MID-TERM
9 Production and the Cost Chapter 5-Lecture Case 8:
of production Notes/ Chapter 13 True profit versus
(Textbook) fictitious profit, p. 271
10 Perfect competitive Chapter 6-Lecture Case 9:
market Notes/ Chapter 14 - Near-empty
(Textbook) restaurants and off-
season miniature golf,
p. 298
Case 10:
The DeBeers diamond
monopoly, p.315
11 Monopoly Chapter 7-Lecture Case 11:
Notes/ Chapter 15 Monopoly drugs versus
(textbook) Generic drugs, p.324
Case 12:
Advertising and the
price of eyeglasses, p.
382
12 Monopolistic Chapter 8-Lecture Case 13:

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 competition & Oligopoly Notes/ Chapter 16, 17 OPEC and the world
(textbook) oil market, p.353
Case 14
The Prisoner’s
dilemma tournament, p.
362
13 Monopolistic Chapter 8-Lecture Case 15
competition & Oligopoly Notes/ Chapter 16, 17 The Microsoft case,
(Cont’) (textbook) p.366

14 Final Exam

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 THE INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY
VNU-HCM

SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

INTRODUCTION TO MICROECONOMICS

GROUP REPORT
Group members:

Student Number Surname Given Name

1.
2.
3.

Student Name Responsibility in Assignment Participation % *

1.
2.
3.

* Please ensure that you discuss this % as a group and that the mark is fairly allocated. If
your group has any problem, please discuss with the course lecturer

Signatures:
a. ____________________________________

b. ____________________________________

c. ____________________________________

Date Submitted: _________________________

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