Courses - Spring 2026
AREC210
The Food Chain: What Happens As Your Food Goes From Farm to Table
How can we feed a growing global population, reduce farming's environmental damage, and provide a healthier diet, all in the face of climate change? The course explores these global food system challenges in the context of the food supply chains that link farms, input providers, traders, food processors, retailers, consumers, and governments. We assess how supply chains are organized; how they use technologies; and how they can create organizations, develop new technologies, and adapt food production practices to meet these four major challenges facing the global food system.
AREC240
Introduction to Economics and the Environment
Credit only granted for: AREC240 or AREC250 .
Costs and social impacts of pollution and human crowding in the modern environment. The economic, legal and institutional causes of these problems. Public policy approaches to solutions and the costs and benefits of alternative solutions.
AREC326
Intermediate Applied Microeconomics
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F
Prerequisite: ECON200, AREC250, or AREC240; and ECON201. And MATH120, MATH130, MATH136, or MATH140; or must have completed MATH220.
Credit only granted for: ECON306, ECON326, AREC489M, or AREC326.
Formerly: AREC489M.
Deepens and broadens your ability to apply rigorous economic analysis skills to a broad range of problems.
AREC345
This interdisciplinary course explores social and economic development around the world. Topics include geography, democratization, political instability and conflict, health and education, agricultural development, micro-entrepreneurship, and an introduction to impact evaluation methods used to evaluate the efficacy of public policy aimed at alleviating poverty.
AREC365
World Hunger, Population, and Food Supplies
An introduction to the problem of world hunger and possible solutions to it. World demand, supply, and distribution of food. Alternatives for leveling off world food demand, increasing the supply of food, and improving its distribution. Environmental limitations to increasing world food production.
AREC388
Internship Experience
Credits:
3 - 6
Grad Meth:
Reg
AREC389
Special Problems
Credits:
1 - 3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
AREC399
Undergraduate Research
Credits:
3 - 6
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
AREC405
Economics of Production
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: ECON326 or AREC326; or students who have taken courses with comparable content may contact the department.
The use and application of production economics in analysis of firm and policy decisions. Production functions, cost functions, multiple product and joint production, and production processes through time.
AREC422
Econometric Analysis in Agricultural and Environmental Economics
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F
Prerequisite: 1 course from (AREC326 or ECON326); and 1 course from (ECON230, ECON321, or BMGT230).
Credit only granted for: ECON422, ECON424, or AREC422.
This course offers a hands-on introduction to econometrics. Students will explore the linear regression model from the ground up by analyzing real-world datasets and learning how to distinguish causation from correlation. They will gain practical experience using econometrics to address important questions in agricultural economics and environmental economics.
AREC426
Economic Methods and Food Consumption Policy
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: AREC326; or ECON326.
Credit only granted for: AREC489O or AREC426.
Formerly: AREC489O.
An overview of major econometric tools used by policy makers, economists and social scientists to analyze the effects of food consumption policy. Major food assistance programs in the United States such as SNAP, the School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program will be discussed.
AREC433
Food and Agricultural Policy
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: ECON326 or AREC326; or students who have taken courses with comparable content may contact the department.
Economic and political context of governmental involvement in the farm and food sector. Historical programs and current policy issues. Analysis of economic effects of agricultural programs, their benefits and costs, and comparison of policy alternatives. Analyzes the interrelationship among international development, agricultural trade and general economic and domestic agricultural policies.
AREC435
Commodity Futures and Options
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: AREC326; or ECON326; or students who have taken courses with comparable content may contact the department.
The economics and institutional features of commodity futures and options markets. Students will develop a basic understanding of the underlying price relationships between cash and futures markets and will apply this information to business risk management decision making.
AREC454
The Economics of Climate Change
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: 1 course with a minimum grade of C- from (AREC326, ECON306, ECON326); and 1 course with a minimum grade of C- from (ECON230, ECON321, BMGT230).
Cross-listed with: ECON484.
Credit only granted for: AREC454 or ECON484.
The role of economics in the formation of climate policy; basic concepts of environmental economics including efficiency, externalities, and policy instruments; economic models of intertemporal decisions and decision making in the face of uncertainty. Applied economic analysis of specific issues and current policy initiatives.
AREC456
Energy and Environmental Economics
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F
Prerequisite: 1 course with a minimum grade of C- from (AREC326, ECON306, ECON326); and 1 course with a minimum grade of C- from (ECON230, ECON321, BMGT230).
Cross-listed with: ECON486.
Credit only granted for: AREC456 or ECON486.
Economic theory and empirical methods are used to study problems of energy, the environment, and the economy. It examines the extraction, production, and use of energy and market institutions and regulatory approaches used to correct market failures. Topics covered include: oil and natural gas markets, management and design of electricity markets, renewable energy, non-market valuation , climate change, and transportation policies.
AREC466
Transportation Engineering, Economics, and Policy
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: BMGT230, ECON230, ECON321, ENCE302, or PLCY304; or permission of the instructors.
Recommended: AREC326, ECON306 or ECON326.
Credit only granted for: AREC466 or ENCE489T.
The transportation system moves people and goods around the world, but transportation has downsides: harming local air quality, contributing to climate change, causing traffic accidents, and wasting people's time on congested roads. Mitigating these downsides will require new policies, new technologies, and new decisions by households and businesses. Focusing on the US transportation system, students will apply an integrated economics, policy, and engineering perspective to analyze transportation's most pressing challenges. Students are expected to have some background in one of the three disciplines--economics, engineering, or policy--but not all three. The beginning of the semester will include tutorials for students without much economics or engineering background.
AREC481
Environmental Economics
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: 1 course with a minimum grade of C- from (AREC326, ECON306, ECON326); and 1 course with a minimum grade of C- from (ECON230, ECON321, BMGT230).
Restriction: Must be in one of the following programs (Agricultural and Resource Economics; Agricultural and Resource Economics: Agribusiness; Agricultural and Resource Economics: Environmental and Resource Economics; Economics Bachelor of Arts; Environmental Science & Policy-Env Economics; Social Data Science-Economics; Economics minor).
Cross-listed with: ECON481.
Credit only granted for: ECON481 or AREC481.
An exploration of the use of economic incentives for protection of the environment and the determination of appropriate (or efficient) level of environmental quality. Also covers the choice of policy instruments for the attainment of environmental standards.
AREC489C
Special Topics in Agricultural and Resources Economics
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
AREC499
Honors Thesis Research
Credits:
3 - 6
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
AREC610
Microeconomic Applications in Agricultural and Resource Markets
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud
Prerequisite: ECON603 and AREC620.
Applications of graduate level microeconomic analysis to the problems of agricultural and natural resource production and distribution including demand for agricultural output, the nature of agricultural supply decisions, decision making under uncertainty, valuation of natural resources, and exploitation of natural resources.
AREC624
Applied Econometrics II
Credits:
4
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud
Prerequisite: AREC623.
Variations of the standard linear model, simultaneous equations estimation, nonlinear regression, nonlinear simultaneous equations estimation, static and dynamic panel data models, errors in variables, Hausman tests, discrete choice models such as conditional multinomial and mixed logit models, latent class models, semi-parametric estimation, varying parameter models, unobserved variables, time series models, and model selection procedures.
AREC699
Special Problems in Agricultural and Resource Economics
Credits:
1 - 2
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud
AREC784
Energy Economics, Empirical Industrial Organization, and Public Policy
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud, S-F
Prerequisite: ECON603, AREC623, and AREC624; or permission of instructor.
Energy markets and public policy, evaluating techniques for estimating market demand and supply and for evaluating policy intervention. Comparison of reduced-form and structural approaches. Applications may include but are not limited to electricity, oil and other liquid fuels, and household travel, with examples from the United States and other countries.
AREC799
Master's Thesis Research
Credits:
1 - 6
Grad Meth:
S-F
AREC815
Experimental and Behavioral Economics
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, S-F
Prerequisite: AREC623, AREC624, ECON603, and ECON604; or equivalent.
Credit only granted for: AREC815 or AREC869A.
Formerly: AREC869A.
An overview of the design, implementation, and analysis of experiments motivated by behavioral economics, with a particular focus on experiments in field settings. Topics covered include social preferences, risk aversion, prospect theory, present bias, overconfidence, and limited attention.
AREC869D
Advanced Topics in Agricultural and Resource Economics; . Political Economy of Development
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud
AREC898
Pre-Candidacy Research
Credits:
1 - 8
Grad Meth:
S-F
AREC899
Doctoral Dissertation Research
Credits:
6
Grad Meth:
S-F
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