Core courses

The objectives are: (1) To provide students with a foundation in microeconomic analysis and; (2) To demonstrate how this foundation can be applied to design, predict the effects of and evaluate public policies. Students will be equipped to understand the main issues on a range of policy topics such as taxation, social insurance, welfare and income support programs.

*Note: Either PPG200H1 or ECO200Y1/ECO204Y1/ECO206Y1 can fulfill completion requirements for the Public Policy Major program.

The course introduces students to the study of public policy, the policy process and our policy institutions in Canada. The course examines how issues emerge, how important ideas are framed, priorities are established, and agendas are set and managed. It explores how institutions – formal and informal rules which enable and constrain actors – shape policy-making in Canada.

*Note: This course is required for Public Policy Major program completion.

This course examines a selected topic in public policy, based on the research interests of an individual instructor. Both the topics and the instructor may change each time the course is offered.

Economic Lives of the Poor: This course will explore and understand the daily lives, struggles, and resilience of people living in poverty. By delving into the tough decisions and trade-offs the poor face—often matters of life and death—we aim to shed light on how better policies and approaches can be designed to address global poverty effectively. While external solutions to poverty often dominate the conversation, we will uncover the remarkable, innovative strategies that people in poverty develop to navigate their circumstances. Surviving on meager resources requires extraordinary decision-making and adaptability. Understanding these decisions and trade-offs is a crucial starting point in the fight against poverty. Throughout the course, we will explore questions such as: How do the poor organize their social and economic lives? Why are larger families more common among the poor? How do they prepare for emergencies and old age with limited resources? By the end of the course, students will gain deep insights into the lives of the poor, understanding how seemingly irrational choices often make perfect sense in their context. While our analysis will entail an economic perspective, we will embrace a broad, interdisciplinary approach to foster rich discussions. No prior knowledge of economics is required.

*Note: This is an elective course which can count towards Public Policy Major program completion.

This course examines a selected advanced topic in public policy, based on the research interests of an individual instructor. Both the topics and the instructor may change each time the course is offered.

Surveillance, Technology, and Society: This course considers how surveillance has shaped modern society. Tracing changes in surveillance over time, the course surveys how different actors, from scientists to social theorists, policymakers, and activists, have differentially conceptualized surveillance and its consequences. The course pays special attention to the social, political, and economic contexts central to emergence of data-intensive surveillance. The course assesses how new surveillance practices, including the use of artificial intelligence, are reconfiguring the relationship between industry and the state, as well as introducing human rights concerns.

*Note: This is an elective course which can count towards Public Policy Major program completion.

This course explores the government’s role in promoting efficiency and equity in both the financing and delivery of public policy goals. It explores the conditions when government involvement is important, the policy levers available to government in promoting social policy, market failures, and conditions for efficiency. It examines the role of government in many of the major areas of social policy such as health care, education, redistribution, the environment, financial regulations and other important issues.

*Note: This course is required for Public Policy Major program completion.

This course examines a selected advanced topic in public policy, based on the research interests of an individual instructor. Both the topics and the instructor may change each time the course is offered.

Inequality and Growth: Neoliberal thinking has dominated economic policy advice for decades. Such thinking is premised on the notion that policy makers should “go for growth” because "a rising tide lifts all boats". Politicians increasingly reject such advice as being at best politically naïve and at worst responsible for outcomes that have not been inclusive; populist and nationalist leaders are getting elected on the promise that they will do right by those left behind by globalization (allowing the "low-lying boats" to catch up). Policy makers need to make choices about both the level of economic growth and the inclusiveness of such growth, taking account of interactions between the two variables, including the extent to which high inequality undercuts the sustainability of healthy economic growth. This course will familiarize students with a range of empirical evidence on the growth experience of both advanced and developing countries; about the nexus between economic reforms and growth; and about the drivers of rising inequality, including policy drivers. It will discuss how the failure to manage globalization in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, including the role of the IMF, led to the populist outcomes we are seeing today. The course will also cover the political economy of reform, including how to design pro-growth policies that do not contribute to an electoral backlash. The course will equip students with an understanding of the evidentiary basis of policy advice on economic growth and inequality, including as proffered by multilateral financial and development institutions (e.g., the IMF and World Bank). Students wishing to position themselves for careers in such institutions, or in economic advisory roles in national administrations, will benefit from the course.

*Note: This is an elective course which can count towards Public Policy Major program completion.

This course examines a selected advanced topic in public policy, based on the research interests of an individual instructor. Both the topics and the instructor may change each time the course is offered.

Causes and Consequences of Civil Conflicts and Violence: The course examines the complex links between violent conflict and socio-economic development. Students will explore the macro- and micro-level processes that lead to conflict and how political violence impacts individuals and communities, particularly in terms of education, health, and labor outcomes. The course will also delve into how these micro-level effects relate to broader political, social, and economic issues, including governance and institutional development. To investigate these topics, the course will integrate theoretical frameworks and empirical data, utilizing both country-specific and cross-country evidence to critically analyze the origins of conflict and its far-reaching consequences.

*Note: This is an elective course which can count towards Public Policy Major program completion.

The objectives are: (1) To provide students with a foundation in microeconomic analysis and; (2) To demonstrate how this foundation can be applied to design, predict the effects of and evaluate public policies. Students will be equipped to understand the main issues on a range of policy topics such as taxation, social insurance, welfare and income support programs.

*Note: Either PPG200H1 or ECO200Y1/ECO204Y1/ECO206Y1 can fulfill completion requirements for the Public Policy Major program.

The course introduces students to the study of public policy, the policy process and our policy institutions in Canada. The course examines how issues emerge, how important ideas are framed, priorities are established, and agendas are set and managed. It explores how institutions – formal and informal rules which enable and constrain actors – shape policy-making in Canada.

*Note: This course is required for Public Policy Major program completion.

This course examines a selected topic in public policy, based on the research interests of an individual instructor. Both the topics and the instructor may change each time the course is offered.

Economic Lives of the Poor: This course will explore and understand the daily lives, struggles, and resilience of people living in poverty. By delving into the tough decisions and trade-offs the poor face—often matters of life and death—we aim to shed light on how better policies and approaches can be designed to address global poverty effectively. While external solutions to poverty often dominate the conversation, we will uncover the remarkable, innovative strategies that people in poverty develop to navigate their circumstances. Surviving on meager resources requires extraordinary decision-making and adaptability. Understanding these decisions and trade-offs is a crucial starting point in the fight against poverty. Throughout the course, we will explore questions such as: How do the poor organize their social and economic lives? Why are larger families more common among the poor? How do they prepare for emergencies and old age with limited resources? By the end of the course, students will gain deep insights into the lives of the poor, understanding how seemingly irrational choices often make perfect sense in their context. While our analysis will entail an economic perspective, we will embrace a broad, interdisciplinary approach to foster rich discussions. No prior knowledge of economics is required.

*Note: This is an elective course which can count towards Public Policy Major program completion.

This course examines a selected advanced topic in public policy, based on the research interests of an individual instructor. Both the topics and the instructor may change each time the course is offered.

Surveillance, Technology, and Society: This course considers how surveillance has shaped modern society. Tracing changes in surveillance over time, the course surveys how different actors, from scientists to social theorists, policymakers, and activists, have differentially conceptualized surveillance and its consequences. The course pays special attention to the social, political, and economic contexts central to emergence of data-intensive surveillance. The course assesses how new surveillance practices, including the use of artificial intelligence, are reconfiguring the relationship between industry and the state, as well as introducing human rights concerns.

*Note: This is an elective course which can count towards Public Policy Major program completion.

This course explores the government’s role in promoting efficiency and equity in both the financing and delivery of public policy goals. It explores the conditions when government involvement is important, the policy levers available to government in promoting social policy, market failures, and conditions for efficiency. It examines the role of government in many of the major areas of social policy such as health care, education, redistribution, the environment, financial regulations and other important issues.

*Note: This course is required for Public Policy Major program completion.

This course examines a selected advanced topic in public policy, based on the research interests of an individual instructor. Both the topics and the instructor may change each time the course is offered.

Inequality and Growth: Neoliberal thinking has dominated economic policy advice for decades. Such thinking is premised on the notion that policy makers should “go for growth” because "a rising tide lifts all boats". Politicians increasingly reject such advice as being at best politically naïve and at worst responsible for outcomes that have not been inclusive; populist and nationalist leaders are getting elected on the promise that they will do right by those left behind by globalization (allowing the "low-lying boats" to catch up). Policy makers need to make choices about both the level of economic growth and the inclusiveness of such growth, taking account of interactions between the two variables, including the extent to which high inequality undercuts the sustainability of healthy economic growth. This course will familiarize students with a range of empirical evidence on the growth experience of both advanced and developing countries; about the nexus between economic reforms and growth; and about the drivers of rising inequality, including policy drivers. It will discuss how the failure to manage globalization in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, including the role of the IMF, led to the populist outcomes we are seeing today. The course will also cover the political economy of reform, including how to design pro-growth policies that do not contribute to an electoral backlash. The course will equip students with an understanding of the evidentiary basis of policy advice on economic growth and inequality, including as proffered by multilateral financial and development institutions (e.g., the IMF and World Bank). Students wishing to position themselves for careers in such institutions, or in economic advisory roles in national administrations, will benefit from the course.

*Note: This is an elective course which can count towards Public Policy Major program completion.

This course examines a selected advanced topic in public policy, based on the research interests of an individual instructor. Both the topics and the instructor may change each time the course is offered.

Causes and Consequences of Civil Conflicts and Violence: The course examines the complex links between violent conflict and socio-economic development. Students will explore the macro- and micro-level processes that lead to conflict and how political violence impacts individuals and communities, particularly in terms of education, health, and labor outcomes. The course will also delve into how these micro-level effects relate to broader political, social, and economic issues, including governance and institutional development. To investigate these topics, the course will integrate theoretical frameworks and empirical data, utilizing both country-specific and cross-country evidence to critically analyze the origins of conflict and its far-reaching consequences.

*Note: This is an elective course which can count towards Public Policy Major program completion.