Curriculum

Preparatory Semester (July and August)

• Coursera-based Mathematics for Machine Learning: Multivariate Calculus class
• Coursera-based Microeconomics class
• DataCamp-based Programming in R classes

Fall Semester (mid-September to mid-December)

• Discovery Week
• Intensive mathematics review - pass/fail
• Core courses: Applied Microeconomic Analysis, Macroeconomic Policy Analysis, Quantitative Methods I, R for Econometrics (part of QMI, pass/fail), Communicating for Impact 1
  
• Personal Professional Development – pass/fail

Spring Semester (January to March)

• Core courses: Quantitative Methods II, Communicating for Impact 2
• 3-4 electives 
• Project Seminar preparation - pass/fail
• Personal Professional Development – pass/fail

Summer Semester (mid-April to mid-July)

• Core courses: Project Seminar, Communicating for Impact 3
• 3-4 electives
  

A semester is 13-weeks long, including one week of final exams. Most courses meet twice weekly for two 90-minute sessions. Courses often have an additional 90-minute exercise session.

To graduate, students need to pass all the courses listed above with a GPA of 1.75 or higher.

The following specializations are available for students who take 3 or more classes in a given area:

• Finance;
• Public Policy;
• Macroeconomic Forecasting;
• Corporate Economics.

Course Descriptions

Preparatory Semester: Getting Ready

We strongly encourage all admitted students to go through a self-paced 8-week summer semester in Mathematics, Microeconomics, and Programming in R. Students who are well prepared will find these courses quick and relatively easy, students with less background in Economics or knowledge of Calculus will need to work harder. From our experience, however, all students benefit from the review. Students do not have to be based in Prague for this period, as the courses are self-paced and completed online. Preparatory semester is not recorded on the transcript.

Fall Semester: Foundations

Week 0. Orientation and Discovery Week: Students work on a real-life project, solving a problem for an organization with guidance from mentors. This supports student progress toward impactful careeers and enables students to learn about each other. In September 2017, for example, we were collaborating with Asistence, a non-profit provider of social services for handicapped people located in Prague. Our students were helping to find innovative ways of managing interventions for homeless people, remove bottlenecks to active participation of youth in politics, and create positive social experiences for teens in a reformation center.

Week 1. Pass/Fail: Intensive Mathematics Review:
 At the start of the Fall Semester, students attend an intensive Mathematics training week.

Weeks 2-13. Core Courses:

• Applied Microeconomic Analysis, Macroeconomic Policy Analysis, Quantitative Methods I and R for Econometrics. Courses cover math-based master's level economic concepts in Micro and Macroeconomics. Students get introduced to the core statistical methods they will use throughout the year and try them out in relevant statistical programs and R.
• Communicating for Impact 1 develops the core writing skills required to submit an effective and accurate  academic/professional text. We analyze typical mistakes made in writing and how to avoid them. In presentation skills we look at how to create a memorable message and engage with the audience.

Weeks 2-13. Pass/Fail Course: Personal Professional Development. The Fall Semester PPD is aimed at self-discovery to help students identify their career goals through a series of inspirational career talks given by HRs and recent MAE graduates, self-discovery and personal development workshops realted to growth mindset, career tree technique, critical thinking, and writing the Personal Purpose Essay.

Spring Semester: Acquiring Experience

Weeks 1-13. Core Courses:

• Quantitative Methods II, where students deepen their understanding of statistical and econometric methods and end with a project using STATA.
• Communicating for Impact 2 focuses on practical skills required in the workplace. There is a mock business scenario which plays out for the first half of the semester requiring the students to roleplay meetings, write a proposal and negotiate with a potential client. Persuasion is an important life skill and this is concentrated on in the second half of the semester with writing a persuasive paper and being persuasive when presenting. Finally, data-driven changemakers need to be able to present their data appropriately for it to have any impact, so we look at ways that this can be done. 
  

Weeks 1-13. Pass/Fail Courses:

• Project Seminar preparation, including choice of project, preparation of the project specificaiton worksheet, and first meeting with the client.  
• Personal Professional Development. Individualized based on student preferences. The Spring Semester PPD is aimed at showing students what it is like to work in specific areas where applied economics skills are used. Students participate in career talks given by professionals from different fields, for example, central banking, consulting, or an NGO, visit companies, start working with a mentor and try to mentor younger high achievers themselves.

Weeks 1-13. 3-4 elective courses. In 2018/2019, electives are drawn from the list below. Students must take 7 electives to graduate.

Summer Semester: Impact

Weeks 1-13. Core Courses:

• Project Seminar: Students form teams of 3 to work on client projects in the private, public and non-profit sector, using the skills acquired in the program so far. Students who submit an early proposal for their own project idea will be granted the possibility to work on their own project. This class will take up a significant portion of a student’s time, approximately 10 hours/person/week, even though actual review hours with the teaching team will only take up 30-60 min/team/week, and the review sessions with the client may take another 1 hour per week.
• Communicating for Impact 3 serves as support for the main project done by the students in this semester. Students attend consultations to help them present their results in a clearer and more accurate manner.

Weeks 1-13. 3-4 elective courses.

Elective Courses Offered in 2018/2019

During Personal Professional Development, students explore their future career options and their personal motivations. The program is designed to be flexible to student needs and interests, so not everyone has to participate in all of the activities. Students need a certain number of points in both the Career Development Track and the Personal Development Track, which they can get by participating in specific activities. The program works in collaboration with a professional psychologist and personal coach who helped design PPD and leads many of the activities.   

Thesis