Introduction to Empirical Analysis

Undergraduate / Graduate

This course introduces students to the key tools of econometric analysis: Probability theory, including probability spaces, random variables, distributions and conditional expectation; Asymptotic theory, including convergence in probability, convergence in distribution, continuous mapping theorems, laws of large numbers, central limit theorems and the delta method; Estimation and inference, including finite sample and asymptotic statistical properties of estimators, confidence intervals and hypothesis testing; Applications to linear models, including properties of ordinary least squares, maximum likelihood and instrumental variables estimators; Non-linear models. Assignments will include both theoretical questions and problems involving data. Necessary tools from linear algebra and statistics will be reviewed as needed.