Edward Chamberlin was a member of the graduate examination committee of the Harvard economics department in the early 1960s and in his files I have found copies of the theory exams from 1961, 1962, and 1963 along with a few memos that circulated among members of the committee that together provide a description of the procedures used for grading.
Of related interest is the following report that was transcribed and posted earlier:
Report on the General Examination for an Economics PhD, 1970
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Other Written Exams
in Economic Theory
November 13, 1962
April 8, 1963
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HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Department of Economics
Written Exam in Economic Theory
April 11, 1961
Answer six questions. All questions count equally. Please write legibly.
I
Set out Ricardo’s formal model of economic growth, so far as he has a complete system. Compare Ricardo’s diagnosis and prognosis with those of Adam Smith and Marx.
II
Discuss the rationale and limitations of measures of national income as indicators of social welfare.
III
Answer one of the following
Explain the concept of a “shadow price” in linear programming. Compare it with the role of the price concept in marginal analysis.
or
Give examples of “corner solutions”
-
- in the analysis of production
- in the analysis of consumers’ demand
- in the analysis of exchange
and show in what respect they differ from the corresponding marginal solutions.
IV
Answer one of the following
What were the basic theoretical issues between Keynes and non-Keynesians at the time the General Theory was published? To what extent has a synthesis since been achieved?
or
Discuss the effect of changes in the general level of money wages on the level of real wages.
V
“In contrast to the propositions of positive economic theory, the propositions of welfare economics cannot be subject to empirical verification. Hance the latter discipline can hardly be useful.” Discuss this observation using specific examples.
VI
The homogeneous Cobb-Douglas production function is usually defined for two factors of production. Construct a Cobb-Douglas function for three factors and for one factor and show that their basic formal properties are analogous to those of a two-factor function.
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Note: the following list of ten undated and unattributed questions was found in Chamberlin’s papers immediately following the above examination.
PROPOSED WRITTEN GRADUATE THEORY EXAM
Answer six questions; all questions have equal weight.
- Describe and discuss Ricardo’s theory of economic growth; and discuss its relevance to problems now confronting ‘underdeveloped’ countries, or economies.
- What are the chief differences in the conclusion reached by analysing an area of the economy (say, an “industry”) under the assumptions of (a) pure competition, on the one hand, and (b) monopolistic competition on the other. Elaborate the explanation of one of the differences mentioned.
- To what extent may the concept of economic rent be generalized beyond its original application to land? Discuss fully, making clear what you mean by “rent” in each case.
- Identify and illustrate the main kinds of uncertainty that arise in economic decisions; and relate the different kinds of “decisions”. Can problems of choice involving uncertainty be analysed in terms of ordinal utility?
- Give an economic appraisal of the effects of comparative resource allocation in the case of “indivisibility”.
- Set up an example of a simple static general equilibrium system with three goods and two factors of production, for example, land and labor.
- How can technological change cause unemployment? What market forces tend to eliminate the unemployment? What factors may impede the operation of those forces?
- What is the theoretical justification of the “competitive ideal”? How is the validity of the argument that competition produces ideal results affected by recognition of the phenomenon of product differentiation?
- Describe the Neumann Model, and the principal results concerning it. Discuss the relevance of these results to real economies.
- Outline and criticize the theory of economic growth, of one of the following authors:
Solow, Joan Robinson, Kaldor, Tobin.
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Excerpt from the minutes of the Department of Economics meeting held on Tuesday, May 16, 1961
Copies of the Written Theory Examination were distributed. Professor Chamberlin had three comments to make on the examination:
- There is not sufficient choice
- The questions are overly specific
- There were no questions on Economics 201 yet 35 of the students take this course as one half of their preparation for economic theory.
He concluded that the examination results must be capricious.
Professor Smithies defended the examinations by saying that the questions were varied from one examination to another and you had to look at all examinations in order to generalize, and the results of the examination showed a close correspondence with those of course grades.
There were some things suggested as a result of the discussion. The whole Department should be asked to submit questions. There were, a number of people who felt that there should be a number of specific questions. Professor Duesenberry suggested that the student should have a better idea of what the coverage would be. It was also decided that the grading of these examinations should be on the same basis as the General Oral Examinations rather than A, B, or C.
Professor Duesenberry suggested that there should be a theory syllabus including topics which are not covered in courses but which are nevertheless important and the topics should be divided into optional subjects and required subjects with the understanding that students would be examined on required subjects and on some optional fields.
Professor Dunlop contemplated no action tonight and that this should be referred to a committee.
Source: Duke University. David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library. Economists’ Papers Archive. Edward H. Chamberlin Papers, Box 18, Folder “Theory, 1952-1962”.