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Chicago Development

Chicago. Economic Development as a special field. Harberger, D. Gale Johnson, Hoselitz. ca. mid-1950s

Arnold Harberger

 

While the following report found in George Stigler’s papers at the University of Chicago archives is undated, it appears to have been written sometime soon after Arnold Harberger’s appointment in 1954. This is consistent with the sections of T. W. Schultz’s memo to the Dean Chancy D. Harris dated 22 September 1955 that deal with Economic Development.

[…]

  1. The broad area of Economic Development requires major attention and it should be placed high on our agenda as we develop plans and staff during the next few years:
    1. This area is needed to serve especially graduate students from foreign countries.
    2. The economic problems are important to the U.S. scene also.
    3. The Research Center for Economic Development and Cultural Change and importantly the “Journal” it has established need to be drawn into this new effort.
    4. Major new research resources are required.

[…]

Some Concrete Steps

[…]

  1. To establish the new enterprise now contemplated in Economic Development about $50,000 a year appears essential.In this area, a professorship, a visiting professor for each of the next several years, complementary staff, student research in a workshop and support for the Journal “Economic Development and Cultural Change.”

Cf. “Salt-water” Development Economics at the time:

Development economics à la M.I.T.
Development economics à la Harvard

________________________

Report to Department of Economics on the Field of Economic Development

                  At its last meeting the Department of Economics discussed the possibility of establishing a special field in Economic Development and the Chairman appointed a Committee to report in preliminary fashion to the Department on this issue.

                  Whether a special new field should be established in the Department depends primarily on practical considerations. Economics, as a discipline, is a unified body of social science and logically the whole area of economic studies can be subdivided only into substantive and methodological and applied fields. However, there exist already in the department a whole series of applied fields, each of which is accepted as a separate specialty for research on the doctoral level. We have labor economics, international economics, agricultural economics, public finance, and others. The question which we may have to answer is whether economic development is a field of applied economics roughly commensurate with these others.

                  A special field in economics becomes established generally when there develops a literature centering around a body of related problems, which have common institutional background. The underlying basic theory is an integral part of general economic theory, but in the course of specialized work a number of theoretical issues come to be discussed in some detail in a given field which tend to attract the interest not so much of general economists but specialists in this field. The question of whether economic development may be regarded as special applied field boils down, therefore, to the question of (1) whether there exists a set of specialized theoretical propositions to which particular emphasis is being given by students interested in (or specializing in) economic development and (2) whether there is an institutional background in terms of which related problems (some of which may be theoretical and abstract and others of which may be practical-empirical) are being studied.

                  It seems to us that both of these conditions hold for economic development as it is being conceived now. Among theoretical contributions which have already been made we may refer to writings of P. T. Bauer and B. S. Yamey, J. Tinbergen, W. A. Lewis, M. Abramovitz, G. M. Meier, P. N. Rosenstein-Rodan, W. W. Rostow, S. Kuznets, A. O.

Hirschman, Colin Clark, H. W. Singer, and others. We do not wish to enter into the discussion of the quality of any or all of these writings, but we believe that, in general competence and quality they are about equal with writings in other fields or economics during the last ten years. Certainly the literature on economic development is large (and if anything, growing) and a number of scholars who have not made the study or economic development a central concern have contributed some articles and papers to the discussion. (Among them are men like J. Viner, T. de Scitovsky, Hollis Chenery, Martin Bronfenbrenner, Henry C. Wallich and others.)

                  In addition to this literature which mainly deals with general or more special theoretical issues in economic development there is a vast and even more rapidly growing literature on the institutional and policy aspects of economic development. Here we are concerned mainly with the analysis of poor countries and we note a mass of problems which are pertinent, many of which go beyond the boundaries of strict economic analysis and reach over into anthropology, political science, or history. It would be futile to mention all the questions that arise in this context but as brief reminder we might suggest that such problems as Kuznets’ and other students’ discussion of historical and cross-national comparisons of patterns of growth (changes in labor force, level of income, rate of investment, etc.) is one big field of study, that questions of the patterns of resource allocation in poor societies is another, and that the problem of the formation of human capital with special reference to poor societies and their capacity of growth is a third. In addition, and especially in view of the manifold efforts to engage in developmental planning in many poor countries, we have a broad field for the analysis of economic policies of various kinds. It seems, therefore, that in terms of theoretical as well as practical, empirical, historical, and policy problems there exists a more or less well recognizable field of interest, that there is an abundant and rapidly growing literature, and that there is wide-awake interest in this field not only in this country, but in many other countries as well.

                  In addition there is considerable interest among the students in economic development. It is granted that many students who express an interest in economic development do so for wrong reasons, but it may be assumed that a large proportion (especially of the foreign students who come from the poor countries), have a genuine interest in studying the problems of poor countries and in acquainting themselves more fully with the institutional and analytical problems characteristic of these countries. It seems that this demand, to the extent to which it justifiably exists, should be recognized by the department and steps should be taken to try to meet it as far as possible.

                  The Department does not now have a regular program on the graduate level in economic development. Whereas in other applied fields, e.g., labor economics or agricultural economics, we have a set of well-designed and well-integrated courses (well-integrated with the offerings in general theory and among one another), we do not have such a program in economic development. This, however, can be remedied and if the Department decides to make economic development a field of its own, commensurate with other fields in the Department, instruction can be arranged to provide the necessary preconditions for research training.

                  In view of the arguments raised earlier, this committee recommends to the Department that economic development should be recognized as a field for the M. A. and the Ph. D. degree in the Department of Economics.

                  We would like to distinguish three possible actions that the department might take with respect to the field of economic development.

1) We can accept it as a field for the distribution requirement.

2) We can accept it as a field of concentration for the Master’s degree

3) We can accept it as a (preliminary examination) field for the Ph. D. degree.

                  We are in favor of taking actions (1) and (2) at the present time, and of deferring until some future date any action on (3). Our motives for this action are the following:

                  We recognize that a body of literature exists in the field of economic development, and that the bulk of economists think of economic development as a “legitimate” field of specialization, and we see no point whatsoever for us to be offering courses in the field (as we now do) and at the same time “snub” the field when it comes to distribution requirements. Hence, we are for action (1).

                  There is considerable interest, particularly among our foreign students, in the field of economic development. There also appears to be at least latent interest among the faculty in offering additional courses in the field, at least if this does not entail a net addition to the teaching load of the individuals in question. We favor expanding our offerings in the field of economic development to the extent that this can be done without jeopardizing the rest of our program. With one course additional to our present offerings, we will be giving our students enough background in the field to warrant our accepting it as a field of concentration for the Master’s degree. Hence, we are for action (2). But if we take action (2) we should make sure that we add at least one course which really covers the core of the economic development literature.

                  The reason for deferring action (3) at the present time is that the courses that we are now offering in the field of economic development have arisen as a result of the special interests of members of our faculty in particular topics in the field and do not reflect any attempt at an organized “coverage” of the field such as we have in other areas. Before taking the step of offering Ph. D. examinations in economic development, we feel we should (a) decide on what we as a department feel should be the scope and general content of a Ph. D. field in economic development, and (b) develop a set of courses, presumably including some which we do not at present give, whose content reflects this decision.

                  It seems to us that the basic decision of the department on the first question should be whether our work in the field of economic development should mainly focus on a critical survey and evaluation of the work that now goes on under the label of economic development, or whether we should aim at having a field of somewhat broader scope. One suggestion for broadening the scope of the field is that we include in it some courses designed more directly than our present offerings to prepare students for the kinds of problems that the bulk of economists in underdeveloped countries in fact have to face, even though such courses would also be listed under present fields as well as economic development.

Arnold Harberger
D. Gale Johnson
Bert F. Hoselitz

Source: University of Chicago Archives. George Stigler Papers, Box 3, Folder “U of C. Econ. Miscellaneous”.

Image Source: Arnold C. Harberger, 1957 Fellowship in Economics from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. Colorized by Economics in the Rear-View Mirror.

Categories
Chicago Courses Curriculum Fields Graduate Student Support

Chicago. Program of advanced instruction and research training in economics. 1956-57.

To gauge the scale and scope of economics departments it is useful to have copies of the annual announcements/brochures. In this post we add a transcription of the announcement for advanced instruction and research in economics at the University of Chicago for 1956-57.

Some previous posts:

Chicago, 1892

Wisconsin, 1893-94

Chicago, 1900-01

Chicago, 1904-05

Wisconsin, 1904-05

M.I.T., 1961

Harvard, 1967

___________________________

THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO
DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS
announces
Advanced Instruction
and Research Training
in
ECONOMICS:

Price Theory
Money and Banking
Economic History
Statistics
Econometrics and Mathematical Economics
Agricultural Economics
Government Finance
International Economic Relations and Economic Development
Economics of Consumption
Labor Economics and Industrial Relations

SESSIONS OF 1956-1957

___________________________

DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS
Officers of Instruction

Theodore William Schultz, Ph.D., Chairman of the Department of Economics and Charles L. Hutchinson Distinguished Service Professor of Economics.

Frank Hyneman Knight, Ph.D., Morton D. Hull Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of the Social Sciences.

John Ulric Nef, Ph.D., Professor of Economic History.

Earl J. Hamilton, Ph.D., Professor of Economics.

Milton Friedman, Ph.D., Professor of Economics.

Lloyd A. Metzler, Ph.D., Professor of Economics.

Margaret G. Reid, Ph.D., Professor of Economics.

W. Allen Wallis, A.B., Professor of Economics and Statistics.

D. Gale Johnson, Ph.D., Professor of Economics.

Bert F. Hoselitz, A.M., Dr. Jur., Professor of the Social Sciences.

Hans Theil, Ph.D., Visiting Professor of Economics.

Harold Gregg Lewis, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Economics.

Arnold C. Harberger, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Economics.

Albert E. Rees, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Economics.

Carl Christ, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Economics.

Simon Rottenberg, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Economics.

George S. Tolley, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Economics.

Robert Lloyd Gustafson, A.M., Assistant Professor of Economics.

Phillip David Cagan, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Economics.

Martin Jean Bailey, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Economics.

Chester Whitney Wright, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Economics.

Hazel Kyrk, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Economics and Home Economics.

Lloyd W. Mints, A.M., Professor Emeritus of Economics.

Mary Barnett Gilson, A.M., Assistant Professor Emeritus of Economics in the College.

Fellows, 1955-56

Richard King, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow in Political Economy.

Yossef Attiyeh, A.M., Falk Foundation Fellow,

Milton Frank Bauer, A.M., Canadian Social Science Research Council Fellow.

John Allan Edwards, A.M., Sears, Roebuck Fellow in Agricultural Economics.

Lawrence Fisher, A.B., Earhart Foundation Fellow.

B. Delworth Gardner, S.M., Sears, Roebuck Fellow in Agricultural Economics.

Hirsh Zvi Griliches, S.M., Social Science Research Council Fellow.

Marc Leon Nerlove, A.M., Earhart Foundation Fellow.

Hugh Oliver Nourse, A.B., Woodrow Wilson Fellow.

Walter Yasuo Oi, A.M., Owen D. Young Fellow.

Boris Peter Pesek, A.M., Ford Foundation Fellow.

Duvvuri Venkata Ramana, A.M., Ford Foundation Fellow.

Jean Reynier, Diplôme D’études Supérieures De Doctorat, University of Paris Exchange Fellow.

Robert Oliver Rogers, A.M., Sears, Roebuck Fellow in Agricultural Economics.

John William Louis Winder, A.M., Edward Hillman Fellow.

___________________________

Introductory

                  The Department of Economics views the central problem of economic science as that of understanding the social organization of human and other scarce productive resources: principally the allocation of these resources among alternative uses by a system of exchange. The purpose of the Department is both to train economic scientists and to advance economic science.

                  The Department offers programs of instruction and research training not only for students seeking an advanced degree in economics at the University of Chicago but also for students working on an advanced degree at another institution who wish to complement the training available to them there and for students not seeking an advanced degree but who wish to pursue advanced study in economics at either the predoctoral or the postdoctoral level. Instruction is provided in all of the major fields of economics affording opportunity for well-rounded training in economics. Additional facilities in other parts of the University, including those in the other social sciences, mathematics, statistics, business administration, law, and philosophy, permit students wide choice among supplementary areas of study.

                  Courses of instruction at three levels of advancement are offered by the Department:

                  1. Intermediate courses (numbered in the 200’s) for those completing their work for the Bachelor’s degree and for others preparing for advanced training in economics.

                  2. Courses in economic theory, statistical inference, economic history, and economic analysis related to problem fields (numbered in the 300’s) that provide the strong theoretical foundation and related applied knowledge required of all candidates for advanced degrees in economics as preparation for economic research. Students are urged before entering these courses to acquire a command of the rudiments of the differential calculus.

                  3. Courses (including seminars, workshops, and other research working groups, and individual instruction) that provide arrangements for research and research supervision (numbered in the 400’s). These courses apply and seek to teach students to apply the foundations of economic analysis to research on particular economic problems.

THE ECONOMICS RESEARCH CENTER

                  The Department devotes a large proportion of its resources to research in economics and to the training of student research apprentices. The purpose of the Economics Research Center is to co-ordinate the research and research training activities of the Department. The Center supplies essential clerical, computing, and reference library services, assists in the organization of research seminars and working groups, and publishes the major research output of the Department in its series: “Studies in Economics.”

                  Some of the research training in the Center is organized on a continuing basis by one or more faculty members working with associates and students in research groups. (The staffs and research projects of these groups for the academic year 1955-56 are listed below.) Research training and facilities for research are available, however, to all qualified students, both those associated with a research group and those engaged in individual research.

Projects and Staffs of Research Groups, 1955-56

Workshop in Money and Banking

Faculty: Professors Cagan and Friedman.

Research Assistants and Fellows: Yossef Attiyeh, Hugh Roy Elliott, Duvvuri V. Ramana, and Robert E. Snyder.

Project: The role of monetary and banking factors in economic fluctuations.

Office of Agricultural Economies Research

Faculty: Professors Gustafson, Johnson, Schultz, and Tolley.

Research Associates: John A. Dawson, Cecil B. Haver, William E. Hendrix, Lester G. Telser, and Joseph Willett.

Research Assistants and Fellows: Marto Ballesteros, Michael Joseph Brennan, Donald S. Green, Hirsh Zvi Griliches, Vaughan Stevens Hastings, Roy J. Kelly, Edward Franklin Renshaw, James A. Rock, and Clifton R. Wharton, Jr.

Projects: (1) Agricultural inventories. (2) Conservation and development of natural resources. (3) Technical assistance in Latin American countries. (4) Developments affecting Negro farm families. (5) Soviet agriculture. (6) Technological growth in agriculture (hybrid corn). (7) Growth in output per unit of input in the United States and in agriculture.

Research Group in Labor Economics and Industrial Relations

Faculty: Professors Lewis, Rees, Rottenberg, and Seidman.

Projects: (1) The American worker as a union member. (2) Labor in the Mexican economy. (3) Real wages in the United States, 1890-1914. (4) Population, the labor force, and labor supply.

Research Group in Public Finance

Faculty: Professors Bailey and Harberger.

Research Assistants and Fellows: Meyer L. Burstein, Lawrence Fisher, Yehuda Grünfeld, Marc Leon Nerlove, William A. Niskanen, Jr., and Walter Y. Oi.

Projects:
(1) Resource allocation effects of federal taxes and of agricultural price supports.
(2) Sources and methods of controlling cyclical instability in the American economy.
(3) The capital market effects of federal taxation, expenditure, and regulatory policies.

Research Group in Economics of Consumption

Faculty: Professor Reid.

Research Assistant: Juliette Rey.

Project: Trends in, and factors determining, consumption levels.

Research Group in Economic Development

Faculty: Professors Hamilton, Harberger, Hoselitz, Rottenberg, and Schultz.

Projects: (1) Problems in the economic development of Chile. (2) Historical research in money, banking, prices, and interest rates, their interrelationship, and their role in the economic development of leading countries. (Note also projects (3), (6), and (7) of the Office of Agricultural Economics Research and project (2) of the Research Group in Labor Economics and Industrial Relations.) The Research Group in Economic Development works closely with the Research Center in Economic Development and Cultural Change of which Mr. Hoselitz is the director. The Center engages in research and publishes the journal Economic Development and Cultural Change.

                  Three members of the faculty of the Department are associated with research groups organized in other parts of the University: Mr. Hoselitz with the Research Center in Economic Development and Cultural Change; Mr. Nef, with the Committee on Social Thought; and Mr. Wallis, with the Committee on Statistics. In addition, other members of the economics faculty are engaged in individual research projects not associated with a research group: Mr. Metzler on the theory of international adjustment under conditions of full employment and high demand: and Mr. Christ on econometric research on economic growth and technological change.

FELLOWSHIPS, SCHOLARSHIPS,
AND RESEARCH ASSISTANTSHIPS

                  Students who wish to pursue a program of advanced instruction and research in economics at the University may compete not only for the regular University Fellowships and Scholarships described in these Announcements (see pp. 22-27) but also for the fellowships listed below:
[Note: The announcement transcribed here is a reprint of the Department of Economics section of the Announcements of Graduate Programs in the Divisions. Cross-references are to that publication]

Postdoctoral Fellowships:

Postdoctoral Fellowship in Political Economy awarded upon recommendation of the Department of Economics.

Postdoctoral Fellowships in Money and Banking awarded by the Workshop in Money and Banking in co-operation with the Department of Economics.

Predoctoral Fellowships:

Awarded upon recommendation of the Department of Economics:

Frank H. Knight Fellowships, Marshall Field Fellowship, Edward Hillman Fellowship Awarded upon recommendation of the Office of Agricultural Economics Research for students specializing in agricultural economics:
Sears, Roebuck Foundation Fellowships in Agricultural Economics

Stipends for the predoctoral fellowships, including the regular University fellowships, range generally from $1,000 to $3,000 per annum. Stipends for the postdoctoral fellowships range up to $4,000 per annum. Application blanks may be obtained from the Department of Economics or from the University Committee on Fellowships and Scholarships.

Research Assistantships

                  Research assistantships and associateships are available to qualified students who have research interests in particular problem areas. Application blanks for these positions may be obtained from the Economics Research Center.

ADVANCED DEGREES

                  The Department of Economics offers programs leading to both the A.M. and the Ph.D. degrees in Economics. The following paragraphs summarize briefly the major Departmental requirements for advanced degrees for students holding a four-year Bachelor’s degree or its equivalent. (The following paragraphs are not intended as an exhaustive statement of the requirements for advanced degrees; for the details of the requirements students should consult with the Departmental counselors.)

THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS

                  The Departmental requirements for the Master’s degree in Economics for students holding the traditional four-year Bachelor’s degree include: (1) satisfactory performance on two of the written field examinations in economics required for the Ph.D. degree; (2) a satisfactory command of the principles of economic theory; and (3) acceptance of a paper or report on a problem approved by the Department,

THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

                  The Departmental requirements for admission to candidacy for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Economics include: (1) satisfactory performance on written field examinations in price theory and monetary theory and banking and in one other field that, with the approval of the Department, may be a field outside of economics; (2) a well-rounded command of the subject-matter of the major fields of economics; (3) effective reading knowledge of French or German or some other foreign language approved by the Department; and (4) acceptance of the candidate’s thesis prospectus.

                  The Departmental requirements for the degree include in addition to the preceding requirements for admission to candidacy: (1) effective reading knowledge of a second foreign language or completion of an approved substitute program of study; (2) departmental approval of the completed thesis; and (3) satisfactory performance on a final oral examination on the field of the thesis.

SUMMER PROGRAM
FOR COLLEGE TEACHERS OF ECONOMICS

                  The Department of Economics will give particular attention in its Summer Quarter 1956 program to the interests of college teachers of economics, both those working for the Ph.D degree at another institution and others who wish to renew or to complement their training and experience in economics. A limited number of tuition and half-tuition scholarships will be available for teachers who do not hold the Ph.D. degree. (Application blanks for these scholarships may be obtained from the Department of Economics.) For those who hold the Ph.D. degree in Economics or related fields the Department invites application for guest privileges.

Courses of Instruction

INTERMEDIATE COURSES

208. A, B, C. The Elements of Economic Analysis. Aut (208A): Rees; Win (208B) Rees; Spr (208C): Cagan.

209. Intermediate Price Theory. Prereg: Math 150A or equiv. Aut: Lewis.

210. Index Numbers, National Accounting, and Economic Measurement. Prereq: Soc Sei 200A and Econ 209, or equiv. Aut: Christ.

213. Introduction to Mathematics for Economists. Prereq: Econ 209 and Math 150A, or equiv. Sum: Staff; Win: Theil.

220. Economic History of the United States. Spr: Hamilton.

240. Introduction to Industrial Relations. Win: Staff.

255. Introduction to Agricultural Economics. Prereq: Econ 208A and 208B, or equiv, Spr: Johnson.

260. Introduction to Government Finance. Prereq: Econ 208A and 208B, or equiv. Win: Bailey.

271. Economic Aspects of International Politics. Aut: Hoselitz.

299. Undergraduate Thesis Research. Prereq: consent of Departmental Secretary. Sum, Aut, Win, Spr: Staff.

ADVANCED COURSES

I. Price Theory

300. A, B. Price Theory. Prereg: For 300A, Econ 209 or equiv, and Math 150A or equiv, or consent of instructor; for 300B, 300A. Aut (300A): Friedman; Win (300A): Wallis; Spr (300B): Friedman.

301. Price and Distribution Theory (= Social Thought 382). Prereq: Econ 209. Sum: Knight.

302. History of Economic Thought (= Social Thought 381). Prereq: Econ 301 or equiv. Spr: Knight.

303. Recent Developments in Economics. Prereg: graduate work in economic theory. Sum: Harberger.

305. Economics and Social Institutions (= Philosophy 305). Prereg: Econ 301 and some European economic history. Sum: Knight.

308. Welfare Economics. Prereq: Econ 300A or equiv. Sum: Johnson.

309. Mathematical Economics. Prereq: Econ 213 and Econ 300A, or equiv. Win: Theil.

310. Special Topics in Mathematical Economics. Prereq: Econ 309, Math 150C, and the rudiments of matrix algebra; or consent of instructor. Spr: Theil.

II. Monetary Theory and Banking

303. Recent Developments in Economics. Prereg: graduate work in economic theory. Sum: Harberger.

330. Money. Prereg: Econ 208C or equiv. Aut: Staff.

331. Banking Theory and Monetary Policy. Prereg: Econ 330; Econ 335 desirable. Win: Cagan.

334. The Development of Monetary and Financial Institutions. Prereq: Econ 222 or 208C. Spr: Hamilton.

335. The Theory of Income, Employment, and the Price Level. Prereg: Econ 208A, B, C or equiv. Spr: Christ.

362. Monetary and Fiscal Policy. Prereg: Econ 208C; Econ 330 and 335 desirable. Spr: Harberger.

370. Monetary Aspects of International Trade. Prereg: Econ 330, 335, or equiv. Aut: Metzler.

439. Workshop in Money and Banking. An experiment in combining training in research and learning of subject-matter organized around a continuing investigation into monetary factors in business cycles. Students participate in this central investigation both directly and by undertaking individual projects in the general area. Each project is directed toward the preparation of a report of publishable quality. Guidance is provided on general reading in the field, and informal seminars are held from time to time to discuss general issues or specific projects. Students. are required to give full time to the workshop; they receive three credits per quarter of registration. Prereg: consent of instructor. Aut, Win, Spr: Friedman, Cagan.

III. Statistics

311. Principles of Statistical Analysis (= Business 321 and Statistics 301). Aut: Staff.

312. Techniques of Statistical Analysis (= Business 322 and Statistics 302). Prereg: Econ 311 or equiv. Win: Staff.

313. Applications of Statistical Analysis (= Sociology 308, Business 323, and Statistics 303). Prereq: Econ 312 or Stat 362 or equiv. Spr: Wallis.

314. Econometrics. Prereq: Econ 311 and either Econ 300A or Econ 335; Econ 210 desirable. Sum: Gustafson; Win: Christ.

315. Special Topics in Econometrics. Prereq: Econ 312, Econ 314, differential calculus, and rudiments of matrix algebra; or consent of instructor. Spr: Christ.

For other courses in statistics see page 203.

IV. Mathematical Economics and Econometrics

303. Recent Developments in Economics. Prereq: graduate work in economic theory. Sum: Harberger.

309. Mathematical Economics. Prereq: Econ 213 and Econ 300A, or equiv, Win: Theil.

310. Special Topics in Mathematical Economics. Prereq: Econ 309, Math 150C and the rudiments of matrix algebra; or consent of instructor. Spr: Theil.

314. Econometrics. Prereq: Econ 311 and either Econ 300A or Econ 335; Econ 210 desirable. Sum: Gustafson; Win: Christ.

315. Special Topics in Econometrics. Prereq: Econ 312, Econ 314, differential calculus, and rudiments of matrix algebra; or consent of instructor. Spr: Christ.

V. Economic History

320. American Economic Policies. Prereg: Econ 220 or equiv. Sum: Hamilton.

329A. The Geographical and Historical Background of the Genesis of Industrial Civilization (= Social Thought 324A and History 332G). Aut: Nef.

329B. The Role of the Discoveries and the Reformation in the Genesis of Industrial Civilization (= Social Thought 325A and History 332H). Spr: Nef.

334. The Development of Monetary and Financial Institutions. Prereg: Econ 222 or 208C. Spr: Hamilton.

VI. Labor Economics and Industrial Relations

340. The Labor Movement. Aut.

341. Labor Problems. Prereq: Econ 208A, 208B, and Econ 240; or equiv. Win: Rees.

344. Labor Economics. Prereq: Econ 300B. Spr: Lewis.

VII. Agricultural Economics

355A. Economic Organization for Growth (with particular reference to agriculture). Prereq: Econ 300A or equiv. Aut: Schultz.

355B. Economic Organization for Stability (with particular reference to agriculture). Prereq: Econ 300A or equiv. Spr: Schultz.

356. Income, Welfare, and Policy (with particular reference to agriculture). Prereg: Econ300A or equiv; Econ 300B and 355A recommended. Win: Johnson.

455. Seminar in Agricultural Economics. Prereq: consent of instructor. Aut, Win, Spr: Schultz, Johnson, Tolley, Gustafson.

VIII. Government Finance

360. Theory of Public Finance. Prereg: Econ 260 and Econ 300A, or consent of instructor, Aut: Bailey.

361. Public Finance in the American Economy. Prereq: Econ 300A; Econ 300B desirable. Win: Harberger.

362. Monetary and Fiscal Policy. Prereg: Econ 208C; Econ 330 and 335 desirable. Spr: Harberger.

IX. International Economic Relations

370. Monetary Aspects of International Trade. Prereq: Econ 330 and 335, or equiv. Aut: Metzler.

371. Economic Aspects of International Relations. Prereq: Econ 330 or equivalent. Win: Metzler.

372. Problems in Economic Development. Prereq: Econ 335 or equivalent, Econ 320 and 371 desirable. Spr: Hoselitz.

X. Economics of Consumption

381. Consumers and the Market (= Home Economics 341), Prereq: course in economic theory. Win: Reid.

383A. Consumption Levels (= Home Economics 343A). Prereq: course in statistics. Aut: Reid.

388. The Family in the American Economy (= Home Economics 348). Prereq: course in economic theory. Sum, Spr: Reid.

XI. Seminars and Workshops

439. Workshop in Money and Banking. Aut, Win, Spr: Friedman, Cagan.

455. Seminar in Agricultural Economics. Aut, Win, Spr: Schultz, Johnson, Tolley, Gustafson.

490. Research in Economics. Prereg: consent of Departmental Secretary, Sum: Staff.

498. Thesis Seminar. Registration may be made for one or more courses. Prereg: consent of Departmental Secretary. Sum, Aut, Win, Spr: Staff.

499. Individual Research. Registration may be made for one or more courses. Prereg: consent of Departmental Secretary. Sum, Aut, Win, Spr: Staff.

Source: University of Chicago Archives. George Stigler papers. Addenda. Box 31, Folder “7/87 Chic. School. GJS Folder. Lit., incl. “Pantaleoni?”, 1930 anti-tariff signers”.

Categories
Chicago Faculty Regulations

Chicago. Economics Ph.D. requirement. Either linear algebra or foreign language reading comprehension, 1968

 

At the University of Chicago in the mid-1950s one economics Ph.D. requirement was to demonstrate an effective reading knowledge of either French or German or some other foreign language approved by the department..

The 1968 memo to graduate students transcribed below announced that the “satisfaction of either a mathematics or foreign language requirement” would be the rule for a Ph.D. in economics.

_________________________

History of Foreign Language Requirement for Ph.D.

January 12, 1968

To: Faculty, Division of the Social Sciences
From: D. Gale Johnson, Dean [of the] Division of the Social Sciences

In re: Foreign language requirements for the Ph. D

At a meeting of the faculty of the Division of the Social Sciences held November 18, 1931, the following Statement was adopted as one of the requirements for admission to candidacy for the Ph.D.:

“The ability, demonstrated to the satisfaction of the Board of Examiners, to read two foreign modern languages approved by the department or interdepartmental committee, one of which must be French or German. It is advised that this requirement be met as early as possible in the student’s program of study.”

On January 15, 1943, the faculty of the Division modified the language requirement and made it read as follows:

“Demonstration of the ability to use one or more foreign languages effectively toward the objective of the student’s academic program. This ability in the case of at least one language will be tested by: (I) the passing of an examination administered and evaluated by the board of Examinations; and (II) in addition to the examination, the writing of a paper or series of papers, or oral work, judged satisfactory by the Department in connection with the student’s program of study, in which extensive use is made of works in the foreign language. Departments may at their discretion specify the particular foreign language or languages required of their candidates for the doctorate. Exceptions in individual cases may be made by the Dean of Students on the recommendation of a Department.”

At its meeting on December 4, 1967, the faculty of the Division approved the following motion:

“That each Department or Committee in the Division should have the right to substitute for the divisional language requirement for the Ph.D. degree a requirement that the student demonstrate proficiency in a substantive field other than that of the department in question. The degree of proficiency to be required in such a field should be comparable or superior to that represented by the present divisional language requirement. The department at its option, may require that proficiency be demonstrated in a particular substantive field or may leave to the student, in some or all cases, the option of deciding whether to demonstrate proficiency in a language or a substantive field.”

If a department or committee wishes to act under the motion approved by the faculty of the Division, Mr. Zimring and I urge that it do so with reasonable promptness to permit students to make their plans with full information concerning the requirements. Until a department or committee has taken action and so informs the Office of the Dean it will be assumed that the language requirement as it existed on December 1, 1967, shall continue in force.

At the time a department or committee takes action, if any, to modify its language requirement, it should indicate the date on which any changes become effective and that date could be within a few days after action has been taken. I feel that before a departmental or committee action is made effective that Mr. Zimring should be given time to study it and to determine if his interpretation is the one that has been intended.

Mr. Zimring and I strongly urge that departments and committees accept a self-denying ordinance, namely that changes in the requirements will not be made more than once a year and that changes affecting 1968-69 be made by March 15, 1968.

The action taken with respect to the Divisional language requirement does not change current procedures with respect to examination if a department retains a language requirement. It is my interpretation that while departments can require a supplementary or additional examination to be administered by the department, it cannot dispense with the examinations given by the Office of the University Examiner.

DGJ:bp

Source:  Hoover Institution Archives. Papers of Milton Friedman, Box 194, Folder 4, “Economics Dept A-G”.

_________________________

Linear Algebra
or a Foreign Language

Department of Economics  University of Chicago
May, 1968

To: Graduate Students, Department of Economics
From: Arnold C. Harberger. Chairman

Re: Revision in Foreign Language/ Mathematics Requirement

Foreign Language and Mathematics Requirement

Each Ph.D. candidate, before admission to candidacy for the Ph.D., must demonstrate effective command of relevant mathematical tools, including calculus and matrix algebra. The Department of Economics will accept three courses in calculus (mathematics 151, 152, and 154, or equivalent), and one course in linear algebra (mathematics 250, 252, Business 372, or equivalent) as meeting, respectively, the calculus and matrix algebra requirements.

In place of demonstration of competence in matrix algebra, students may opt to demonstrate proficiency at a high level in a foreign language by means of an examination administered by the Office of the University Examiner and must demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Department ability to translate at sight with reasonable ease material in economics in the foreign language. Any foreign language other than Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Russian, Spanish, or Swedish must be approved by the Department.

Source:  Hoover Institution Archives. Papers of Milton Friedman, Box 194, Folder 4, “Economics Dept A-G”.

Categories
Chicago Economists Funny Business

Chicago. The School of Chicago 1972 by Roger Vaughan (Ph.D. 1977). IDs by Gordon, McCloskey & Grossbard

The 1500th artifact added to Economics in the Rear-view Mirror deserves to be a celebratory post for visitors. For this honor I have chosen a  pastiche drawn by a Chicago economics graduate student in 1972. Roger Vaughan (Ph.D. 1977) was the principal, if not only, illustrator for the student-produced satirical publication P.H.A.R.T., an issue of which has been transcribed for an earlier post.

I first saw a copy of Roger Vaughan’s reworking of Raphael’s “School of Athens” added to a photo from a Tweet of a few years back. At that time it did not occur to me to engage in a serious search for the backstory to the drawing. And yet, serendipity turned out to be kind to me when, on a visit to the Harvard Archives last year, I stumbled upon a folded, mint-condition copy of  Vaughan’s “The School of Chicago 1972” in the papers of Zvi Griliches. Of course I had this masterpiece of economics funny business copied and it now has pride of place in my home study.

A few identifications of the figures seen in “The School of Chicago 1972” are obvious (e.g. Milton Friedman and George Stigler, duh) and others could be identified from other Vaughan caricatures that likewise are found in Griliches’ papers (e.g. Marc Nerlove, Stan Fischer, and Robert J. Gordon). Still, most of the renderings remained unidentified. My first idea was to seek out the artist himself, but alas I could only confirm that he had passed in October 2021. The next idea was to seek a living eye-witness to the Chicago economics department of a half-century ago. Here I was luckier, the Stanley G. Harris Professor in the Social Sciences at Northwestern University, Robert J. Gordon, responded to my inquiry almost immediately and as quickly forwarded my request for further information to Distinguished Professor of Economics, History, English, and Communication at the University of Illinois at Chicago, Deirdre McCloskey, for her confirmation and further commentary. Following the initial posting of this artifact, Professor Shoshana Grossbard of San Diego State University spotted a few misspelled names (mea culpa), but, more importantly, was able to identify Margaret Reid by her beret(!).We can all be grateful to these colleagues for their identifications provided below. There remains one unidentified man in the back-row standing to George Stigler’s left plus a couple of yet-to-be identified graduate students. Peeps, Economic in the Rear-view Mirror needs your help! You can leave comments at the end of this post.

___________________________________

About the artist, Roger Vaughan

From his 1981 AEA Biographical Listing, p. 421

Vaughan, Roger J, 421 Hudson St., Apt. 406, New York, NY 10014. Birth Yr: 1946

Degrees: B.A., U. of Oxford, 1968; M.A., Simon Fraser U., 1970; Ph.D. U. of Chicago, 1977. Prin. Cur. Position: Dep.Dir., Off. Of Develop. Planning, State of New York, 1980-

Concurrent/Past Positions: Econ., Citibank, 1978-80; Econ. The Rand Corp. 1974-78. Research: Urban Policy, finance, taxation training.

Roger J. Vaughan’s Rand Reports,
1974-1980

• The Urban Impacts of Federal Policies: Vol. 1, Overview 1980
• Federal Activities in Urban Economic Development 1979
• Recent Contributions to the Urban Policy Debate 1979
• The Urban Impacts of Federal Policies: Vol. 4, Population and Residential Location 1979
• Assessment of Countercyclical Public Works and Public Service Employment Programs. 1978
• Regional Cycles and Employment Effects of Public Works Investments. 1977
• The Urban Impacts of Federal Policies: Vol. 2, Economic Development 1977
• The value of urban open space 1977
• The Economics of Urban Blight. 1976
• Getting People to Parks. 1976
• Public Works as a Countercyclical Device: A Review of the Issues 1976
• The Use of Subsidies in the Production of Cultural Services. 1976
• The Application of Economic Analysis to the Planning and Development of the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. 1975
• The Economics of Expressway Noise Pollution Abatement. 1975
• The Economics of Recreation: A Survey. 1974

Source: Rand Reports. Published Research by Author, Roger J. Vaughan.

Sage. Research Methods.

Communicating Social Science Research to Policymakers
By: Roger J. Vaughan & Terry F. Buss
Published: 1998
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781412983686

___________________________________

Raphael’s Scuola di Atene (1509-1511)

For some explanation of what we see in the original, cf. “The Story Behind Raphael’s Masterpiece ‘The School of Athens'” by Jessica Stewart at the Modern Met Website.

___________________________________

Roger Vaughan’s Pastiche

Open the image in a new window to see a larger image

Source: Harvard University Archives. Papers of Zvi Griliches, Box 129. Folder “Posters, ca. 1960s-1970s”.

Background

The statues standing in the upper alcove are of the President and Vice-President of the United States, Richard M. Nixon (holding a lyre, a sweet visual pun) and Spiro T. Agnew (with the pennant “Effete Snobs”, abridged from his description of self-characterized intellectuals as an “effete core of impudent snobs” in his  “Generation Gap” speech given in New Orleans on October 19th, 1969.)

“1126” refers to the street address of the Social Science Research Building, 1126 E. 59th St.

“MV=PT” inscribed in the center of the dome is the Equation of Exchange (cf. Irving Fisher’s The Purchasing Power of Money). Cf. at the left of the back-row of Chicago economists, Arnold Zellner is carrying papers with “MV=PY“. Milton Friedman’s vanity license plates on his red cadillac used “MV=PQ” for the Equation of Exchange. Everyone seems to have agreed on the notational virtues of “M”, “V”, and “P”. Does anyone know whether there was any substantive reason for differences regarding the choice of “T”, “Y”, and “Q” for the final term?

Economics in the Rear-view Mirror comment: Though his arm is blocking part of the equation, Zellner is clearly displaying the equation of exchange, MV = PY.

Deirdre McCloskey’s comment: “Underneath Nixon is Marc Nerlove pointing into the ear, by the way of insult, of Hans Theil the great Dutch econometrician (the four great econometricians at Chicago, which had included Zvi Griliches, who had just moved to Harvard, hated each other).”

Economics in the Rear-view Mirror comment: Robert J. Gordon served as an editor of the Journal of Political Economy (J.P.E.) from 1971-1973.

Economics in the Rear-view Mirror comment: Stigler’s position corresponds to that of Aristotle’s in Raphael’s fresco. There Aristotle holds a copy of his own Nicomachean Ethics. Stigler is seen here holding a book by [Adam] Smith, presumably Wealth of Nations.

Deirdre McCloskey’s comment: “George Tolley [is] in a garbage can because he did urban economics (Vaughan was his student).”

Shoshana Grossbard’s comment: “[Margaret Reid]…not only [wore] the dark beret, but also [has] her hair in a bun, under the beret. that was her typical look. She and I attended Becker’s workshop in applications of economics in the years 1974-76.”

And guess what a casual search just turned up…

Margaret Gilpin Reid, professor emeritus of Home Economics and Economics

Source:  University of Chicago Photographic Archive, apf1-07052, Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library.

Economics in the Rear-view Mirror’s comment: On the high-resolution hard-copy hanging on my study wall, the beret looks sort of like an ink blot and I regreted that imperfection. But now, thanks to Shoshana Grossbard’s careful observation combined with her memory of Reid’s “typical look” and an archival sighting of said beret, I am convinced and grateful that we now have another positive identification!

Deirdre McCloskey’s comment: “D. Gale Johnson…has a pitchfork because he was an agricultural economist. ”

Deirdre McCloskey’s comment: Ted Schultz […] is pointing down to say “This is where the true Chicago School is, where I am!”.

Foreground

The identification of Robert F. Pollard was made by Roger Vaughan’s work and life partner, Anna Nechai.

 

Deirdre McCloskey’s comment: “…Dick Zecher [is] sticking his finger through an IBM card because he was in charge of the Department’s mainframe computer access.”

Another visual pun: Harry Johnson is portrayed writing on a literal Edgeworth-Bowley-box, a two-dimensional representation of allocations that could be Pareto efficient exchange equilibria. The two tradeable goods are measured in Edgeworth and Bowley units, respectively.

Deirdre McCloskey’s comment: “Mary Jean Bowman, one of two tenured women in a small department; she did educational and demographic economics.  The other woman was Margaret Reid, the inventor of household economics…”

The triangle seen in the previous detail is Arnold Harberger’s measure of deadweight loss (efficiency cost resulting from a natural or policy induced distortion of markets).  See Robert J. Gordon’s historical photo of Al Harberger stripping down to reveal himself as “Triangleman” ca. December 1970. In Raphael’s fresco Harberger’s place was that of Euclid.

Robert  J. Gordon’s comment: “I think the bearded student is Dan Wisecarver”

Robert  J. Gordon’s comment: “The woman holding the ball is Carolyn Mosby, the head of the department staff.”

 

 

 

 

 

Categories
Berkeley Chicago Economics Programs Economists

Chicago. The Education of Zvi Griliches. Through Ph.D. 1957

 

The two documents transcribed for this post provide wonderful detail about the economics training received by Zvi Griliches whose academic career passed from Hebrew University, through the University of California, Berkeley, and ultimately through the University of Chicago to Harvard.

Griliches was responsible for graduate admissions in the Harvard economics department back when I was applying to graduate school (1974). When I went to Cambridge to visit the Harvard and M.I.T. departments, I pressed Griliches (the only professor at Harvard with whom I could get an appointment) for him to tell me what in his opinion the difference between Harvard and M.I.T. was. He smiled (hopefully amused by my naive presumption) and replied that M.I.T. provided more of a “bootcamp training” than Harvard would. He did make that sound like a bad thing. In any event, M.I.T. was better at recruiting, able on short notice to line up appointments to talk with Evsey Domar and Charles Kindlberger plus a handful of graduate students. Still I have to admit that Griliches did warn me what I was getting myself into.

Zvi Griliches was awarded a Social Science Research Council Research Training Fellowship in 1955-56, and from information in the supplementary statements below, it is clear that the application was written sometime in the early months of 1955 (Chicago’s Winter Quarter 1955). So while it is possible that he was applying for more than this single fellowship, there is no indication of any other fellowship at that time being considered in Griliches’ papers in the files at the Harvard Archive that I consulted.

Questions for the Price Theory prelim exam for the Winter Quarter 1955 have been posted earlier. From Milton Friedman’s papers, we know that Griliches got the top grade (by a long shot) on that particular exam.

Griliches received a two year appointment at Chicago beginning Oct 1, 1956— “to give service for the National Science Foundation Econometric Model Research Project on a ninety per cent time basis and for the Department of Economics on a ten per cent time basis with total salary of $5,000 per annum”. So it was certainly reasonable for him at the start of the second year of his contract to put his academic record on file with the University of Chicago Vocational Service and Employment Office. That is the second document transcribed below.

Economic in the Rear-view Mirror’s “Believe it or not!”

Graduates listing themselves with the University of Chicago’s Vocational Service and Employment Office were asked even as late as the Autumn Quarter of 1957:

Any racial or religious institutions in which you would prefer to teach?
Any racial or religious institutions in which you would prefer not to teach?

Easy to believe, and the documentary record indeed shows, that Zvi Griliches answered “No” to both questions.

___________________________________

Supplementary Statements from Winter Quarter 1955 in Griliches’ fellowship application for 1955-56

 Zvi Griliches

SUPPLEMENTARY STATEMENT “C”:

For attainment of the objectives outlined above I think that the following knowledge and training is desirable:  1) economic theory including mathematical economics; 2) statistics and econometrics including all the modern developments and also experience with efficient computational procedures; 3) agricultural economics; and 4) some knowledge of historical methods.

  1. Economic theory and mathematical economics will be very important in my future work because they provide the framework for the actual quantitative work. They suggest which are the important variables in different problems and indicate something about the form of their interrelationships. They also provide a check on the internal consistency of our models and are the source of most of our hypotheses. I believe that I have a good knowledge of basic economic theory and a reasonable familiarity with mathematical economics. My major graduate courses in this field were:

R.G. Bressler Jr. — Production Economics — In this course I was introduced to the pure theory of production and to the interrelationships of cost and supply curves.

R.G. Bressler Jr. — Seminar in Agricultural Marketing Organization — This course, in spite of its name, dealt primarily with problems of cost measurement, location theory, and general equilibrium.

Robert Dorfman — Advanced Economic Theory A-B1 — This was the major graduate course in Economic Theory at the University of California, covering Price Theory, Distribution Theory, and introducing us to Income and Employment Theory.

Robert Dorfman — Mathematical Methods in Economics — This was my introduction the Mathematical Economics proper. It dealt with general maximization problems, the pure theory of consumers’ choice, and in particular with dynamic difference equations models. The last topic will be very important in the construction of my model.

A.C. Harberger — Price Theory A — Covered more advanced topics in price theory and problems of definition and measurement of utility.

D. Gale Johnson — Price Theory B3 — This course covers distribution theory and related topics.

            I have also taken in the past and intend to take in the future a series of courses in Monetary and Fiscal Theory which I shall not list here.

            I also intend to participate in the Seminar in Mathematical Economics to be given in the spring quarter of 1955 by G. Debreu at the University of Chicago. In spite of all the above, I shall still lack adequate knowledge of Mathematical Economics. I need especially a better knowledge of growth models and of stochastic difference equations. I think, however, that I shall be able to acquire this necessary knowledge through individual study, as my work progresses.

            I am aided in my knowledge of mathematical economics and also of statistics and econometrics by a good undergraduate training in calculus and an individually acquired knowledge of matrix and vector algebra. Nevertheless, this is not enough. As it forms a basis for most of the other fields, I should learn more mathematics. I intend to do so after I have completed the preliminary Ph.D requirements both through intensive studying on my own and also by auditing some courses at the university.

 

  1. A good knowledge of statistics and econometrics is indispensable for quantitative work in agricultural economics. Though this is a field where there is always more to learn, nevertheless, I think that I have a basic knowledge of the most important techniques. My major courses in this field were:

George Kuznets — Analytical Methods A — This was my introduction to the theory and methods of multiple regression, weighted regression, testing hypotheses, and non-parametric tests. Within the framework of this course I wrote a paper “Demand for Clingstone Peaches on the Grower Level” which introduced me to modern computational procedures and the use of modern computational equipment.

Ivan Lee — Analytical Methods B — In this course I was introduced to simultaneous equations, the identification problem, maximum likelihood estimates, analysis of variance, and sampling theory. Within the framework of this course I wrote a paper “Clingstone Peaches: Demand and Supply Relationships on the Grower Level” applying both least squares and limited information techniques.

Roy Radner — Statistical Problems of Model Construction1 — Introduced me to decision theory, covered in greater detail the Markov Theorem and maximum likelihood estimates.

Martin Beckman — Allocation of Resources in Production3 — This course is introducing me to the valuable new technique of activity analysis (linear programing).

W.H. Kruskal —  Mathematical Statistics I2 — The principal topics of this course are: point and set estimation; hypothesis testing; elements of multivariate analysis; elements of linear hypothesis theory; typical nonparametric procedures.

            In the addition to the above I profited greatly from work with Professors Varden Fuller and Ivan Lee (Summer 1953), which made me familiar with census data, BAE publications, and other major sources of data in agriculture: and from my work with Professor Sidney Hoos (Summer 1954), which provided practical experience in the application of modern econometric techniques. I also have participated and shall continue to participate in the Seminar in Econometrics conducted by members of the Cowles Commission at the University of Chicago.

            All this of course is not enough. I shall have to learn much more. Some of it I shall still get at the university, but the greater part I shall have to learn on my own as my work progresses.

 

  1. A thorough knowledge of agricultural economics is important as it will provide both the framework and background of my work. I believe that I possess a reasonably good knowledge of this field. I have received both the B.S. and M.S. degrees in agricultural economics and have read widely in the field. Some of my courses in this field were:

George Mehren — Seminar in Agricultural Marketing — Introduced me to the practical and theoretical problems arising in the administration of agricultural marketing and adjustment programs.

Murray Benedict — Agricultural Production Economics — Dealt with the theoretical issues underlying policy problems in agriculture.

Varden Fuller — Seminar in Agricultural Policy1— Dealt with current policy issues and their economic implications.

C.M. Hardin — Seminar in Agricultural Policy2 — This course is introducing me to the consideration of current agricultural policy issues from the point of view of Political Science.

T.W. Schultz — Choice and Possibilities in Economic Organization — Dealt primarily with economic development and its impact on agriculture.

D. Gale Johnson — Incomes Welfare, and Policy3 — This course is introducing me to more advanced topics in agricultural economics and policy.

            I have gained also from participation in departmental meetings and seminars, both at the University of California and at the University of Chicago. Three years of my life spent working on farms (1947-50) and a summer (1952) as a research assistant with the California Packing Corporation collecting yield data have enriched my understanding of agriculture and its problems.

 

  1. As time series are used to a great extent in quantitative work, some knowledge of historical methods is quite important. I am fortunate in this respect to have had a very intensive and profitable year of undergraduate study in History at the Hebrew University, and in particular a course in “Introduction to historical literature and methods” by Professor Richard Koebner

            The only way one really becomes adept in quantitative work is by doing quantitative work. In a sense, this is the purpose of my project. As a result of work on my project I should gain experience and facility in using both theory and quantitative methods.

I have a good knowledge of Russian, German and Hebrew.

—————————————–

1 I audited this course
2 I am auditing this course
3  am currently taking this course

 

SUPPLEMENTARY STATEMENT “D”:

I shall have completed all the required course work by June 1955. I intend to take the Ph.D. preliminary examination in Winter 1955, and the preliminary examinations in Money and Banking, and Agricultural Economics in Summer 1955. I have already taken and passed a reading examination in German, and I shall take the examination in Russian in February of 1955. Hence, I hope to have completed all the requirements toward the Ph.D. degree, except the dissertation and final oral examination, by August 1955, and before the fellowship goes into effect.

The preliminary title of my thesis is “A study of the factors determining the development, distribution, and acceptance of new technology”.

The faculty adviser is Professor D. Gale Johnson,

 

SUPPLEMENTARY STATEMENT “E” :

1950-51. A student at the Hebrew University, Jerusalem.

1951-54. Student at the University of California, Berkeley.

Summer 1952. Research Assistant with the California Packing Corporation. Collection of yield data. $1.10 per hour.

Fall 1952. Awarded the D. Solis Cohen Scholarship. This scholarship was awarded to me during the following two semesters.

May 1953. Election to Phi Beta Kappa.

June 1953. Awarded the degree of Bachelor of Science with highest honors in Agriculture.

Summer 1953. Research Assistant with the John Haynes Foundation, working under the direction of Prof. Varden Fuller, at the University of California. Salary: $325/month

1953-54. Jesse D. Carr Fellow in Agriculture at the University of California.

Summer 1954. Research Assistant at the Gianini Foundation of Agricultural Economics, University of California; working under the direction of Professor Sidney Hoos. Salary —$290 a month.

September 1954. Awarded a Master of Science degree in Agricultural Economics by the University of California.

1954-55. A University Fellow and full time student at the University of Chicago.

 

SUPPLEMENTARY STATEMENT “F”:

  1. “Demand for Clingstone Peaches on the Grower Level”, Berkeley,  January 1954, Typewritten manuscript,
  2. “Clingstone Peaches for Canning: Demand and Supply Interrelationships on the Grower Level”, Berkeley, June 1954,
  3. “The Differential Spread of Hybrid Corn: A Research Proposal”, Chicago, December 1954, pp. 1-20.

All three papers are available on loan from me. All are unpublished typewritten manuscripts.

 

Source: Harvard University Archives. Papers of Zvi Griliches, Box 129, Folder: “Correspondence, 1954-1959.”

_______________________________

THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO
VOCATIONAL GUIDANCE AND PLACEMENT

EDUCATIONAL REGISTRATION FORM

Date: September 30, 1957
Name in Full: Hirsch Zvi Griliches
Current Address: 6011 Kimbark, Chicago 37, Ill.
Telephone: Bu 8-1975
Permanent Address: ditto

 

PERSONAL DATA

Date of birth: 9/12/1930. Place: Kaunas, Lithuania
Are you a U.S. citizen? No
If through naturalization give date. If not, explain status: Permanent resident (immigrant), expect. naturalizt. in 2 yrs.
Height: 5’11
Weight: 160
Marital status: Married
Number and ages of children: 1 daughter, 9 months.
Are you a veteran? Of the Israeli Army.
Physical handicaps: None
Church (if you wish to indicate): Jewish
Scholastic honors: S.B. with Highest Honors in Agriculture (U of Calif., 1953), Phi Beta Kappa
Scholarships (give dates and schools): Solis D. Cohen Scholarship, Univ. of Calif., 1952-53
Fellowships (give dates and schools): Jesse D. Carr (Univ of Calif., 1953-54), University (U of Chicago, 1954-55), Social Science Res. Council Research Training Fell. 55-56
Certificates held: None

 

EDUCATIONAL AND RELATED EXPERIENCE

List chronologically all work experience (including teaching, government, business, practice teaching, and experience in armed services)

June 1953 to Sept 1953. John Hanes Foundation, Berkeley, Calif., Research Assistant

June 1954 to Sept. 1954. Univ. of Calif., Berkeley, Research Assistant, Price Analysis.

Oct. 1954 to Sept 1955. Office of Agricult. Economic Research, Chicago, Research Assistant.

Oct. 1956 to date, U of Chicago, Assistant. Prof., Ag. Economics, Gen. Econ. Theory.

 

ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL TRAINING

(If this space is insufficient, attach another sheet)

UNDERGRADUATE COURSES: (List title, not catalogue number, and follow with the number of semester hours; e.g. Shakespeare, 3. One full course in the College of the University of Chicago equals 3 semester hours.)

First Year

 Second Year Third Year

Fourth Year
Hebrew 10 Geology 6 Botany 3
English 8 Introd. Econ 6 Calculus 6
Latin 8 Intern. Trade 3 Ag Econ Theory 6
Russian 4 Statistics 3 Ag. Marketing 3
Westr. Civil. 6 Agric Policy 3 Ag Policy 3
Polit. Theories 8 Range Mangmnt 3 Hist. of Ec. Thght 3
Medieval History 8 Zoology 3 Irrigation Econ. 3
Sociology 8 Agronomy 3
Intnat.Econ. 3

 

GRADUATE COURSES AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO (List Course Title.) (One full course in the Divisions of the University of Chicago equals 3½ semester hours)

Instructor

 Title of Course Instructor

Title of Course
Harberger Price Theory A Hamilton Banking and Monetary Policy
Monetary and Fiscal Policy Metzler Monetary Asp. of Inter’l Trade
Recent Dev. in Economics Beckman Alloc’n of Res. in Prod.
Schultz Choice & Possib. in Econ. Org. Audited:
Econ. Org. for Stability Savage Introd. To Probability Theo.
Regression & Anal. of Varian.
Johnson Price Theory B Theil Math. Economics
Income, Welfare, & Policy Radner Econometrics
Friedman Price Theory A & B
Tolley Money

 

GRADUATE COURSES TAKEN ELSEWHERE (University of California, Berkeley)

Instructor

 Title of Course Instructor

Title of Course
Clark Agric Marketing 3 Kuznets Analytical Methods A 3
Mehren Agric Marketing. Sem. 3 Lee Analytical Methods B 3
Bressler Ag Market Organ. Sem. 3 Dorfman Math Methods of Econ 3.
Bressler Ag Production Theory A 3 Audited:
Benedict Ag Production Theory B 3 Dorfman Econ Theory A & B 6

 

SUMMARY OF ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL TRAINING AS OF Oct. 1, 1957

 MAJORS SEMESTER HOURS MINORS
(OR RELATED FIELDS)

SEMESTER HOURS

Undergraduate

 Agric Econ 15 History 22
Economics 15 Math and Statistics

9

Graduate

 Agric Econ 24 Econometrics & Stat 6 + 9 aud.
Econ Theory & Math Econ 15 +15 aud Money

12
Thesis field and preliminary fields: Agricultural Economics, Economic Theory, Monetary Theory.
Education Courses:  None

 

ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL TRAINING

List all schools attended. Begin with high school from which you graduated. Include work in progress at the University of Chicago and Foreign [Universities]

Dates of Attendance

 Institutions—Location Major Subject Minor Subject

Degree and Date Awarded
6/50 Dept. of Education, State of Israel External Matriculation exams passed 1950
9/50 to 6/51 Hebrew University, Jerusalem History Sociology —
10/51 to 6/54 University of California, Berkeley Agric. Econ Agric. Market. S.B. 1953
S.M. 1954
10/54 to 8/57 University of Chicago, Chicago Economics Agric. Econ. A.M. 1955
Ph.D. 1957

Title of Master’s thesis: no thesis

Title of Doctor’s thesis: Hybrid Corn: An Exploration in Economics of Technological Change.
Thesis adviser: T.W. Schultz

 

EXTRA-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES

Single check activities in which you have participated. Double check those which you can direct [coach/play].

Assemblies, Athletics, Audio-Visual, Band, Camping, Chorus, Civic Organizations, Crafts, Curriculum Planning, Debate, Dramatics, Gymnasium Activities, Orchestra, Parent-Teachers activities, Piano, Playground, Public Addresses, Pupil Participation in Government, Reading, Rhythms-Dances, School Clubs, School Publications, School Publicity, Speech, Vocational Guidance.

[Note:  Only School Clubs was checked (single checked) from the list. It was the Political Economy Club in college]

What foreign languages do you speak? Hebrew, Russian, German, Lithuanian, Yiddish.

Can you type? Poorly. Take dictation? No. Bookkeeping knowledge? No.

 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

(For our use only—not included in credentials mailed to employers.)

PUBLICATIONS:

“Specification bias in estimates of production functions,” Journal of Farm Economics, February 1957.

“Hybrid Corn: An Exploration in the Economics of Technological Change,”Econometrica, October 1957.

Book reviews in the Journal of Political Economy

MEMBERSHIPS:

American Economic Association
American Farm Economics Association
Econometric Society
Fellow of Royal Economic Society

 

REFERENCES
Instructors at the University of Chicago

List at least two University of Chicago instructors who are able to evaluate your course work.

T.W. Shultz
A.C. Harberger
D.G. Johnson
Carl Christ

 

INSTRUCTORS AT OTHER COLLEGIATE INSTITUTIONS

List instructors at other schools from whom you would like to have letters of recommendation.

R.G. Bressler. Dept. of Agric. Economics, Univ. of Calif., Berkeley.
Sidney Hoos.  Ditto.

 

ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICERS

If you have had teaching or administrative experience, list administrative officers who can report on your work (one for each position you have held).

D.G. Johnson, Univ. of Chicago. Act. Chairman
H.G. Lewis, Univ. of Chicago. Director of Research Center.

 

At what other university or college placement office are your letters of recommendation on file?   None.

 

OCCUPATIONAL CHOICES

List three position choices. Be very specific as to (1) courses you can teach within your own department (e.g., if Sociology-Social Psychology, Marriage and Family, Theory); (2) kinds of institutions (University, Liberal Arts College, State Teachers College, Junior College, High School, Junior High School, or grades); (3) other types of positions (Registrar Dean, Superintendent, Business Manager, Critic, Supervisor, etc.).

University, Land Grant or Liberal Arts College, teaching position with opportunities for research. Economic Theory, Agricultural Econ., Econometrics, Money.

Date available (month and year) September 1, 1958
Locality preferred East or West Coast.
Are you limited to that area? No.
Would you apply for positions in foreign countries? Yes
Any racial or religious institutions in which you would prefer to teach? No
Any racial or religious institutions in which you would prefer not to teach? No
Present or last salary $6500 (Confidential) for 11 months.
Minimum salary you would consider $7000 (Confidential) for 11 months.

Your registration is incomplete without six photographs (not larger than 2 ½ by 3 ½ inches).
Pictures are important.

Source: Harvard University Archives. Papers of Zvi Griliches, Box 129, Folder: “Correspondence, 1954-1959.”

Image Source:  Zvi Griliches from the University of Chicago Photographic Archive, apf1-06565, Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library.

Categories
Chicago Economics Programs Faculty Regulations

Chicago. Economics A.M. requirements amended to become “Consolation Prize”. Lewis and Schultz, 1950

 

In 1950 the Chicago economics department voted to convert its master’s degree into an award for the successful partial completion of its Ph.D. program. It was to serve as a “consolation prize” for good graduate students but those found not to have the right “Ph.D. stuff” (H. Gregg Lewis’ words in his memo of Sept. 29, 1950 to chairman T. W. Schultz, transcribed below). I have also included the relevant portion of the distributional and examination requirements for the Ph.D. that had already formed part of the so-called “alternate departmental master’s degree”. H. Gregg Lewis’ proposal was largely accepted by the department (minutes from the meeting of November 2, 1950 transcribed below), thereby eliminating distinct tracks for its A.M. and Ph.D. degree programs, respectively.

_______________________

ALTERNATIVE DEPARTMENTAL MASTER’S DEGREE
[1950-51 regulations]

Upon request the Department will consider recommending for the Master’s degree candidates who have satisfied the distribution requirement for the Ph.D. degree and have passed with satisfactory standing the three written field examinations for the Ph.D. degree. One modern foreign language is required. In place of a thesis such candidates may present an acceptable paper or report on a problem approved by the Department.

[…]

Distributional requirement [Ph.D.]. The candidate is expected to have familiarity with the subject matter equivalent to that covered in at least one course (200 or 300 level of reasonable comprehensivenss in each of ten fields (five required and five elected), satisfactory evidence of which can be provided by course credit or by passing a special examination. The required fields are: (a) economic theory, (b) accounting, (c) statistics, (d) economic history, and (e) money, banking, and monetary policy. The fields from which five may be elected are: (f) consumption economics, (g) industrial relations, (h) monopoly and public utilities, (i) agricultural economics, (j) government finance, (k) international economic relations, and (l) substitute fields, but not in excess of two, proposed by the candidate and approved by the Departmental counselor or the Department. One or both of these substitute fields may be outside the Department of Economics, and in general some work outside the Department is recommended with a view to rounding out a program appropriate for the individual student. In case of students transferring from other institutions, adequate training in general history may be substituted for economic history upon the written recommendation of the Departmental counselor.

Preliminary written field examinations [Ph.D.]. In each of three fields of specialization, in addition to presenting course credit or special examinations to show satisfactory preparation, the candidate will be required to pass a written examination.

The candidate is expected to select the three fields of specialization—a primary field and two secondary fields—for intensive graduate work. The primary field is that in which the [Ph.D.] thesis will be written. One of the three fields (primary or secondary) must be that of economic theory, including monetary theory. The fields from which selection is to be made are listed above under the heading “Distributional Requirement,” except that accounting may not be chosen as a field without approval of the Department. One secondary field of specialization may be a field named by the candidate outside the list above, and this may be in a department other than Economics. A secondary field may also be developed under one of the interdepartmental committees of specialization International Relations, Human Development, Planning or Social Thought. The program of work proposed, which ordinarily will include four to five courses, must be approved by the Department. No other secondary field may replace the required field in economic theory.* Students should consult with the Departmental counselor with respect to appropriate programs of work in preparation for the field examinations. The field examinations are given by the Department in the sixth and seventh weeks of the Winter and summer quarters. Application for any field examination should be made not later than the end of the first week of the quarter in which the examination is to be taken.

*Students who take the field examination in money, banking, and monetary policy will not be required to write the monetary theory part of the economic theory examination.

 

Source: University of Chicago, Announcements. The Division of the Social Sciences, Sessions of 1950-1951, Vol. L, Number 9 (July 20, 1950), pp. 25-26.

_______________________

ECONOMIC COURSES LISTED IN THE LEWIS MEMO (29 Sept 1950) AND INCLUDED IN THE DEPARTMENTAL MINUTES (2 Nov 1950)

209. Intermediate Economic Theory. (Procter Thomson/Harold Gregg Lewis) Designed for students majoring in economics. Deals with factors controlling production, value and relative prices, and distribution.

211. Introduction to Statistics. (Harold Gregg Lewis) Elementary principles of statistics. Main topics: frequency distributions, averages, dispersion, index numbers, elements of the theory of statistical inference.

220. Economic History of the United States. (Earl J. Hamilton) Facts and factors in American’s economic growth from the Colonial period to World War II, including the development of agriculture, industry, commerce, finance, and transportation; economic effects of wars; role of the entrepreneur; rise in living standards; unrest and utopias in periods of stagnation; commercial crises and economic basis of cultural progress.

222. The Rise of Industrial Civilization in Europe. (John Ulrich Nef) Economic development in its relation to religious, political, intellectual and artistic history since the seventeenth century.

230. Introduction to Money and Banking. (Milton Friedman/Lloyd Wynn Mints) Factors which determine the value of money in the short and in the long run; and operation of the commercial banking system and in relation to the price level and general business activity.

240. Introduction to Industrial Relations. (Albert E. Rees) The nature of the labor market; government regulation of wages; social security; the history, structure, and functions of American labor unions; and collective bargaining. Special attention is given to current problems of public policy.

255. Introduction to Agricultural Economics. (D. Gale Johnson). Nature of resources used in agriculture. Prices, production, resource allocation, and income distribution. Analysis of government programs, subsidies, storages, crop control, soil conservation, food-stamp plan.

260. Introduction to Government Finance. (Richard B. Goode) Survey of institutions and theories of government finance. Effects of public expenditures; functions of public revenue; forms of taxation; tax criteria; determination of tax policy; public borrowing; debt management; fiscal policy.

270. International Economics. (Bert F. Hoselitz) The nature of international payments and receipts; foreign trade and banking system. The gold standard in the interwar period. The breakdown of the gold standard and the period of fluctuating exchange rates. Exchange controls, clearing agreements and payments agreements. The second world war and the foreign exchange markets. The position of the International Monetary Fund and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development in the present world economy.

271. Economic Aspects of International Politics. (Bert F. Hoselitz) An introductory survey, with particular reference to the United States, of the economic policies and activities of governments. Topics: international specialization of production and the distribution of world resources, structure of international exchanges and the mechanism of international transfer of goods and services; tariffs and other regulatory measures; trade agreements and the most-favored nation clause; international flow of capital and investment; the position of the ITO, the IMF, the ECA and other official agencies in international trade and exchange.

300A, 300B. Price Theory. (W. Allen Wallis 300A/Lloyd A. Metzler 300B/Milton Friedman 300B) A systematic study of the pricing of final products and factors of production under essentially stationary conditions. Covers both perfect competition and such imperfectly competitive conditions as monopolistic competition, oligopoly, and monopoly. 300A deals primarily with the pricing of final products; 300B, with the pricing of factors of production.

Source: University of Chicago, Announcements. The Division of the Social Sciences, Sessions of 1950-1951, Vol. L, Number 9 (July 20, 1950), pp. 27-28.

_______________________

THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO

September 29, 1950

To        T. W. Schultz

From   H.G. Lewis

In Re: Requirements for the Master’s Degree

This is an elaboration of comments made to you this summer concerning the Master’s degree.

I should like to recommend the following changes in our requirements for the A.M. degree:

  1. That the distinction between the “regular” A.M. and the “alternative” A.M. be abolished.
  2. That the departmental requirements for the A.M degree consist of the following alteration of the present alternative A.M. requirements:
    1. A distribution requirement covering five (rather than the present eight) fields of economics of which theory, statistics, and money and banking shall be mandatory. Students who do not hold the traditional A.B. degree must meet the requirement by passing satisfactorily a qualifying examination coving the subject matter of Economics 209, 211 (unless the student has passed the Divisional qualifying examination), 230, and two courses chose from 220, 222, 240, 255, 260, 270, 271.1/ Students holding the traditional A.B. may meet the requirement by showing equivalent course credit.
    2. The passing of two Ph.D. field examinations (with Part I of the Theory exam counting as a full exam) at a satisfactory level (that is, at either the Ph.D. level or at a level somewhat lower but not so low as not to warrant blessing the candidate with a Master’s degree).2/
    3. A showing of competence in economic principles; made either by passing (at the A.M. level or higher) Part I of the Theory examination, by course credits or course examinations in Economics 300A and 300B, or by equivalent course credit.

I would recommend that the changes in requirements become effective as of the beginning of the Summer Quarter, 1951 for students entering the Department in that and later quarters.

1/ This qualifying examination is now offered every quarter. This is an extravagant use of faculty. I should like to see the exam offered only once a year. Furthermore, I should like to permit students to substitute course grades for all or part of the exam provided the course grades are for courses taken here and provided they are not at a level lower than B.

2/ There would be therefore no special examinations for A.M.’s, but the examinations would be graded into three levels: passing for the Ph.D. and A.M. degrees, passing for the A.M. degree but not for the Ph.D., failing for both.

I would urge students to give requirement (b) high priority in preparing their programs of study.

Since the ends sought by these changes can be reached in other ways, I specify below what these ends are.

I view our principal instructional purpose as that of training high-level (Ph.D. and beyond) professional economists. I think we ought to view our training of “junior” economists and the awarding of the A.M. degree only as an incident arising from the fact that at the time a student applies for admission to the department, we cannot predict accurately either his calibre as a student or his academic goals.

It seems to me that the requirements for the Master’s degree should meet these tests:

  1. They should include no requirements which the Department would not make for the Ph.D. degree. Otherwise both student and faculty time will be spent in activities extraneous to the training of high-level economists. The present alternative A.M. meets this test but the regular A.M. does not.
  2. The requirements should be at a level high enough to be respected by the academic world. Both present degrees meet this test, I believe.
  3. But the standards for the degree should not be so high that potentially able Ph.D. candidates will be deterred from entering because of the considerable risk that if they fail to meet Ph.D. standards they will also fail to meet A.M. standards. If we set standards for the A.M. that are almost as likely not to be met as the Ph.D. standards we hold out no “consolation prize” to those good students who are fearful of not being able to meet Ph.D. standards. The present alternative A.M. requirements do not meet this test.

One of the ways by which we can raise the calibre of our Ph.D. candidates without reducing our enrollment is to increase the number of students who are given an opportunity to show at close hand their potentialities to us and to screen out at an earlier date those who are not of Ph.D. stuff. I am confident that quite accurate screening can take place ordinarily by the end of the first year of graduate residence. I contemplate our using the A.M. requirements as a screening device; the present alternative A.M. is not satisfactory from that point of view since it postpones too long the screening decision.

Source: University of Chicago Archives. Department of Economics Records. Box 41, Folder “41.8”.

_______________________

MINUTES
Meeting of the Department

Time and Place: Thursday, November 2, 1950, at 1:00 p.m. in Room 424, Social Science Research Building.

Present: T. W. Schultz (chairman), H. G. Lewis, A. Rees, R. Goode, G. Tolley, D. G. Johnson, F. H. Harbison, J. Marschak, C. Hildreth, F. Knight, L. Metzler.

  1. Handling of Student Business
    It was agreed that all bona fide applications for admission to candidacy filed this quarter would be considered as falling under present degree requirements even though Departmental action does not take place until Winter quarter.
  2. Ford Foundation
    Schultz stated that as a Department we have an obligation to ourselves, to the University, and to the community more largely to think through carefully the problem of making the best use of the Ford Foundation’s present grant of $300,000 to the University as well as possible later grants. There was a brief general discussion of the problem.
  3. Departmental Rules Governing Residence and Availability to Students
    Schultz pointed out that in the current year we have been able for the first time to reduce direct teaching loads for most of our members to four courses per year or less. This reduction, he pointed out, makes it desirable that the Department impose upon itself rules governing residence and availability to students and others in the university community lest they be imposed upon us from outside. The problem of rules for residence involves not only a rule stipulating in some way minimum residence, but also the question of whether “free” quarters out of residence should be considered a matter of a right accruing to an individual from his residence or a privilege dependent upon ad hoc decisions made by the Department chairman and the Dean. Schultz expressed himself as being in favor of a rule somewhat similar to the rules for accumulating sabbatical leave under a 3Q contract. In addition there is the problem of insuring, perhaps by rule, “availability” when in residence. The formulation of appropriate rules is to come before the Department for its consideration in the Winter quarter.
  4. The Department considered Lewis’ recommendations for changes in the A.M. requirements. (See attached memo. [above]) the following amendment of Lewis’ recommendation was passed:
    1. That the distinction between the regular A.M. and the “alternative” A.M. degrees be abolished.
    2. That the Departmental requirements for the A.M. degree consist of the following:
      1. A distribution requirement to be met by passing a “Qualifying” examination covering the subject matter of Economics 209, 211 (unless the student has passed the Divisional qualifying examination) 220 or 222, 230 and two courses chosen from 240, 255, 260, 270, and 271. Students holding the traditional A.B. may satisfy the requirement by equivalent course credit.
      2. The passing of two Ph.D. field examinations (with Part I of the Theory examination counting as an examination) at a satisfactory level of A.M. candidates.
      3. A showing of competence in economic principles; made either by (at the A.M. level or higher) Part I of the Theory examination, by course credits or examinations in Economics 300A and 300B, or by equivalent course credit.
      4. An acceptable paper or report on a problem approved by the Department. The paper will be read by two members of the Department of which the course instructor will be one in the event the student submits a term paper prepared for a course.

The above changes in requirements are to become effective as of the beginning of the Summer quarter, 1951 for students entering the Department in that and later quarters.

It was understood that the above motion in no way changes present preliminary examinations or other requirements for the Ph.D. degree. Professor Knight asked the minutes to show his objection to dropping Economics 210 (Accounting) from the requirements for the A.M. degree.

  1. Student Business
    1. Petitions

Lawrence Bostow’s petition for approval of French and Russian as languages for the Ph.D. was approved.

Mr. H. M. Herlihy’s petition for the field of “Social Organization” (Sociology Department) as his third field for the Ph.D. degree was approved.

Mr. John Holsen’s petition for a third Ph.D. field in Planning (Planning Department) was approved. Mr. Johnson, his counselor, was asked to inform Mr. Holsen, however, that this approval does not entitle Holsen to shorten his total program in Economics for the Ph.D.

Mr. Edward Mishan’s petition for approval of Spanish as a Ph.D. language was denied.

    1. Admission to Candidacy

Mr. Howard Ammerman’s application for admission and for approval of a thesis topic was moved to the bottom of the list of applications.

Mr. Rondo E. Cameron’s application for admission to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree was recommended to the Division for approval, contingent upon his passing the Theory examination (written Summer, 1950) and his proposed thesis topic, “French Foreign Investment, 1815-1870,” was approved. Thesis committee: E. J. Hamilton, chairman, L. Metzler, P. Thomson.

After some discussion, Mr. Clifford Clark’s application was moved down the list. Lewis was instructed to advise Clark to consult with Hamilton concerning the latter’s misgivings about the proposed thesis topic, and in addition to confer with Hayek, Knight, and other members of the Department concerning the thesis topic.

Mr. George P. Coutsoumaris’ application for admission to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree was recommended to the Division for approval, contingent on his passing the Theory examination (written Summer, 1950), and his proposed thesis topic, “Possibilities of Increasing Economic Efficiency in Greek Agriculture,” was given qualified approval, the Department suggesting that he limit the topic somewhat preferably to a topic approximately the same as that covered in the sections (VII and VIII) of his outline dealing with capital in Greek agriculture. Thesis committee: D. G. Johnson, chairman, C. Harris, J. Margolis (planning).

Mr. David Fand’s proposed thesis topic, “Monetary Theory of the Federal Reserve Board,” was discussed. It was agreed to come back to it at the next meeting after several more of the members of the Department had an opportunity to discuss the topic with Fand.

The meeting was adjourned at 3:05 p.m.

Source: University of Chicago Archives. Department of Economics Records. Box 41, Folder “41.8”.

Images:  University of Chicago Photographic Archive, H. Gregg Lewis [apf1-03861] and T. W. Schultz [apf1-07479], Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library.

Categories
Agricultural Economics Chicago Iowa Minnesota Suggested Reading Syllabus

Minnesota. Course outline and reading for graduate macroeconomics. Brownlee, probably 1959

 

Based on a pamphlet in which he argued that “properly fortified margarine ‘compared favorably’ with butter in nutrition and palatability”, the economics Ph.D. student, Oswald Harvey Brownlee (1917-1985), brought the wrath of the Iowa Farm Bureau among others down upon himself and his economist seniors. After the President of Iowa State caved to the state’s dairy interests in the matter, Theodore  W. Schultz, D. Gale Johnson, and O. H. Brownlee were all to ultimately head off to the University of Chicago.

Oswald Harvey Brownlee. Putting dairying on a war footing, 64 page pamphlet published by Iowa State College Press, 1944.

See: Seim, David L. “The Butter-Margarine Controversy and “Two Cultures” at Iowa State
College.” The Annals of Iowa 67 (2008), 1-50.

Also mentioned in: Milton and Rose Friedman, Two Lucky People: Memoirs, p. 193.

Brownlee went on to teach at the University of Minnesota, where we found him teaching a graduate macroeconomics course. Clearly that was still time that the hatches separating microeconomics and macroeconomics were not so securely battened as today. “Public finance” was Brownlee’s major field so his broad fiscal policy interests make sense.

The course outline transcribed in this post comes from Martin Bronfenbrenner’s papers at the Economists’ Papers Archive at Duke University. Bronfenbrenner taught at the University of Minnesota from 1959-1962 and we can presume that the copy of Brownlee’s macroeconomics course outline with readings was for either 1958-59 or 1959-60.  A second, apparently later, version of the course outline for “Economics 176A” with “Brownlee” handwritten in the upper right corner is also found in the same folder. Three new readings from the second copy have been added and placed within square brackets below. The readings in Parts I and II, IX and X were not included in the second outline for “Economics 176A”.

_______________________

Handwritten note at top:
“Martin, Here is the outline for the Macro theory. Which part do you want to teach? [signed] Oz”

 

Economics 176A-B
Course Outline and Suggested Readings

This brief outline and reading list is intended to serve as a general summary of the materials to be considered during the course and as a guide to class discussion and to outside reading. The detail in the outline does not necessarily correspond to the detail in class discussion. The most significant readings are starred (*). The literature in this field has grown so rapidly during the past decade that this reading list cannot be considered as a complete bibliography of relevant writings.

It is hoped that during the quarter the student will gain an adequate understanding of how the equilibrium values of the relevant variables (gross national product, employment, the general level of prices and the rate of interest, for example) might be determined, and how changes in certain exogeneous variables (including various economic policy variables) might affect these equilibrium values. Although the primary emphasis of the course is on equilibrium levels of certain variables, an introduction to dynamic analysis (a description of the path of a variable over time) will be offered. This will provide the basis for subsequent discussion of business cycle theory and growth models.

  1. General Orientation of the Course
    1. Relationship of macro-static theories to other classes of economic theories
    2. Limitations of macro-static analysis as a basis for policy statements
  2. The firm’s Demand for Labor
    1. Importance for labor hired by business firms in the labor market as a whole
    2. Static theory of production with emphasis on the demand for labor.
      1. Nature of the firm’s production function
      2. Determinants of equilibrium level of employment within the firm
      3. Comparisons of equilibrium levels of employment under various resource market, product market and technological conditions
    3. Effects of Changes in Quantities of Other Resources Upon Demand for Labor

Readings:

1—K. E. Boulding, Economic Analysis, Chapter 31 (revised edition)

2—George Stigler, The Theory of Price, Chapters 6-11.

3—Paul A. Samuelson, Foundations of Economic Analysis, Chapter 3, pp. 21-33.

4—Joan Robinson, Economics of Imperfect Competition, Books VII and VIII.

  1. Equilibrium in the Labor Market for the Economy as a whole
    1. Aggregation of outputs, labor inputs, wage rates and prices
    2. Determination of various combinations of general level of prices and “real” output which will maintain equilibrium in the labor market—an “aggregate supply” function.
      1. With money wage rate autonomously determined: a wage “floor”, a wage “ceiling”, both a “floor” and a “ceiling”.
      2. With supply of labor dependent upon “real” wages.
      3. With supply of labor dependent upon “real” and money wages: the effects of asset holdings.
    3. Degree of Determinateness of relevant variables given only equilibrium in the labor market.
      1. Price level, real output and employment not uniquely determined
        1. Various combinations of price level and real output will maintain equilibrium in labor market, given the autonomously specified money wage or given fixed monetary debts and credits and flexible money wages.
        2. Employment is determined only upon the real wage, real output and employment are uniquely determined, but price level is not.

Readings:

1.*—Jacob Marschak, Income, Employment and the Price Level, Lectures 19 and 20.

2.—Sidney Weintraub, Income and Employment Analysis, Chapters 11 and 13.

3.—Francis M. Boddy, et al., Applied Economic Analysis, pp. 229-248.

4.—O. H. Brownlee, Economics of Public Finance, pp. 47-51.

5.—Don Patinkin, Money, Interest and Prices, IX-XII.

6.—Louis Hough, “An Asset Influence in the Labor Market”, Journal of Political Economy, June 1955.

7.—Robert Solow, “Technical Change and the Aggregate Production Function”, Review of Economics and Statistics, August 1957.

[8.*—Gershon Cooper, “Taxation and Incentive in Mobilization” in Readings in Taxation edited by Musgrave and Shoup.]

  1. Aggregate Demand for Goods and Services: The “Crude Classical Theory”
    1. The Quantity Identity
      1. The Demand for Money—a linear function of money income (expenditure)
      2. Assuming the supply of money (M) and the fraction of income which people with to hold as cash balances are independently determined, the equilibrium level of total money expenditure is determined.
      3. Effects of changes in money demand and money supply upon equilibrium level of money income or expenditure.
      4. Incorporation of assets as a variable influencing the demand for money
      5. Information obscured by the simple quantity identity (that omitting assets as a variable)
        (Note: further analysis of the quantity identity in terms of the kind of aggregate demand function for goods and services which it might imply will be made in subsequent sections).
    2. Equilibrium in the Labor, Money, and Commodity Markets under the assumption of the quantity identity.
      1. Quantity of labor supplied a function only of money wages
      2. Quantity of labor supplied a function only of “real” wages
      3. Division of “real” output between consumption and investment.

Readings:

1.*—J. M. Keynes, The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money, Chapters 2 and 19

2.—L. Klein, The Keynesian Revolution, Chapter 1 and the technical appendix, pp. 199-205

3.—Albert G. Hart, Money, Debt and Economic Activity, Chapters IV-VI and VIII

4.—Alvin Hansen, Monetary Theory and Fiscal Policy, Chapters 1-3

5.—Franco Modigliani, “Liquidity Preference and the Theory of Interest and Money”, Econometrica, 12: 45-88 (January, 1944)

6.—Seymour Harris, (editor) The New Economics, Part IX, Chapter XLI

7.—Francis M. Boddy, et al., Applied Economic Analysis, Chapter 12, 13 (pp. 222-229)

8.*—Jacob Marschak, Income, Employment and the Price Level, Lecture 2.

9.—Don Patinkin, Money, Interest and Prices, I-VIII

10.—Archibald and Lipsey, “Monetary and Value Theory,” Review of Economic Studies, October, 1958

11.*—Milton Friedman, Studies in the Quantity Theory of Money, Chapter I

12.—James Tobin, “The Interest-Elasticity of Transactions Demand for Cash”, Review of Economics and Statistics, August, 1956

13.—H. Rose, “Liquidity Preference and Loanable Funds,” Review of Economic Studies, XXIV (1956-57)

14.—Don Patinkin, Liquidity Preference and Loanable Funds, Economica, November, 1958

15.—Vera Lutz, “Multiplier and Velocity Analysis: A Marriage”, Economica, February, 1955

16.—G. C. Archibald, “Multiplier and Velocity Analysis: An Amendment”, Economica, August 1956

[17.—Ira O. Scott, “The Availability Doctrine: Theoretical Underpinnings”, Review of Economic Studies, XXV No. 1, 41-48]

  1. Aggregate Demand for Goods and Services: The “Keynesian Theory”
    1. Equilibrium in the “Commodity Market”
      1. Consumption (and Saving)
        1. Relationship to income
        2. Relationship to rate of interest
      2. Investment
        1. Relationship to the rate of interest
          1. The marginal efficiency of capital
          2. Uncertainty and the level of investment
        2. Relationship to current income
      3. The Equating of Savings and Investment (Aggregate Demand for Commodities = Aggregate Supply of Commodities)
      4. Determination of various combinations of the rate of interest and real income which will fulfill the condition for equilibrium in the commodity market (will make savings = investment)
    2. Equilibrium in the Money Market
      1. The Liquidity Preference Schedule (The Demand for Money)
      2. With money supply (M) autonomously determined, there will be various combinations of the rate of interest, real output and the price level which will provide for equilibrium in the money market.
        1. The general case
        2. The special “Keynesian” case
    3. Simultaneous Equilibrium in the Money and Commodity Markets: An Aggregate Demand Function
      1. Equilibrium rates of real output and price level which fulfill the conditions for equilibrium in both the money and commodity markets.

Readings:

1.*—Keynes, The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money

2.—The Keynesian Revolution (*particularly Chapter 3)

3.*—J.R. Hicks, “Mr. Keynes and the Classics”, Econometrica, 4: 147-159 (April, 1937); also included in Readings in Income Distribution, The Blakiston Co.

4.*—Franco Modigliani, “Liquidity Preference and the Theory of Interest and Money”, Econometrica, 12; 45-88 (January, 1944)

5.—Alvin Hansen, Monetary Theory and Fiscal Policy, Chapters 4-6

6.—Sidney Weintraub, Income and Employment Analysis, Part II

7.—K.E. Boulding, The Economics of Peace, Chapters 7-9

8.—Wassily Leontief, “Postulates; Keynes” General Theory and the Classicists”, included in The New Economics, Part 4, Chapter XIX

9.—The New Economics, Parts 3 and 9

10.—Abba P. Lerner, The Economics of Employment, Part II

11.*—Jacob Marschak, Income, Employment and the Price Level, Lectures 3-18

12.—O.H. Brownlee, “The Theory of Employment and Stabilization Policy” Journal of Political Economy, Oct. 1950, pp. 412-24.

13.—Ira O. Scott, Jr., “An Exposition of the Keynesian System”, The Review of Economic Studies, XIX, (1), pp. 12-18

14.—Joan Robinson, “The Generalization of the General Theory”, included in The Rate of Interest and Other Essays.

15.—Louis Hough, “The Price Level in Macroeconomic Models”, The American Economic Review, June, 1954, pp. 269-86.

16.—Milton Friedman and Gary S. Becker, “A Statistical illusion in Judging Keynesian Models”, Journal of Political Economy, February, 1957

17.—L. R. Klein, “The Friedman-Becker Illusion,” Journal of Political Economy, December, 1958; and Friedman & Becker, “Reply”, same issue.

18.—Martin J. Bailey, “Saving and the Rate of Interest”, Journal of Political Economy, August, 1957.

[19.—Hans Brems, Output, Employment, Capital and Growth, Part I.]

  1. The Equilibrium Levels of Output, Employment, Prices and the Rate of Interest in the Keynesian System.
    1. Aggregate Supply and Aggregate Demand with Flexible Money Wages
    2. Aggregate Supply and Aggregate Demand with Labor Supply Perfectly Elastic at a Given Money Wage
    3. Effects of Changes in Autonomous Variables and Parameters
      1. The autonomous component of investment
        1. The multiplier
      2. Government expenditure for goods and services
      3. The export surplus
      4. Money wage rates
      5. Technology
      6. The degree of monopoly and employers’ market expectations
      7. Population and the labor supply
      8. The money supply
      9. Marginal propensities to consumer and invest
  2. An alternative Macro-Static System
    1. Some weaknesses in the Keynesian theory
      1. A change in the structure of the system required to explain U.S. postwar experience
      2. Increased savings: income ratio as income increases not empirically verified.
    2. Assets consumption as a variable affecting
      1. Real Assets
      2. Monetary assets (cash and government debt)
      3. Aggregate demand for goods and services when assets are included as a variable in the consumption function
        1. Comparison with quantity theory
        2. Comparison with Keynesian theory
    3. The Duesenberry-Modigliani Hypothesis
    4. Including assets in other Functions: Labor Supply and Demand for Money

Readings:

1.*—Don Patinkin, “Price Flexibility and Full Employment”, American Economic Review, 38: 543-64 (September, 1948).

1a.*—Don Patinkin, Money, Interest and Prices, XIII-XV and appropriate appendices.

2.—__________, “The Indeterminancy of Absolute Prices in Classical Economic Theory”, Econometrica, 17: 1-27

3.—__________, “Involuntary Unemployment and the Keynesian Labor Supply Function”, Economic Journal, LIX: 360-83

4.—Haavelmo, Hickman, Leontief and Phipps on Patinkin, Econometrica 18: 1-26 (January, 1950)

5.—James Tobin, “Money Wage Rates and Employment”, included in The New Economics, Part 8, Chapter XL.

6.—Arthur Smithies, “Effective Demand and Employment”, included in The New Economics, Part I, Chapter XXXIX.

7.—A. P. Lerner, “Mr. Keynes’ General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money”, Reprinted in The New Economics, Part 3, Chapter XI

8.*—Milton Friedman, “A Monetary and Fiscal Framework for Economic Stability”, American Economic Review, 38: 245-64 (June, 1948)

9.—A. C. Pigou, “Economic Progress in a Stable Environment”, Economica, 1947, pp. 180-90

10.—A. C. Pigou, “The Classical Stationary State”, Economic Journal, 53: 343-51 (1943)

11.*—James Duesenberry, “Income-Consumption Relations and Their Implications”, included in Income, Employment and Public Policy, Essay III in Part One, and as Chapter I in Income, Saving, and the Theory of Consumer Behavior.

[11a.—John H. Power, “Price Expectations, Money Illusion, and the Real-Balance Effect”, Journal of Political Economy, April, 1959, 1331-43.]

12.*—Franco Modigliani, “Fluctuations in the Saving-Income Ratio: A Problem in Economic Forecasting”, included in National Bureau of Economic Research, Studies in Wealth, Volume XI, pages 371-443.

13.—Paul A. Samuelson, “The Simple Mathematics of Income Determination”, included in Income Employment and Public Policy,” Essay VI in Part One.

14.—Oscar Lange, Price Flexibility and Employment, particularly Chapters I-V and IX-XI.

15.—Donald M. Fort, “A Theory of General Short-Run Equilibrium,” Econometrica, 13: 293-310 (October, 1945)

16.—Sidney Weintraub, Income and Employment Analysis, Part III

17.—G. L. Bach, “Monetary-Fiscal Policy Reconsidered”, Journal of Political Economy, LVII: 383-94 (October 1949)

18.—George Terborgh, The Bogey of Economic Maturity.

19.—A. P. Lerner, Economics of Employment, parts IV and V.

20.*—William Hamburger, “The Determinants of Aggregate Consumption”, Review of Economic Studies, XXII (1), pp. 23-34

21.*—Franco Modigliani and Richard Brumberg, “Utility Analysis and the Consumption Function”, included in Kenneth Kurihara, The Post Keynesian System—Essays in Honor of John Maynard Keynes.

22.—O. H. Brownlee, Economics of Public Finance, Chapters 3-6

23.—__________, “The Theory of Employment and Stabilization Policy”, Journal of Political Economy, October, 1950, pp. 412-24.

24.*—Milton Friedman, A Theory of the Consumption Function (particularly chapters 1-4.)

  1. Monetary-Fiscal Policy
    1. Effects of changes in government expenditures for goods and services, net tax collections, the tax structure and the supply of money on the demand for and supply of goods and services.
      1. In the Keynesian System
      2. In the Alternative System
    2. Built-In Flexibility vs. Ad. hominum [sic, “ad hoc”] changes.

Readings:

1.—Robert L. Bishop, “Alternative Expansionist Fiscal Policies: A Diagrammatic Analysis”, Lloyd A. Metzler, ed. Income, Employment and Public Policy.

2.—O. H. Brownlee, “Taxation and the Price Level in the Short Run”, The Journal of Political Economy, February, 1954, pp. 26-33.

3.—__________, The Economics of Public Finance, Chapter 6.

4.—Paul A. Samuelson, “Principles and Rules in Modern Fiscal Policy: A Neo-Classical Reformulation”, included in Money, Trade, and Economic Growth.

5.*—Milton Friedman, “the Effects of a Full-Employment Policy on Economic Stability: A Formal Analysis”, included in Essays in Positive Economics.

6.—E. Cary Brown, “The Static Theory of Automatic Fiscal Stabilization”, Journal of Political Economy, October 1955.

7.—Alfred Conrad, “The Multiplier Effects of Redistributive Public Budgets”, Review of Economics and Statistics, May, 1955.

8.—William A. Salant, “Taxes, Income Determination and the Balanced Budget Theorem”, Review of Economics and Statistics, May, 1957.

[9. Bent Hansen, The Economic Theory of Fiscal Policy.]

  1. Some Applications of Static Macroeconomic Analysis to Other Problems
    1. Disaggregated Systems
    2. Effects of Shifts in Expenditure and Income in One Sector upon Income in Other Sectors.

Readings:

1.—John S. Chipman, The Theory of Inter-Sectoral Money Flows and Income Formation.

2.—D. Gale Johnson and O. H. Brownlee, “Reducing Price Variability Confronting Primary Producers”, Journal of Farm Economics, May, 1950, 176-193.

  1. Macrodynamic Analysis
    1. The Nature of “Business Cycle” Theories.
    2. First-Order Difference Equations
      1. The Cobweb Theorem
      2. Lagging of Consumption or Investment by One Period
      3. Introduction of Disturbances
      4. A Dynamic “Keynesian” Model
    3. Models Involving Higher Order Difference Equations
      1. “Interactions between the ‘Multiplier’ and the ‘Acceleration Principle’”.
      2. Inventory decisions as related to changes in consumption or investment in Plant and Equipment.
    4. Problems of Prediction

Readings:

1.*—Paul A. Samuelson, “Interactions Between the Multiplier and the Principle of Acceleration”, included in Readings in Business Cycle Theory, 261-69.

2.—Mordecai Ezekiel, “The Cobweb Theorem”, included in Readings in Business Cycle Theory, 422-42.

3.—J. M. Clark, “Business Acceleration and the Law of Demand”, included in Readings in Business Cycle Theory.

4.—R. F. Harrod, The Trade Cycle, Chapter 2.

 

Source: Duke University. David M. Rubenstein Rare Book and Manuscript Library. Economists’ Papers Archive. Martin Bronfenbrenner Papers, Box 25, Folder “Macroeconomics, Problems & exercises. 1 of 2. 1961-70, n.d.”.

Image Source: Douglas Clement, “A Golden History” in Minnesota Economics (Fall 2006), p. 2.

Categories
Chicago Economists Exam Questions

Chicago. Economic Price Theory Prelim Exam taken by Zvi Griliches. Winter quarter 1955.

 

With this post Economics in the Rear-view Mirror adds two more preliminary exams from the University of Chicago (here, from the Winter Quarter of 1955) to its growing collection of artifacts that provide us a digital record of economics education through the years. The original document was found in Milton Friedman’s files which provide us the additional information of the names of the examination committee as well as names, together with Friedman’s own test scores and his answers to the True-False questions. Of interest to note: Zvi Griliches not only attained the greatest number of points awarded by Friedman (120 points of 185 possible points), but he finished far ahead of the rest of the pack–the second highest exam only received 86 points which incidentally was more than enough to clear this PhD requirement. The Committee failed two students and four students passed the exam for the M.A. degree. Milton Friedman appears to have been the toughest grader of the three members of the Committee.

_____________________________________

Economic Theory Examination Committee:
M. Friedman, chairman; F. H. Knight; D. G. Johnson.

There were 13 examinees for Economic Theory I. These included Zvi Griliches (who incidentally blew the top off the curve according to Friedman’s grades) and Walter Oi.

Griliches Interview with Alan Krueger and Timothy Taylor from June 21, 1999.
Memorial blogpost for Walter Oi by Steve Landsburg on December 26, 2013

There were 2 examinees for Economic Theory II.

_____________________________________

Previously transcribed and posted Preliminary and Field Exams
from the graduate program of the University of Chicago

Economic Theory I and II. Summer 1949
Economic Theory I and II. Summer 1951
Economic Theory I and II. Summer 1952
Economic Theory I. Summer 1955
Economic Theory I and II. Winter 1955
Money and Banking. Summer 1956
Economic Theory. Winter 1957
Money and Banking. Summer 1959
Economic Theory (Old Rules). Summer 1960
Price Theory. Winter 1964
Income, Employment and Price Level. Summer 1967
Money and Banking. Summer 1967
Price Theory. Winter 1969
Income, Employment, Price Level. Winter 1969
Money and Banking. Winter 1969
International Trade. Winter 1970
History of Economic Thought. Summer 1974
Price Theory. Summer 1975
Industrial Organization. Spring 1977
History of Economic Thought. Summer 1989

_____________________________________

Economic Theory I
Preliminary Examination
Winter, 1955
[Milton Friedman’s answers in square brackets]

Time: 4 hours.

Write your number and not your name on your examination paper. Please be brief in your replies.

  1. (30 points) Indicate whether each of the following statements is True, False, or Uncertain and justify your answer briefly.
    1. [False] Production of a commodity occurs under conditions of fixed proportions. The supply curve for A shifts to the right. It is to the advantage of the owners of A that expenditure on A shall have represented a small part of total costs.
    2. [False] A firm will not carry on production at a given level of output, if one factor exhibits increasing average returns at that output level.
    3. [appears to be False with True crossed out] When a firm is in equilibrium, the ratio of the price of a factor to the marginal physical product of the factor determines the marginal cost of production.
    4. [True or Uncertain] If the demand for output is perfectly elastic, a decline in the price of factor A will always increase the demand for factor B unless A and B are perfect substitutes (only two factors employed).
    5. [True] If the demand for output is less than perfectly elastic, a decline in the price of A may either increase or decrease the demand for factor B.
    6. [False] If a monopsonist is not a monopolist, it is possible to construct the monopsonist’s demand curve for a factor.
    7. [False] If all the factors used by a firm are paid the value of their marginal products, the sum of the payments will equal the total receipts of the firm.
    8. [False] If all factors are paid the value of their marginal products, it would not be possible to increase total real output of the economy by any change in the allocation of factors.
  2. (15 points) In an article on the British tobacco industry, the Economist remarked:
    “Since 1938 the industry has had to contend with a sixfold rise in the standard rate of tobacco duty, and a three- to fourfold increase in the average cost of its principal raw material—this includes the higher cost of dollar leaf bought since sterling devaluation. All eight duty increases have been automatically passed on to the smoker, but if duty is left out of account the increase in cigarette prices since 1938 has been no more than about 85 per cent.”
    What do you take “passed on” to mean in this sentence? What is its relation to the economic concept of “incidence”? What inference, if any, would you draw about the latter?
  3. (20 points) Assuming that a monopolist always fixes price so as to maximize profits, can the price of a commodity ever be lower when it is monopolized than when it is competitively produced?
  4. (30 points) Trace the development of the theory of consumer choice. Include in your answer an explanation of (a) the meaning attached by Smith to “effectual demand”, (b) the role assigned by Ricardo to demand in determining prices; (c) Jevons “the final degree of utility determines price”; (d) the contribution of Edgeworth, Fisher, and Pareto.
  5. (20 points) It is widely asserted that workers have less “bargaining power” than employers because there are more workers than employers. Discuss.
  6. (25 points) Discuss the following concepts (a) the “postponement” of consumption said to be involved in saving and investment, (b) “abstinence”, (c) “time preference”, (d) the “marginal efficiency of investment”, (e) the “marginal efficiency of capital”.
  7. (45 points) For each of the following methods of financing radio and television programs, indicate how the resulting structure of programs differs from the optimum: and under what conditions, if any, it would be an optimum. In interpreting “optimum”, assume that the only consideration is direct private benefit from the programs; neglect distributional effects, i.e., treat it as a purely allocative problem; and assume that there are no such public issues involved as “education” or “indoctrination”. On the technical side, assume throughout that there are a narrowly limited total number of frequencies or channels available in any one area. Make your answer as definite as possible in terms of the kind of people whose tastes are or are not catered to appropriately, the kinds of programs that are too numerous or too sparse, etc. In answering the question, assume throughout that it is possible without cost to know exactly the number and kind of people who listen to each program.
    1. The existing U.S. method of selling time to advertisers.
    2. Imposition of an annual license tax or fee on each set; auctioning off of time to private program producers; compensation of these producers by giving to each a share of the total tax collection equal to the fraction of total listener time devoted to his programs. Assume that advertising is forbidden.
    3. Some mechanical method whereby a subscriber can receive a particular program only if he pays through a coin-box arrangement for that particular program. The programs are to be provided by private producers who receive the payments, who buy time on the stations, as in the preceding case, and who can determine the amount charged for the programs they produce. Once again, assume that advertising is forbidden.

 

 

ECONOMIC THEORY II
Preliminary Examination
WINTER 1955

Time: 2½ hours.

Note: Write only your number, not your name, on your examination paper.

Answer question 1, and two others.

 

  1. Using the Table below, explain the variations in the real income, the price level, the velocity of circulation, the government and private investment, the rate of unemployment, the ratio of savings to income, and whatever else you consider significant.

TABLE

The following figures are based on the Economic Report to the President, 1955.
Note: (a) All figures except those for item A are expressed as percentages of the corresponding 1937 figure; (b) item F is defined to be equal to “gross private domestic investment” plus “government purchase of goods and services” plus“net foreign investment”, all in 1947 prices.

 1929

1933

 1937 1941 1945 1949

1953
A. Unemployment as percentage of civilian labor force

3.2

 24.9 14.3 9.9 1.9 5.0

2.5
B. Civilian employment 103

84

 100 109 114 127

134
C. Demand deposits and currency (non-deflated) 89

67

 100 164 346 376

441
D. National income (non-deflated) 119

55

 100 142 246 294

414
E. Consumer price index 119

90

 100 102 125 166

186
F. Gross national product less consumption (in 1947 prices) 100

41

 100 160 281 165

262
G.  D/C 134

82

 100 87 71 78

94
H.  D/E 100

61

 100 139 197 178

222
I.  H/B 97

72

 100 128 172 140

166
J.  F/H 100

67

 100 115 146 93

118
  1. It is often said that the U.S. economy is less likely to suffer a severe depression today than it was twenty or thirty years ago. List and discuss major changes which have taken place which bear on this statement.
  2. Suppose the tax on capital income (dividends, interest) is increased. What will be the effect on the demand for cash if the tax proceeds are spent on: (a) aid to foreign countries; (b) federal contribution to medical aid in the United States.
  3. In the Confederate States, the ratio of bank reserves to deposits grew rapidly during 1862-64. This ratio also grew in the period 1933-37 in the Unites States. Explain these phenomena. Evaluate the action taken by the Governors of the Federal Reserve Board in 1936 and 1937, when they raised the required minimum reserve ratio.
  4. The stock of money (currency and demand deposits) per capita was about 800 dollars in June 1953 as against about 100 dollars in June 1910. Explain the increase.

Source: Hoover Institution Archives. Milton Friedman Papers. Box 76. Folder 2 “University of Chicago, Economic Theory”.

Image Source:  Zvi Griliches. University of Chicago Photographic Archive, apf1-06565, Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library.

Categories
Chicago Exam Questions

Chicago. Economic Theory Prelim Exam, Friedman (chair), 1955

 

The examination committee for the Economic Theory prelim given in the summer of 1955 consisted of Milton Friedman (chair), W. Allen Wallis, and D.G. Johnson. Besides the questions, we have some of the answers that are transcribed from Milton Friedman’s handwritten notes from his copy of the examination questions.

Previous posts with University of Chicago preliminary examinations for Ph.D. and A.M.  degrees:

Preliminary Exam (Money and Banking) 1956

Preliminary Exam (Money and Banking) 1959

Preliminary Exam (Economic Theory, Old Rules) 1960

Preliminary Exam (Price Theory) 1964

Preliminary Exam (Price Theory) 1969

Preliminary Exam (Macroeconomics) 1969

Preliminary Exam (Money and Banking) 1969

Preliminary Exam (International Trade) 1970

Preliminary Exam (Price Theory) 1975

Preliminary Exam (Industrial Organization) 1977

Preliminary Exam (History of Economic Thought) 1989

________________________

ECONOMIC THEORY I
Preliminary Examination for the Ph.D. and A.M. Degrees
Summer Quarter 1955

WRITE YOUR NUMBER AND NOT YOUR NAME ON YOUR EXAMINATION PAPER.

Answer all questions. Time: four hours.

  1. (30 points) Indicate whether each of the following statements is true (T), false (F), or uncertain (U). Give a brief explanation of your answer.
    1. ____ If the income elasticity of demand for a product is greater than unity, the relative price of that product will rise as real per capita incomes increase, i.e., will rise relative to products with income elasticity less than unity.
    2. ____ When a firm is producing in a region of rising marginal cost, that firm is in equilibrium because average costs are increasing also.
    3. ____ The market price of steel and iron scrap fluctuates more than the price of finished steel primarily because the scrap market is competitive while the finished steel market is in the hands of monopolists.
    4. ____If automobile firms overproduce and competition forces down the price of new cars, this harms a car owner who has purchased his car on credit since his mortgaged car has suffered a decline in price.
    5. ____ It is frequently stated that the more disagreeable or dirty a job is the more it will be necessary to pay workers, but this is contradicted by the fact that college professors earn more than foundry workers.
    6. ____ Lowering the support price of wheat in the United States at present would aggravate rather than relieve the problem of surpluses, since farmers would simply produce proportionately more in order to maintain their incomes.
    7. ____ An increase in demand for a commodity increases its price, but an increase in price reduces demand. Increases in demand tend, therefore, to be self-compensating.
    8. ____ Increasing the minimum wage rate to one dollar per hour will have little or no effect outside the South, since most workers now being paid less than one dollar per hour are in the South.
    9. ____ In the absence of factors making for an increase in demand, and other things being equal, a new method will be introduced sooner in a competitive than in a monopolized industry.
    10. ____ Without collective bargaining, the workers’ market disadvantage would enable the owners of other productive agencies to appropriate income that would otherwise go to labor.
    11. With collective bargaining, workers in general can appropriate income from the owners of other agents.
    12. ____ In equilibrium, it is enough to know the marginal factor cost of any one factor and its marginal physical product to know the marginal cost of the product, even though the product is produced by many factors.
    13. ____ The demand for a product at the market price is inelastic. It follows that the product must be produced under conditions of net internal diseconomies.
    14. ____ Under competition, the marginal efficiency of capital is equal to the marginal physical product of a particular kind of capital good times the price of the product.
    15. ____ To assert that the rate at which a consumer is willing to substitute x for y decreases as the quantity of x increases along an indifference curve is equivalent to saying that the indifference curve is concave toward the origin.
  2. (10 points) “East coast gas wars are forcing big producers to chop prices to retailers. With some Manhattan service stations selling gas as low as 15.8¢ per gallon, Socony Mobil, Esso Standard Oil and others have cut wholesale prices up to ½¢ per gallon in most of the seaboard marketing area from Maine to Washington, D.C., the first price reduction in nearly a year” Time, July 25, 1955.
    Explain why this quotation is bad economics.
  3. (10 points) Fair trade is now rapidly disappearing. However, a few firms (Sunbeam, Schaeffer) are actively trying to enforce fair trade pricing.
    • (a) Are these firms just misguided or are there circumstances in which fair trade would help them?
    • (b) If fair trade were generally observed, what would be the effect on return on capital and entrepreneurial effort engaged in retailing?
  4. (15 points) A recent court decree requires a company (The United Shoe Machinery Co.) which heretofore has only leased its machines, for which there are at present no competitors, to offer them for sale at prices which will make it neither more nor less advantageous to buy than to rent the machines. How can such prices be determined, and by what criteria can it be determined whether a given price meets the requirement?
  5. (15 points) Discuss the role of “Euler’s theorem” in distribution theory, and give your own position on the issues.
  6. (20 points)
    1. Define (a) perfect competition, (b) oligopoly, (c) monopoly, (d) monopolistic competition, (e) cartel, (f) monopsony.
    2. State the conditions of maximum return for the individual firm in a form in which they are applicable to all the preceding market conditions. Indicate the special form which these take for each of the preceding market conditions.
    3. Define “length of run” and state is effect on these conditions.

*  * *  *  * *  *  * *  *  * *  *  *

Milton Friedman’s Handwritten Notes for Examination

  1. (30 points)
    1. Uncertain. Depends on conditions of supply
    2. False. (blank)
    3. False. Primarily because supply is more inelastic
    4. True. Applies equally to all car owners, whether mortgaged or not
    5. Uncertain. Must allow for extra costs of becoming college professor
    6. Uncertain. Backward (word illegible) supply curve unlikely for crop like wheat with alternative that can be produced instead
    7. False. Confusion of shift in demand and movement along demand schedule
    8. False. affects complements and substitutes in (letter illegible, possibly “N”)
    9. Uncertain. In competitive industry, only necessary that AC of new be less than AC of old which is equal to MC (word illegible) at margin. In monopoly (word illegible) AC of new must be less than MC of old for (3 words illegible).
    10. False. Under competition, no market disadvantage. But (word illegible) that (4 words illegible) enable workers to get larger total income.
      With collective bargaining, workers in general can appropriate income from the owners of other agents.
    11. Uncertain. Depends on elasticity of demand for labor.
    12. True. (blank)
    13. True. if net internal economies, monopoly, which wouldn’t operate at inelastic demand]
    14. False. (not legible)
    15. True

  1. (10 points) (blank)

 

  1. (10 points)

(a) (comment not legible)
(b) Reduce it

  1. (15 points) (blank)

 

  1. (15 points)

1) Exhaustion of product problem—lh;
2) Proves too much;
3) Condition of equilibrium not result of lh.
(“lh” = “linear homogeneity”?)

  1. (20 points)
    1. Definitions. (6 points)
    2. 11 points

2 points for stating the conditions in form applicable to all the market conditions listed in question 1.

1/MR = MPPa/MFCa= MPPb/MFCb= …. = 1/MC

Special form for conditions for

      1. (2 points, perfect competition) MFCa = pa, MR = px
      2. (1 point, oligopoly) (illegible word) MFCa= pa
      3. (1 point, monopoly) MFCa= pa
      4. (1 point, monopolistic competition) same as c.
      5. (2 points, cartel) MFCa= pa, MR not equal MC
      6. (2 points, monopsony) MR = px
    1. (Definition) 1 point; (Effect) 2 points: MFC = infinity or zero for some factors

Source: Hoover Institution Archives. Papers of Milton Friedman, Box 76, Folder “76.2 University of Chicago Economic Theory”.

Image Source:  Milton Friedman (undated) from University of Chicago Photographic Archive, apf1-06230, Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library.

Categories
Chicago Economics Programs Economists Fields

Chicago. Schedule of the preliminary economics exams for the Ph.D. and A.M., Summer 1951

 

The following schedule for preliminary examinations in economics at the University of Chicago from the summer quarter of 1951 comes from Milton Friedman’s papers at the Hoover Institution Archives. We see that he was on the two economic theory examination committees along with Lloyd Metzler and Frank Knight. Besides providing the names of the faculty members serving on the nine committees, the schedule also provides the names of the sixty students registered for the examinations during that quarter.

____________________

DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS

SCHEDULE FOR PRELIMINARY EXAMINATIONS
FOR THE PH.D. AND FOR THE A.M.

Summer Quarter, 1951

The schedule below shows the examinations requested for the current quarter. Will the chairman of each committee please be responsible for turning in the complete examination at least one week before the date on which it is to be given?

 

Date

 Examination Committee

Students Registered

Thurs., Aug. 2
8:30
Law Court

Agricultural Economics

 D.G. Johnson, chr.
C. Hildreth
T.W. Schultz		 Dunsing, Marilyn (A.M.)
Fox, Kirk (Ph.D)
Hughes, Rufus (Ph.D.)
Taylor, Maurice (Ph.D.)

Tues., July 31
8:30
Law Court

Economic Theory I

 L. Metzler, chr.
M. Friedman
F. Knight		 Baskind, Irwin (Ph.D.) in abs.
Bassett, Marjorie (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Blumberg, Lionel (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Chen, Ho-Mei (Ph.D.)
Chen, Sze-te (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Chien, Chih Chien (Ph.D.)
Cleaver, George (Ph.D.)
Dunsing, Marilyn (A.M.)
Emmer, Robert (Ph.D.)
Fox, Kirk (Ph.D.)
Frank, Andrew (Ph.D.-A.M.) in abs
Gustus, Warren (Ph.D.)
Heizer, Raymond (Ph.D.)
Herlihy, Murray (Ph.D.)
Hoch, Irving (Ph.D.)
Hughes, Rufus (Ph.D.)
Krawczyk, Richard (Ph.D.-A.M.) in abs
Lerner, Eugene (Ph.D.)
Liang, Wei K. Liang (Ph.D.)
Lininger, Charles (Ph.D.)
Lurie, Melvin (Ph.D.)
McGuire, Charles (Ph.D.)
Malhotra, Man Mohan (Ph.D.)
Malone, John (Ph.D.)
Mitcham, Clinton (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Morrison, George (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Sonley, Lorne (Ph.D.)
Taylor, Maurice (Ph.D.)
Terrell, James (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Toscano, Peter (Ph.D.)
Traeger, Gordon (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Viscasillas, Felipe (Ph.D.)
Waldorf, William (Ph.D.)
Weir, Thomas (Ph.D.)
Weiss, Roger (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Zelder, Raymond (Ph.D.)

Tues., Aug. 7
8:30
Law Court

Economic Theory II

 L. Metzler, chr.
M. Friedman
F. Knight		 Chen, Ho-Mei (Ph.D.)
Herlihy, Murray (Ph.D.)
Hoch, Irving (Ph.D.)
Toscano, Peter (Ph.D.)
Weir, Thomas (Ph.D.)

Thurs., Aug. 9
8:30
Law Court

Government Finance

 P. Thomson, chr.
J. Marschak
D.G. Johnson		 Frank, Andrew (Ph.D.-A.M.) in abs
Haskell, Max (Ph.D.) in abs
Henry, Edward L. (Ph.D.)
Horwitz, Bertrand (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Lininger, Charles (Ph.D.)
Selden, Richard (Ph.D.)

Thurs., Aug. 9
8:30
Law Court

Industrial Relations

 F. Harbison, chr.
E. Hamilton
H.G. Lewis		 Barghout, Saad (Ph.D.)
Bechtolt, Richard (Ph.D.)
Hoch, Irving (Ph.D.)
Liang, Wei K. (Ph.D.)
Mullady, Philomena (Ph.D.)
Ness, David (Ph.D.)

Thurs., Aug. 2
8:30
Law Court

International Economics

 L. Metzler, chr.
B. Hoselitz
A. Rees		 Alberts, William (Ph.D.)
Anderson, Edwin (Ph.D.) in abs
Chen, Sze-te (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Chien, Chih Chien (Ph.D.)
Cleaver, George (Ph.D.)
Frank, Andrew (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Glick, Milton (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Gustus, Warren (Ph.D.)
Lukomski, Jesse (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Mitcham, Clinton (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Morey, Donald J. (Ph.D.-A.M.)

Tues., Aug. 7
8:30
Law Court

Money, Banking, and Monetary Policy

 L. Mints, chr.
E. Hamilton
J. Marschak		 Alberts, William (Ph.D.)
Bauer, Milton (Ph.D.)
Blumberg, Lionel (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Chen, Sze-te (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Chien, Chih Chien (Ph.D.)
Cleaver, George (Ph.D.)
Conomikes, George (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Davis, George (Ph.D.) in abs
Emmer, Robert (Ph.D.)
Heizer, Raymond (Ph.D.)
Horwitz, Bertrand (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Hughes, Rufus (Ph.D.)
Krawczyk, Richard (Ph.D.-A.M.) in abs
Lerner, Eugene (Ph.D.)
Liang, Wei K. (Ph.D.)
Lukomski, Jesse (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Meckling, William (Ph.D.)
Mitcham, Clinton (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Morey, Donald (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Ogawa, George (Ph.D.)
Smulekoff, Suzanne (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Sonley, Lorne (Ph.D.)
Taylor, Maurice (Ph.D.)
Terrell, James (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Traeger, Gordon (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Zelder, Raymond (Ph.D.)
Zingarelli, Carla (Ph.D.-A.M.)
Rayack, Elton  (Ph.D.) in abs

Thurs., Aug. 2
8:30
Law Court

Statistics

 T. Koopmans, chr.
C. Hildreth
H.G. Lewis		 Cagan, Phillip (Ph.D.)
Hogan, Lloyd (Ph.D.)
Katzman, Irwin (Ph.D.)
Malhotra, Man Hohan (Ph.D.)
Waldorf, William (Ph.D.)

Thurs., Aug. 2
8:30
Law Court

Economic History

 E. Hamilton Mullady, Philomena (Ph.D.)
Toscano, Peter (Ph.D.)

Source: Hoover Institution Archives. Papers of Milton Friedman. Box 76, Folder “University of Chicago ‘Economic Theory’”.