The course aims to provide students with the technical tools to analyze the problems, choices and effects of European Economic Policies (EEPs). During the course, the process of formation and evolution of European institutions will be studied, both in terms of organization and in terms of the progressive transfer of competencies from the Member States to the European Union. In this way, the student will acquire (by the end of the course) an in-depth knowledge of EEPs, their formation process and the complex interaction they have with national economic policies today. The course will focus primarily on the costs and benefits of a monetary union, focusing on why the incompleteness of the Eurozone results in additional costs and creates sustainability problems that remain unresolved to this day.

PART ONE. COSTS AND BENEFITS OF A MONETARY UNION

• Costs of a common currency
• The theory of optimal currency areas: a critique
• Benefits of a common currency
• Costs and benefits compared

PART TWO. MONETARY UNION

• The fragility of incomplete monetary unions
• The transition to a monetary union
• How to complete a monetary union
• The political economy of the deconstruction of the eurozone
• The European Central Bank
• Fiscal policies in monetary unions
• The euro and financial markets

PART THREE. MONETARY UNION VS. FEDERAL UNION

• The problems of a poorly constructed monetary union
• In search of surrogates for an impossible federalism

Basic knowledge related to Microeconomics and Macroeconomics is essential for understanding the discipline.

• Knowledge and understanding: the student, upon completion of the course, will have a thorough knowledge of European Economic Policy and the main institutions of the European Union.
• Applied knowledge and understanding: the student will be able to understand and analyze the costs and benefits of monetary union and the steps needed to complete it.
• Ability to learn: the student will be able to apply the knowledge acquired in previous courses (mainly Microeconomics and Macroeconomics) by integrating it with the additional specific skills that characterize the course.
• Autonomy of judgment: the student will have developed a critical ability to evaluate the effectiveness of proposed solutions to European-style problems and their consistency with the achievement of the objectives announced by the European Union.
• Communication skills: the student will learn to communicate the results of economic policy analysis using reports and graphs.

The teaching material prepared by the lecturer in addition to recommended textbooks (such as for instance slides, lecture notes, exercises, bibliography) and communications from the lecturer specific to the course can be found inside the Moodle platform › blended.uniurb.it

The reference manual will be supplemented by slides and articles published in scholarly journals that elaborate on the analyses carried out. 

The teaching materials made available by the lecturer can be found, along with other supporting activities, within the Moodle platform › blended.uniurb.it

Teaching

Lectures and guided discussions of readings and case studies on current European economic policy issues.

Attendance

It is strongly recommended to take the course regularly.

Course books

• De Grauwe, Paul. Economia dell'unione monetaria. Il Mulino, 2022. Tutti i capitoli, ad esclusione del cap. X (La politica monetaria nell’Eurozona).
• Saraceno, Francesco. La riconquista. Perché abbiamo perso l’Europa e come possiamo riprendercela. Luiss University Press, 2020. Capitoli 7,8,9.
• Erasmus students can request to sit the final exam in English with an alternative bibliography to be defined with the professor.

Assessment

The final exam is a written test consisting of 5 open questions pertaining to the syllabus. The test lasts one hour. 

The open questions are intended to ascertain the student's ability to have acquired full mastery of the concepts covered during the course and to be able to expound his or her arguments clearly and in a limited time, using analysis, formal and graphical, rigorous and punctual. 

The evaluation criteria are: the level of mastery of the theoretical knowledge, graphical and mathematical tools used; the degree of articulation of the answer; the degree of adequacy of the explanation; and the degree of accuracy of the graphical and formal analysis. 

Based on these criteria each question is awarded up to a maximum of 6 points. The examination is considered passed if the final mark achieved is 18 or above. The proposed assessment may:

- be rejected by the student. In this case, the exam must be retaken (only one option possible);

- accepted by the student;

- accepted with the addition of an oral test (which may increase or decrease the written assessment).

The results of the written test are published the same day or the day after the test itself. During the written test, students are notified of the time when the results will be announced, the written paper can be viewed, the grade can be regsited, and the oral test can be taken for those who request it.

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

Teaching

Same program of the attending students.

Attendance

Same program of the attending students.

Course books

Same program of the attending students.

Assessment

Same program of the attending students.

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

Erasmus students can request to sit the final exam in English with an alternative bibliography to be defined with the professor.