Course Information

AAEC 5014 - Applied Economic Analytics (3 credits)

Mathematical and statistical methods used in applied economic decision-making. Applied mathematical optimization, statistical simulation, data visualization, probability theory and linear econometric models to economic, agricultural, and environmental data and problems. Extensive application of quantitative models and modern programming platforms used in applied economic analysis.

AAEC 5025 - Applied Microeconomic (3 credits)

Basic economic theory of food and fiber production, food and fiber consumption, agricultural markets, and social welfare as influenced by the agricultural sector. Major emphasis placed on application of theory to current agricultural and resource problems.

AAEC 5044 - Applied Macroeconomics (3 credits)

Nature and linkages between agriculture, natural resources, and macroeconomic variables. Theories and methods used to establish and quantify these linkages. Macroeconomic models to measure the effect of national output, unemployment, interest rates, economic growth, exchange rates, and allocation and distribution of resources on the agricultural sector, the environment, and the international economy.

AAEC 5084 - Contemporary Issues and Responses in Food Systems (3 credits)

Economic analysis of food systems. Analysis of contemporary issues and responses in crop and animal production, food wholesaling, food processing, and food retailing. Economic incentives. Isolated, horizontally, vertically related markets and principal agent theory. Appropriate data and application determination. Directional impacts.

AAEC 5134 - Agricultural Markets and Prices (3 credits)

Commodity price analysis, including theoretical relationships, analytical techniques and practical applications. Empirical evaluation and forecasting approaches including time series, structural, balance sheet, futures-based and hedonic models.

AAEC 5424 - Agribusiness Finance and Risk Management (3 credits)

Introduction to corporate finance and risk management in agribusiness. Financial analysis, estimation of capital cost and valuation. Focus on risk management and Environmental and Social Governance (ESG) practices through case studies.

AAEC 5484 (STAT 5484) - Applied Economic Forecasting (3 credits)

Forecasting economic, agricultural and environmental data using basic linear and non-linear time series models. Emphasis on programming and computational implementation of time series model-selection techniques and practical applications.

AAEC 5804G - Fundamentals of Econometrics (3 credits)

Introduction to economic applications of mathematical and statistical techniques: regression, estimators, hypothesis testing, lagged variables, discrete variables, violations of assumptions, simultaneous equations, instrumental variables, panel data methods.

AAEC 5824 - Advanced Applied Analytics (3 credits)

Advanced econometric analysis of problems in agricultural and applied economics. Modern techniques in Econometrics, machine learning, and data analytics including multiple regression, classification, instrumental variables, clustering, and regression trees.

AAEC 5904 - Project and Report (2 credits)

Capstone course to apply data analytics skills to address a real-world problem.

ALS 5024 - Building Multicultural Competence in Agriculture and Life Sciences (1 credit)

Diversity and inclusion within agriculture and life sciences in academic settings and communities: university, national, and global. Virginia Tech Principles of Community and appropriate avenues of redress. Shared responsibilities and issues of privilege, bias, power, prejudice, and discrimination. Governmental and institutional policies and their effects on diversity and inclusion.