Cost-Benefit Analysis

Catalog description

Cost-benefit analysis (CBA) involves the use of microeconomics to formally assess the costs and benefits of different projects or investments. CBA is required for major regulations in the United States and is frequently used as a key input into major policy decisions. Understanding its advantages and limitations, and being able to distinguish well-conducted from poor analyses, is an important skill for a policy analyst. This course provides you with the conceptual foundations and practical knowledge you will need to both conduct CBA as well as be a more thoughtful consumer of policy research. The course draws on a mixture of economic theory and real-life case studies to examine both the theoretical and practical issues involved in conducting CBA.