MIT

AP® Microeconomics

An overview of introductory microeconomics. Learn the key principles of economics and how to apply them to the real world – and the AP® exam!

MIT Online Course Highlights

12 weeks long
3-4 hours a week
FREE, Upgradable
Self-Paced
Taught by: Jonathan Gruber, Ford Professor of Economics
View Course Syllabus

Online Course Details:

Want to learn how individuals and businesses make the decisions that drive our economy – and use those skills to ace the Microeconomics AP® exam? This is the course for you!

This economics course is an introduction to basic microeconomic principles. You will learn how individuals make decisions ranging from what type of goods to buy to how many hours to work, and how firms make decisions ranging from how many workers to hire to what prices to charge. You will study how to evaluate economic outcomes from the perspective of efficiency and fairness, and discuss the proper role of the government in determining these outcomes.

This course will cover all material that is required for the Microeconomics AP® exam. It will cover this material through a mix of intuitive explanations, real-world applications, and graphical and mathematical supplements that explore the content in more depth. By the end of the course, not only will you have an understanding of the most important principles of microeconomics, but you’ll be able to use these principles to better understand the workings of the real world around you!

Looking to bolster your credentials? Consider exploring our comprehensive guide on Microeconomics Courses with Certificates.

*Advanced Placement® and AP® are trademarks registered and/or owned by the College Board, which was not involved in the production of, and does not endorse, these offerings.

What you’ll learn:

Consumer theory: How do consumers make decisions to maximize happiness?
Producer theory: How do firms make decisions to maximize profit?
Market structures: How does the structure of a market affect economic efficiency?
Market failures: How do markets fail and what is the role of government to respond to these failures?
Economic fairness: How do we strike the balance between economic efficiency and fairness?

Syllabus:

Week 1: Welcome and Introduction (Units 1-2) Introduction Supply and Demand
Week 2: Consumer Theory I (Units 3-6) Consumer Preferences Utility Functions Budget Constraints Utility Maximization
Week 3: Consumer Theory II (Units 7-8) Deriving Demand Income and Substitution Effects
Week 4: Producer Theory I (Units 9-12) Intro to Production Short-Run Production Short-Run Costs Long-Run Production
Week 5: Producer Theory II (Units 13-16) Perfect Competition Profit Maximization Short-Run Supply Curve Long-Run Supply Curve
Week 6: Competitive Equilibrium and Welfare (Units 17-21) Shifts in Supply and Demand Individual Surplus Market Surplus Competition and Maximizing Welfare Taxes in Competitive Markets
Week 7: Other Market Structures I (Units 22-24) Intro to Monopolies Welfare Effects of Monopoly Origins of Monopoly
Week 8: Other Market Structures II (Units 25-27) Intro to Oligopolies Game Theory Oligopolistic Competition
Week 9: Factor Markets (Units 28-32) Modeling Preferences for Work Labor Supply Labor Demand Labor Market Equilibrium Capital Markets
Week 10: International Trade (Units 33-35) Intro to Trade Productions Possibilities Frontier and Comparative Advantage International Trade and Welfare
Week 11: Role of Government I (Units 36-39) Redistribution Deadweight Loss of Redistribution Externalities Government Solutions to Externalities
Week 12: Role of Government II (Units 40-42) Public Goods Uncertainty Information Asymmetry

Our platform offers the opportunity to explore certified economics programs that are recognized industry-wide.

Course Expert