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Johns Hopkins UniversityEst. 1876

America’s First Research University

Principles of Economics

Gain a firm grasp of the theories and tools of economics, finance, and the functioning of the international economic system.

Course Dates: June 2 – August 4, 2025

The summer version of this course is only available to incoming accepted MAIR and MAIA students.

The 9-week Principles of Economics (PoE) is a non-credit course that covers introductory micro- and macroeconomics and can be used to complete the school's two-year Master of Arts in International Relations economics admissions requirement. It can also be taken as a prerequisite to take the school’s International Economics courses.

The PoE course is organized into weekly modules with each lecture recorded on a virtual whiteboard. Each weekly module contains lectures, a problem set, a practice quiz, and a short graded quiz. Students are required to submit assignments on a weekly basis. A typical week in the PoE course will involve the following:

  • A set of 6-8 video lectures, averaging 10-12 minutes in length
  • Textbook readings selected to support and supplement the lectures
  • Practice on both short-answer quizzes and more substantive conceptual problems
  • A final assessment for each module

DOWNLOAD COURSE OVERVIEW