The course is the equivalent of the standard one-semester course at SAIS. It carries no credit. It gives students with a limited background in economics the opportunity to receive in advance a systematic presentation of microeconomics at an intermediate level. It satisfies the microeconomic requirement at SAIS and also enables students to take classes with a microeconomics prerequisite (for example, International Trade Theory) during the first semester in Bologna. The goal of this course is to provide students with a strong foundation for applying microeconomic theory to public policy problems. It endeavours to provide students with the theoretical and practical tools required to address essential problems related to resource allocation, efficiency, and welfare from a variety of perspectives. Prerequisites: The material taught in this course is devoted to students who have already taken principles of microeconomics or its equivalent.