Quantitative Policy Impact Evaluation

6 unitsSem 2In Person

Crawford School of Public Policy · ANU College of Law, Governance and Policy

About this course

This course is available for on-campus & remote (online) learning. All students participate in interactive, real-time classes. This course is an introduction to rigorous and policy-relevant quantitative impact evaluation techniques for postgraduate students in economics and public policy. The main emphasis is evaluating the causal effect of a policy, naturally occurring event, or intervention on the economic and social wellbeing of individuals, using large scale data. Students will learn the conceptual underpinnings of various causal impact evaluation techniques. The course has a strong focus on applications and involves preparing a research paper.

Learning outcomes

1Understand the reasoning behind major impact evaluation techniques.
2Appraise published empirical research on policy evaluations and critically assess the validity of causal claims.
3Determine and apply appropriate techniques to rigorously evaluate the impact of events in a real-world setting.
4Use statistical software for impact evaluation.
5Conceive, conduct, and present empirical research that uses modern econometric techniques for policy evaluation.

Assessment

Weights and hurdle requirements come straight from the imported ANU record.

Problem set 1

Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4

10%

Problem set 2

Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4

10%

Problem set 3

Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4

10%

Research paper (5,000 words)

Learning outcomes 3, 4, 5

70%

Study expectations

Study information

The standard workload for a 6 unit course is 130 hours including class time and independent study.

Texts and reading

None.

Course essentials

Academic year: 2026
Course subject: IDEC
Subject name: International and Developmental Economics
Academic career: PGRD
School: Crawford School of Public Policy
College: ANU College of Law, Governance and Policy
Convener: Xue (Sarah) Dong
Delivery: In Person
Unit value: 6 units
EFTSL: 0.125
Last source update: Not listed

View the ANU course source

Fees

International fee paying students: International · 2026 · Course basis; $7,020
Student Contribution Band Code 34: Commonwealth supported · 2026; ANU contribution-band code 34
Estimated domestic fee: ≈ $5,160; Estimated from the median of 277 similar courses in the ANU College of Law, Governance and Policy. ANU's page didn't list a fee we could read, so this isn't the official fee.

Areas and attributes

Areas of interest

Policy StudiesEconometricsEconomics