A young female university student in a knit jumper working at dual monitors in a university computer lab, one displaying OLS regression results with a scatter plot and the other showing UK GDP growth and inflation data, with a whiteboard illustrating supply and demand curves, market equilibrium and price elasticity behind her and other students at computers nearby, representing the analytical and data-driven focus of Economics degrees

DEGREE GUIDE

Economics

What do Economics degrees involve?

Economics degrees teach you how markets function, how resources are allocated, and how financial and policy decisions impact businesses and society. You will study key areas such as microeconomics, macroeconomics, econometrics, economic policy, and financial markets. These courses help you develop strong analytical, mathematical, and problem-solving skills while understanding how economies grow, respond to crises, and adapt to global challenges. As you progress, you may specialise in areas such as behavioural economics, international trade, or economic development. You will also gain hands-on experience through data analysis, economic modelling, and real-world case studies, preparing you for careers in finance, government, consultancy, and policy analysis.

Example
Modules

Microeconomics 1: Explore how individuals and firms make choices about spending, production and pricing when faced with limited resources and competing demands.

Macroeconomics 1: Study the big picture of how economies function, covering national income, inflation, unemployment and government policy tools.

Mathematical Methods in Economics: Learn how to use algebra, calculus and graphs to model economic problems and support logical decision-making.

Common Degree Names

💼 A placement year is widely available in government, finance, consultancy or data roles.
🌍 Study abroad is common.

BSc (Hons) Economics
BA (Hons) Economics
BSc (Hons) Economics and Finance
BSc (Hons) Economics and Mathematics
BSc (Hons) Economics and Politics
MSci Economics

Economics is offered as both BA and BSc. BSc usually includes more maths and data analysis. MSci is a four-year integrated Master’s degree that combines undergraduate and Master’s level study in one course.

A laptop displaying a Stata regression output with a wage versus education scatter plot alongside a macroeconomics textbook open to fiscal and monetary policy diagrams, a notebook with Prisoner's Dilemma payoff matrices and Nash Equilibrium workings, a Bank of England Monetary Policy Report with inflation forecasts and a development economics case study with a GDP per capita map of Africa, illustrating the theoretical, statistical and policy analysis skills developed in Economics degrees

Level 3 (A-level / IB Diploma (HL) / Scottish Highers)

Economics uses mathematical models to understand how markets, businesses, and governments make decisions. Because the degree involves statistics, graphs, and quantitative analysis from day one, universities look for students who are confident with numbers.

You'll need:

Maths – required at competitive universities; strongly preferred at most others

Subjects that strengthen your application:

Further Maths (or IB AA HL) – highly valued by the most competitive universities if it is available at your school
Economics – helpful if available, but not required
Physics, Statistics, or History – useful supporting subjects

✨ Maths A-level (or equivalent) keeps the widest range of options open for you. Some universities accept a strong GCSE Maths grade (usually 6/7 or above), or IB Maths SL at a high grade instead, but this limits your choices – and you should be comfortable with quantitative work.

Universities may also accept:

BTEC Extended Diplomas in Business, often alongside A-level Maths
BTEC National Extended Certificates or National Diplomas alongside relevant A-Level subjects, particularly Maths
IB Career-related Programme (IBCP) with Maths at Higher Level among your IB subjects (minimum two, ideally three - see relevant subjects above), alongside your Career-Related Study; a Business pathway would be directly relevant

Entry requirements for Economics can be high, especially at competitive universities. Always check specific requirements.

Level 2 Qualifications (GCSE / MYP / National 5)

You will usually need:

GCSE Maths and English at grade 4/C or above, or National 5s or MYP equivalents

📘 For Economics, a strong grade in GCSE Maths (grade 6/B or higher) is important, since the subject involves statistics and data analysis.

GCSE (or equivalent) Business Studies or Statistics can be helpful, but they are not required.

💬 Interviews
Interviews are not usually required, but some universities interview as part of the selection process.

📝 Admissions Tests
Most courses don't require a test, but some competitive universities do. Cambridge, LSE, and UCL ask you to sit the TMUA (Test of Mathematics for University Admission), which tests mathematical thinking and reasoning. Oxford uses the TARA (Test of Academic Reasoning for Admissions) for Economics and Management, which assesses critical thinking and problem-solving. Warwick recommends TMUA, but it's not compulsory.

🔍 Work Experience

You don't need work experience to apply for Economics. If you have a school placement to fill, a local business, bank, charity, or council office can give you insight into how organisations make financial decisions. For this subject, engaging with economic ideas — through reading, following current affairs, and thinking critically about policy — matters far more than any placement.

✨ Personal Statement Tips

What interests you about how economies work and how economic decisions affect people's lives? Economics is about understanding choices - how individuals, businesses, and governments allocate resources, and what the consequences are. If you've found yourself curious about economic issues in the news, thought about why some countries are richer than others, or explored how economic policies affect real people, reflect on what sparked that interest. Reading economics articles or books, listening to podcasts that explain economic ideas, or following debates about inequality, trade, or public spending can show genuine engagement. Admissions tutors want to see that you're curious about how economic thinking explains the world, not just interested in business or finance.

If your qualifications don't match the usual entry requirements, there are some other possibilities.

🌱 Foundation Year in Economics or Business
If you do not have Maths at A-level (or equivalent) or your grades aren’t quite enough, some universities offer a foundation year. This introduces you to quantitative and economic skills and can lead on to the main degree.

🎓 Access to HE Diploma (Business or Social Sciences)
An Access course can be a route into Economics for mature students. You’ll usually need a high proportion of Distinctions in quantitative units, and some universities may still ask for GCSE (or equivalent) Maths at grade 6/B or higher.

💼 Level 3 Apprenticeships
There are no direct apprenticeships into an Economics degree. However, accounting, actuarial, or data apprenticeships can be a good alternative route and can help you develop the skills and experience to apply to university later.

Is this degree right for you?

Members can explore whether this degree fits who they are:

Skills you'd develop and whether they match your strengths
How this aligns with your interests, motivators and values
Career paths and where graduates end up

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Skills you would develop in X degree

Skill Name

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Is this a good fit for you?

Use the tabs to explore the kind of person that this would be a good fit for. Do you share the Interests, Motivations, Values, Work identity and skills that people who thrive in this course tend to have?

Not sure what these things are? Explore your Identity Tree with us first.

Interests that connect well with an Economics degree

Students who enjoy this degree often share these interests. You don't need to feel strongly about all of them, and interests develop over time. If one or two catch your curiosity, or sound like something you'd like to know more about, that's a good sign.

Money, Markets & How Economies Work: This is what the degree is about. You'll study how markets function, how resources are allocated, how governments shape economies through policy, and why some economies grow while others stagnate.

Mathematics, Patterns & Data: Econometrics and quantitative methods are core throughout the degree. You'll use mathematical models and statistical tools to test economic theories, analyse real-world data, and draw evidence-based conclusions about how economies behave.

Students who thrive in an Economics degree are often motivated by

Trends and Pattern-Spotting

You're energised by noticing what's changing before others do, whether that's emerging cultural trends, shifts in data, new technologies gaining traction, or patterns in behaviour. You find energy in predicting what's coming next and understanding why things are moving in a particular direction. You're drawn to the signals others overlook, and you'd rather be early to the question than late to the answer.

Analysing and Investigating

You're energised by making sense of information, looking for evidence, spotting patterns, and piecing together how things connect. Whether it's pulling apart data, questioning assumptions, or tracing a problem back to its source, you find energy in the process of understanding what's really going on. You'd rather dig into the details than accept things at face value.

Curiosity and Learning

You're energised by the activity of learning itself: diving into a subject you've never explored, watching documentaries, taking apart how something works, or constantly asking "why?" The process of learning gives you energy, not just the outcome. You don't just want the answer; you want to understand how things connect, why they matter, and what's underneath the surface explanation.

Working Internationally

You're energised by work that crosses borders and connects you with people from different countries, backgrounds, and systems. That might be collaborating with international colleagues, working in a place that isn't your own, using another language professionally, or tackling problems that don't stop at a single country's borders. You come alive when the work you're doing reaches beyond your own patch of the world.

Intellectual Challenge

You're energised by pushing your mind to its limits, tackling difficult questions, and wrestling with problems that don't have easy answers. You're drawn to work that requires deep concentration and rigorous thinking. The harder the problem, the more satisfying it feels to work through it, and you'd rather be stretched than comfortable. Easy work bores you rather than relaxing you.

What makes Economics click for the students who love it?

Interest rates, trade deals, why one country booms while its neighbour stalls: Economics is for people who can't read the news without wanting to know what's driving it underneath. They like that the thinking is rigorous and mathematical, where an argument has to be worked out properly rather than just asserted. They tend to notice patterns in data or events that others skip past, and they're drawn to questions that cross borders, like how a policy change in one country reaches into another.

These are the skills that students who love this degree tend to enjoy using. You don't need to be great at them already, but if they sound like you, that's a good sign.

Skill Name

Skills that suit this degree

You don't need to be great at these already — but if you enjoy using them or want to get better at them, that's a good sign.

Do you enjoy working through problems logically, using maths and data to figure out why something happens, not just that it does?
Do you find yourself thinking about big questions like why some countries are richer than others, or how prices are set?
Do you like building an argument and backing it up with evidence, not just having an opinion, but proving your point?
Do you tend to think about how decisions made by governments or businesses affect ordinary people's lives?

Careers an Economics degree could lead you to

Economics

What do Economics degrees involve?

Example Modules

Common Degree Names

Is this degree right for you?

Skills you would develop in X degree

Skill Name

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Is this a good fit for you?

Careers an Economics degree could lead you to

Example
Modules