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Economics and Politics

Entry requirements


A level

A*,A,A

Specific subjects/grades required for entry: Grade A in A-level Mathematics and an accepted social science or humanities subject. Specific subjects excluded for entry: General Studies and Critical Thinking. Information: Please check the website for a list of accepted social science and humanities subjects. Applicants are encouraged to avoid studying both Economics and Business Studies. A-Level Economics is not required though for anyone taking this subject this will form part of the offer made to you. Applicants taking Science A-levels that include a practical component will be required to take and pass this as a condition of entry. This refers only to English A Levels.

Access to HE Diploma

D:30,M:15

We require 60 credits with a minimum of 45 credits at level 3 (or equivalent). Applicants may be required to meet additional subject-specific requirements for particular courses at Durham.

Cambridge International Pre-U Certificate - Principal

D2,D3,D3

Specific subjects/grades required for entry: Grade D3 in Mathematics and an accepted social science or humanities subject.

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

38

Specific subjects/grades required for entry: To include 6, 6, 6 at Higher Level, including grade 6 in Higher Level Mathematics, or grade 7 in Standard Level Mathematics, and grade 6 in a Higher Level accepted social science or humanities subject. Under the new scheme we will accept HL Maths Analysis and Approaches or HL Maths Applications and Interpretation. Mathematical Studies cannot be used to meet the subject specific Mathematics requirement. Information: Applicants are encouraged to avoid studying both Economics and Business Studies.

Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017)

H1,H2,H2,H2,H2

Specific subjects/grades required for entry: Grade H2 in Higher Level Mathematics and an accepted social science or humanities subject.

OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Diploma

D*DD

Subject specific A-levels (or equivalent) may also be required.

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

D*DD

Subject specific A-levels (or equivalent) may also be required.

Scottish Advanced Higher

A,A,A

Specific subjects/grades required for entry: Grade A in AH Mathematics and an accepted social science or humanities subject. We do not accept Advanced Higher Statistics as a substitute for AH Mathematics. If you are taking both of these subjects at this level then a further Advanced Higher is necessary.

Scottish Higher

A,A,A,A,A

We will normally make offers based on Advanced Highers. If an applicant has not been able to take 3 Advanced Highers, offers may be made with a combination of Advanced Highers and Highers, or on a number of Highers. Specific subjects/grades required for entry: Grade A in AH Mathematics and an accepted social science or humanities subject.

At Durham we welcome applications from students of outstanding achievement and potential from all educational backgrounds.  We will consider applicants studying T level qualifications for entry to many of our courses.   Where a course requires subject specific knowledge and this is not covered within the T level being studied, you may need to supplement your T level studies with a suitable qualification to meet this requirement, for example at A level.  Where this is needed this will be clearly stated in our entry requirements.   Detailed entry requirements can be found on individual course entries on our courses database.

UCAS Tariff

152-168

We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.

About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subjects

Economics

Politics

Economic and political theory shapes the decisions made in our society at every level. From the economic effects of climate change to healthcare policy, or the distribution of social funding to the legitimacy of cryptocurrency, the fields of economics and politics have a significant impact.

BA Economics and Politics explores the connections between these two closely linked disciplines. You will develop your own views on a wide range of current issues and build a skill set that will help you make sense of some of society’s biggest challenges.

And when you study at Durham, you’ll develop these skills in a vibrant and intellectually challenging environment. You can also apply to add a placement year or a year abroad to your degree, increasing the course from three years to four.

You’ll divide your time equally between the two disciplines, studying a diverse range of topics such as world economy, macro and microeconomics, corporate finance, international relations and political systems. Years 2 and 3 offer a wide selection of option modules which allow you to adjust the balance of subjects to broaden your experience or focus on your major area of interest.

Learning from an academic team with expertise in contemporary economic and political issues, you’ll be well prepared for a career in the finance services, economics or commerce. In addition, the critical and analytical skills gained on the course extend your options to include the fields of journalism, public policy, education, international development, the charity sector and beyond.

Modules

Description
Economics and Politics are closely linked throughout society. Our BA (Hons) Economics and Politics degree reflects this connection, exploring multiple perspectives while also helping you develop your own viewpoint. You’ll have the opportunity to cover diverse topics such as world economy, macro and microeconomics, corporate finance, international relations and development economics. In Years 2 and 3 you can adjust the balance of subjects to broaden your experience or focus in on your major area of interest.

Year 1
In the first year, in addition to the three Economics compulsory modules, you will take a further compulsory module in Politics and choose one further optional module from a selection of Politics modules. In addition to three Economics compulsory modules, you will take two compulsory and one optional module in Politics.

Year 2
In the second year, you will study two compulsory modules investigating core issues in Economics, an optional Economics module, and in addition, three optional modules must be chosen from the range of second-year Politics modules.

Year 3
In the third year, you will complete a compulsory double Dissertation module that can be in either Economics or Politics. In addition, you will choose four optional modules from a selection in Economics and Politics.

Please note that in the second and third years it is possible for you to take a minimum of five and a maximum of seven modules in each subject.

Please note: the economics degree is currently under review and details may have changed by October 2023.

Placement Year
You may be able to take a work placement. Find out more on our website.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£9,250
per year
England
£9,250
per year
EU
£23,500
per year
International
£23,500
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Republic of Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course locations:

Durham City

College allocation pending

Department:

Economics and Finance

Read full university profile

What students say


We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

77%
Economics
74%
Politics

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Economics

Teaching and learning

72%
Staff make the subject interesting
79%
Staff are good at explaining things
77%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
67%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

78%
Library resources
88%
IT resources
85%
Course specific equipment and facilities
65%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

62%
UK students
38%
International students
64%
Male students
36%
Female students
94%
2:1 or above
2%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

A
A
A

Politics

Teaching and learning

79%
Staff make the subject interesting
77%
Staff are good at explaining things
82%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
51%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

68%
Library resources
92%
IT resources
82%
Course specific equipment and facilities
47%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

71%
UK students
29%
International students
53%
Male students
47%
Female students
92%
2:1 or above
4%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

A
A
A

After graduation


The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Economics

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£29,000
high
Average annual salary
97%
med
Employed or in further education
88%
high
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

35%
Business, research and administrative professionals
29%
Business, finance and related associate professionals
7%
Functional managers and directors

This is a degree in demand, as business increasingly needs workers who can examine and explain complex data. And yet the number of economics graduates fell by nearly 10% last year, which means demand is even greater. As so many economic grads go into banking and finance, it's not surprising that over half of all 2015's economics graduates who did go into work were working in London. And don't think it's just the finance industry that's interested in these graduates - there's a significant number who enter the IT industry to work with data as analysts and consultants. It's quite common for economics graduates to go into jobs such as accountancy and management consultancy which may require you to take more training and gain professional qualifications - so don’t assume you won’t have to take any more exams once you leave uni. And the incentive to take them, of course, is better pay, which will be on top of an already healthy average starting salary of over £30,000 for graduates working in the capital.

Politics

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£25,000
high
Average annual salary
89%
low
Employed or in further education
83%
high
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

21%
Sales, marketing and related associate professionals
14%
Business, research and administrative professionals
10%
Business, finance and related associate professionals

The numbers of people taking politics degrees fell sharply last year and we'll keep an eye on this one - it can't really be because of graduates getting poor outcomes as politics grads do about as well as graduates on average. Most politics or international relations graduates don't actually go into politics - although many do, as activists, fundraisers and researchers. Jobs in local and central government are also important. Other popular jobs include marketing and PR, youth and community work, finance roles, HR and academic research (you usually need a postgraduate degree to get into research). Because so many graduates get jobs in the civil service, a lot of graduates find themselves in London after graduating. Politics is a very popular postgraduate subject, and so about one in five politics graduates go on to take another course - usually a one-year Masters - after they finish their degrees.

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Economics

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£30k

£30k

£40k

£40k

£58k

£58k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

Politics

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£26k

£26k

£34k

£34k

£47k

£47k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

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You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

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Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

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Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here