Economics Degrees 2013
Studying for a degree in Economics, Business Economics or Economics and Finance means that you will be learning an exciting, relevant subject in a friendly, well-regarded department. As well as aiming to provide you with a sound grasp of core economics, finance and business principles, we will emphasise being able to use these principles and put them into action.
Degree programmes
Entry requirements
Minimum entry requirements
- A-level grades AAA (or AAB if A-level Mathematics is included)
We do not include General Studies or Critical Thinking in our offers.
Conditional offers from Surrey will be made in grades or marks, and not listed in points from the UCAS tariff.
Required subjects
GCSE English Language at grade C or above and GCSE Mathematics at grade A or above (or equivalent).
A-level Economics and/or Mathematics is preferred, but not essential.
English language requirements
Please note that the University of Surrey offers English language programmes and is also an IELTS Test Centre.
Other suitable qualifications
Cambridge Pre-U
D3, D3, M1 – M1, M1, M1
European Baccalaureate
76 – 75%
International Baccalaureate
37 – 35 points
BTEC (QCF Level 3) Extended Diploma
DDD
In addition, we accept a wide range of qualifications, including other Level 3 QCF Level 3 qualifications, Scottish qualifications, the Irish Leaving Certificate, Access Diplomas and foundation courses. Other qualifications will be considered on an individual basis.
It is important to check whether the qualifications you are taking are suitable for your chosen degree. If you are uncertain whether your qualification meets our entry requirements, please contact us.
If you are an international student and you don’t meet the entry requirements to this degree, we offer the International Foundation Year.
Selection process
Offers are made in terms of grades. We may invite candidates for interview. We invite suitable candidates to visit the University to find out more about the programme and meet staff and students.
Tuition fees
UK/EU students
Tuition fees are currently set at £9,000 per year for UK/EU undergraduates starting in 2012.
The tuition charge will be accompanied by a generous financial support package, underlining our continued commitment to widening access for those students who come from low income households.
Overseas students
The fee for students classed as overseas for fees purposes is £13,310.
The University will assess your fee status. If you are unsure whether you are likely to be considered a home, EU or overseas student for fees purposes, the UKCISA website offers more information.
Professional Training Year Fees
Programmes marked with an asterisk (*) in the table above include a professional training year.
Currently fees of £1,050 (based on an inflation assumption of 2.5%) are charged for the Professional Training Year. Fees will not have to be paid up front for those students who decide to take up the Government’s loan for higher education fees. The Professional Training year is a key factor in the high employability rates achieved by students with Surrey degrees.
Our degrees
If you enjoy problem solving and thinking clearly about domestic and international contemporary issues, these programmes will be of interest to you. Our employment record is excellent and our teaching and programme content have received high praise in external assessments.
Economics is the study of scarcity, choice and incentives. Every society faces the problem of how to allocate scarce resources and ensure that individuals use them responsibly. Economists use scientific methods of observation, experimentation and research in providing answers to these problems.
Our Economics programmes help you to master the full range of skills practised by the professional economist. These include analytical problem-solving skills, quantitative and data analysis skills, computing skills, and written and oral presentation skills. The emphasis is on being able to use these skills, and ultimately on specialising in areas that interest you.
Successful and fast-developing economies also exhibit expanding business and financial sectors. Therefore, the study of topics in business and finance within a framework of the core elements from an economics degree offers a powerful combination of skills.
Our Economics and Finance degree is an innovative new programme that provides you with these skills and an understanding of how they are applied to these dynamic and fascinating parts of many economies.
Our Business Economics programme examines economic issues, how businesses behave and their role within the economy. It employs analytical tools and data analysis but places less emphasis on mathematical techniques than our other programmes.
Our Professional Training year offers you a unique opportunity to witness these skills in practice and to develop your understanding of them. The employment and career prospects for our graduates are very wide, with employers ranging from the private to the public sector and from the financial to the corporate sector.
Programme content
Programme overview
In year 1 the programmes share common content to provide a sound foundation for later choice and specialisation. You will be introduced to core principles of microeconomics and macroeconomics, and encouraged to discuss topical economic issues and practise giving presentations. Data Analysis, Statistics and Mathematics for Economics are also introduced, with additional support available if you do not have A-level Mathematics (or equivalent). You can also study languages.
Year 2 continues these core themes, as well as emphasising computer-aided data analysis. Specialist modules are introduced and you will also gain a foundation for professional placement and for choosing your final-year options.
In Economics, some modules apply the core principles in areas of economic policy and you will work in a team to produce a report on an area of economic importance and interest. Both Economics and Finance and Business Economics focus on the role of business and financial institutions within the economy, and allow you to study accounting and work on a team project designing a business plan to be evaluated by professional business assessors.
During year 3, each programme has compulsory modules designed to enhance your specialism, with additional optional modules ranging from theoretical, quantitative and computer-oriented modules to those involving applications of economic theory in major areas of policy. They cover domestic, European and international topics, including those in business economics and finance. As such, they allow for either increased specialism or a more varied menu of subjects.
You may choose to write a 5,000-word project, allowing you to work intensively on a topic of particular interest and helping prepare you for the sort of activity you may be engaged in after graduation. Our inspiring, challenging programmes aim to prepare you fully for further study or a successful career.
Programme structure
Year 1 (FHEQ Level 4)
Modules include:
- Introductory Economics
- Quantitative Methods
- Contemporary Issues in Economics
- Economics Data Analysis
- Mathematics for Economics
- Statistics for Economics
- Principles of Microeconomics
- Principles of Macroeconomics
Year 2 (FHEQ Level 5)
Economics modules include:
- Intermediate Microeconomics 1
- Intermediate Macroeconomics 1
- Introductory Econometrics
- Economics Analysis with Matrices
- Intermediate Microeconomics 2
- Intermediate Macroeconomics 2
- Intermediate Econometrics
- Applied Economic Workshop
Economics and Finance modules include:
- Intermediate Microeconomics 1
- Introductory Econometrics
- Financial Economics 1
- Intermediate Macroeconomics 1
- Enterprise Workshop
- Financial Accounting
- Intermediate Econometrics
- Financial Economics 2
Business Economics modules include:
- Intermediate Microeconomics 1
- Introductory Econometrics
- Economics of the Firm
- Intermediate Macroeconomics 1
- Enterprise Workshop
- Financial Accounting
- Corporate Strategy
- Business History
Professional Training year
- Optional Professional Training placement year
Year 3 (FHEQ Level 6)
Modules include:
- Topics in microeconomics*
- Topics in macroeconomics*
- Derivatives Markets**
- Corporate Finance**
- Economics of International Business Competition***
- Global Strategy***
- Operations Research
- Energy Economics
- Labour Economics
- Money and Banking
- Games, Markets and Information
- Industrial Organisation
- International Trade
- 5,000-word Research Project
- Natural Resource and Environmental Economics
- Public Economics
- Economics Forecasting
- International Finance
- Law and Economics
Economics, and Economics and Finance modules include:
- Times Series Econometrics
- Topics in applied econometrics
Students choose a total of eight modules
* Compulsory for Economics
** Compulsory for Economics and Finance
*** Compulsory for Business Economics
Professional training
If you are on the four-year degree, the School’s Professional Training placement year gives you the chance to spend the third year with an outside organisation. Some placements are in economics, statistics or operational research departments of large corporations, some are in City institutions and some are in government departments.
Recent employers include the Bank of England, JP Morgan, Nomura, State Street Bank, Oxford Economics, Lloyds TSB, IBM and Walt Disney Co.
During your placement, you work as a salaried employee, gaining invaluable work and life experience. A workplace supervisor is appointed and you are visited at least twice by one of our tutors. Your work is assessed throughout the placement and you will also complete a 3,000-word report.
Career opportunities
Graduate prospects
Graduates over the last few years entered employment in roles such as:
- Lloyds TSB – Fraud Investigations
- Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance – Underwriter’s Assistant
- Coutts & Co – Trainee Portfolio Manager
- Accenture – Analyst
- Gam Hedge Funds – Investment Support Assistant
- HSBC – Management Trainee
- IBM UK – Accountant
- PricewaterhouseCoopers – Associate
- State Street Bank – Financial Assistant
Career opportunities
Graduates from our programmes are highly successful in securing quality jobs. The ‘problem-solving’ nature of the subjects, the topical and applied focus of our programmes and the experience gained on the professional placement greatly appeal to employers. Computing skills are often an additional asset.
Graduate employment spans the finance sector (including banking, accountancy and investment analysis), the corporate sector (including management training) and the public sector. For example, recent graduates are now working for the Bank of England, the Government Economic Service (in a variety of government departments), numerous City firms (such as JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, KPMG and Ernst & Young) and other commercial organisations (such as Cornhill Insurance, Legal and General, and British Airways). Their job roles range from economic policy advisor, investment manager, financial economist and statistician to airline pilot. A number of graduates each year go on to study for higher degrees, both in the UK and abroad.
Additional information
Teaching
Teaching on the programme is by lectures, tutorials, seminars and workshop sessions, which absorb about 15 hours each week. The purpose is to use, rather than just study, economics. In tutorials we encourage you to present your own ideas and to develop the verbal skills that will stand you in good stead for the future. Classes and workshops are practical sessions in which you will develop the ability to apply and use economics. For each hour of teaching, you are expected to spend two to three hours in private study. There are also modules where you are required to work in groups.
Assessment
The final degree classification is based on your performance in the written examinations at year 2 and year 3 of the programme, in coursework and in a final-year project (if selected). Assessments taken in year 1 do not count towards your final degree classification.
Satisfactory completion of all year 1 assessments is necessary for entry into year 2. Performance in year 2 and year 3 contributes 35 per cent and 65 per cent respectively to your final degree award. Coursework is typically worth a minimum of 30 per cent of marks, and examinations 70 per cent.
Why Surrey?
Economics degrees 2013 at Surrey
- Ranked as the seventh-best economics department in the UK by The Guardian University Guide 2013. Both The Times Good University Guide 2013 and The Complete University Guide 2013 also rank us in the top twenty
- Profit from our outstanding employment record
- You will benefit from our excellent national and international reputation for research excellence
- The opportunity to specialise in your preferred areas
- A near perfect (23/24) teaching assessment score in external Teaching Quality Assessment
- Enjoy the opportunity to spend a year studying in the USA or Singapore
- Benefit from a well-established Professional Training year offering a range of paid placements
As well as outstanding teaching quality, the University puts an emphasis on fantastic placement opportunities that prepare you for life after graduation.
Lee Prout
BSc Economics
In my opinion, no other degree subject offers as many potential career directions as economics and you are able to take full advantage of this at Surrey, thanks to the vast range of modules available.
As well as outstanding teaching quality, the University puts an emphasis on fantastic placement opportunities that prepare you for life after graduation. It is this unique blend of study and work experience that makes Surrey stand out from the crowd.
I spent my placement year working for State Street Bank, where I developed many skills that are simply unattainable in a classroom environment. This gave my CV that all-important extra dimension for building a career.
Away from studying, the University has so many sporting clubs and societies that you are spoilt for choice. I chose snowboarding as my preferred sport and became a national champion, highlighting the great facilities and training available via the Students’ Union.
I am now studying for a postgraduate Masters degree in Economics and Finance for which my undergraduate degree has prepared me greatly.
The degree programme has provided me with both quantitative and qualitative skills and has prepared me for building a career.
Gaia Stigliani
BSc Economics
Studying Economics at the University of Surrey has been a wonderfully challenging experience for me as an international student.
The course links economics theory to the issues affecting people’s lives – indeed, the complex equations that we study provide the basis for understanding many everyday situations.
I very much enjoyed the variety of modules on offer, but the course is not only about theory. I had the great opportunity to work for a London-based firm in my Professional Training year, and this proved to be an invaluable life-learning experience.
Overall, the degree programme has provided me with both quantitative and qualitative skills and has prepared me for building a career. Both the placement and my final-year module choices have helped me understand which fields I would like to specialise in and where I see myself working in the near future.
My time at the University of Surrey has been very pleasant. I would like to thank the staff in the School of Economics who have been so helpful and encouraging throughout.