MSc Economics

Graduate economics is mathematical in a way undergraduate economics only hints at: the core sequence of micro, macro and econometrics is theorem-and-proof material, and admissions committees read transcripts for real analysis and linear algebra rather than for essays about the economy. Applicants coming from mathematics, statistics or engineering often outperform economics graduates without that preparation.

The degree is the standard credential for economist roles in central banks, ministries, international organisations and economic consultancies, and the normal gateway to a PhD.

A technical master's where the mathematics requirement is higher than most applicants from an economics background expect.

• A bachelor's degree in economics, mathematics, statistics, engineering or another quantitative subject.
• Calculus, linear algebra and statistics at undergraduate level. This is the binding constraint and the usual reason for refusal.
• Intermediate micro and macroeconomics, assumed rather than taught.
• English proficiency evidence.
• A statement naming a field — development, labour, industrial organisation, macro — since the module choice follows.
• GRE at some institutions, especially where the programme leads toward a doctorate.

Economics master's programmes are noticeably more mathematical than economics undergraduate degrees. Applicants whose first degree was descriptive rather than formal should expect a demanding first term and prepare for it.

A well-recognised analytical qualification, with roles spread across government, finance, consultancy and international organisations.

• Economist roles in central banks, treasuries and government departments.
• Economic consultancy — competition, regulation and litigation support.
• Financial analysis and research in banks and asset managers.
• International organisations and development agencies.
• Data science and analytics, which recruits econometricians readily.
• Doctoral study, for which this degree is the standard preparation.

If a doctorate is the goal, choose the programme for its technical rigour and its record of doctoral placement rather than for its breadth. The two kinds of master's look similar on paper and are not.

One year with a compulsory technical core followed by field options and a dissertation.

• Microeconomic theory — consumer and producer theory, game theory and market failure, taught formally.
• Macroeconomic theory — growth, monetary and fiscal policy, and open-economy models.
• Econometrics — the central technical skill, and what most employers are actually buying.
• Applied econometrics in a statistical package — Stata, R or Python.
• Field options — development, labour, environmental, industrial organisation, behavioural economics.
• A dissertation, usually empirical.

Econometrics does most of the work in the job market. A graduate who can specify, estimate and defend a model is employable in a way that one who has only studied theory is not.