University of Aberdeen

Economics at University of Aberdeen

Hi! I got a conditional offer from this University.

I would like to know more about this course at this uni: (interesting, really demanding, a lot of knowledge in economics and mathematics and the resources...?

Also, do you need boks or something like that? What is more or less the timetable for this course?

I am studying Economics and finance, joint honours.

Cheers!

Pd: FROM Barcelona

Reply 1

Univman

I got no idea
But im spanish as well haha
Barca rpz

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University of Aberdeen

Reply 2

GoingToBurst

I study accountancy and finance, but all business school students must complete first year economics courses too, so I've done those.

Economics in 1st year has been 3 1 hour lectures per week and a 1 hour tutorial every 2 weeks. The first semester module also has 4 1 hour computer classes to attend throughout the semester. 3 of these are assessed class tests.
The work isn't particularly demanding. In fact, it isn't demanding at all if you manage your time well.
Semester 1 is microeconomics - the course co-ordinator and lecturers for that course are brilliant! They made settling in to uni and getting into the swing of lectures very easy for my friends and I. The coursework for that course is made up of an essay and 3 multiple choice class tests (done in the computer classes mentioned above). These are very easy if you do the reading and attend lectures, and mock tests are made available for you to practice on. The coursework is worth 30% of your overall grade with the further 70% coming from the exam.
The exam, again, is quite easy going for a uni exam. They've done a great job of setting up the exam so that it is still a challenging exam yet isn't too stressful. It is comprised of 3 parts, a multiple choice test (similar to the ones done on the computer throughout the course), an essay section and a true/false/uncertain section. You are given 3 essays in the essay section and you have to answer 1 of them. You are given 4 true/false/uncertain questions and have to answer 2 of them. These answers must be explained and diagrammatically evidenced in order to get the marks.

Semester 2 of first year is macroeconomics. Again, 3 1 hour lectures and a 1 hour tutorial every 2 weeks.
I find the course content quite interesting, however I feel the teaching isn't as good as in semester 1. I don't engage with the lecturers as well as I did in the first semester, but that is just personal preference.
The coursework for this course is again, 30% coursework and 70% exam. There is an essay worth 18% and a report worth 12%. These are due 6 weeks apart from one another and are not particularly difficult.
The exam is fully essay based - you get given 8 questions and must answer 3.

The reading list for these courses is essentially the same. They use the same core textbook for both courses as it covers both basic micro and macro economics. This is a massive saving for students who buy their books new (me).

I've thoroughly enjoyed economics and I'll actually be taking it as an additional course in second year alongside my prescribed studies just because I've enjoyed it.

Finance on the other hand, is incredibly boring hahaha. You only have 1 finance module in first year and it is mind numbingly boring, but again, very easy if you pay attention and do the work. The course co-ordinator for that course is also the head of school. He's lovely and is incredibly helpful, but for me, just wasn't a great lecturer. He does record all of his lectures and make them available online though, so that is a massive help for revision.
The course is 2 1 hour lectures per week and 1 1 hour tutorial every 2 weeks. 25% of your grade comes from a report due quite late in the semester and the other 75% comes from the exam. Again, this is a first semester course so the exam is set up in a similar way to the economics one. You have a multiple choice section and then 2 essay sections.

Finance students also have a compulsory accounting module in semester 2 of first year. 2 1 hour lectures per week and 1 2 hour tutorial every week. 30% of your grade comes from weekly class tests in the tutorial with the further 70% coming from the exam.
I really enjoy this module, I find it very simple as it is just the basics of financial and management accounting. The teaching staff are also excellent.

Those 4 modules will make up your compulsory 60 credits of first year, but you have a further 60 credits you must do. These can come from any course you fancy doing. They generally recommend you take all of the business school ones so that you have the option to switch between degrees at the end of first year if you decide you hate finance or economics (i.e if you take all the accountancy and management courses in first year alongside your compulsory ones, you could change your degree to any combination of economics, finance, management and accountancy). I recommend avoiding management AT ALL COSTS. They are the worst, most boring modules you will ever be faced with, so do not subject yourself to those hahaha. I recommend taking the first semester accountancy course though, it is very basic and quite interesting.

Hope that helped you out a bit!