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Can you apply for straight econ AND econ + other subjects with one PS?

Hello everyone! Is it wise to apply to straight economics courses if you include information relating to other subject areas in the personal statement? For example, what if you apply to PPE at one university but want to apply for straight econ at 4 other universities? Is this a risky move, or is it that the the universities that you apply to for straight econ do not really care about the mention of the PP as long as you show a legitimate interest in econ?

If it is acceptable to do the aforementioned, what would the desired ratio be of PPE in the PS be? 20/20/60? Some other ratio? Any advice would be GREATLY appreciated. Thank you for your time.
Reply 1
4 of my choices were maths, and my 5th was Maths with music. All i did was talk about some music stuff in my extracurricular section since the maths:music in the course was 3:1 so not as much emphasis on music was required.
Original post by collegian
Hello everyone! Is it wise to apply to straight economics courses if you include information relating to other subject areas in the personal statement? For example, what if you apply to PPE at one university but want to apply for straight econ at 4 other universities? Is this a risky move, or is it that the the universities that you apply to for straight econ do not really care about the mention of the PP as long as you show a legitimate interest in econ?

If it is acceptable to do the aforementioned, what would the desired ratio be of PPE in the PS be? 20/20/60? Some other ratio? Any advice would be GREATLY appreciated. Thank you for your time.

I'm not sure about this. If it's PPE then it should be 1/3 of each element and I know places like Oxford are picky about mentioning every single element in its own right. Also, PPE ≠ Economics, so make sure you're willing to study both. Economics has a strong mathematical focus, unlike PPE. If you're applying to LSE PPE, then I know they are extremely picky when it comes to personal statements, so that could be one to avoid, as good as it is.
Reply 3
Original post by Mike_123
I'm not sure about this. If it's PPE then it should be 1/3 of each element and I know places like Oxford are picky about mentioning every single element in its own right. Also, PPE ≠ Economics, so make sure you're willing to study both. Economics has a strong mathematical focus, unlike PPE. If you're applying to LSE PPE, then I know they are extremely picky when it comes to personal statements, so that could be one to avoid, as good as it is.


Thanks for the quick reply. I was actually planning to apply to Oxford PPE and everywhere else straight econ (because Oxford doesn't have a straight econ course). I know LSE is very picky for personal statements, so I've been wondering how risky is it to mention the PP in the PS. I would be willing to study both, it's just how does one effectively write a PS that sufficiently encompasses both. I was thinking of LSE PPE (in addition to their econ course) but apparently 2015 will be their first year of doing PPE, so I don't know if it would be wise to join a university's brand new course.
Original post by collegian
Thanks for the quick reply. I was actually planning to apply to Oxford PPE and everywhere else straight econ (because Oxford doesn't have a straight econ course). I know LSE is very picky for personal statements, so I've been wondering how risky is it to mention the PP in the PS. I would be willing to study both, it's just how does one effectively write a PS that sufficiently encompasses both. I was thinking of LSE PPE (in addition to their econ course) but apparently 2015 will be their first year of doing PPE, so I don't know if it would be wise to join a university's brand new course.

If you're looking for the equivalent of economics at Oxford then it's E&M you're looking for, as you can specialise after year 1 and do mostly economics (IIRC). Depending on your AS grades and your other applications, it might be worth risking a slot in your UCAS on LSE. I'm pretty sure it will be ranked second only to Oxford PPE in the UK despite it being a new course. Any course at LSE looks great anyway. Be careful because I think at LSE it's a 4 year course. It would be risky to apply to both PPE and Economics at one uni though, although entirely feasible.

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