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Maths, Biology, Geography, Business Studies at A level for Economics degree

im hoping to study economics at uni but am not sure what subjects are best, as economics a level isnt offered at my sixth form. Are these subjects a good combination for economics and is there any point doing a fourth subject at all?

Reply 1

MindMax2000

Universities Forum Helper

Original post by nj1247

Maths is the key A Level. FM would be ideal if it's on offer and you intend to go to do a course at a competitive top end uni.
Otherwise, Biology, Business, and Geography are completely random with little relevant to economics at degree level.

The main entry requirements tend to be Maths A Level, so long you have that then you're usually fine if you have high enough grades in all subjects.
The fourth A Level usually doesn't help.

Business, if you really stretch it, might have some relevance to economics (more so business and industrial economics, but still a stretch). Geography has almost no relevance unless you're doing development studies or human geography (very little resemblance to actual economics). Biology is of no relevance (although the economics of aspects of biology is an interesting area of research).

Economics at uni is more about dicussion of theories and mathematical models, using statistical and theoretical studies to back up your arguments. Business and geography are subjects that look more into what generalisations you can extract from practice, whereas economics is about fitting theory with practice. Biology is just completely out of the field when it comes to relevance to economics.

In terms of complementary subjects, I would say business and geography go well together. However, I don't think they're a particularly good fit for maths. Biology despite being a science, involves very different skills to maths so I wouldn't say it's a particularly good fit.
Better suited subjects for maths include physics, computer science, chemistry, FM, economics, and geology. These are generally subjects where you would need to figure out and solve problems.

Having said that, what's more important is you getting the grade you need in A Level maths and your other 2 subjects. If you feel confident you can do that, then you're free to pick any subject you want other than Maths.

Reply 2

nj1247

Thanks for the response

So if I did Maths, Further Maths + 1 subject I feel I can get the grade I need in (eg chemistry) would this allow me to do a degree in Economics? Is it maybe even possible to self teach Economics A level or find an online course so that I would have had a basic introduction to the subject, or is this unrealistic?

Reply 3

McGinger

You need to check the entry requirements for Economics on a range of different Uni's own websites.

Many top Unis will want of 'prefer' you to be taking FM.
For Econ, taking Business Studies at A level is a total waste of time and no-one needs 4 A levels.

Reply 4

McGinger

Btw - if you are interested in Geography and Economics then look at a Uni subject called 'International Development' -

Bath - https://www.bath.ac.uk/courses/undergraduate-2024/international-development/
SOAS (London) - https://www.soas.ac.uk/study/find-course/bsc-development-economics
Manchester - https://www.manchester.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/courses/2024/05130/baecon-development-studies/
UEA - https://www.uea.ac.uk/web/about/school-of-global-development/undergraduate
Sussex - https://www.sussex.ac.uk/development/ugstudy/prospectus

Reply 5

MindMax2000

Universities Forum Helper

Original post by nj1247

So if I did Maths, Further Maths + 1 subject I feel I can get the grade I need in (eg chemistry) would this allow me to do a degree in Economics?
Pretty much.

See the following as examples of the entry requirements:
https://www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/courses/economics (see the following for the individual entry requirements as per college: https://www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/files/publications/economics_subject_requirements.pdf)
https://www.lse.ac.uk/study-at-lse/undergraduate/degree-programmes-2024/bsc-economics
https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/studywithus/ugstudy/courses/UG/Economics-BSc-Hons-U6UECONI.html
https://www.ed.ac.uk/studying/undergraduate/degrees/index.php?action=view&code=L100
https://www.qmul.ac.uk/undergraduate/coursefinder/courses/2024/economics/
https://www.lancaster.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/courses/economics-bsc-hons-l100/2024/#course-entry

You then get degrees that don't require A Level Maths at all:
https://www.cardiffmet.ac.uk/management/courses/Pages/Economics-BSc-(Hons).aspx
https://www.gre.ac.uk/undergraduate-courses/business-school/economics-bsc-hons#entry-requirements
https://www.northampton.ac.uk/courses/economics-bsc-hons/

So yes, the essential A Level is maths with FM being strongly preferred on top. The third subject can be in anything you want, so long it's considered academic, if you want to apply for degrees at top unis. Should this be chemistry, then so be it so long you can get a really high grade in it.

Is it maybe even possible to self teach Economics A level or find an online course so that I would have had a basic introduction to the subject, or is this unrealistic?
Any standard economics degree will go through the basics of economics in the first year i.e. go through the necessary parts of A Level economics, going through the material yourself is going to double the work (not that I am saying you should be discouraged in doing this).
If you want to go through the material yourself irrespective, then you can pick up an official textbook on A Level Economics and read up about it. The material is self explanatory enough at that level that you don't need a teacher to go through the material most of the time. See the following:
https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/economics/as-and-a-level/economics-7135-7136/teaching-resources
https://qualifications.pearson.com/en/qualifications/edexcel-a-levels/economics-a-2015.resources.html?filterQuery=category:Pearson-UK:Publisher%2FPearson
https://www.ocr.org.uk/qualifications/as-and-a-level/economics-h060-h460-from-2019/textbooks/
I would try to get the latest editions of the books second hand, as there's not much point in getting a new book that cost quite a bit for casual reading.

If you want to go for the introductory textbooks used at university level, you can consider:

•

Consider an textbook by Gregory Mankiw - probably the most popular author for first year economics textbooks; would recommend the buy

•

David Begg's economics textbook is a good read

•

Pretty much any book in the Schaum's Outlines series on economics - also cheap buys

I don't know which textbooks you would be using in your desired economics degree, so I wouldn't jump to buying any yet (they're relatively expensive), but any of the above would likely be good candidates.

Note: the key topics you would cover in your degree would be in macroeconomics (economy wide), microeconomics (individual), and econometrics (statistics). You won't cover econometrics in A Level economics, but it's something essential in your degree (you would cover a good portion of it in the stats module of A Level Maths).
If you want recommendation for introductory texts in econometrics and mathematical economics (maths used in economics, albeit some of it a bit more advanced than you need in a standard eocnomics degree i.e. some further maths topics), let me know.

(edited 7 months ago)

Reply 6

lalexm

Original post by nj1247

You don’t need FM for an economics degree, unless you are applying to Cambridge or LSE. No benefit doing 4 A-levels either. Do an EPQ instead. Drop Business Studies from your list, and your choices are then great. Geography is good as there is plenty of economics related content in human geography. Best of luck.

PS. I would not recommend FM unless you really enjoy maths and you got a 9 in GCSE (or was predicted a 9 but ended up with an 8 due to having a bad day)

(edited 7 months ago)

Reply 7

McGinger

Original post by lalexm

You don’t need FM for an economics degree, unless you are applying to Cambridge or LSE. No benefit doing 4 A-levels either. Do an EPQ instead. Drop Business Studies from your list, and your choices are then great. Geography is good as there is plenty of economics related content in human geography. Best of luck.

PS. I would not recommend FM unless you really enjoy maths and are got a 9 in GCSE (or was predicted a 9 but ended up with an 8 due to having a bad day)