Msc Economics Admissions Guide (including a Warwick specific post)

I have now started a spreadsheet to store info for taught Postgrdauate courses in Economics at Uk universities:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=rcf0S1p4-udUcSa6BD3cXVw&output=html

[pre]_7) Oxford1234 Mphil (2 year) 1st year UK/EU £9,900/£10,300 Overseas £13,650/£14,050
1234567890123456789012345678902nd year UK/EU £6,400/£6,800 Overseas £13,650/£14,050[/pre]
[pre]10) LSE123456 Msc (1 year) UK/EU £18,048 Overseas £18,048[/pre]
[pre]27) Warwick123Msc (1 year) UK/EU12£8,160 Overseas £11,810[/pre]
[pre]36) UCL123456 Msc (1 year) UK/EU12£9,280 Overseas £14,040[/pre]
[pre]51) Cambridge Mphil (1 year) UK/EU12£9,560 Overseas £15,525 [/pre]

[PRE]82) Nottingham Msc (1year) UK/EU £4,370 Overseas £10,610[/PRE]

Note:
1) The Oxford fees is the sum of the University Fee and the College Fees. College fees vary by college hence the / figures.
2) The UK/EU fee for UCL is still the 08/09 fee as the 09/10 fees have not been publisched yet.
3) The Cambridge fees are formed by totalling the University and College fees.

Why the funny numbering?
The numbers reflect the Universiteis worldwide research rankings for economics:
http://ideas.repec.org/top/top.inst.all.html

If go to a moderate uni after I complete my degree will I be able to do a masters at a better uni?
In general with top unis the constraints are financial not academic. In terms of academics whilst LSE and OXbridge requries Firsts (both actual and predicted) outside those three a 2:1 is probably acceptable. e.g. at Warwick a good 2:1 is ok. Top unis will also look at the content of your course esp. in terms of Maths and Statistics.

So in general the challenge is not getting offers. e.g. If you study econ at an AAA-AAB uni and are predicted a 2:1 or are at an ABB-BBB uni and are predicted a 1st I would expect you to get offers outside the Top 3. However the constraint on applicants are financial not academic. i.e. hard to find funding as the funding that is available is more focused on PhD than Msc students.

Issue is how well you do once you get there. The material taught at undergraduate varies as you go down the table and is no longer a good preparation for msc.

Also check out:
i) the Warick preliminary knowledge post: http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?p=10923238#post10923238
ii) the spreadsheet http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=rcf0S1p4-udUcSa6BD3cXVw&output=html for the fees and academic requirements on each msc course.

Can I go to a mid table uni for undergraduate and then a top uni for an msc? (1)
At undergraduate level TAELT has 5 ridiculously ridiculously competitive (RRC) unis and 6 ridiculously competitive (RC) unis. At Msc level the picture would be very different. Instead there would be perhaps only 3 RC unis and no RRC unis. For example:
i) Warwick make a lot of offers (e.g. between half and 2 thirds of applicants get offers) and have students from places like Cardiff, Sheffield and Royal Holloway in the last few years.
ii) Notts this cycle had a student from Kingston.

Why is there such a big drop in competitivity between Bsc and Msc?
Well:
i) Lots of Bsc Econ graduates are very employable and hence don't want or need more education.
ii)The Msc fees are higher. So unlike at BSc level prices are not artificially low and hence there is not excess demand.

Can I go to a mid table uni for undergraduate and then a top uni for an Msc? (2)
Getting into a top uni for Msc is one thing doing well is another. i.e. the material taught varies between top and mid table unis. And whilst there is a natural progression in the material taught between Bsc and Msc at top unis, there is no such guarantee at other unis.

So in conclusion. Yes you can move up from a mid to a top uni, but:
i)there are likely to be more issues with the material.
ii)It is expensive and coming from a less good uni it is harder to get funding.

How do I go about applying to do postgraduate study in economics at a UK university?
In terms of applying for postgraduate study you do that directly to each uni so you do not have to do that through UCAS. You can apply to as many or few as you like. And you are not limited to 5 choices.

What are the deadlines?
Well in general there are no hard application deadlines. But sooner is better. e.g. for many funding schemes you need to have made an application first before you can applying for funding. And many funding schemes do have hard deadlines.

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Reply 1

Paulwhy

Warwick specific stuff

What will I need to know?
Firstly in terms of Economics you need an Upper Second.

Secondly in terms of Maths/Stats requirements:
a) Maths
i) Calculus:
functions of several variables
partial derivatives
constrained optimization using Lagrange multipliers
integration,
ii)Linear Algebra
matrix algebra
linear equations
rank
inverse
determinants.
b)stats
probability theory
distribution theory (binomial, normal and associated distributions)
sampling theory
statistical inference
interval estimation
hypothesis testing (means and variances)
least squares regression

source
http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/courses/depts/economics/tdegrees/

Also check out my postgraduate post
http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?p=10923238#post10923238

What if my undergraduate degree was not in economics?
If econ lite then can do diploma course

Will I get an offer?
Here are the applications/offers/admisssions stats:
UK/EU
2007 197: 129: 42
2008 257: 126: 48
International
2007 379: 164: 61
2008 494: 174: 58

Here is the link to the spreadsheet
http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=rH-t_tS1JZLfPHpGb5Nw49Q&hl=en#

and the original Warwick Source
http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/services/mip/businessinformation/academicstatistics/2008/economics.pdf

Do I need a First?
No firsts are not requried. only about a third of msc students have firsts:
[PRE]Year #Firsts #2:1s %Firsts[/PRE]
[PRE]2007 12 21 36.36%[/PRE]
[PRE]2008 3 5 37.50%[/PRE]
Note in 2008 the degree class of many applicnats is uncrecorded (23) or Overseas (30). Hence the small absolute numbers.
source http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=rsKsHSjRgqip0wpRkmWIUBQ
Warwick source http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/services/mip/businessinformation/academicstatistics/2008/economics.pdf

Which unis have students attended at undergraduate before doing Msc at Warwick?
Warwick
Bath
RH
Sheffield
Birmingham

what are the fees like?
Uk/Eu £8,160
International £11,810
source
http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/funding/socstudies0910

What is the connection between Warwick Business School (WBS) and Warwick Economics Department? Are they the same thing?
No they are not. They are different departments and teach different courses. WBS teaches causes which are (totally or mainly) finance courses:e.g.
Msc Finance
Msc Finance and Economics

Economics Department teaches courses that are mainly or totally Economics related courses:
Diploma in Economics
MSc Economics
MSc Economics & International Financial Economics
MSc Economics and Industrial Organisation
MSc Economics of Public Policy
http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/economics/pg/

Reply 2

hamzab

Hi Paul,

Do you know if you can get a list of where the other top 4 Unis get undergraduates from for their MSc Econ courses?

Reply 3

Paulwhy

hamzab

Hi Paul,

Do you know if you can get a list of where the other top 4 Unis get undergraduates from for their MSc Econ courses?

Thanks

Hey, this is for those who are currently enrolled in this program or for those who are planning to start in September.

What are the strengths of the Economics department at Warwick, and what faculty members are renowkned in thier field?
Also, could you also tell me about the modules that we are supposed to choose? Which ones are worth taking. I know they depend on your interests but I'd like to know anyway.

Another thing: how does the Warwick program compare to the LSE program? Is it as good or is it very far behind?

Thanks

Reply 6

curiouscase1986

No ones got anything to say? :frown:

Reply 7

abdom0n

Warwick has the 3rd strongest research base of any Economics department.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/table/2008/dec/18/rae-2008-economics-and-econometrics

Notably better than both Oxford and Cambridge.

Reply 8

kkhimji2001

I got accepted for a msc in global finance and banking at european business school, i got a 2:2 from ucl

should i still apply to warwick for msc economics , just to open up my options?

Is there a good chance I will get accepted, and if I do, is it stronger than european business school?

Reply 9

ILIGAN

I've never heard of European Business School, but Warwick is quite respected in Europe and Asia.
If finances aren't an issue here, I would definitely encourage you to apply to WBS.

Reply 10

ElemenT'

kkhimji2001

Really??? I thought WBS was supposed to be competitive? :s

Reply 11

shaina

(I'm a newborn here, so pardon me) :yep:

Where do I apply for an MSc Economics in U.K.? My criteria is an excellent department, degree and career placement.

The shortlist has Warwick, Leicester, Nottingham, Essex, Exeter, UCL, QMUL, Birkbeck, Southampton, York. Am I missing something very critical (Oxford, Cambridge notwithstanding, am an overseas student adamant on boycotting the GRE)

I have seen the rankings, read the blogs, ordered the prospectuses and poured over websites till my eyes were bloodshot. I just need to know where the course and universities stand in U.K. among the country-people.

Reply 12

Aemilius

Out of the once you mention UCL and Warwick are by far your best choice. They're excellent schools! But you've seemed to have left out the most obvious one - LSE! competetive, but not impossible!

Reply 13

shaina

Aemilius

Out of the once you mention UCL and Warwick are by far your best choice. They're excellent schools! But you've seemed to have left out the most obvious one - LSE! competetive, but not impossible!

Thanks A!
I'll be feeling proud of my research for a few days now :woo:

LSE will also want GRE scores...and an unbelievable course record; whereas mine is just, believable :smile:

Reply 14

economicsessex

warwick has jacked up their price from 6850 to 8150 in a year. dont you just love unis price gouging students in a recession.

Reply 15

Paulwhy

economicsessex

warwick has jacked up their price from 6850 to 8150 in a year. dont you just love unis price gouging students in a recession.

Well many now there is greater demand.
i.e. less jobs for graduates.
So more want extra qualifications.

But yes in 08/09 the fees were £6,850 UK/EU and £10,250 Overseas.

Reply 16

Paulwhy

shaina

(I'm a newborn here, so pardon me) :yep:

Yes Warwick and UCL are the best of your list. (LSE would require a GRE)

What is your training like compared with what is listed in post 2 above?

Reply 17

economicsessex

paul, do u think the warwick msc is much better than essex? i have applied to warwick and im predicting good enough grades. i didnt realize they would jack up the price so much.