Why there are so many werid idiots at SOAS?

Look at the head of SOAS's economic department, a guy has only a very few publications in some crap unkown journals.

Ok, I think the person a couple of posts above me (forgot their name) has dealt with most of your points, but I'm going to pull you up on this specific one.

Back in the day, before university's became primarily profit-making organisations (which is what created the intense pressure on academics to constantly research and publish), some of the best (if not the very best) lecturers and tutors were ones who were not prolific publishers themselves. Rather, they were respected because they were completely on the button with the new research that was coming out of their field - read and digested loads and loads of journals, articles etc etc, and then discussed this with their students. By contrast, many academics who did do most of the research and publishing didn't do much teaching.

With this in mind, I don't see how you can criticise the head of the economics department for not publishing much.

Oh, you also said that people can get onto the Economics degree without maths A Level. That's true, but people who do that have to take intensive maths modules to bring them up to the required standard by the end of their degree. That's surely a good thing - many people choose their A Levels not really knowing what they want to do, and have a much better idea by the time they get to university. I think it's daft to stop someone being able to take an economics degree because they don't have maths A Level. You seemed to be implying that the fact that SOAS lets people study Economics without maths A Level is a bad thing.

And finally, if you're so annoyed by SOAS, and all the weird freaks, why not leave? I don't mean that in an accusatory way, I mean it genuinely. SOAS isn't for everyone, and nobody's forcing you to stay. Surely the most important thing is that you're studying somewhere where you're happy. You seem so envious of UCL and LSE, why not drop out and apply to them?

Joe

He is not even a student at SOAS, he just a stundet(from UCL I think) that regularly uses SOASs library. I don't see why is he complaining.

One thing which really makes me shocked is that SOAS teaches economics without using maths; and according to a guy doing PHD there, people can get into SOAS PhD Economics without a proper economics degree....

And tons of SOAS idiots do not even know what a lagrangian is after studying three years of economics XD

Look at the head of SOAS's economic department, a guy has only a very few publications in some crap unkown journals. I know that the head of a department is not necessarily the best scholar. But I am really shocked that a guy like Jan Torowski could become the head of an economic department. that is just hilarious XD

XD XD XD

It is a fact that SOAS economic department is one of the worst in this country. Look at the RAE and the IDEAS, where is SOAS? You guys don't even have any research results for RAE submission in 2008 XD

As a matter of fact, SOAS economic department is full of Marxists who can only stuck in the strange department on the second floor of the building and doing mental masterbation with no formal recognition outside XD

I spoke to some SOAS students and they all like to brag about their development economics XD I want to ask how good is that ??? Look at the profile of the faculty, they only have few to moderate publications and most of them are in some crappy journals XD

Anyway, I will stop this argument now. As a fact, SOAS is a weird school and the economic department is particuarly strange XD

Look at the books that people leave behind on the desks. It's not Chinese or Korean language, Zoroastrianism, philosophy, history, etc. It's always things like 'Emerging Water Conflicts in the Developing World', 'The Post-Colonial Legacy in Sub-Saharan Africa', or something by Edward Said or someone similar. Those books are read by the same people who talk loudly and shout in the library. That sort of student doesn't really have to exert himself or herself at 'study' as they are usually taking some ridiculous piss-easy course. Hope that answers your question (by the way, feel free to test this theory by looking at what those 'students' are actually studying. For them, the library as a social space has no consequence at all as they can just write a load of nonsense on their essay-assessed course and get a great mark, plus be absent for over a month (e.g. Brunei Gallery occupation) etc. They're not the real hardcore SOAS students - just clowns wearing hippy fashions etc.

Look at the books that people leave behind on the desks. It's not Chinese or Korean language, Zoroastrianism, philosophy, history, etc. It's always things like 'Emerging Water Conflicts in the Developing World', 'The Post-Colonial Legacy in Sub-Saharan Africa', or something by Edward Said or someone similar. Those books are read by the same people who talk loudly and shout in the library. That sort of student doesn't really have to exert himself or herself at 'study' as they are usually taking some ridiculous piss-easy course. Hope that answers your question (by the way, feel free to test this theory by looking at what those 'students' are actually studying. For them, the library as a social space has no consequence at all as they can just write a load of nonsense on their essay-assessed course and get a great mark, plus be absent for over a month (e.g. Brunei Gallery occupation) etc. They're not the real hardcore SOAS students - just clowns wearing hippy fashions etc.

Ha, I don't know about you, but I'd classify the two topics you listed as perfectly legitimate and interesting development economics topics, I see economics as anything but an easy course.

It's well known that the SOAS economics department has a leftist slant, but that doesn't make it inferior to any other - in fact, that would lead me to believe they're especially good at the development side of things (i.e. what they SPECIALISE in), which is what a huge proportion of people taking economics are interested in, anyway

I really don't think you can pass your judgement on what course is "worthwhile" or "easy" and on which students are "clever" without actually being there or taking the course yourself, especially since you seem to have so much contempt for such a huge chunk of economics.

What are you talking about? Where did I say economics is easy? Are you on your Christmas lunch??

Oh, you also said that people can get onto the Economics degree without maths A Level. That's true, but people who do that have to take intensive maths modules to bring them up to the required standard by the end of their degree.
Joe

The maths taught at SOAS is just about the level as what I learned in my high school XD

To see why, just look at the content of the pre-sessional maths course for SOAS MSc Economics.

http://mercury.soas.ac.uk/users/sm97/msc_pre_math_mirror/lecture1/teaching_msc_premath1.htm

And compare that with that of the UCL:

http://www.ucl.ac.uk/economics/degree-courses/masters/course-list/Courses/maths-and-statistics-course-september-intensive

Look at the exercises, there are tons of silly exercises in what you called "intensive maths modules" such as "which of the following is a matrix" and "write a 2 x 2 matrix" for each of the following XD

Oh, perhaps for the idiots at SOAS, such silly materials need to be taught "intensively" in order to "bring them up to the requried standard" XD

The maths taught at SOAS is just about the level as what I learned in my high school XD

OH, my fu**king god... SOAs idiots do not even have the basic intelligence to understand maths!!! OK, let us be more precise XD


SOAS Matrix Algebra Notes

http://mercury.soas.ac.uk/users/sm97/msc_pre_math_mirror/lecture1/mscpremath1and2_matrix.pdf


UCL Matrix Algtebra Notes

http://www.ucl.ac.uk/economics/degree-courses/masters/course-list2009-2010/Courses/maths-and-statistics-september-2008-materials/lecture_notes_chp_2_2009.pdf

Look at the so-called "calculus" course taught at SOAS, that is just high school level XD

http://mercury.soas.ac.uk/users/sm97/msc_pre_math_mirror/lecture3/mscpremath3_calculus.pdf

And compare that with UCL:

http://www.ucl.ac.uk/economics/degree-courses/masters/course-list2009-2010/Courses/maths-and-statistics-september-2008-materials/lecture_notes_chp_3_2009.pdf

I know many SOAS idiots want to defend their deparment. As a fact, SOAS economic department is one of the crappest in this country.

As mentioned by one of the defenders XD, SOAS economic idiots are those rejected by UCL and LSE. Get a life, I know many SOAS idiots like mental masturbation.

Perhaps I should divert this discussion to the postgraduate forum, and that should be very fun XD

Instead I came out of SOAS and now get PAID to go to a school with some of the world's leading authorities in economics. Who the F are you? And that poster you're talking about is in a comfortable position to say SOAS LSS is full of LSE and UCL rejects because he HAD offers from both after going to SOAS for undergrad economics as well. And I assume he rejected them both judging by his sig...