Should I reject LSE for Manchester?

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Original post by Anonymous

Firm offerholder of LSE BSc Economics course. Don't want to go into investment banking anymore and realised that my true passion has always lied within STEM. Plus, I don't like the idea of living in central London.

Currently considering a foundation year for aerospace engineering at Manchester instead since I don't take A-Level Physics. Is this life-changing choice worth it? I don't want to regret anything.

Anyone who says it isn't life-changing is lying. You have the opportunity to study Economics at one of the best universities in the world that specialises in Economics.

Ultimately it is your decision and no one can make it for you

Reply 2

Anonymous #1

OP

Original post by Anonymous

Anyone who says it isn't life-changing is lying. You have the opportunity to study Economics at one of the best universities in the world that specialises in Economics.

Ultimately it is your decision and no one can make it for you

Read carefully: I didn't say it's not life-changing; I was just wondering on other people's opinions. I know very well it's my own decision but I would like to gather as much information as possible beforehand.

I've made too many stupid decisions in the past due to being uninformed so I don't want to make another one in ignorance.

If you do not want to do economics, don't do it. You don't want to be trapped on a 3 year course you might not do well in, having possibly closed off more interesting avenues or made them harder. I would take the right course at a slightly "lesser" university than the wrong course at a top university.

(edited 2 years ago)

Reply 4

artful_lounger

21

I mean, doing an economics degree doesn't necessitate you go into investment banking (likewise doing an engineering degree doesn't prevent you from going into investment banking either). What drew you to economics in the first place? If you like e.g. mathematical problem solving and working in academic environments, you could just as well stick with economics but look at doing a PhD and becoming an academic, or becoming an economist for an NGO or in the civil service.

Something to consider on the other side is, do you want to become an engineer and work as an engineer in an engineering firm? That might sound a bit glib but, engineering is sort of specific to that in many respects and there are plenty of degrees you can do in "STEM" areas that aren't engineering. Make sure you are picking the right one, for the right reasons! I originally began studying engineering because I was generally good at and enjoyed STEM fields up to then, but found engineering a bit tedious and mundane. The only really interesting stuff for me was in the independent research work I did in second/final year and in my summer project.

So you may also want to explore other possibilities and consider your options; you might prefer to study e.g. physics, earth sciences, chemistry, materials science, etc, etc, within the STEM realm. Or you might actually really find after looking into it you do want to work as an engineer and be ready to go into that with more than just generally being interested in STEM topics.

It may be worth asking LSE if you can defer entry for a year, and use the gap year to explore your options outside of economics - without having to give up the offer in case you change your mind. You can then withdraw from the offer and reapply in the normal application cycle if need be, having had more time to weigh up your options as well.

(edited 2 years ago)

Reply 5

Original post by Anonymous

Read carefully: I didn't say it's not life-changing; I was just wondering on other people's opinions. I know very well it's my own decision but I would like to gather as much information as possible beforehand.

I've made too many stupid decisions in the past due to being uninformed so I don't want to make another one in ignorance.

Look, you're a smart individual who is capable enough to get an offer from LSE for economics. Most people you get advice from will probably be narrower-minded.

If you are 100% you don't want to do the subject don't do it but make it clear to yourself that you will never look back and make it something you will regret. Also, I would personally advise you to take a gap year, do the Physics A level in that year and apply to the likes of Cambridge/UCL/ICL/Bristol and Manchester as a backup. Clearly, you are more than capable.

Whatever you do good luck

Reply 6

Original post by Anonymous

Read carefully: I didn't say it's not life-changing; I was just wondering on other people's opinions. I know very well it's my own decision but I would like to gather as much information as possible beforehand.

I've made too many stupid decisions in the past due to being uninformed so I don't want to make another one in ignorance.

depends, engineering works different to other degrees due to accreditation and stuff so if you want to be an actual engineer im not sure how much the university matters or where manchester is on that spectrum. Look, economics at LSE is a goated course but not for everyone, social life is awful and if you don't like the course then don't do it. With your grades an ability i would recommend taking a year out and reapplying to other stem courses at other schools... UCL, Durham, st andrews, imperial, oxbridge etc

Reply 7

Original post by Levi.-

depends, engineering works different to other degrees due to accreditation and stuff so if you want to be an actual engineer im not sure how much the university matters or where manchester is on that spectrum. Look, economics at LSE is a goated course but not for everyone, social life is awful and if you don't like the course then don't do it. With your grades an ability i would recommend taking a year out and reapplying to other stem courses at other schools... UCL, Durham, st andrews, imperial, oxbridge etc

"Goated" LOL

Reply 8

Original post by Anonymous

"Goated" LOL

it 100 percent is one of the best undergrad econ courses in the world. Didn't mean goated as the best

Reply 9

Original post by Levi.-

it 100 percent is one of the best undergrad econ courses in the world. Didn't mean goated as the best

Goated means greatest of all time. I would give that to Royal Holloway in my humble opinion.

Reply 10

Original post by Anonymous

Goated means greatest of all time. I would give that to Royal Holloway in my humble opinion.

ik but i seldom use it as that, and tbh if we're talking abt number 1 and aren't mentioning the econ, finance and IR joint course at oxford brookes then we're not really serious about this discussion now are we.

Reply 11

Anonymous #1

OP

Original post by Anonymous

Look, you're a smart individual who is capable enough to get an offer from LSE for economics. Most people you get advice from will probably be narrower-minded.

If you are 100% you don't want to do the subject don't do it but make it clear to yourself that you will never look back and make it something you will regret. Also, I would personally advise you to take a gap year, do the Physics A level in that year and apply to the likes of Cambridge/UCL/ICL/Bristol and Manchester as a backup. Clearly, you are more than capable.

Whatever you do good luck

Yes, I have considered the option you mentioned. I'm not sure that I'll be able to self-study the entire A-Level Physics in one year, as tempting as it sounds. Science practicals also cost a fortune and I probably won't pass them without face-to-face guidance from a teacher. Thanks for your input though.

PS: Cambridge doesn't look favourably on gap years, while I've heard that UCL's engineering department is crap.

Reply 12

Original post by Anonymous

Firm offerholder of LSE BSc Economics course. Don't want to go into investment banking anymore and realised that my true passion has always lied within STEM. Plus, I don't like the idea of living in central London.

Currently considering a foundation year for aerospace engineering at Manchester instead since I don't take A-Level Physics. Is this life-changing choice worth it? I don't want to regret anything.

If you're really unsure about doing Economics then don't do it. Do something you're passionate about and that will increase your chances of being the best in your chosen field. If you do decide to do an engineering undergrad, you could always do a finance degree postgrad. I'll just list the targets and semi-targets for postgrad:
Targets are LSE/Oxford/UCL
Semi-targets are Cambridge/Warwick/Imperial

Original post by Levi.-

ik but i seldom use it as that, and tbh if we're talking abt number 1 and aren't mentioning the econ, finance and IR joint course at oxford brookes then we're not really serious about this discussion now are we.

I wouldn't put LSE as number one, but it is definitely up there, particularly at postgrad.

Reply 13

Original post by Anonymous

Yes, I have considered the option you mentioned. I'm not sure that I'll be able to self-study the entire A-Level Physics in one year, as tempting as it sounds. Science practicals also cost a fortune and I probably won't pass them without face-to-face guidance from a teacher. Thanks for your input though.

PS: Cambridge doesn't look favourably on gap years, while I've heard that UCL's engineering department is crap.

UCL's engineering department is meant to be one of the best in the country..? Imperial and Oxbridge edge it but its still quite good. Cambridge look very favorably on gap years lol, the only exception is mathematics and by extension maybe engineering. But self-studying an entire A-level demonstrates that you're still learning and not getting rusty with your maths skills.
Engineering isn't the only stem course, there are plenty of others you might like. What A-levels did you take?

Reply 14

Original post by Anonymous

Yes, I have considered the option you mentioned. I'm not sure that I'll be able to self-study the entire A-Level Physics in one year, as tempting as it sounds. Science practicals also cost a fortune and I probably won't pass them without face-to-face guidance from a teacher. Thanks for your input though.

PS: Cambridge doesn't look favourably on gap years, while I've heard that UCL's engineering department is crap.

Cambridge doesn't look favourably on gap years but they would definitely be very impressed if someone studied the whole A level Physics syllabus in one year without a teacher. The only reason I mentioned it is because clearly you are capable and you'll only be doing one A level so it's not all that bad; you could prepare starting from the summer.

Reply 15

Original post by username19412

If you're really unsure about doing Economics then don't do it. Do something you're passionate about and that will increase your chances of being the best in your chosen field. If you do decide to do an engineering undergrad, you could always do a finance degree postgrad. I'll just list the targets and semi-targets for postgrad:
Targets are LSE/Oxford/UCL
Semi-targets are Cambridge/Warwick/Imperial

I wouldn't put LSE as number one, but it is definitely up there, particularly at postgrad.

as an incoming UCL undergrad I think we're being a little generous putting our post grad as a target. I know we, alongside all semis are targets for undergrad but i thought for MFins and such the targets were Oxford, LSE and LBS? Re: WSO. Could be very wrong though just from what i've seen. And yeah LSE isn't number 1 but you could contest that it is perhaps

Reply 16

Original post by Levi.-

UCL's engineering department is meant to be one of the best in the country..? Imperial and Oxbridge edge it but its still quite good. Cambridge look very favorably on gap years lol, the only exception is mathematics and by extension maybe engineering. But self-studying an entire A-level demonstrates that you're still learning and not getting rusty with your maths skills.
Engineering isn't the only stem course, there are plenty of others you might like. What A-levels did you take?

Yup, I've heard great things about their engineering department. They probably studied Maths and Further maths to get into LSE so they are already at a good advantage to getting into an engineering degree from a top university. However, for engineering, the 'prestige' university normally matters far less than finance/law.

Reply 17

Original post by username19412

Cambridge doesn't look favourably on gap years but they would definitely be very impressed if someone studied the whole A level Physics syllabus in one year without a teacher. The only reason I mentioned it is because clearly you are capable and you'll only be doing one A level so it's not all that bad; you could prepare starting from the summer.

alright are we saying cam don't look favorably on gap years for engineering or in general? Otherwise the fact that the average success rate of a reapplicant/PQA being higher than normal applicants doesn't add up, though again if we just talking engineering/maths i get it. Reason I say they aren't is because i went to a christs college summer school and they said the prefer achieved grades over predictions and tend to not like gap years for maths students

Reply 18

Original post by username19412

Yup, I've heard great things about their engineering department. They probably studied Maths and Further maths to get into LSE so they are already at a good advantage to getting into an engineering degree from a top university. However, for engineering, the 'prestige' university normally matters far less than finance/law.

fair enough i assumed so much. Trying to figure out if they did any other science A-level which would open up other STEM courses (chemistry being ideal if no physics) but i'm guessing they did maths fmaths and econ or something like that

Reply 19