Best universities for Economics

For Economics the best in my opinion (based on multiple ranking criteria such as entry requirements' and research) are:
LSE
UCL
Oxford
Cambridge
Warwick

Other good unis which have a good reputation specifically for economics are:
Bristol
Queen Mary
Exeter
Sussex
City

I'm sorry but places like City, Exeter, etc really aren't that well known for Econ especially at undegrad, Exeter is slightly better for their MRes course. At undergrad the top5 you mentioned are accurate but then the next group of best unis for economics specifically would be Bristol, Durham, Bath, Nottingham and Edinburgh. Then the next group would be places like kings, Exeter, QMUL, St Andrews, Manchester, etc. City would be below this group

Although I don't completely disagree with you I believe that things become more blurry after you pass the top5 unis which are the usual suspects. For me when I judge a uni I usually look at the research it is doing (Research Excellence Framework, REF) and the entry criteria. Based on these two criteria my ranking would be something like this:

Group A
LSE, UCL, Oxford, Cambridge, Warwick
Group B
Bath, Bristol, Durham, Exeter, Nottingham, St Andrews, Newcastle, Birmingham, Liverpool, Kings, Queen Mary, York, Glasgow, Manchester, Southampton, Sheffield, York, Edinburgh.
Group C
East Anglia, Essex, Goldsmiths, Kent, Reading, Royal Holloway, Surrey, Sussex, SOAS, City, Leicester, Strathclyde, Queen's University Belfast, Aberdeen.
Group D
Bradford, Ulster, UWE, Hull, Heriot-Watt, Dundee
etc.

Now please note that these rankings are obviously subjective and also please note that they are not written in stone and surely I have not included all the unis here and some unis fall "in between" these groups in my opinion. Also some of these unis have certain peculiarities:

Oxford does not have a pure econ undergrad. One studies in Oxford as an undergrad its famous PPE course.
Bath scores very high in entry criteria but did not submit in the Research (REF) for Economics.
Queen Mary (QM) scores high in Research (REF) has solid entry criteria and is generally in the rise. QM is a college of the UoL.
SOAS is mostly known for alternative and development economics and is a college of the UoL.
Birkbeck is mostly for mature students, has a good reputation in Research (REF) but is low in entry criteria (specifically because it aims to mature and people with "different" backgrounds). Birkbeck is a college of the UoL.
City does some respectable research is average on entry criteria, is a member of the South East Network for Social Sciences an ESRC Doctoral Training Partnership and is a college of the University of London (UoL).
Same applies to East Anglia, Essex, Goldsmiths, Kent, Reading, Royal Holloway, Surrey and Sussex. Essex in particular scores very high in Research (REF) but generally low in entry criteria. Goldsmiths and Royal Holloway in particular are colleges of UoL.

Generally speaking unis which offer a BSc in Economics and Econometrics are usually quite good in Economics (as you know serious research in Economics requires good quant skills). Unis that offer a BSc in Economics and Econometrics are:
Bristol, Exeter, Goldsmiths, Kent, Leicester, LSE (its famous Econometrics and Mathematical Economics), Nottingham, Reading, Royal Holloway, York.

Queen Mary offers a MSc in Finance and Econometrics but not a bachelors. City also offers a BSc in Economics with pathway in Economics and Econometrics and are in the process of offering a MSc in Economics and Data Science.

Although I don't completely disagree with you I believe that things become more blurry after you pass the top5 unis which are the usual suspects. For me when I judge a uni I usually look at the research it is doing (Research Excellence Framework, REF) and the entry criteria. Based on these two criteria my ranking would be something like this:

Group A
LSE, UCL, Oxford, Cambridge, Warwick
Group B
Bath, Bristol, Durham, Exeter, Nottingham, St Andrews, Newcastle, Birmingham, Liverpool, Kings, Queen Mary, York, Glasgow, Manchester, Southampton, Sheffield, York, Edinburgh.
Group C
East Anglia, Essex, Goldsmiths, Kent, Reading, Royal Holloway, Surrey, Sussex, SOAS, City, Leicester, Strathclyde, Queen's University Belfast, Aberdeen.
Group D
Bradford, Ulster, UWE, Hull, Heriot-Watt, Dundee
etc.

Now please note that these rankings are obviously subjective and also please note that they are not written in stone and surely I have not included all the unis here and some unis fall "in between" these groups in my opinion. Also some of these unis have certain peculiarities:

Oxford does not have a pure econ undergrad. One studies in Oxford as an undergrad its famous PPE course.
Bath scores very high in entry criteria but did not submit in the Research (REF) for Economics.
Queen Mary (QM) scores high in Research (REF) has solid entry criteria and is generally in the rise. QM is a college of the UoL.
SOAS is mostly known for alternative and development economics and is a college of the UoL.
Birkbeck is mostly for mature students, has a good reputation in Research (REF) but is low in entry criteria (specifically because it aims to mature and people with "different" backgrounds). Birkbeck is a college of the UoL.
City does some respectable research is average on entry criteria, is a member of the South East Network for Social Sciences an ESRC Doctoral Training Partnership and is a college of the University of London (UoL).
Same applies to East Anglia, Essex, Goldsmiths, Kent, Reading, Royal Holloway, Surrey and Sussex. Essex in particular scores very high in Research (REF) but generally low in entry criteria. Goldsmiths and Royal Holloway in particular are colleges of UoL.

Generally speaking unis which offer a BSc in Economics and Econometrics are usually quite good in Economics (as you know serious research in Economics requires good quant skills). Unis that offer a BSc in Economics and Econometrics are:
Bristol, Exeter, Goldsmiths, Kent, Leicester, LSE (its famous Econometrics and Mathematical Economics), Nottingham, Reading, Royal Holloway, York.

Queen Mary offers a MSc in Finance and Econometrics but not a bachelors. City also offers a BSc in Economics with pathway in Economics and Econometrics and are in the process of offering a MSc in Economics and Data Science.

List is okay but I’d make several changes based on interaction and experience with academics.
Group A
LSE, UCL, Oxford, Cambridge, Warwick

Group B+
Edinburgh, Bristol, Bath, Durham, Nottingham
St Andrews

Group B-
Queen Mary, Glasgow, Manchester, Southampton, Queen's University Belfast, Exeter

Group C
Kings, Newcastle, Liverpool, Sheffield, York, East Anglia, Essex, Goldsmiths, Kent, Reading, Royal Holloway, Surrey, Sussex, SOAS, City, Leicester, Strathclyde, Aberdeen

Group D
Bradford, Ulster, UWE, Hull, Heriot-Watt, Dundee
etc.


Missing and may be repeating a few but general idea is here. This is only based on faculty etc I’m econ nothing to do with prestige or employability.

List is okay but I’d make several changes based on interaction and experience with academics.
Group A
LSE, UCL, Oxford, Cambridge, Warwick

Group B+
Edinburgh, Bristol, Bath, Durham, Nottingham
St Andrews

Group B-
Queen Mary, Glasgow, Manchester, Southampton, Queen's University Belfast, Exeter

Group C
Kings, Newcastle, Liverpool, Sheffield, York, East Anglia, Essex, Goldsmiths, Kent, Reading, Royal Holloway, Surrey, Sussex, SOAS, City, Leicester, Strathclyde, Aberdeen

Group D
Bradford, Ulster, UWE, Hull, Heriot-Watt, Dundee
etc.


Missing and may be repeating a few but general idea is here. This is only based on faculty etc I’m econ nothing to do with prestige or employability.

Yes I agree, there is indeed much within group heterogeneity and I do agree with the updated list more. I like the splitting of group B into B+ and B-. The only comment I have is that I would rate Kings in the B- group and maybe even in the B+ group. Kings is a founding college of the UoL and enjoys very good reputation overall (although I do admit that economics is not its strong point).

And I would also rate York higher.

Finally, let us not forget Birkbeck which has a very good reputation in economics and is a college of the UoL.

Again, I think this kinda depends on how we're ranking them. In terms of career prospects, kings would be up there with the B+ unis probably but for economics teaching it would below places like Manchester, Exeter, QMUL, Southampton.

I also wouldn't disagree too much with putting York into the B- tier. It doesn't specialise in Econ but it's not bad or anything, I just think the grade requirements aren't very high. I know someone who got in on BBB.

I think Birkbeck is a bit of an anomaly really so it's hard to rank. I don't rate the full undergrad degree too much but the PGD is pretty good at placing students onto decent to strong MSc courses but probably doesn't do well placing directly into industry. I think for master's and PhD it's pretty good but you'd only go there if you were doing a part-time MSc/PhD so again it's quite different to most institutions.

Yes I agree, there is indeed much within group heterogeneity and I do agree with the updated list more. I like the splitting of group B into B+ and B-. The only comment I have is that I would rate Kings in the B- group and maybe even in the B+ group. Kings is a founding college of the UoL and enjoys very good reputation overall (although I do admit that economics is not its strong point).

And I would also rate York higher.

Finally, let us not forget Birkbeck which has a very good reputation in economics and is a college of the UoL.

To introduce myself – I’m Joao, starting next semester I will be in my final year studying BSc Economics at Surrey University. I recently finished my one-year industrial placement as an Economist for the British Government’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). Here I acquired valuable competencies such as analytical, communication and interpersonal skills while playing a key role in the Analysis and Evidence Team. I also had the opportunity to work as a Private Secretary for the Secretary of State.

Studying BSc (Hons) Economics at Surrey not only will provide you with a theoretical understanding of the subject, but it also allows me to apply this knowledge in a practical setting. Surrey is 8th in the UK for business and economics for example. The course has 12 contact hours a week, including lectures, tutorials, seminars and workshop sessions. During your first and second year of studying economics at Surrey, you will complete a series of compulsory models such as Microeconomics and Econometrics to build the foundations of your economic knowledge. You’ll study the economic behaviour of individuals, firms and governments, which together make up our society. You’ll analyse in detail the separate activity of these components.

As a result, you will develop a wide variety of specialist skills and examine a range of topical questions that are central to modern economies. This will make you a well-rounded thinker ready to take some more advanced models by the end of your second year. In the final year of the course, you can choose from a range of optional modules. This will allow you to specialize in your area of interested and will consequently prepare you for either your professional or academic future.


The campus is lovely. Surrey is known to put a lot of emphasis on the social life of students and always care about how you spend your free time at university. The student union offers more than 140 societies based on any hobbies and interests’ students have and clubs for all kinds of sport that a student might want to take up. And even with covid restrictions, the union managed to organise one of the biggest covid-safe university events in the country! During my first year, I spent a lot of time training as part of the University’s rowing team and I had amazing time there. So, if you are into sports that is something you should definitively consider.

If I were you I would consider doing a placement year. Placement provides students with a unique opportunity to gain skills specific to their subject or industry of choice as well as the employability skills required for real-life work so I would suggest applying for a sandwich degree. Our Employability and Careers team will encourage you to be proactive and apply for your industry placement yourself, by writing a CV and cover letter. More importantly, your school or department will appoint a senior tutor for Professional Training who will work with you from the application process through to the completion of your placement. This is an academic member of staff with responsibility for delivering the Professional Training scheme and supporting you at all stages of the journey.

The university also provides a Professional Training coaching scheme, where you can be paired with a student who has recently returned from their placement. That way you will have friendly support from someone who went through the same placement-seeking process and who will prepare you for the world of work. Also, as some placements abroad may involve learning and communicate in a language other than English, the university has support available to help you develop your language skills.

I think this may help you,

All you need to know about studying economics at Surrey:
https://blogs.surrey.ac.uk/student-experience/2020/12/09/all-you-need-to-know-about-studying-economics-in-surrey/

Joao
Economics

I am interested in doing Economics at university and am considering Cambridge, Warwick, Exeter and St Andrews. Ideally, I would like to do a combination of Economics and Computer Science but not many universities do this. I want to know if there are any other good courses at universities for Economics or Economics and any related subjects such as Computer Science.

Durham, has also a good econ course. I'll start there in september. The thing I like is that we have an open module each year so theoretically you can do 3 exams of CS