The Student Room Group

SPS or PPE

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When did history come into it ? She wanted to decide between SPS and PPE. :p:

If the OP doesnt like economics then go for SPS, not every course has to be at Oxford.
:biggrin:
If the OP is into the humanities and interested in political philosophy, sociology etc. MHP has alot of that kind of thing. Its PPE lite for people who are cr*p at maths :smile:

As for every course being at oxford: they dont all have to be, but we both know it would be better that way. :biggrin:
Reply 22
Manellowzworth
As for every course being at oxford: they dont all have to be, but we both know it would be better that way. :biggrin:

Yeah, I hear David Beckham Studies with Philosophy would fit in really well. :p:
You seem to prefer SPS to PPE from your list at the very top of your thread...

me xx
I agree with Lici - however you should visit both uni's and speak to students of both courses to finalise your choice.
To be honest i think Modern History and Politics isnt what you decribed you wanted, it may have a bit of sociology but it has a whole other dicipline and only consider it if you want to study history.
Manellowzworth
If you hate the economics which is what put me off PPE perhaps you could look at Modern History and Politics (assuming you enjoy history its a nice combo)


yea mod history/ politics is definitely an option, but to be honest, my first inclinations were towards sps. besides..correct me if i'm wrong but, i think you can do history of politics sometime during the sps tripos..

for me- its essentially the variety of sps which makes it advantageous over modern history and politics. history's a great subject but i have reservations with studying it up to uni level. i also think sps is more relevant to today's society, arguably more so than history. but, i'm definetly going to look into it! thanks!
Manellowzworth
Also, SPS and PPE are basically funny oxbridge courses. There are some equivalents at some places, but have you thought about your other uni choices as well, and what equivalents exist?


there's a really good european sps course at UCL.... but apart from that, i'm a little stuck for choice. a dual degree just doesnt seem an attractive prospect- e.g. politics/psychology...or sociology/politics..sociology/psych...

i guess i'm secretly hoping i get into ucl..or cam because i cant seem to find any other courses that have the same appeal!
Look into Durham's Combined sociol sciences course , it can allow you to take psych, sociology and politics.
I really wanted to apply to that but couldnt because they wanted a social science A-level and my A-levels were sciency, i had English lit- but they emailed me saying the see that as a language! :frown:
Yeah Durham and Warwick both offer combined...

I've applied for UCL ESPS too...
lady_daisychain

for me- its essentially the variety of sps which makes it advantageous over modern history and politics. history's a great subject but i have reservations with studying it up to uni level. i also think sps is more relevant to today's society, arguably more so than history. but, i'm definetly going to look into it! thanks!


You raise a good point there- SPS is probably more cutting edge than MHP and potentially easier in terms of fiddling around in other subject areas or making U-turns within your studies. For me, it was between MHP or SPS and I liked MHP for exactly the same reasons you dont as much- I wanted something traditional for undergrad and I wanted to feel like I was studying a specific discipline (or two) rather than an amalgam (plus IMHO the Oxford politics/IR faculty is much better than its cam equivalent). From what you've said SPS seems to be for you, so why not go for it? :smile: If your only worry is that PPE is more "prestigious" or employable...Its Cambridge, you will not be at a disadvantage to anyone if your grades are decent.
Also I felt that if you want to study any society or civic interaction you have to be aware of its context i.e. temporal depth..plus history is a nice and lazy reading/essay subject. :biggrin:
Reply 31
sps you can do the history of political thought, there are a number of modules covering different periods.
for PPE'ers- exactly how MUCH maths do you do on your first year (assuming your maths is 'gcse' level)?