I'm an LSE BSc Maths and Economics student - AMA

Thanks a lot. I'm now more relaxed in this area. How do u find studying maths in LSE? Do u think it's applicable in future career, say, banking and finance?

Reply 21

londoncricket

OP

17

Original post by Anonymous

Hi Londoncricket,
Actually some says that LSE's maths is not as good as Imperial's, is it the real case? If so, how much is LSE's maths worse than Imperial's? Many thanks

That entirely depends on what you define as 'good'. If you mean it from an academic perspective, then yes, I would admit that Imperial is much better. Careers wise, that depends on what exactly you want to go into. If you do not plan on using mathematics in your job after you graduate from the LSE, then I'm unsure if it makes much of a difference. But if you do (think Master's programme, quant finance, research, etc.) then Imperial is probably a better fit for you. But at the end of the day, Imperial is much harder to get in for maths than the LSE. Difficult to quantify how much 'worse' LSE's maths is than Imperial's, for these aforementioned reasons.

Original post by Anonymous

This is a stupid question but how closely integrated is LSE with other unis, e.g. UCL? Do you have friends studying Econ at UCL? If so, how similar are the courses, opportunities, experiences, etc.? Thank you.

Not a stupid question at all! LSE isn't really integrated with other University of London constituent colleges as such, except on a higher level (management, funding, etc.) I have friends studying at Economics at UCL & I would say that the student experience is better there. However, that is very dependent on what exactly you are looking for. In terms of careers, it's arguable that the LSE trumps UCL, but again, there are may exceptions to the rule & it depends on what you want to do after your degree. Courses will be very similar. Whilst UCL is actually ranked higher than LSE in some league tables, it's clear to see that LSE dominates the careers space in the City, so if that's what you're looking for, then LSE is the place for you. You might have more fun at UCL, bit that's dependent on a lot of factors & both universities suffer from the issues that central London universities face.

Original post by sumboy

Thanks a lot. I'm now more relaxed in this area. How do u find studying maths in LSE? Do u think it's applicable in future career, say, banking and finance?

No worries, glad to hear that I helped!

I really enjoy it. It's a helpful department which consistently places graduates into good Master's programmes as well as top jobs in the London corporate sector. The maths that I study at LSE is definitely more applicable in Economics & finance rather than physics & engineering. Whether it is applicable in your career in banking and finance depends entirely on which area of banking you work in. For example, if you work in an investment banking division, you will unlikely use any of your maths skills developed during your degree. By contrast, if you work in quant trading, then your skills will be very useful.

In terms of getting in the door, my degree is up there in terms of representation in banking & finance in general. So yeah, if you complete BSc Maths and Economics at the LSE, you should be in with a good shot of getting a job in finance.

Reply 22

Bazyli

14

Original post by londoncricket

Hi guys,

I remember that when I applied to the LSE there weren't many TSR forumites who could help with BSc Maths and Economics.

Fast forward 2 years & I am at the end of my second year at the LSE. I've really enjoyed my time here & would like to help TSR with an 'Ask Me Anything' post, so here goes.

About me

•

State school educated throughout, firstly in a comprehensive school in the East of England, followed by a high performing sixth form college

•

GCSE: 6A*s & 5 As, A level: A*AA, offer was A*AA in Maths, Further Mathematics and Economics respectively

•

personal statement included relevant books that I have read, work experience that I have done & other bits and bobs. Nothing spectacular & very standard stuff. Nothing that you wouldn't find on other competitive applications to similar courses at Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial, Warwick, UCL, etc.

•

During university I have done a lot. Like a LOT. I have participated in sports, cultural events, career related societies, explored the capital, completed relevant work experience, learnt some great interesting material & interacted with some of the world's leaders in economics, including Nobel laureates

If you have any question about LSE / university in London / getting in / anything else, please do comment below & I will try my best to reply within a week!

NOTE: I may answer your questions referring to the LSE website, because there is a wealth of information on there. But if your question is about personal experiences, background & the like, I'll answer them using my own experiences.

Thanks for creating this thread🙂 I’m starting at lse in September (I got an unconditional offer since I’m on a gap year) and I’ll be studying geography. How has your social life been whilst at lse. On TSR LSE gets a really bad reputation for student satisfaction and making friends, with cliquey groups of international students often cited as a reason for this. Does this differ from your experience? Thanks so much!!

Reply 23

sumboy

5

Thanks a lot. Your sharing is really helpful.I'm still undetermined which area of banking I wish to take. My teacher suggests me to take more modules relating to quant. I would also like to know more about it. I wonder if maths at LSE in this area could satisfy me or enable me to work as a quant in bank. I would like to know if modules relating to quant have a cap on student intake. Besides, could you comment on the LSE100 course? How would you rate it? Why is it set compulsory? Do you think this course really make a difference to LSE students from the others?

Reply 24

DAMIANLANGFORD

13

Are you planning in becoming an Investment banker $$$

Reply 25

Angel_Chen

20

Just saying, thank you so much for answering our questions on TSR.
If applying for Maths with Economics, how much should i focus on each bit if I'm only applying for maths everywhere else, like is it ok to briefly mention I run economic society and have read a few books and just keep it maths, but more applied maths focused?

Reply 26

Xnowshi

4

Original post by londoncricket

Hi guys,

I remember that when I applied to the LSE there weren't many TSR forumites who could help with BSc Maths and Economics.

Fast forward 2 years & I am at the end of my second year at the LSE. I've really enjoyed my time here & would like to help TSR with an 'Ask Me Anything' post, so here goes.

About me

•

State school educated throughout, firstly in a comprehensive school in the East of England, followed by a high performing sixth form college

•

GCSE: 6A*s & 5 As, A level: A*AA, offer was A*AA in Maths, Further Mathematics and Economics respectively

•

personal statement included relevant books that I have read, work experience that I have done & other bits and bobs. Nothing spectacular & very standard stuff. Nothing that you wouldn't find on other competitive applications to similar courses at Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial, Warwick, UCL, etc.

•

During university I have done a lot. Like a LOT. I have participated in sports, cultural events, career related societies, explored the capital, completed relevant work experience, learnt some great interesting material & interacted with some of the world's leaders in economics, including Nobel laureates

If you have any question about LSE / university in London / getting in / anything else, please do comment below & I will try my best to reply within a week!

NOTE: I may answer your questions referring to the LSE website, because there is a wealth of information on there. But if your question is about personal experiences, background & the like, I'll answer them using my own experiences.

Thank you for this. I am worried about my UCAS application as I have basically nothing to write about. I would like some work experience that would be useful, know anything I could do? I did not get high GCSE grades like you, but I do hope to get the same A level results. I am very scared that they may reject me due to my GCSE grades.

Reply 27

Anonymous #5

Original post by Angel_Chen

Just saying, thank you so much for answering our questions on TSR.
If applying for Maths with Economics, how much should i focus on each bit if I'm only applying for maths everywhere else, like is it ok to briefly mention I run economic society and have read a few books and just keep it maths, but more applied maths focused?

Got an offer for that course this year, didn’t mention any economics in my ps nor have I studied economics at a level, although I did mention a fair bit of statistics and try to relate it to economics.

Reply 28

Presence

15

what do you think you did that made you stand out in your PS ?

Reply 29

Presence

15

do you think its more about the university reputation or course that is good for getting a good job e.g a course in a lower ranking uni that requires A*AA or an LSE course that requires AAB for example

Reply 30

steven yeun

10

I have an LSE offer and I'm worried about it being too Asian/international. I am Asian lmao but I really want to get to know people from other backgrounds because my town is pretty brown and I want to meet new kinds of people. Is this an issue that you experience?

Reply 31

Presence

15

can you recommend a book about econ and maths , i want to do straight econ but i know lse is very mathsy and i want to read a book that introduces the maths used in economics but i dont know what book there is ?

Reply 32

londoncricket

OP

17

Original post by Bazyli

Thanks for creating this thread🙂 I’m starting at lse in September (I got an unconditional offer since I’m on a gap year) and I’ll be studying geography. How has your social life been whilst at lse. On TSR LSE gets a really bad reputation for student satisfaction and making friends, with cliquey groups of international students often cited as a reason for this. Does this differ from your experience? Thanks so much!!

No worries, glad to help! Well done on getting an offer, you should be really happy with yourself! Social life has been pretty good, but it's only what you make it to be. You have to actively make an effort at the LSE to have a social life, unlike other universities. If you make the effort, your social life will be pretty good. Big tip: join a sports club (doesn't really matter which one) & you'll get the AU social life. That is a good way to immediately get a social life thrust upon you haha.

TSR rains on LSE a bit too much if you ask me. Student satisfaction is poor, but I really believe that the new buildings going up will help. Also, Minouche really is doing her best, I rate her for that. The internationals are very cliquey, but that's the Far East internationals in particular. You'll likely meet more Europeans on your degree, the cliquey Far East internationals are mostly in the quant departments. Another tip: whilst it is hard, try to get to know a few cool internationals on your degree. Good for many reasons, main reason being that they're just cool & different.

Does it differ from my experience? No, because there's loads of cliquey Asians in the Department of Maths. I don't speak to them much, but I do know a few of them. I am fairly close with some other internationals though. I wouldn't say that the internationals detract from the experience.

Original post by sumboy

Thanks a lot. Your sharing is really helpful.I'm still undetermined which area of banking I wish to take. My teacher suggests me to take more modules relating to quant. I would also like to know more about it. I wonder if maths at LSE in this area could satisfy me or enable me to work as a quant in bank. I would like to know if modules relating to quant have a cap on student intake. Besides, could you comment on the LSE100 course? How would you rate it? Why is it set compulsory? Do you think this course really make a difference to LSE students from the others?

No worries. Happy to hear that. If you want to be a quant, I recommend other universities that are better for maths, such as Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial, UCL & the like. LSE would be great, but these others would be better.

Intake cap: not sure, but don't think so. Timetable clashes can be a bigger problem. Never had either of these problems myself.

LSE100 hahahaha, it's a bit of a waste of time. Interesting, but still boring. It could be much better, it's a bit of a lousy attempt by the LSE to integrate quant & qual students (hence compulsory). It is what it is & I wouldn't really take it into account when deciding for / against studying at the LSE. Makes no real difference to LSE students, is often the butt of a few of my jokes at school.

Original post by Ashica

Hey there,
Just wondering if the finanace undergrad is good? Like what do u actually learn and is it fun? ( if you know anyone doing this)

You'll probably want to learn how to spell 'finance' first. First two questions you asked can be answered online. 'is it fun' depends on your definition of fun.

Original post by Angel_Chen

Just saying, thank you so much for answering our questions on TSR.
If applying for Maths with Economics, how much should i focus on each bit if I'm only applying for maths everywhere else, like is it ok to briefly mention I run economic society and have read a few books and just keep it maths, but more applied maths focused?

No worries. Happy to help!

Common problem. See answer by Anonymous #5, reply #29. Focus mostly on maths, briefly mention what you mentioned.

Original post by Presence

what do you think you did that made you stand out in your PS ?

Three books, watched a couple of lectures on maths & its uses. Explained the three books pretty well I think.

Original post by Xnowshi

Thank you for this. I am worried about my UCAS application as I have basically nothing to write about. I would like some work experience that would be useful, know anything I could do? I did not get high GCSE grades like you, but I do hope to get the same A level results. I am very scared that they may reject me due to my GCSE grades.

Don't worry about something that you can't change. The LSE will take into account your school profile & also it will look good if your A level results are much better than your GCSE grades: it'll look like you improved a lot.

Work experience is good, but reading books & doing more academic things is more relevant.

Don't be scared if they reject you, honestly. It's not that big of a deal. You'll do well somewhere else!

Original post by Presence

do you think its more about the university reputation or course that is good for getting a good job e.g a course in a lower ranking uni that requires A*AA or an LSE course that requires AAB for example

Entirely depends on what you define as a good job. If you mean a finance / consulting job in London, it's almost certainly university reputation.

Original post by steven yeun

I have an LSE offer and I'm worried about it being too Asian/international. I am Asian lmao but I really want to get to know people from other backgrounds because my town is pretty brown and I want to meet new kinds of people. Is this an issue that you experience?

Hahahah yeah I get you. Look above, in this reply, when I quoted Bazyli. I don't think it is too much of an issue as long as you make an effort. You will likely fall into the British Indian / Pakistani / Bangla squad if you don't actively try to avoid it.

Original post by Presence

can you recommend a book about econ and maths , i want to do straight econ but i know lse is very mathsy and i want to read a book that introduces the maths used in economics but i dont know what book there is ?

Nothing that you will read & understand at your level (presumably you are 18 years old or less) will introduce you well to the maths used in Economics. Try any good Economics book. I read Black Swan by Nicholas Taleb (but this was more about statistical philosophy & epistemology) & Fault Lines by Raghuram Rajan (but this was more about macroeconomics & no maths here).

Reply 33

Presence

15

Original post by londoncricket

No worries, glad to help! Well done on getting an offer, you should be really happy with yourself! Social life has been pretty good, but it's only what you make it to be. You have to actively make an effort at the LSE to have a social life, unlike other universities. If you make the effort, your social life will be pretty good. Big tip: join a sports club (doesn't really matter which one) & you'll get the AU social life. That is a good way to immediately get a social life thrust upon you haha.

TSR rains on LSE a bit too much if you ask me. Student satisfaction is poor, but I really believe that the new buildings going up will help. Also, Minouche really is doing her best, I rate her for that. The internationals are very cliquey, but that's the Far East internationals in particular. You'll likely meet more Europeans on your degree, the cliquey Far East internationals are mostly in the quant departments. Another tip: whilst it is hard, try to get to know a few cool internationals on your degree. Good for many reasons, main reason being that they're just cool & different.

Does it differ from my experience? No, because there's loads of cliquey Asians in the Department of Maths. I don't speak to them much, but I do know a few of them. I am fairly close with some other internationals though. I wouldn't say that the internationals detract from the experience.

No worries. Happy to hear that. If you want to be a quant, I recommend other universities that are better for maths, such as Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial, UCL & the like. LSE would be great, but these others would be better.

Intake cap: not sure, but don't think so. Timetable clashes can be a bigger problem. Never had either of these problems myself.

LSE100 hahahaha, it's a bit of a waste of time. Interesting, but still boring. It could be much better, it's a bit of a lousy attempt by the LSE to integrate quant & qual students (hence compulsory). It is what it is & I wouldn't really take it into account when deciding for / against studying at the LSE. Makes no real difference to LSE students, is often the butt of a few of my jokes at school.

You'll probably want to learn how to spell 'finance' first. First two questions you asked can be answered online. 'is it fun' depends on your definition of fun.

No worries. Happy to help!

Common problem. See answer by Anonymous #5, reply #29. Focus mostly on maths, briefly mention what you mentioned.

Three books, watched a couple of lectures on maths & its uses. Explained the three books pretty well I think.

Don't worry about something that you can't change. The LSE will take into account your school profile & also it will look good if your A level results are much better than your GCSE grades: it'll look like you improved a lot.

Work experience is good, but reading books & doing more academic things is more relevant.

Don't be scared if they reject you, honestly. It's not that big of a deal. You'll do well somewhere else!

Entirely depends on what you define as a good job. If you mean a finance / consulting job in London, it's almost certainly university reputation.

Hahahah yeah I get you. Look above, in this reply, when I quoted Bazyli. I don't think it is too much of an issue as long as you make an effort. You will likely fall into the British Indian / Pakistani / Bangla squad if you don't actively try to avoid it.

Nothing that you will read & understand at your level (presumably you are 18 years old or less) will introduce you well to the maths used in Economics. Try any good Economics book. I read Black Swan by Nicholas Taleb (but this was more about statistical philosophy & epistemology) & Fault Lines by Raghuram Rajan (but this was more about macroeconomics & no maths here).

thank you so much for your reply , i forgot to ask any tips for A level amths and FM in general , i am struggling with maths even though i understand everything and can do most of the text book questions but when it came to my end of year exam i had no idea how to do the questions it just was completely different from what i expected , also i am starting to self study further stats , do you think its hard ?

Reply 34

Bazyli

14

Original post by londoncricket

No worries, glad to help! Well done on getting an offer, you should be really happy with yourself! Social life has been pretty good, but it's only what you make it to be. You have to actively make an effort at the LSE to have a social life, unlike other universities. If you make the effort, your social life will be pretty good. Big tip: join a sports club (doesn't really matter which one) & you'll get the AU social life. That is a good way to immediately get a social life thrust upon you haha.

TSR rains on LSE a bit too much if you ask me. Student satisfaction is poor, but I really believe that the new buildings going up will help. Also, Minouche really is doing her best, I rate her for that. The internationals are very cliquey, but that's the Far East internationals in particular. You'll likely meet more Europeans on your degree, the cliquey Far East internationals are mostly in the quant departments. Another tip: whilst it is hard, try to get to know a few cool internationals on your degree. Good for many reasons, main reason being that they're just cool & different.

Does it differ from my experience? No, because there's loads of cliquey Asians in the Department of Maths. I don't speak to them much, but I do know a few of them. I am fairly close with some other internationals though. I wouldn't say that the internationals detract from the experience.

No worries. Happy to hear that. If you want to be a quant, I recommend other universities that are better for maths, such as Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial, UCL & the like. LSE would be great, but these others would be better.

Intake cap: not sure, but don't think so. Timetable clashes can be a bigger problem. Never had either of these problems myself.

LSE100 hahahaha, it's a bit of a waste of time. Interesting, but still boring. It could be much better, it's a bit of a lousy attempt by the LSE to integrate quant & qual students (hence compulsory). It is what it is & I wouldn't really take it into account when deciding for / against studying at the LSE. Makes no real difference to LSE students, is often the butt of a few of my jokes at school.

You'll probably want to learn how to spell 'finance' first. First two questions you asked can be answered online. 'is it fun' depends on your definition of fun.

No worries. Happy to help!

Common problem. See answer by Anonymous #5, reply #29. Focus mostly on maths, briefly mention what you mentioned.

Three books, watched a couple of lectures on maths & its uses. Explained the three books pretty well I think.

Don't worry about something that you can't change. The LSE will take into account your school profile & also it will look good if your A level results are much better than your GCSE grades: it'll look like you improved a lot.

Work experience is good, but reading books & doing more academic things is more relevant.

Don't be scared if they reject you, honestly. It's not that big of a deal. You'll do well somewhere else!

Entirely depends on what you define as a good job. If you mean a finance / consulting job in London, it's almost certainly university reputation.

Hahahah yeah I get you. Look above, in this reply, when I quoted Bazyli. I don't think it is too much of an issue as long as you make an effort. You will likely fall into the British Indian / Pakistani / Bangla squad if you don't actively try to avoid it.

Nothing that you will read & understand at your level (presumably you are 18 years old or less) will introduce you well to the maths used in Economics. Try any good Economics book. I read Black Swan by Nicholas Taleb (but this was more about statistical philosophy & epistemology) & Fault Lines by Raghuram Rajan (but this was more about macroeconomics & no maths here).

Thanks for your reply. Roughly how sporty are people at the AU lol? I’m pretty good at tennis and do long distance running, but just wondering what the standards are haha

Reply 35

Anonymous #6

I don't have any work experience that I can include in my personal statement and am quite worried about that. Is there anything you think I could do instead over the summer to make up for it, or, to strengthen my personal statement. I am applying for Finance and do not have the best math grades; however, I am strong in all my other subjects. I am applying to Oxford as my #1 and LSE as my #2. Is there anything you think I should do as a supercurricular to improve my chances into getting to either of these universities?

Original post by londoncricket

Hi guys,

I remember that when I applied to the LSE there weren't many TSR forumites who could help with BSc Maths and Economics.

Fast forward 2 years & I am at the end of my second year at the LSE. I've really enjoyed my time here & would like to help TSR with an 'Ask Me Anything' post, so here goes.

About me

•

State school educated throughout, firstly in a comprehensive school in the East of England, followed by a high performing sixth form college

•

GCSE: 6A*s & 5 As, A level: A*AA, offer was A*AA in Maths, Further Mathematics and Economics respectively

•

personal statement included relevant books that I have read, work experience that I have done & other bits and bobs. Nothing spectacular & very standard stuff. Nothing that you wouldn't find on other competitive applications to similar courses at Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial, Warwick, UCL, etc.

•

During university I have done a lot. Like a LOT. I have participated in sports, cultural events, career related societies, explored the capital, completed relevant work experience, learnt some great interesting material & interacted with some of the world's leaders in economics, including Nobel laureates

If you have any question about LSE / university in London / getting in / anything else, please do comment below & I will try my best to reply within a week!

NOTE: I may answer your questions referring to the LSE website, because there is a wealth of information on there. But if your question is about personal experiences, background & the like, I'll answer them using my own experiences.

Reply 36

Lillixo

9

Hi, I’m looking to study economics but have no work experience, could you recommend anywhere Relevant or shall I just focus on other academic things to enhance my application?

Reply 37

Anonymous #7

Original post by Anonymous

I don't have any work experience that I can include in my personal statement and am quite worried about that. Is there anything you think I could do instead over the summer to make up for it, or, to strengthen my personal statement. I am applying for Finance and do not have the best math grades; however, I am strong in all my other subjects. I am applying to Oxford as my #1 and LSE as my #2. Is there anything you think I should do as a supercurricular to improve my chances into getting to either of these universities?