writing a ps for HSPS and philosophy and economics

is it feasible to write a personal statement for both HSPS and philosophy and economics? If I were to write about concepts and thinkers such as nationalism, the social contract, hobbes, locke, rousseau, adam smith, inequality, neoliberalism etc; is there enough of an overlap between the two courses for me to write a ps which encompasses both? would apply for LSE, UCL, bristol and st andrews
for context, taking four A levels: maths, histor, econ, politics. and epq. likely to be predicted A* in all.

Reply 1

bibachu

13

Original post by jk999998

is it feasible to write a personal statement for both HSPS and philosophy and economics? If I were to write about concepts and thinkers such as nationalism, the social contract, hobbes, locke, rousseau, adam smith, inequality, neoliberalism etc; is there enough of an overlap between the two courses for me to write a ps which encompasses both? would apply for LSE, UCL, bristol and st andrews
for context, taking four A levels: maths, histor, econ, politics. and epq. likely to be predicted A* in all.

I imagine you would struggle quite a bit. While Cambridge understand that HSPS is a unique degree, the topics you want to discuss are more relevant to PPE than they are to HSPS, which might make them question your devotion to the sociological and the social anthropological aspects of HSPS. These are the tracks you can take if you decide to study HSPS:

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Politics and International Relations

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Social Anthropology

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Sociology

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Politics and Sociology

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Social Anthropology and Politics

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Social Anthropology and Religious Studies (Modern Religions)

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Sociology and Social Anthropology

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Sociology and Criminology

While politics and IR is one of the single tracks you can take, it would be useful if you could talk about other topics in HSPS too. However, you only have 4000 characters and they fill up quickly. You’ll likely struggle to do all of this and some other universities (such as LSE) will be looking to see that your personal statement is centred around the subject you’re applying to. The topics you want to discuss are all on the A level specification, which is fine, but if you’re going to apply to competitive universities, it might be a good idea to go beyond this. Have you done any wider reading in these specific areas? Ultimately, if you decide to try and talk about all these different disciplines, your characters will be limited and you may not get an opportunity to make meaningful reflections. In a Cambridge interview, it’s very likely that they would ask you why you didn’t just apply to economics, PPE or philosophy, if you only talk about the topics you mentioned. Personally, if I were you I’d look into the PPE course if these topics interest you. You might find it’s better suited to you. In the event that you prefer PPE over HSPS, I think you could get away with only talking about these topics, but you should still aim to do wider reading.

Reply 2

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

21

Original post by jk999998

is it feasible to write a personal statement for both HSPS and philosophy and economics? If I were to write about concepts and thinkers such as nationalism, the social contract, hobbes, locke, rousseau, adam smith, inequality, neoliberalism etc; is there enough of an overlap between the two courses for me to write a ps which encompasses both? would apply for LSE, UCL, bristol and st andrews
for context, taking four A levels: maths, histor, econ, politics. and epq. likely to be predicted A* in all.

Is there a reason you're aiming for HSPS at Cambridge and not PPE at Oxford? The latter seems more directly related to your interests, especially as it also includes all the political theory you're referring to.

As the thing is there is no direct subject overlap between your two proposed sets of courses. HSPS is neither philosophy nor economics, nor are either of those areas directly included in the course. Likewise anthropology, sociology, and to a large point politics and IR are not included in a philosophy and economics degree. There's a lot more to politics and IR than political philosophy/theory.

Note also LSE is extremely focused on personal statements and expect to see PSes directly relevant to the subject and diluting your PS to include material relevant to another course may risk you getting rejected from LSE on the basis of the PS.

If you are more interested in HSPS than philosophy and economics (+/- politics) I might suggest you reconsider your other choices rather than philosophy and economics and apply to e.g. politics/IR/social anthropology/sociology/social policy at those unis as most applicable.

writing a ps for HSPS and philosophy and economics

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