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Manchester BA Econ, Lancaster BA Econ (Placement year) or Sheffield BA Econ.

Looking for advice on which of these to choose in regards to employability and overall reputation. I'm not really bothered about the location of the university in all honesty just purely the chance for me to get a better job. Manchester is ranked the highest globally but I am unsure regarding its reputability in England and whether the Lancaster placement year makes it a more viable option. Any help is appreciated.
(edited 2 months ago)
Original post by Ted Buggle
Looking for advice on which of these to choose in regards to employability and overall reputation. I'm not really bothered about the location of the university in all honesty just purely the chance for me to get a better job. Manchester is ranked the highest globally but I am unsure regarding its reputability in England and whether the Lancaster placement year makes it a more viable option. Any help is appreciated.

Hi @Ted Buggle
Lancaster has a great careers service that can support you through your degree by helping you find and apply to placement year options and graduate schemes. They run lots of sessions throughout the year including large on campus career fairs allowing you to speak to a range of different employers, weekly workshop sessions about improving confidence in interviews, how to prepare for assessment centers ect. and also offer 1 to 1 support with career guidance and CV help for instance. Also, as you've said the BA Economics course at Lancaster has a placement year option which is a great way to boost employability.
If you have anymore questions, feel free to answer!
-Jasmine (Lancaster Student Ambassador)
Original post by Ted Buggle
Looking for advice on which of these to choose in regards to employability and overall reputation. I'm not really bothered about the location of the university in all honesty just purely the chance for me to get a better job. Manchester is ranked the highest globally but I am unsure regarding its reputability in England and whether the Lancaster placement year makes it a more viable option. Any help is appreciated.
At most universities, you can just transfer to the economics "with placement year" course as soon as you start. So I really wouldn't be basing my decision on the notion that you'll only be able to do a placement year at one of these universities.

Instead, I'd be looking at how the modules stack up with your interests, the rep of the uni (will have careers implications), location, etc.
Reply 3
Original post by BenRyan99
At most universities, you can just transfer to the economics "with placement year" course as soon as you start. So I really wouldn't be basing my decision on the notion that you'll only be able to do a placement year at one of these universities.
Instead, I'd be looking at how the modules stack up with your interests, the rep of the uni (will have careers implications), location, etc.

Unfortunately neither Manchester or Sheffield offer a placement year. The real reason I asked the question was because I am unsure of whether Lancaster’s higher rankings in the UK make it a better option than Manchester’s higher rankings globally. I’d appreciate it if you knew which of these was more reputable or if the differences are minimal. Thanks.
Original post by Ted Buggle
Unfortunately neither Manchester or Sheffield offer a placement year. The real reason I asked the question was because I am unsure of whether Lancaster’s higher rankings in the UK make it a better option than Manchester’s higher rankings globally. I’d appreciate it if you knew which of these was more reputable or if the differences are minimal. Thanks.
I don't think there's an objective answer, but a lot of the decision boils down to what you want to do during the placement year and what you think you might want to do as a career after your degree. Lots of students, particularly those interested in finance, tend to skip placement years in favour of doing summer internships instead for example.
Reply 5
Original post by BenRyan99
I don't think there's an objective answer, but a lot of the decision boils down to what you want to do during the placement year and what you think you might want to do as a career after your degree. Lots of students, particularly those interested in finance, tend to skip placement years in favour of doing summer internships instead for example.

If you were in my position which would you pick, assuming I will probably end up in something finance related.
Original post by Ted Buggle
If you were in my position which would you pick, assuming I will probably end up in something finance related.
I would personally go with Manchester given it's the only one with a semi-alright reputation in finance, a more interesting location, and is a much bigger department so you can get more flexibility over your modules.

But the important things is that I'm not in your position, so you've got to pick what's right for you.
Original post by Ted Buggle
Looking for advice on which of these to choose in regards to employability and overall reputation. I'm not really bothered about the location of the university in all honesty just purely the chance for me to get a better job. Manchester is ranked the highest globally but I am unsure regarding its reputability in England and whether the Lancaster placement year makes it a more viable option. Any help is appreciated.

Hi @Ted Buggle

Ultimately which university you get a degree with won't differ much to employers, it will be more of how you can apply those skills that you learn and how well you can do in interviews. Manchester and Lancaster are both very good unis and highly ranked so which ever you go to you will get a great degree out of! I'd recommend looking at the modules you will be studying and picking the uni that aligns with your interests more since if you find it more interesting to study, the easier studying it will be.

Hope this helps,
Rachel -Lancaster student ambassador
Original post by Ted Buggle
Looking for advice on which of these to choose in regards to employability and overall reputation. I'm not really bothered about the location of the university in all honesty just purely the chance for me to get a better job. Manchester is ranked the highest globally but I am unsure regarding its reputability in England and whether the Lancaster placement year makes it a more viable option. Any help is appreciated.


Manchester 100%. A very respected uni with very good employability. It’s a no brainer. Lancaster has high rankings in the Uk due to research. Academically Manchester is so so so much better. Make the right choice and take it, many would want to be in your position.
Reply 9
I don't do economics but I go to Sheffield and am so glad I didn't go to Manchester - felt much more unsafe. Sheffield is amazing and I cannot recommend it enough. Have you been to visit all the unis?

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