Program Overview

MSc Economic Policy

Key Information

• Start date: September
• Duration: 1 year (full-time) or 2-3 years (part-time)
• Attendance mode: Full-time or part-time
• Location: On Campus
• Fees:
  • Home: £12,220
  • International: £25,320
• Course code: PGTF0186
• Entry requirements:
  • We will consider all applications with 2:2 (or international equivalent) or higher.
  • In addition to degree classification, we take into account other elements of the application, such as the supporting statement.
  • References are optional but can help build a stronger application if you fall below the 2:2 requirement or have non-traditional qualifications.

International Entry Requirements

• Rwanda: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bachelor (4-year)
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: Lower Second Class Honours or 65-69% or 14/20
• Saudi Arabia: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bachelor degree
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: GPA of 3.0/4.0 or 3.5/5.0 or overall 70%
• Singapore: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bachelor degree
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: CAP 3.5/5.0 or 3.0/4.0
• Slovakia: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bakalár / Bachelor
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: 70% or 2.0 overall or C
• South Africa: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bachelor (4-year)
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: 60%
• South Korea: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bachelor degree
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: GPA 2.7/4.0 or 3.0/4.3 or 3.3/4.5
• Spain: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Título de Grado / Título de Licenciado / Título de Ingeniero / Titulo de Arquitecto
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: 6.5/10 or GPA 1.75/4.0
• Sri Lanka: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bachelor Special Degree or Professional Degree (4-year)
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: 55% or 2:2 or GPA 3.0/4.0
• Sudan: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bachelor (5-year)
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: 65%+ or B
• Sweden: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bachelor degree / Kandidatexamen / Yrkesexamen
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: B (90 credits) and C (90 credits) or Very Good (70 credits) and Good (110 Credits) or C (180 credits)
• Switzerland: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Diplom / Diplôme / Lizentiat / Staatsdiplom / Diplôme d’Etat
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: Overall 4.5/6 or 7/10 or 2.5/5
• Syria: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Licence / al-ijaza-fi / Bachelor
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: 70%+ or 'Good'
• Taiwan: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bachelor degree
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: 68-70% or GPA 2.8/4.0-3.0/4.0
• Thailand: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bachelor degree
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: GPA 3.0/4.0
• Tunisia: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Diplôme National d'Ingénieur / Diplôme National d'Architecture / Licence / Maîtrise
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: 12 out of 20
• Turkey: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Lisans Diplomasi
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: GPA 2.6/4 from the top universities and 3.0/4 from all others
• Uganda: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bachelor degree
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: 2:2 (Lower Second) or B or GPA 3.0/5.0
• Ukraine: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bachelor degree or Specialist Diploma
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: 8/12 or 3.8/5
• United Arab Emirates: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bachelor degree
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: GPA 3.0/4.0 or 3.2/5.0
• United States of America: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bachelor degree
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: GPA 3.0/4.0
• Vietnam: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bachelor degree (4-year)
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: Overall score of 6.5/10
• Yemen: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Master's degree
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: Overall 'Good' (71-77%) or Aden University 80-83% (or 3.0/4.0)
• Zambia: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Master's degree
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: 65% or B or Credit or GPA 1.7/2.5 or 3.3/5.0
• Zimbabwe: Qualifications (Bachelor equivalency): Bachelor degree
  • Equivalent to 2:ii: 2:2 or 65%

Course Overview

The MSc Economic Policy offers solid training in the fundamental principles of economic policy, grounding them in the evolution of economic theory and policy practice. It provides a platform for critical analysis and discussion of policy design and evaluation methods linked to real-world problems, without requiring a first degree in Economics for enrolment.

You will explore government actions and strategies designed to achieve policy objectives under specific political and socio-economic conditions. The programme addresses key policy challenges, including climate change and green finance, industrial competitiveness and structural transformation, poverty and inequality, corruption and ineffective states, and labour market and social protection policies, among other concerns.

Optional regional modules offer students an opportunity to delve into regional policy challenges, aligning with the established tradition of SOAS Economics. Moreover, participants can specialise in one of three areas: 1) Economic Policy and International Finance, 2) Economic Policy and the Environment, and 3) Economic Policy and Institutions.

Structure

The MSc Economic Policy is a taught Master’s degree. It consists of 180 credits, made up of eight taught modules, four compulsory modules and four optional (Guided Options) modules, each worth 15 credits taught over 10 or 20 weeks. In addition, a 10,000-word research project accounts for 60 credits. The modules are delivered through lectures, classes, seminars, and tutorials.

Compulsory Modules

• Research Project in Economic Policy (60 credits)
• Research Methods (15 credits)
• Global Economic Policy Analysis (15 credits)
• R Coding Workshops (non-assessed)
• Essay Writing Workshop - Postgraduate Economics (non-assessed)
• Principles of Statistics and Econometrics with R coding (15 credits)
• Perspectives in Economic Theory and Policy (15 credits)

Guided Options List A

• Growth and Development (15 credits)
• International Finance (15 credits)
• Political Economy of Institutions (15 credits)
• Economic development in the Asia Pacific region (15 credits)
• Financial Systems and Economic Development (15 credits)
• Evaluation Methods for Economic Policy (15 credits)
• Advanced Econometrics with R coding (15 credits)
• Economics of Environment and Development (15 credits)
• Advanced Microeconomics (15 credits)
• Advanced Macroeconomics (15 credits)
• China and World Development (15 credits)
• Green Finance (15 credits)
• Data Analytics with Python (15 credits)

Guided Options List B

• Gender and Development (15 credits)
• Global Commodity Chains, Production Networks and Informal Work (15 credits)
• Agrarian Development, Food Policy and Rural Poverty (15 credits)
• Aid and Development (15 credits)
• Labour, Activism and Global Development (15 credits)
• Global Health and Development (15 credits)
• Cities and Development (15 credits)
• Feminist Political Economy and Global Development (15 credits)
• International management (15 credits)
• Public Policy: Perspectives, Issues and Strategies (15 credits)
• Public Governance, Accountability and Transparency (15 credits)
• Emerging Market Finance (15 credits)
• Multinationals and Global Business (15 credits)

Teaching and Learning

The modules are taught in seminar groups and lectures. The degree is awarded on the basis of assessed coursework, examinations, and the dissertation. The MSc is taught over a period of 12-months of full-time study within a structured programme. In case of part-time study, the degree will be taught over two or three years.

Employment

Economics graduates leave SOAS with a solid grounding in statistical skills and an ability to think laterally, take a global perspective, and employ critical reasoning.

Recent graduates from the Department of Economics have been hired by:

• Bain & Co
• Bank of America
• Cabinet Office
• Deloitte
• Ernst & Young
• KPMG
• NHS England
• Foreign and Commonwealth Office
• Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
• HSBC
• National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, New Delhi
• UK Civil Service
• United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
• University of Bayreuth
• HM Treasury
• Department for International Development
• PwC
• UNDP
• King’s Investment Fund
• Foreign and Commonwealth Office
• The World Bank
• EY
• British Chamber of Commerce
• Oxfam
• RBS