The course
Studying Economics, Politics and International Relations at Royal Holloway means that you will learn from internationally renowned experts at two of the UK’s top ten teaching and research centres. This joint degree combines the core programme of the Economics degree with foundation and option courses offered by Politics and International Relations. These disciplines have many natural affinities between them, and their synergies lend themselves well to students who are interested in pursuing careers in various policy fields as well as in the areas of politics/international relations and economics generally, in both the public and private sectors. This combined with the broad spectrum of transferable skills gained will lead to excellent career prospects.
This course coves a complete education in the theories and methods of economics, with a strong focus on analytical methods. You will develop skills in mathematics and statistics and learn to tackle economic problems; cover political ideas and processes in countries throughout the world and the global system which will allow you to examine issues fundamental to our times. The curriculum is advanced and reflects the most recent research in both disciplines. By electing to spend a year in business you will also be able to integrate theory and practice.
Our balanced approach to research and teaching guarantees high quality teaching from subject leaders, cutting edge materials and intellectually challenging debates. Our courses follow a coherent and developmental structure which we combined with an effective and flexible approach to study.
Course structure
Core Modules
Year 1You will take the following modules in Economics:
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the theories of macroeconomics, that of the economy as a whole, and of microeconomics, the behaviour of individuals, firms and governments. You will look at how the goods and assets markets underpin growth, inflation and unemployment, and the role that fiscal and monetary policy play in macroeconomic management. You will examine the theoretical basis to supply and demand and the role of government intervention in individual markets. You will consider how to solve economic problems by manipulating a variety of simple diagrammatic and algebraic models in macro- and microeconomics, critically evaluating the models and their limitations.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the basic mathematical, quantitative, computing and statistical tools for the study of economics. You will look at techniques such as algebraic manipulation, functions, simultaneous equations, optimisation, descriptive statistics, probability theory and regressions, and learn how to apply these to economic problems.
You will take the following modules in Politics and International Relations:
-
This module will introduce you to the academic study of politics and to the ‘real world’ of contemporary politics. As a foundational course, it will give you all the essential tools to understand the nature of politics and analyse the way different political systems work. You will be introduced to key concepts such as politics, power, rights, ideologies, democracy and representation, and will learn about the different actors, institutions and processes that make up politics today.
-
This module offers a broad introduction to theory and history in international relations since 1870. You will look at a variety of different theoretical lenses, ranging from orthodox to critical perspectives, in order to understand events from the collapse of the Bismarckian European order and the origins of World War 1 to the contemporary War on Terror. Along the way you will also explore the origins and the end of the Cold War, decolonisation and the End of Empire, the rise of international institutions, humanitarian intervention and new security issues.
You will take the following modules in Economics:
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the models of individual optimisation and their applications. You will look at the key determinants of an individual’s behaviour in a variety of circumstances and the behaviour of firms in different market environments, such as perfect competition, monopoly and oligopoly. You will consider how changing circumstances and new information influences the actions of the economic agents concerned, and examine the properties of competitive markets and the need for government intervention to correct market failures.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of macroeconomics and macroeconomic policy-making. You will look at a variety of contemporary and historical macroeconomic events, and the differences between the short, medium and long run. You will consider why some countries are rich and some are poor, why different economies grow at different rates, and what determines economic growth and prosperity. You will examine the role of monetary and fiscal policy, its impact on the economy and its limitations. You will also analyse how taxation, budget deficits, and public debt affect the economy.
-
This year will be spent on a work placement. You will be supported by the Placements Office and the Royal Holloway Careers and Employability Service to find a suitable placement. However, Royal Holloway cannot guarantee that all students who are accepted onto this degree programme will secure a placement, and the ultimate responsibility lies with yourself. This year forms an integral part of the degree programme and you will be asked to complete assessed work. The mark for this work will count towards your final degree classification.
- All modules are optional
Optional Modules
Year 1- All modules are core
Optional modules in Politics and International Relations may include:
-
In this module you will analyse the contemporary politics of the European Union and its institutions, amid the challenges of the triple crisis of economics, migration and Brexit. You will learn about the political history of European integration after 1949 and the contemporary theory of European integration. The first term will begin with an introduction to the European Union as a political system followed by an overview of the European Union's historical development. The second term will focus on contestation of the European Union and the theories that underpin this, in order to explain how the EU developed and the challenges that it faces. Topics will include Euroscepticism, party politics, public opinion, Brexit and EU-UK relations, and European Parliament elections. The theory sessions comprise of federalism, neo-functionalism, liberal intergovernmentalism and the new institutionalisms.
-
Building on Introduction to International Relations, this module explores the key thinkers and debates in International Relations Theory. You will become familiar with a variety of ways of thinking about International Relations, engaging with questions about the nature of power, identity, and ethics in politics and how these interact in the international realm. The module is divided into two parts. In the first, you will examine the three foundational theoretical paradigms within International Relations – realism, liberalism, and Marxism. The second part explores newer critical approaches to International Relations theory, including constructivism, post-structuralism, feminism, and uneven ecological exchange.
-
I in this module you will develop an understanding of contemporary British politics. You will look at the ways in which British government has evolved, how it continues to operate, and why it operates in the way it does. You will consider the causes and consequences of major political change in Britain and examine the underlying assumptions upon which theoretical disputes in political science are based.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of some of the key concepts in political theory today. You will look at political obligation, civil disobedience, democracy, citizenship, equality, global justice, human rights, and freedom and toleration. You will consider important theorists including Berlin Rawls, Nozick, Sandel, Okin and Pettit, examining the recent major theoretical perspectives in the context of contemporary politics.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the relationship between states and markets, power and wealth. You will look at the key concepts and theoretical debates in International Political Economy, such as the globalisation of trade, finance, and production, the continued problems of development and democratic governance in the world economy, and emerging questions surrounding global flows, networks and spaces. You will consider the history of regimes, crises, and competing theories of political economy from the nineteenth century to the present day and examine how political institutions operate in international politics to regulate the creation of wealth, and who benefits from these arrangements.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of security studies as a subfield of International Relations. You will look at the issue of war and it is/should be fought. You will consider the theories of security and how these have changed, especially in an age of terrorism, and examine a wide variety of security including nuclear weapons, drone warfare, genocide, and gun control.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the themes, arguments, and interpretations of major political thinkers from the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. You will look at the works of Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Kant, Mill, Marx and Nietzsche and consider how the ideas articulated by these thinkers continue to underpin contemporary debates about the nature of freedom, human rights, value pluralism, popular sovereignty, state legitimacy, and the modern condition. You will also examine how study of these thinkers illuminates contemporary debates even where these debates no longer make reference to them.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the scope and limitations of global governance. You will look at the creation of international organisations and the role of states in this process, how different organisations are designed, and the effectiveness and functioning of different types of organisation. You will consider the role of international organisations in creating policy, pursuing organisational objectives, and altering the relations between actors at various levels. You will also examine the significance of major challenges for global governance, such as countering international terrorism, policing organised crime, and preventing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of how citizens, politicians and the media interact across Western democracies during both electoral and governing periods. You will look at the production and consumption of political news, consider election campaigns and their effects, and examine contemporary debates in political communication, including ethical issues.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the most important features of the history of the development of the non-West. You will look at the distinctive political dynamics characterising the contemporary non-West and consider the thoughts of prominent non-Western political thinkers.
Optional modules in Economics may include:
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the methods and models applied by economists in the analysis of firms and industries. You will learn how to manipulate these models and analytically solve problems relating to industrial economics. You will consider the applications of the models to important policy areas, exploring topics such as collusion, mergers, product differentiation and asymmetric information. You will also also examine the limitations of the theory.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of advanced topics in industrial organisation, with a special focus on the role that information plays in markets. You will explore topics such as collusion, mergers, product differentiation, and asymmetric information, and become familiar with a broad range of methods and models applied by economists in the analysis of firms and industries.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the financial market, institutions, participants and traded assets that constitute a modern financial system. You will look at the theories of risk-factor pricing, such as the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) and the Arbitrage Pricing Theory (APT). You will consider the theory of, and empirical evidence on, efficient, markets and examine the process of price formation. You will also analyse the derivation and construction of efficient portfolios.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the wide range of fixed income securities and derivatives available to investors in the financial markets. You will look at the basic institutional features of derivatives markets, as well as the pricing of bonds and of derivative instruments and using them for hedging purposes. You will consider investment and trading strategies that use bonds and derivatives, and evaluate the use of bonds in immunising portfolios based on the bond's duration. You will also explore the features and uses of the most popular types of derivatives available today, including options, futures, forwards, and swaps.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the theoretical properties of different econometric estimation and testing procedures under various modelling assumptions. You will learn to formulate, estimate, test and interpret suitable models for the empirical study of economic phenomena. You will consider how to apply regression techniques and evaluate the appropriateness of each econometric estimation method under different data limitations.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the theoretical properties of different econometric estimation and testing procedures under various modelling assumptions. You will look at regression techniquies and learn how to apply relevant econometric and statistical methods to your own research. You will also evaluate the appropriateness of each of the economic estimation methods and the impact of consider data limirations.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the fragility of the financial system and its relevance to the current financial crisis. You will learn the economic meaning of the terms liquidity and solvency in the context of financial intermediaries. You will look at the models of equilibrium bank runs and consider the implications of imposing capital structure controls and liquidity control on financial intermediaries. You will also critically evaluate the links between financial crises and the macroeconomy.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of how economic methods can be applied to environmental issues facing society. You will consider the difficulties arising in using economic analysis in environmental policy design and learn how to solve and manipulate a variety of diagrammatic and algebraic models in environmental economics. You will evaluate a number of real-world environmental policy problems and see how economic analysis has been applied in their solution.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the use of experiments to test economic theories. You will look at how individuals make decisions in markets, how individuals decide to spend money today or save it for future spending, the assumption of self-regarding preferences commonly made in standard economic models, and the ability to act rationally in a strategic environment. You will consider the issues raised by experimental design and critically evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of experimental methods.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the role of money in the economy. You will look at models where inflation shows persistence, the theory of monetary policy, monetary policy operating procedures and the central banking mechanisms. You will consider why inflation is persistent in the data and how the political forces affecting monetary policy-making may affect inflation.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the mathematical models used to study and analyse strategic interactions between agents. You will look at the fundamental concepts in game theory as applied to economics in general and microeconomics in particular. You will become familiar with basic equilibrium concepts such as Nash equilibrium and subgame perfect equilibrium, and be able to find equilibrium outcomes of simple games including the use of backward induction.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the mathematics of optimisation and of equilibrium models. You will look at the linkage between markets and Pareto optimality and consider the social outcomes that can be implemented in game-theoretic equilibrium. You will also examine the basic types of auctions and when and why they implement identical outcomes.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the principal techniques used in financial econometrics. You will look at why deviations from standard models are required to handle the peculiarities of financial data and consider how to interpret the theoretical techniques used in finance. You will also learn how to apply the techniques using standard econometric software packages such as STATA.
-
In this module you will develop your understanding of the main theoretical and empirical issues in modern labour economics. You will look at theory, evidence and policy, covering labour demand, labour supply and time allocation decisions, schooling and job training, human capital investment, wage determination, unemployment, minimum wage, returns to schooling, discrimination, and immigration. You will critically analyse important labour market phenomena, as well as various public policy issues, such as government training programs, minimum wage policies, unemployment insurance and welfare benefits.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the different approaches to national economic policy. You will consider the economic advantages and disadvantages of globalisation and look at the effects of tax-cutting, deregulation, privatisation, mixed economy, efficiency and income distribution.
-
In this module you develop an understanding of the effects of government policy upon the economy and the design of policy. You will look at empirical methods for policy evaluation and discuss research carried out in public economics, on topics such as income taxation, welfare support, behavioural responses, and social security.
-
In this module you will develop your understanding of important topics from economic history, covering periods of economic growth and wellbeing, agricultural and urban development, globalisation and migration, banking and monetary systems, and the Great Depression and recovery.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of both theoretical and empirical issues in Development Economics, such as the behaviour of credit and insurance markets in developing economies, the existence of poverty traps and the role of income, ethnicity, gender and caste in the development process.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of the mathematical models used to study and analyse strategic interactions between agents. You will look at the fundamental concepts in game theory as applied to economics in general and microeconomics in particular. You will become familiar with basic equilibrium concepts such as Nash equilibrium and subgame perfect equilibrium, and be able to find equilibrium outcomes of simple games including the use of backward induction.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of economic inequality. You will look at the factors that determine wage differentials among workers from a theoretical and empirical point of view. You will consider why similar workers are paid differently and examine how labour mobility can improve the allocation of workers to firms, enhance aggregate productivity, and reduce inequality.
Optional modules in Politics and International Relations may include:
-
The dissertation offers you the opportunity to pursue independent research in a topic of your own choosing with the support of an academic supervisor working one-to-one with you. You will develop your own research question and research strategy, explore the scholarly debates surrounding your topic, and advance your own thesis that interprets or challenges the way your topic has been understood. You are encouraged to use a variety of quantitative or qualitative methods and theoretical approaches as appropriate to the field you are exploring.
-
In this module you will combine participation in a workplace environment for one day a week during term time (and three days a week for each term's reading week) with scholarly reflection on the nature of the organisational, professional, and policy contexts of the placement. Your placement will be in an organised setting such as Parliament, local government, the office of an MEP, NGO, campaigning or activist organisations, a political party, a media organisation, or the policy or communications division of a local company working in a relevant field.
-
In this module you will develop an understanding of regulation in the European Union, including delivery of policy and administration. You will look at how the world's largest market operates, with a focus on EU public policy, including de-regulation, re-regulation, budgets and spending. You will examine the concept of the single market, the Euro and its crisis, justice, home affairs and counter-terrorism, the EU budget, agriculture, regional development, and social and environmental policies.
- Power and Money in the European Union
- Radical Political Theory
- The British in India: a Social and Political History
- Contemporary Middle East Politics
- US Foreign Policy
- Comparative Foreign Policy
- Young People's Politics
- Leadership, Power and the British Prime Minister
- Visual Politics
- Understanding China's Rise: Domestic Politics and Foreign Policy
- Global Energy Policy
- Refugees and Migration in World Politics
- American Political Development
- The Politics of Russia and Eastern Europe
- The Politics of International Development
- Issues in Democratic Theory
- Political Theories of Freedom
- Defence and Security Governance
- Military Change in the 21st Century
- Leaders and Political Communication
- Global Healthy Policy
- Political Protest
Teaching & assessment
Teaching is mostly by means of lectures and seminars, the latter providing a forum for students to work through problem sets and applications in a smaller and more interactive setting. Outside of scheduled teaching sessions, students work independently, or collaboratively, researching, reading and preparing for seminars.
Assessment is usually carried out by end of year examinations as well as class tests and assignments. Final year students can choose to complete an extended essay, which offers students the chance to conduct an original piece of research.
The results of the first year examinations qualify students for entry to the second year but do not contribute to the final degree award. The second and final year results do contribute to the final degree result, with the final year work counting for a larger proportion of the result.
Entry requirements
A Levels: AAA-AAB
Required subjects:
- GCSE Maths at grade A or 7.
- At least five GCSEs at grade A*-C or 9-4 including English and Mathematics.
Where an applicant is taking the EPQ alongside A - levels, the EPQ will be taken into consideration and result in lower A-level grades being required. Socio - economic factors which may have impacted an applicant's education will be taken into consideration and alternative offers may be made to these applicants.
Other UK Qualifications
International & EU requirements
English language requirements
All teaching at Royal Holloway (apart from some language courses) is in English. You will therefore need to have good enough written and spoken English to cope with your studies right from the start.
The scores we require
- IELTS: 6.5 overall. Writing 7.0. No other subscore lower than 5.5.
- Pearson Test of English: 61 overall. Writing 69. No other subscore lower than 51.
- Trinity College London Integrated Skills in English (ISE): ISE III.
- Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE) grade C.
Country-specific requirements
For more information about country-specific entry requirements for your country please visit here.
For international students who do not meet the direct entry requirements, we offer an International Foundation Year, run by Study Group at the Royal Holloway International Study Centre. Upon successful completion, you may progress on to selected undergraduate degree programmes at Royal Holloway, University of London.
Your future career
An Economics, Politics and International Relations degree at Royal Holloway will equip you with an enviable range of transferable skills which combined with the knowledge gained, will make you highly employable. It can lead to a broad range of careers in both the private and public sectors and also for professional training in areas such as law, accountancy and management.
We will help students to recognise their own strengths, skills and abilities so that they can make strong applications for their chosen job or further study.
- Our graduates are highly employable; 9)% of graduates achieved either full time employment or further study within six months
- Politics and International Relations are ranked in the top ten UK university Politics departments for career prospects.
- In recent years, graduates entered many different roles in the Civil Service, accountancy, investment banking, management, journalism, broadcasting, computing, higher education, teaching, and politics and diplomacy themselves.
Our outstanding record of success for work and further study puts Royal Holloway in the top 10 for graduate career prospects (Complete University Guide, 2015). It goes to show that our degree programmes not only promote academic achievement but also the means to hone the life-skills necessary to excel, post-graduation.
Choosing to include a politics based degree into your studies at Royal Holloway provides you with a wide range of important transferable skills, enabling you to approach problems in a rigorous, analytical and critical way and to communicate clearly and concisely in both speech and writing. Our graduates leave us with skills and knowledge that not only makes them attractive to employers in a broad spectrum of careers, but prepares them for further advanced study and research.
Fees & funding
Home and EU students tuition fee per year*: £9250
The fee for your Year in Business will be 20% of the tuition fee for that academic year.
International students tuition fee per year**: £16900
The fee for your Year in Business will be 20% of the tuition fee for that academic year.
Other essential costs***: There are no single associated costs greater than £50 per item on this course.
How do I pay for it? Find out more about funding options, including loans, scholarships and bursaries.
*The tuition fee for UK and EU undergraduates is controlled by UK Government regulations, and for students starting a degree in the academic year 2019/20 will be £9,250 for that year, and is shown for reference purposes only. The tuition fee for UK and EU undergraduates has not yet been confirmed for students starting a degree in the academic year 2020/21.
**Fees for international students may increase year-on-year in line with the rate of inflation. The policy at Royal Holloway is that any increases in fees will not exceed 5% for continuing students. For further information see fees and funding and our terms and conditions.
***These estimated costs relate to studying this particular degree programme at Royal Holloway. Costs, such as accommodation, food, books and other learning materials and printing etc., have not been included.