We all take economic decisions every day and are affected by other people’s decisions at a local, national and global level. Economics is the study of these decisions and actions, and of the way economic processes work.
Some questions obviously involve economics. Should you study economics at university? To answer this question, you need to compare the costs and benefits of your decision. Should you start investing in a pension now? The answer to this question is yes if the expected benefits from a higher pension (discounted to take into account that they occur in the future) outweigh
the costs of missing out on spending money and consuming today.
Some questions do not appear to involve economics, but actually they do: Should you vote? There are a number of ways to think about this question: a straight economics view contrasts the costs of voting (reading manifestos, watching party political broadcasts, going to the polling station) with the benefits, where those benefits are weighted by the probability that your single vote will make a difference to the overall election outcome.
Of course, economics is extremely important for governments and policymakers as well. Should there be a minimum wage? Do certain industries need to be regulated? Does foreign aid actually help developing countries? Are house prices out of control? Should students pay for university education? All these policy questions require economics as a key input.
Economics helps us to think in the right way about a wide range of problems. Consider whether a university degree increases earnings. A non-economist might just look at whether university graduates earn more on average. An economist recognises a crucial difficulty: perhaps more able people go to university. Then the question becomes: what proportion of the higher earnings is due to the greater ability of those going to university, and what proportion is due to the education they receive when they get there?
By studying a degree in economics, you will gain in-depth knowledge of the discipline, along with key problem-solving, communication and data-analysis skills. Your research and project management skills will be developed through the supervised dissertation of 8,000 words which is a crucial part of all programmes (making up 25 per cent of the final year).
All our degree programmes provide comprehensive training in economic analysis and quantitative methods, equipping you with the skills and expertise demanded by employers in industry and finance.
We offer two types of programme: single honours, for those who want to specialise in economics; and joint honours, for those who want to combine their interest in economics with another subject (subject to some restrictions, students can transfer between programmes). Particular emphasis is given to new developments in economics (eg the economics of information, game theory, credible macroeconomic policy, the measurement of inequality and the analysis of financial data), so our programmes provide an excellent grounding for any career, including as a professional economist. You will be taught by leading economists, with international reputations in their fields. The Economics Division at the University of Southampton has strengths in all the main areas of economics.
