Business Economics (with Placement Year)

• Current experienced staff who have worked as economic advisors, e.g. for Deutsche Bank in the Netherlands (please note staff are subject to change).
• The opportunity to learn economic skills, while also being exposed to how businesses operate in widely different international markets.
• Hands-on experience using a range of economics and business software packages, such as Bloomberg Faculty research expertise in exchange rate equilibria, international trade, foreign direct investment (FDI) and conflict economics.
• Opportunity to change course to either Economics BSc (Hons) or Financial Economics BSc (Hons) after successfully completing your first year, allowing you the opportunity to gain an understanding of the subject before confirming your specialism (course change is subject to Tier 4 compliance approval for international students).
• Expert contributions by professionals from industry (subject to availability) which in the past have included our own alumni, HM Treasury, Lloyds Bank, Barclays, and the European Commission.
• Student-led Economics Society organised social events, visiting speakers and field trips which in the past have included a visit to Amsterdam to visit the stock exchange (opportunities are subject to availability, competitive application, meeting applicable visa and additional fees may apply).
• Facilities available include our Trading Floor, currently one of the largest of its kind in Europe, featuring 42 dual screen Bloomberg terminals.
• Support offered for maths and stats through the university’s sigma centre, which offers drop-in sessions led by experienced staff (subject to availability).
• Opportunity to gain exemptions from professional examinations with the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII), which could help you to progress your potential future career. Please see the Exemptions section of the Overview tab for more details.
• Faculty research expertise in exchange rate equilibria, international trade, foreign direct investment (FDI) and conflict economics.

In your first year, you will have the opportunity to gain a firm foundation in the core subjects of your course as well as the chance to broaden your field of study, through mandatory modules that have a balance between microeconomics and macroeconomics. Quantitative focused modules are also deeply embedded in the course to help you develop relevant skills required for further study and ‘The Economists Toolkit’ module aims to help you engage with enhancing your potential future employability.

Your second year will give you the opportunity to further develop knowledge gained the previous year. Modules include a number of mandatory modules, together with one optional module, which can be selected from a range of choices, and can be used either to develop a specialisation with an eye on your potential future career, or to broaden your approach into various applied topics.

In your third year, you will have the opportunity to undertake an optional Placement/Study Abroad Year working with a host company in the UK or overseas, or studying at a partner University overseas, with the aim of enhancing your potential future employability prospects and potential future career development.

If you wish to undertake the optional study abroad/placement year, you will take either the Placement Year module or the Study Abroad Year module which both typically run for a full academic year between years 2 and 3 of your course. You are able to progress onto the relevant module if you have successfully completed the first two years of the course (i.e. having accumulated 240 credits) and have a confirmed opportunity two weeks prior to the start of the academic year, however we encourage international students to confirm their placements earlier to ensure they are able to meet any applicable visa requirements.

Students opting for either the work placement or study abroad module will be registered on a non-credit bearing module and therefore no additional tuition fees apply. While the modules do not bear credits, they do require completion of a marked assessment reflecting on your placement/study abroad or work placement experience. Following successful completion of this assessment, the module selected will appear on your final academic transcript. Students will thus graduate with 360 credits in total, assuming successful completion of their final year.

In your final year, your studies should reflect an increased specialisation in your chosen field of business economics. The course now offers two optional modules for you to select, alongside four mandatory modules which are designed to give you the opportunity to become a well-rounded graduate, and include conducting a project in the field of business economics.

Past graduates from our economics courses have found employment in a wide variety of a number of prestigious employers in the public and private sectors including:

• PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)
• Bank of England
• Government Economic Service (GES)
• Vodafone
• HSBC

A number of our previous graduates have also gone on to postgraduate study and professional training such as teaching.