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Philosophy, Politics and Economics BSc or BA (L0V0)

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Explore our Philosophy, Politics and Economics degree at Warwick

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L0V0

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Bachelor of Science (BSc) or Bachelor of Arts (BA)

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3 years full-time (or 4 years with placement)

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26 September 2022

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Department of Philosophy

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University of Warwick

3a

Some of the most pressing problems of today such as climate change, the refugee crisis, poverty, and international justice are best understood by taking up different perspectives.

PPE at Warwick offers exciting opportunities for excellent students to explore these important issues, drawing on insights from philosophy, politics and economics.

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PPE is an ideal choice if you are fascinated by current affairs and want to gain a broad and rounded understanding of the world around you. Deepen your understanding of why and how governing institutions and big businesses make decisions, how the consequences of these actions influence our world and impact on our futures, and what would make for a better and more just society.

After building solid foundations in each of the three subjects in your first year, you then have the flexibility to tailor your module choices to suit your own interests. This allows you to graduate with either a BA or a BSc.

Your enthusiasm for the three interconnected disciplines will be rewarded with teaching from excellent lecturers who are equally enthusiastic about their topics. Our world-leading researchers will teach you a diverse range of modules from within our three large and highly-ranked departments.

We offer one of the largest and most international PPE programmes in the UK. You will learn alongside students from many backgrounds and cultures. You can share different insights and perspectives on the topics you cover at the intersections of the three subjects.

You also have the opportunity to apply to spend a year abroad with one of our international partners. On certain pathways, you can also apply to take a work placement.

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All students take the same first year core modules in all three departments, which will support you with the foundation of the disciplines. Mathematical and Statistical modules are available at either an intermediate or advanced level, to suit students’ existing knowledge.

• Year One: 80% core modules, 20% optional modules
• Year Two: 25 to 50% core modules, 50 to 75% optional modules
• Final Year: 25% core modules, 75% optional modules

Choice of pathways

Before the start of Year Two, you will choose from a set of six pathways. You can focus on all three subjects (BA Tripartite) or choose to focus on a combination of two. Depending on your pathway, you will be able to graduate with either a BA or BSc.

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You will study a set of core modules in all three disciplines. These amount to just over half of the required modules. In addition, you can choose optional modules in each of the three PPE departments or from other departments of the University.

Each department organises teaching slightly differently and you will experience different teaching methods, but you will primarily learn through lectures and small-group seminars as well as independent study.

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Classes are taken with students from other degree programmes, and so can vary greatly. In-person lecture sizes for core first year modules may have up to around 500 students. In later years, optional module lectures may have from 30 up to around 200. Seminars in first year usually have up to 14 students, and in later years may be up to 18 students.

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Typically you will have between 12-15 hours of contact time in your first year, and 10-12 hours in your second and third years. You will devote more time in your third year to individual research.

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Assessment is mainly by a mixture of tests, coursework and exams. In some modules you are able to choose the assessment method. Other assessed work may include group work, policy documents or presentations.

In your final year you may choose to undertake a research project or dissertation. Your first year assessments are qualifying - this means that you need to pass them to proceed to your next year, but they do not count towards your degree classification. This will be determined on the basis of your intermediate and final year results, with each year contributing 50%.

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Study abroad

You have the opportunity to spend a year abroad. You could study at prestigious universities throughout Europe and in the US, Canada, Australia, Hong Kong, Japan and more as part of the course.

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Placements and work experience

You have the option to take a work experience placement, either in the UK or abroad, as part of an intercalated year on some pathways of this course.

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4a

A level typical offer

A*AA plus at least grade 7 or grade A in GCSE Mathematics.

A level contextual offer

We welcome applications from candidates who meet the contextual eligibility criteria. The typical contextual offer is AAB if have at least grade 7 or grade A in GCSE Mathematics. See if you’re eligible.

General GCSE requirements

Unless specified differently above, you will also need a minimum of GCSE grade 4 or C (or an equivalent qualification) in English Language and either Mathematics or a Science subject. Find out more about our entry requirements and the qualifications we accept. We advise that you also check the English Language requirements for your course which may specify a higher GCSE English requirement. Please find the information about this below.

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IB typical offer

38 overall including 4 in Higher level Mathematics/Mathematical Studies or 5 in Standard level Mathematics/ Mathematical Studies.

IB contextual offer

We welcome applications from candidates who meet the contextual eligibility criteria. The typical contextual offer is 36 including 4 in Higher Level or 5 in Standard Level Mathematics. See if you’re eligible.

General GCSE requirements

Unless specified differently above, you will also need a minimum of GCSE grade 4 or C (or an equivalent qualification) in English Language and either Mathematics or a Science subject. Find out more about our entry requirements and the qualifications we accept. We advise that you also check the English Language requirements for your course which may specify a higher GCSE English requirement. Please find the information about this below.

4c

We welcome applications from students taking BTECs as long as the Mathematics requirements are met.

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Year One

Introduction to Philosophy

You'll have a wide-ranging introduction to philosophy, including ancient, continental, moral and political philosophy, followed by epistemology, metaphysics, philosophy of mind and aesthetics, and logic. You'll learn to engage critically with different viewpoints and critically analyse and evaluate arguments central to philosophy.

Introduction to Politics

Introduction to Politics gives you a broad overview of the main issues and theoretical perspectives within Politics. You'll learn first to understand and then apply the core concepts of comparative political science and theory to processes, institutions, ideologies and practical policy-making. You'll conduct a comparative study of different political systems and political change, both in writing and in open debate.

Economics 1

You'll develop an understanding of fundamental and intermediate concepts in micro- and macroeconomic analysis, equipping you with a range of appropriate analytical skills, including descriptive, graphical and mathematical methods. This will develop your ability to analyse economic trends, institutions and policies and the capacity to apply analytical techniques to real-world problems.

Quantitative Techniques

This module combines two modules: Mathematical Techniques and Statistical Techniques. You will cover topics ranging from algebra and calculus to distributions and hypothesis testing, which will provide you with key skills and knowledge that will then applied in many other modules. In addition, you will be introduced to some advanced statistical software packages, which will help you learn about a range of techniques to analyse data and different ways in which you can present data.

Year Two (optional cores taken depending on pathway)

History of Modern Philosophy

You will discover the metaphysical and epistemological ideas of great Empiricist philosophers Locke, Berkeley and Hume on substance, qualities, ideas, causation and perception. You will then explore Kant's ideas, including metaphysics, space, self-awareness, causation, scepticism and freedom. You will develop skills in critical engagement, articulating your own views of the relative strengths and weaknesses of these arguments and interpreting key philosophical ideas.

Ethics

We evaluate each other’s actions constantly. Maybe your friend broke a promise, or you protest against a government welfare policy. But what makes these moral claims true? You will use the tools of philosophy to illuminate these questions. You will study theories of what makes things right or wrong (normative ethics) and more basic questions – is anything right or wrong anyway (metaethics)? Studying this module will provide you with knowledge and skills useful to the exploration of ethical and political questions in your further study.

Applied Ethics

Should I be able to buy your ‘spare’ kidney? You might think that if you are willing and I have the money then there is no harm involved. But if you were desperate, does that mean I would be taking advantage of you? These are the sorts of questions you will cover in Applied Ethics, answering them in systematic ways. For example, we may ask about our duties to animals, whether it’s permissible to have children and what is it that’s bad about death, among other questions. You will engage in debate on these and other questions arising in normative ethics and clarify and articulate your own standpoint on such issues.

Political Theory from Hobbes: Seeking Freedom and Equality

How should human beings be governed? The thinkers you'll study – from Hobbes to Marx – had very different answers to this question. Building on your understanding of political philosophy, you'll read significant primary and secondary texts to develop your understanding of how political convictions are shaped by the context and history of individual thought and social interaction. You'll confront and assess complex ideas in political theory, and present and defend your point of view, both orally and in writing.

Issues in Political Theory

Should parents send their children to private schools? Is freedom of movement a moral right? Is it unjust to rear animals for food? Who should bear the costs of climate change? You'll explore fundamental questions of political morality by critically analysing complex arguments from contemporary political philosophy. You'll study closely John Rawls’s theory of justice, and consider the rival theories of Robert Nozick, G. A. Cohen and Ronald Dworkin. You'll have practical opportunities to develop and defend your own ethical standpoint through your considered judgements on current dilemmas, taking into account opposing arguments and perspectives.

Economics 2

You'll develop deeper understanding of some of the key economic concepts but will also be introduced to new concepts in both micro- and macroeconomic analysis. These include material drawn from general equilibrium, welfare economics, game theory, risk and uncertainty within microeconomics and three equation macro model, open economy macroeconomics and the labour market within macroeconomics. It will introduce you to the analysis of public policy issues such as market failure, insurance, monetary unions and fiscal policy, and will give you a range of tools to analyse economic problems. Your analysis will be underpinned by a rigorous theoretical understanding acquired on the course.

Applied Econometrics

You'll learn important skills of both academic and vocational value, an essential part of the intellectual training of an economist and social scientist and also useful for your future career. These skills include awareness of the empirical approach to economics and social science; reviewing and extending fundamental statistical concepts; methods of data collection and analysis; regression analysis, its extensions and applications; use of spreadsheets and statistical packages such as SPSS or STATA. You will then be able to apply this knowledge to a research project of your own.

Econometrics 1

You'll be equipped with important skills of both academic and vocational value, being an essential part of the intellectual training of an economist and also useful for your future career. This includes an awareness of the empirical approach to economics; experience in analysis and use of empirical data; understanding the nature of uncertainty and methods of dealing with it; and using econometric software packages as tools of quantitative and statistical analysis. With the required necessary skills and knowledge to critically appraise work in applied economics, you'll have a good grasp of the dangers, pitfalls and problems encountered in applied modelling. You will then be able to apply this knowledge to a research project of your own.

Year Three (optional cores taken depending on pathway)

Principles of Political Economy: Economics and Politics

This module is only available to final year PPE students. You will be concerned with governance at both national and global levels, and consider this topic from the perspective of both economics and politics as academic disciplines. The focus is on the extent to which these perspectives complement or conflict with each other. You will study four specific areas where these perspectives overlap, and learn to distinguish the strengths and weaknesses of each methodology covered.

Principles of Political Economy: Economics and Philosophy

This module is only available to final year PPE students. In this module, you will explore topics at the intersection of moral philosophy and the economic analysis and evaluation of public policy. You will encounter topics in individual choice and rationality, collective choice and justice, welfare and welfare measurement and markets and their ethical limitations. You will be introduced to key debates and learn to apply philosophical and economic perspectives to public policy issues.

Principles of Political Economy: Philosophy and Politics

In this anthropogenic era, politics and philosophy seem inextricably entwined. On this module, available to final-year PPE students, you’ll combine the study of philosophy and politics and examine how each influences the other. Using the tools of philosophy to understand, analyse and debate contemporary political problems, you’ll improve your ability to dissect and critique complex moral arguments, and learn to construct an independent, rigorous and informed position on topical social and political issues, drawing on a variety of disciplines to reach your considered judgement.

Across Years Two and Three you will also take at least one interdisciplinary optional module.

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• States and Markets: An Introduction to International Political Economy
• International Trade
• Philosophy of Terrorism and Counterterrorism
• Topics in Development Economics
• Feminism
• Making of Economic Policy
• Philosophy of Religion
• The Political Economy of Money
• Economics of Money and Banking
• Democracy and Authority

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Find out more about fees and funding

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There may be costs associated with other items or services such as academic texts, course notes, and trips associated with your course. Students who choose to complete a work placement or study abroad will pay reduced tuition fees for their third year.