Best Universities for Economics

At the moment, my A Level students keep asking me which are the ‘best universities for Economics’.

The first 3 universities which spring to mind:

Cambridge. A long tradition of economics, including Alfred Marshall and John Maynard Keynes. Cambridge economics has a reputation for being strong on  maths.

Oxford. Where I studied Economics. The two courses for Economics are P.P.E and Economics and Management. Economics and management tends to be very competitive because there are not many places. Generally, Oxford economics places less emphasis on maths. There is a strong department for development economics.

LSE. One of the strongest economics departments in the country. Excellent resources and very competitive.

The top 10 Universities in terms of Entry Requirements are:

1. Cambridge
2. LSE
3. Oxford
4. Bristol
5. Durham
6. Edinburgh
7. Nottingham
8. UCL
9. Warwick
10. York

i.e. the top 3 are likely to ask for 3 As

Bath is also worth a mention

The Top 10 for Job Prospects

1. Cambridge
2. Bath
3. Durham
4. Loughborough
5. Oxford
6. St Andrews
7. Warwick
8. Birmingham
9. Bristol
10. Brunel

Note: It is always difficult to compile ‘league tables of the best universities. It depends which criteria you use for judging. For example, some league tables might use quality of research or teacher to student ratio.

Guardian League tables for economics

Also, the reputation of the economics department is not going to be the only criteria for choosing a university.

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