MSc Economics (two year programme)

at London School of Economics

In the first year you take four compulsory courses in microeconomics, macroeconomics, econometrics and mathematics. The compulsory pre-sessional Introductory Course in Microeconomic Principles  will take place in early September before the main first year teaching programme starts. 

 

If you successfully complete the examinations at the end of the first year, you will be awarded a Diploma in Economics. If, in addition, your examination performance is sufficiently strong, then you will be allowed to progress to the second year of the programme, subject to meeting the progression criteria as stated in the programme regulations.

 

If you successfully progress to the second year, you will take four compulsory courses, one unit of elective courses and an extended essay linked to the elective course. The first compulsory course, the Introductory Course in Mathematics and Statistics, begins before the main second year teaching programme starts. This is followed by three compulsory core courses in microeconomics, macroeconomics, and econometrics, as well as one elective course, which is linked to the extended essay you will need to complete.

 

First year 

Microeconomics II
Covers game theory and interdependent choices, including applications to oligopoly, as well as the market system, general equilibrium and market failure

 

Macroeconomics II
Focuses on long-term macroeconomics as well as micro-foundations of macroeconomics.

 

Either
Mathematical Methods
Focuses on a range of basic mathematical concepts and methods in calculus of one and several variables and in linear algebra.

Or

Further Mathematical Methods
Covers calculus and linear algebra.

 

Econometrics II
Focuses on basic theory of econometric methods taught through empirical examples, including cross section data and linear models, time series and panel data methods.  

 

Candidates may be allowed to substitute one other course for one of the courses listed above with the permission of the Programme Director.

 

Second year
The Introductory Course in Mathematics and Statistics includes treatment of dynamic programming, continuous time dynamic optimisation, quadratic forms, Kuhn-Tucker theorem, and marginal and conditional probability distributions, amongst other topics. 

 

Macroeconomics
Focuses on core models of growth and business cycle fluctuations, drawing on developments at the frontiers of research.

 

Either

Microeconomics
Focuses on classical theories of consumer and producer behaviour, the theory of competitive equilibrium, models of imperfect competition and information economics, amongst other topics.

Or (with permission) 

Advanced Microeconomics
Provides more emphasis to mathematical methods following a proof-based approach, and provides a firm grounding in classical microeconomic theory as well as a variety of recent developments from behavioural economics and other fields.

 

Econometrics 
Presents modern, technical tools for empirical analysis in economics, for cross section, time series and panel data; focusing on the properties of different estimation models, as well as illustrating the use of these techniques in practical problems.

 

Courses to the value of one unit from a range of options

Minimum entry requirements for MSc Economics (two year programme)

First class honours degree or equivalent with two semesters of university-level mathematics. 

 

Competition for places at the School is high. This means that even if you meet our minimum entry requirements, this does not guarantee you an offer of admission.

 

GRE/GMAT requirement
 

All applicants must submit a GRE score. This must be no more than five years old on 1 October 2022, and must include full and percentile test scores for all three sections with your application. Typically we expect you to score at least 161 or higher in the quantitative section of the test. A higher score will count in your favour, but other information, such as examination results and references will also matter in the overall evaluation. We recognise that if your first language is not English, the verbal test will be more demanding and we will view your score on that basis.

Every graduate student is charged a fee for their programme.

The fee covers registration and examination fees payable to the School, lectures, classes and individual supervision, lectures given at other colleges under intercollegiate arrangements and, under current arrangements, membership of the Students' Union. It does not cover living costs or travel or fieldwork.

 

Tuition fees 2022/23 for MSc Economics (two year programme)
Home students, first year: £24,456 (2022/23)
Overseas students, first year: £24,456 (2022/23)
Home students, second year: £32,856 - provisional (2023/24)
Overseas students, second year: £33,504 - provisional (2023/24)

Quick Careers Facts for the Department of Economics
Median salary of our PG students six months after graduating: £43,500

 

Top 5 sectors our students work in:

Financial service activities
Legal and accounting activities
Management consultancy activities
Education
Public administration and defence
The data was collected as part of the Graduate Outcomes survey, which is administered by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA). Graduates from 2017-18 were the first group to be asked to respond to Graduate Outcomes. Median salaries are calculated for respondents who are paid in UK pounds sterling.

Our former students are employed as economists in a wide range of national and international organisations in government, international institutions, business and finance. In recent years, our graduates have gained employment in organisations such as Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Bank of America, Credit Suisse, NERA Economic Consulting, PwC, Deloitte, Compass Lexecon, McKinsey, IMF, World Bank, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Bundesbank, Bank of England, and HM Treasury.

Approximately one third of students proceed to PhD programmes at LSE or other leading universities. In recent years, our MSc in Economics students have placed at MIT, Princeton, Stanford, NYU, Northwestern, Penn, Columbia, Yale, MIT Sloan, UCLA, Wisconsin-Madison, Cornell and many other top PhD programmes around the world.