BA Politics, Philosophy and Economics (VL20)

Over three years, BA Politics, Philosophy and Economics at the University of Bristol offers in-depth and stimulating study in three different disciplines. The programme aims to open doors and prepare students for a wide range of careers as well as further postgraduate study.

This course will equip you with skills such as textual analysis, clear written and verbal expression, collaborative problem solving, critical thinking, quantitative and qualitative analysis, and much more. These are valuable in a wide range of careers.

In your first year, you will gain a grounding in the fundamentals of politics, philosophy and economics through six mandatory introductory units. In philosophy, this will include the study of ethics and political philosophy, as well as training in critical thinking and logic. In politics, you will study the modern world order and the foundations of political theory. In economics, you will learn the foundations of the subject to prepare you for future years. This will include a specially tailored unit for students who did not study A-level Maths (or an international equivalent), or a separate foundational unit for those who have.

In the second year, you will complete your foundational training in the three disciplines with three mandatory units in microeconomics, political theory, and philosophy. You will then study macroeconomics or quantitative methods for data analysis. You will also have a range of optional units to choose from in philosophy and politics, designed to help you develop your own core specialisation, explore different methods and ideas, engage in collaboration, and apply different approaches to contemporary societal issues.

In your final year, you choose from several options in politics, philosophy, and economics. These final-year taught units relate to the diverse research interests and expertise of our staff, allowing you to engage with contemporary debates across your chosen field of study. You will also complete a year-long capstone project on applied contemporary problems in politics, philosophy and economics. In this unit, you will learn from experts across all three departments, allowing you to develop original research and focus on an in-depth study in an area of your chosen specialism, including projects on migration, climate change, AI and much more.