Economics and Philosophy

Economics and philosophy is a combination that addresses some of the most fundamental questions about how societies work and how they should work. Economics provides rigorous analytical tools, from mathematical modelling and econometrics to game theory and behavioural analysis, that illuminate how individuals, firms and governments make decisions and how those decisions aggregate into the patterns we observe in markets, growth and inequality. Philosophy brings the capacity to examine the assumptions underlying economic thinking, to engage with questions of ethics, justice and rationality, and to evaluate the normative claims that economic analysis sometimes makes without fully examining.

At the University of St Andrews you will study economics and philosophy over four years of full-time study, on a programme that develops both analytical and model-based economic reasoning and the philosophical precision needed to engage with fundamental questions about value, decision and social order. The economics strand provides a structured and rigorous progression through microeconomics, macroeconomics, quantitative methods and more specialised applied fields. The philosophy strand develops your skills in argument analysis, normative theory, logic and the philosophy of social science.

A year abroad is built into the programme, broadening your academic perspective and adding an international dimension to your formation. The typical tariff of 232 reflects the combined intellectual demands of two disciplines that are each among the most rigorous in the humanities and social sciences.

Graduates of economics and philosophy programmes pursue careers in economic research, public policy, management consulting, finance, the civil service, international organisations, ethics and compliance roles, journalism, law and academia. The combination of quantitative economic reasoning and philosophical rigour is particularly valued in roles that require not just analysis but judgement about what the analysis means and what should follow from it. Many graduates go on to postgraduate study in economics, philosophy, political theory or public policy, and the degree is a strong foundation for competitive doctoral programmes.