Economics

Economics is the discipline that examines how individuals, organisations, and societies make decisions when resources are scarce. It combines the development of rigorous formal models with empirical investigation of how markets, firms, and governments actually behave, and it asks questions of enduring importance: what drives economic growth, why does inequality persist, how should policy respond to market failure, and what determines the distribution of income and wealth? The answers matter for policy, for business, and for our understanding of the social world.

At Nottingham you will study this three-year full-time programme at a research-intensive university with a strong economics department. The programme includes a sandwich year, a year abroad, and a work placement, giving you a rich combination of professional and international experience alongside your academic studies. You will cover micro and macroeconomic theory, econometrics and quantitative methods, and a range of applied fields that allow you to develop expertise in areas such as labour economics, public economics, international trade, development, finance, and industrial organisation.

Nottingham's research strengths in economics provide an environment in which the connections between academic work and policy questions are taken seriously.

Economics graduates are consistently in high demand across a wide range of sectors. Finance, including investment banking, asset management, consultancy, and financial analysis, is a major employer. Government economic services, central banks, international organisations, the civil service, and policy institutions also recruit economics graduates in large numbers.

The quantitative and analytical skills the degree develops are also valued in technology, data science, and any organisation that needs to understand and model economic behaviour. Many graduates also continue to postgraduate study in economics, public policy, finance, or econometrics, and Nottingham is a strong springboard for doctoral study in the discipline.