Study location	United Kingdom, Egham, Surrey
Type	Master courses, full-time
Nominal duration	1 year
Study language	English
Awards	MSc

Entry qualification

Undergraduate diploma (or higher) Upper Second Class Honours degree (2.1) or equivalent in Economics, Mathematics, Physics, Engineering or a similarly mathematical subject. The entry qualification documents are accepted in the following languages: English. Often you can get a suitable transcript from your school. If this is not the case, you will need official translations along with verified copies of the original.

Language requirements	English IELTS: 6.5 (with a minimum of 6.0 in all other subscores) CAE: 176 overall (with a minimum of 168 in all other subscores)

Other requirements	At least 2 reference(s) must be provided. Academic A motivation letter must be added to your application.

More information	royalholloway.ac.uk/..omics/economics.aspx

Overview

Interested? To learn more about this study programme, entry requirements and application process, please contact one of our consultants in a country nearest to you.

Programme structure

Pre-course preparation
Quantitative Methods
In this module you will develop an understanding of basic mathematical methods that are used in the study of Economics and Finance, including basic matrix analysis, topology, statistics, and probability theory. You will look at differentiation and integration of standard functions, and basic manipulations of vectors and matrices. You will also examine various optimisation problems and theorems leading to certain basic results in calculus.

Core modules
Econometrics
This module will provide you with an overview of the principal methods of econometric analysis. Emphasis is placed on applied econometrics and will ensure that you are comfortable when reading and evaluating the econometric work of others in order to produce good quality applied econometric work of your own. You will be introduced to the principles and assumptions underlying ordinary least squares, the consequences of any departure from these assumptions, and methods used for testing.

Macroeconomics
This module will provide you with an introduction to modern intertemporal macroeconomics. You will learn about the tools used for dynamic economic analysis and apply them to topics such as economic fluctuations, unemployment, long-run growth, consumption decisions by households and investment decisions by firms. You will develop an understanding of dynamic macroeconomic models of economic behaviour, the main theories of economic fluctuations, the modern theory of unemployment, the principal determinants of consumption and investment decisions, and look at the process of economic growth.

Mathematical Methods
This module will provide you with an introduction to the basic mathematical and statistical methods used in Economics and Finance, with a particular emphasis on optimisation and basic matrix analysis. You will develop your ability to carry out differentiation and integration of standard functions, manipulate vectors and matrices, and understand and solve various optimisation problems, both constrained and unconstrained with equality or inequality constraints. You will look at probability and distribution theory, becoming familiar with estimation and inference, and be able to use the main theorems of the large sample distribution theory.

Microeconomics
This module will develop your understanding of the basics of modern microeconomic analysis. You will become familiar with the tools that economists use to analyse problems of resource allocation in market settings, beginning with a formal analysis of the optimising behavior of consumers and producers. You will be introduced to markets and the notion of competitive equilibrium, in both partial and general equilibrium settings. You will then look at how individual market participants can affect prices, analysing the problem of a monopolist. Finally you will consider static game theory to analyse markets where a small number of firms compete with each other (oligopolies).

Dissertation
You will attend a set of preparatory classes to equip you with the necessary skills required for research, including a hands-on approach to using statistical packages and reading peer-reviewed articles. You will be expected to use either econometric or statistical techniques, and apply your knowledge and skills from the other quantitative methods and theory modules taken during your studies, to produce your own piece of research around 10,000 words in length.

Optional modules
In addition to these mandatory course units there are a number of optional course units available during your degree studies. The following is a selection of optional course units that are likely to be available. Please note that although the College will keep changes to a minimum, new units may be offered or existing units may be withdrawn, for example, in response to a change in staff. Applicants will be informed if any significant changes need to be made.

Industrial Economics
In this module you will develop your understanding of the methods and models applied by economists in the analysis of firms and industrial organisations, including competition policy. You will look at how these models can be manipulated to solve problems relating to industrial economics, and how the models can be applied to important policy areas, while also being aware of the limitations of the theory.

Advanced Topics in Microeconomics
In this module you will develop an understanding of some of the key topics in macroeconomics, notably the the roles of technological change, monetary policy, and fiscal policy in macroeconomic fluctuations. You will look at models of economic growth, resource allocation, and technological change, evaluating empirical evidence of these, and you become familiar with techniques such as dynamic optimisation, log-linearisation and difference equations for general economic analysis.

Decision Theory and Behaviour
In this module you will develop an understanding of the rational decision making paradigm in economics, as well as its shortcomings over the past few decades. You will explore behavioural models, their formalisation and scope, including applications to finance, becming familiar with both theoretical and experimental methods for research in decision theory and behavioural economics.

Evaluation Economics
This module will provide you with an introduction to the economics of policy evaluation. You will look at how quantitative techniques and qualitative methods can be used to evaluate policy interventions, and look at the effects of specific policies in particular countries. You will develop your understanding of the key debates and problems in the economics of policy evaluation, and become familar in using the Stata software package for statistical analysis.

Experimental Economics
In this module you will develop your understanding of behavioural economics and using experiments as a methodology for testing economic theory. You will review the major and latest findings from experiments in the literature, with an appreciation of experimental design issues. Working in groups, you will design and carry out an experiment of your own to test economic theory, and present your findings. You will look at methods for evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of experimental methods, and be able to constructively criticise experimental work.

Financial Econometrics
In his module you will develop an understanding of the methods used in the analysis of macro and financial time series data. You will analyse and critically evaluate empirical research in finance and macroeconomics, looking at linear and non-linear time series. You will consider the methodologies for large sample modelling of financial and economic data, and undertake a quantitative research project applying testing procedures on time-series data.

Labour Economics
In this module you will develop your understanding of the main theoretical and empirical issues in modern labour economics. You will look at theory, evidence and policy, covering labour demand, labour supply and time allocation decisions, schooling and job training, human capital investment, wage determination, unemployment, minimum wage, returns to schooling, discrimination, and immigration. You will critically analyse important labour market phenomena, as well as various public policy issues, such as government training programs, minimum wage policies, unemployment insurance and welfare benefits.

Public Economics
In this module you develop an understanding of the effects of government policy upon the economy and the design of policy. You will look at empirical methods for policy evaluation and discuss research carried out in public economics, on topics such as income taxation, welfare support, behavioural responses, and social security.

The Economics of Banking
In this module you will develop an understanding of the economic meaning of the terms liquidity and solvency in the context of financial intermediaries. You will look at simiplified frameworks for analysing the fragility of the financial system and consider its revelance to financial crisisesincluding models of bank runs and the theory of optimal financial regulation. You will examine the implications of asset price bubbles for financial stability, and the implications of imposing capital structure controls and liqudity controls on financial intermediaries.

Career opportunities

An Economics masters degree at Royal Holloway, University of London will equip you with an enviable range of transferable skills and can lead into a variety of career paths as well as the knowledge and a solid foundation for continued PhD studies. Employers recognise and reward the real knowledge and skills developed in an Economics degree.

We will help students to recognise their own strengths, skills and abilities so that they can make strong applications for their chosen job or further study. We also provide careers support including application and interview coaching, career strategy discussions and the opportunity to network with major employes.