Economics is all about managing scarce resources in the most efficient way – be that time, government finances or decisions as to how best to maximise labour and capital to achieve business objectives. On our degree, you’ll consider the ‘big picture’, examining how individuals, firms and organisations operate and interact within a contemporary global business environment, while gaining a strong understanding of individual and firm behaviour in an uncertain global economy.

Combining two interrelated disciplines, our Business Economics BSc will develop your ability to apply economic reasoning – assessing costs, benefits and determining value – when facing real-world issues. 

You’ll learn to analyse and predict the impact of economic, social and public policy issues on a variety of stakeholders, including consumers, investors, businesses, and how to source and provide the most appropriate insight to inform future decision-making and strategy. In doing so, we’ll explore some of the recent crises and controversies in economics and their impact, for example, the Greek government’s debt crisis, the global financial crisis and the coronavirus pandemic.

Economists tackle anything from interpreting and forecasting market trends or individual business performance by country, region or market, to advising businesses, governments and individuals on everyday and strategic decisions. These can encompass areas as diverse as international trade, profit maximisation, pricing decisions, forecasting revenues or consumer demand, to managing the national health service, tackling unemployment or inequality.

You will expand your skills in data gathering, handling and interpretation, quantitative analysis and forecasting. You will use industry-standard software, including SPSS, Excel and other statistical packages, to analyse data, build models and produce forecasts. You will also develop key soft skills such as communicating complex economic ideas to a non-expert, presentation skills and teamwork. You can also gain valuable professional experience by taking a paid placement year and begin to build the networks that will help your career take off. Previous students from this course have been employed by Goldman Sachs, Boxington Corporate Finance and with the Government Economic Service, to name just a few.

A variety of optional modules enable you to tailor your studies to suit your interests. For example, in studying global economic Issues, we show how economic analysis is used to understand key concerns like climate change, trade and migration. We also offer an array of extracurricular activities, including participation in IBM University Business Challenge (2020 Winners, Finalists 2018 and 2017, Semi-finalists 2016) and Microsoft University App Challenge (Winners 2019, Runners-up 2019).

The Society of Professional Economists, the leading organisation serving professional economists in the UK and Europe, was relaunched here at Westminster Business School in 2018. Membership of the Society is offered to all final-year economic students and there are opportunities to attend their monthly meetings, conferences and continuous professional development courses. 

Placements/ Year abroad

Between Years 2 and 3 you may choose to study English-taught courses for a year at one of our overseas partner institutions. Currently, you can take a Year Abroad studying (or combining work and study) in Berlin, Copenhagen, Madrid, Paris and other locations including Brisbane, Sydney (Australia), Japan, Canada and the USA. There are also many opportunities for those with appropriate language skills to study in the local language in France, Germany and Spain, among others. You can also choose to split your year abroad into a first semester exchange and a second semester work placement, both conducted overseas, or undertake a placement year overseas.

Alternatively, between Years 2 and 3 you can undertake a one-year, full-time business placement as a Professional Experience Year within the UK. Past students have completed placements in a variety of prestigious organisations, including AMEC, Barclays Bank, Commerzbank, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, GE Capital, HSBC, IBM and the NHS, as well as in smaller businesses.

Career

This course will prepare you for roles such as:

• Account manager 
• Actuarial analyst
• Assistant economist
• Business analyst
• Commercial project manager
• Commodities analyst
• Data analyst 
• Economist
• Financial advisor
• Journalist
• Investment analyst
• Market research analyst
• Management trainee
• Sponsorships executive
• Statistician
• Teacher
• Technology risk analyst