Economics/Philosophy

Economics and philosophy are two disciplines that have been in productive conversation for centuries, and studying them together at degree level remains one of the most rigorous and rewarding combinations available. At the University of Glasgow, this MA programme runs over four years of full-time study and includes a year abroad, reflecting the international scope of both subjects. Glasgow's Scottish degree structure allows you to explore both disciplines with breadth before specialising more deeply in later years.

As the current programme description notes, economics teaches you how individuals and societies make choices about scarce resources, production, and distribution. These choices depend on evaluating costs, benefits, risks, and effects on others, and the programme develops your ability to model and analyse these decisions using both formal mathematical tools and broader institutional and historical frameworks. Philosophy adds a different but complementary set of questions: about the nature and limits of knowledge, the foundations of ethics, the logic of arguments, and the philosophical assumptions that underlie economic models themselves.

The philosophy of economics is itself a rich area, asking whether the rational-actor model accurately describes human behaviour, how values should be incorporated into economic analysis, and what we owe each other as a matter of justice. Together, the two subjects make you a more critical thinker about both the technical and the normative dimensions of economic and political life.

This combination is consistently attractive to employers who value rigorous and versatile thinking. Graduates move into careers in finance and economics, public policy, the civil service, international organisations, think tanks, journalism, consultancy, and law. The year abroad broadens your perspective and demonstrates adaptability.

Many graduates go on to postgraduate study, including master's degrees in economics, philosophy, politics, or interdisciplinary programmes, as well as doctoral research in any of the three areas the programme draws on. The combination of formal analytical skill, ethical reasoning, and philosophical rigour the degree develops is a strong foundation for any career requiring careful and independent thought.