Economics single honours degree

Just going through my CAO and having put this: https://myucd.ucd.ie/program.do?programID=33 down on it

I just wanna make sure its a decent degree.

Is it considered to be a different (better) degree than the one done through arts?
Is it seen as just another arts degree?
Is it comparable to a degree in economics in TCD?


Its not that high on my CAO but I wanna make sure of all my back ups

Bump..anyone?

dyl10

It's difficult to answer your question.
The program is of course, a 'decent degree'.

Is it better/different than the joint major arts degree, that depends on a lot of things.
If you want to become an economist then maybe? or maybe a maths/stats + economics joint major could be better for that.

I don't imagine people write BA 'Arts' on their CV when they finish their programs, I presume they write something like Joint major B.A. in subject X and subject Y.
A graduate from this program would write Single major B.A. in Economics, I imagine.

Whether its better than the arts entry or not probably depends on what you want to do exactly. I think you get to do something similar to an undergrad dissertation in the single major, which is a bonus.

There are other people better served to answer your question about the TCD v UCD.

[Jackass]

I'm starting this degree in September.

With the exception of 1st year, every subject is Economics related, so in terms of becoming an Economist or working in the field of Economics, this is more specialised than doing a joint major in Economics from an Arts degree, so yes, this would not have the variety offered by an Arts degree, but, in my opinion, is a better degree to do if you want to work or do further study in the area of Economics.

Regarding TCD & UCD, it depends on what you mean by which is "better". I got in to both this course and the equivalent in TCD, which is Business, Economics and Social Studies (BESS), but chose UCD as it's more specialised, so in terms of what I want to do with the degree, the UCD one is the best course in the country for anyone who wants to work or study in the field of Economics.

In terms of Universities, abroad, I think it's fair to say that Trinty has a better reputation than UCD, at home they would be very much seen on a par as probably the two best Universities in the country.

I will be using my degree abroad, so I sacraficed some of the status or reputation of being a TCD graduate for the practicallity of having the specialised Economics degree.

I'm just curious if anyone has details of what the time table for first year is like?

How do you know what course you have gotten into already?
I have BESS 1st as I want to do both Business and Economics before deciding which I want to specialise in.

My main question is really: Does this degree have as bad a reputation as the other arts degrees in UCD? Or is its reputation better because Its single honours.

dyl10

I think the point you are missing is that the end product in Arts doesn't have a bad rep per se, combinations within Arts have a bad rep.

So in the case of economics, if you were to do Arts and leave with a 1.1 in economics and maths or a BA in economics and stats, you would be in an entirely different situation to someone leaving Arts with a low Folklore and Greek and Roman Civilization degree (random example).

Conclusion: Thinking in terms of how you entered your program is pretty pointless as people don't really care about that. What you do in your program and what you leave with, is far more important.

chave

[Jackass] wrote: »

I'm starting this degree in September.

With the exception of 1st year, every subject is Economics related, so in terms of becoming an Economist or working in the field of Economics, this is more specialised than doing a joint major in Economics from an Arts degree, so yes, this would not have the variety offered by an Arts degree, but, in my opinion, is a better degree to do if you want to work or do further study in the area of Economics.

Regarding TCD & UCD, it depends on what you mean by which is "better". I got in to both this course and the equivalent in TCD, which is Business, Economics and Social Studies (BESS), but chose UCD as it's more specialised, so in terms of what I want to do with the degree, the UCD one is the best course in the country for anyone who wants to work or study in the field of Economics.

In terms of Universities, abroad, I think it's fair to say that Trinty has a better reputation than UCD, at home they would be very much seen on a par as probably the two best Universities in the country.

I will be using my degree abroad, so I sacraficed some of the status or reputation of being a TCD graduate for the practicallity of having the specialised Economics degree.

I'm just curious if anyone has details of what the time table for first year is like?

circa 12 hrs a week from what i remember. a few subjects might have a tutorial/practical element but average 14 a week for the program i reckon. Its a good degree, I found it very interesting. Very calculus/stats intensive but not too bad in the early years. stay away from advanced quants in year 3 if your maths isnt strong. Game theory is a really good module IMO.

Rosita

AdamD wrote: »

Is it seen as just another arts degree?

As has been said already there is not such thing as an 'Arts Degree'. People graduate with a BA in specific subject areas so two people with a BA can have massively different specialisations e.g joint Economics & Maths or maybe French & German, or maybe History as a single subject, or maybe a Major/Minor in Spanish/Music or whatever.

You need to do some research on the specific courses in question rather then relying on inaccurate cant and cliché.

Kate M

I'm sorting out my cao and have now decided to put BESS tcd first, however i didn't do business or economics for the leaving instead physics, chemistry and accounting! will i be at a major disadvantage?? I did honours maths so will that help??

I dont think it matters no

plastic-man

Rosita wrote: »

As has been said already there is not such thing as an 'Arts Degree'.

Speaking as someone who has done this undergrad, the 'single-subject major' as we like to call it, heres what I have to say:

- It is a lot more 'respectable' in most employers eyes to have a single major rather than a dilute joint major. this is the general opinion I have received from hr execs.

- Regarding the arts thing.. it IS just another arts degree. However, as a result you get an arts program means the content is slightly easier for the less-quantitative individuals. We need to remember that this is a BA and not a BSc.

-In my opinion, one of the better 'business' degrees from ucd. I hate using that term, but again, from experience in dealing with hr people with my degree.. all acknowledge economics as an extremely relevant and practical discipline as it is a very quantitative course unlike commerce (learning essays/ notes)

Go for it! Best of luck!

El Siglo

OP this is a good thread in the TCD forum that you might want to read. All I can say though is if you intend on studying Economics do as much Maths as possible. If you take it with combination do it with Maths, it'll stand to you and regardless of whether it's a joint honours or not, it's the content that counts. I wouldn't worry what employers think, you're only starting off and shouldn't be thinking about that stuff. However, if you want to do well at Economics and have an edge, get good at Maths.

Kate M wrote:

I'm sorting out my cao and have now decided to put BESS tcd first, however i didn't do business or economics for the leaving instead physics, chemistry and accounting! will i be at a major disadvantage?? I did honours maths so will that help??

What you did in the leaving cert wont matter, everyone is treated as being on the same level. The honours maths will definitely stand to you as the maths in 1st year economics isn't that bad (intro to quants, piece of piss so it is).

damselnat

El Siglo wrote: »

OP this is a good thread in the TCD forum that you might want to read. All I can say though is if you intend on studying Economics do as much Maths as possible. If you take it with combination do it with Maths, it'll stand to you and regardless of whether it's a joint honours or not, it's the content that counts. I wouldn't worry what employers think, you're only starting off and shouldn't be thinking about that stuff. However, if you want to do well at Economics and have an edge, get good at Maths.



What you did in the leaving cert wont matter, everyone is treated as being on the same level. The honours maths will definitely stand to you as the maths in 1st year economics isn't that bad (intro to quants, piece of piss so it is).

This is the best advice for this course. It's very maths-intensive if you're not heavily mathematically minded, and if you're not used to it (I wasn't) it's a lot of work to keep up with all the mathematics.

As a single major, it does look better as you have a more focused, in depth knowledge. However, if you plan to work in the fields of economics, then this degree isn't going to be enough, really you'll need a masters, so in that respect it's irrelevant, I myself wish I'd taken Econ & Pol, as I did Politics in first year as an elective and really enjoyed that. Doing something you like is a massive advantage. I didn't particularly enjoy my degree, and it shows in my grades. At the end of the day, they're the most important thing about it.

Also, most of the country's main economic commentators and economists are located in and lecture in UCD, so you are getting a very high level of education from some very experienced and respected men and women both here and abroad, compared with other universities in this country, who don't have quite as many high profile economists. I know that many financial services employers abroad (only speaking of my own exp, so that's the UK and NY) recognise and regard Economics in UCD very highly, so if that's the route you want to go, then UCD is the place to do it.

But yeah, best advice - be good at maths!

Andy279

Sorry for bumping this thread again.
I'm going to UCD this September to study Economics. After researching the course structure as well as the syllabus carefully, I need some pieces of advice from either Econ graduates or current students.
In the first year of BA program, there are only 5 core modules for Econ major (4 Econ modules plus the Introduction to Arts). Hence, I am intending to pick modules from Math and Stat to fulfill the remaining credits. I wonder whether there is any difference between Calculus I -II and Intro/ Intermediate Quant. Econ., between Intro to Stat Modelling/ Stat Modelling and the 2nd year Stat for Economists. Will taking Math and Stat modules prepare me better for senior years as advanced Economics is rigorously harder and more mathematically challenging ?

HistoryKitty

Andy279 wrote: »

Sorry for bumping this thread again.
I'm going to UCD this September to study Economics. After researching the course structure as well as the syllabus carefully, I need some pieces of advice from either Econ graduates or current students.
In the first year of BA program, there are only 5 core modules for Econ major (4 Econ modules plus the Introduction to Arts). Hence, I am intending to pick modules from Math and Stat to fulfill the remaining credits. I wonder whether there is any difference between Calculus I -II and Intro/ Intermediate Quant. Econ., between Intro to Stat Modelling/ Stat Modelling and the 2nd year Stat for Economists. Will taking Math and Stat modules prepare me better for senior years as advanced Economics is rigorously harder and more mathematically challenging ?

Hey I'm currently going into second year in UCD Im doing maths and economics as a joint major
calculus 1 will make you fly through intro to quantitative economics Like intro to quants is basic calculus, you would even fly through it by doing honours maths in your leaving cert. I'm not sure yet whether studying calculus 2 will make economics easier as its integration.
I think its a really smart idea to do maths and stats as your other two subjects They both will defo help you out in some way with economics. I haven't done stats but I heard its challenging but I'm not sure whether it would help you do better in the stats for econ module
If you have any more questions don't hesitate to ask You can also pm me if you like
Best of luck and welcome to UCD

Andy279

Many thanks for your quick and helpful response.
PM with more questions will be sent