Studying Economics Part-time? Any options?

RunningFree 2014

Hi All,


Apologies if this has been asked before. I have a political degree and masters but would love an economics qualification. I'm not too fussed about the qualification itself i.e. it can be undergrad, postgrad, h.dip etc. I just feel that some formal study of the area would enhance my CV. I want to do this part-time so evening/weekend study and am wondering if anyone knows of anywhere in Dublin where it can be done. I can't find anything but I'm new to Dublin so I possibly just don't know of all colleges etc.

If I can't do this part-time would it be worthwhile to do it by distance with somewhere like the University of London? Or is there a recommended distance course that people know of?

Thanks for any advice!!!

andrew

TCD and UCD offer Msc's in Economics on a part time basis, though the lectures etc. are during the day - they're only part time in the sense that you do the course over 2 years instead of 1.


UCD also have a higher diploma in Economics, but I don't know anything about it other than it's intended as a prep course for a masters.

The University of London international programmes are good - I did one in Maths for a while and the course materials are very good. My only problem with it is that it relies heavily on books written by the lecturers, which is a pain if you want to get them easily or cheaply.

The open university might have some stuff too?

RunningFree 2014

Thanks Andrew. In your experience (or anyone elses if they choose to respond!) are distance learning courses rated by employers or just dismissed?

andrew

I've no idea. I guess it would depend who the employer is and what the role is and where you got it from. What are you looking to do with it?

Rightwing

andrew wrote: »

I've no idea. I guess it would depend who the employer is and what the role is and where you got it from. What are you looking to do with it?

Probably would depend more on the University doing the online course. If it was an established university, I couldn't forsee any problem.

Halloween Jack

Would a decent grade in something like the university of London course get you onto the MA or Msc in ucd/trinity?

I'd love to do one of those, was considering doing the MA qualifier in Ucd, but I work full time, so would have to go part-time. The problem is the qualifier plus masters would be 3 years part -time.

If I could do a distance course I'd be cutting that down to 2.

andrew

You'd get a much better answer if you arranged a quick meeting with the course co-ordinator, which is usually a thing you could do.

My 2c: Economics postgrads, especially in Trinity, are very mathsy. If you have an acceptable (2.1) undergrad and a justifiable motivation, then what might prevent them from giving you a place on the course is doubt around your mathematical ability. For example, it's possible to go straight into an Economics postgrad in Trinity straight from a Maths or Engineering degree, without any Economics background, on the basis that you already have the Maths - the Msc. is essentially an applied maths course. To that end, it might be worth doing the GRE and getting a high score in the maths component, rather than doing some sort of qualifier course (unless the qualifier is mathsy).

Again, that's just my 2c - you should definitely contact the course co-ordinator.

Halloween Jack

andrew wrote: »

You'd get a much better answer if you arranged a quick meeting with the course co-ordinator, which is usually a thing you could do.

My 2c: Economics postgrads, especially in Trinity, are very mathsy. If you have an acceptable (2.1) undergrad and a justifiable motivation, then what might prevent them from giving you a place on the course is doubt around your mathematical ability. For example, it's possible to go straight into an Economics postgrad in Trinity straight from a Maths or Engineering degree, without any Economics background, on the basis that you already have the Maths - the Msc. is essentially an applied maths course. To that end, it might be worth doing the GRE and getting a high score in the maths component, rather than doing some sort of qualifier course (unless the qualifier is mathsy).

Again, that's just my 2c - you should definitely contact the course co-ordinator.

Cheers for the response, I will of course talk to the course co-ordinators closer to the time, but I'm only entering the final year of my undergrad in September.

By your description of the Msc at trinity it sounds like it might not be for me. I have no maths at all at the moment and while I realise it's unavoidable in economics beyond a certain point, I'm not sure a course with quite so much maths focus would be ideal for me.

As far as I can gather the distance course does have a reasonable amount of maths content, I've picked up a maths for economics textbook and had a quick skim through it and most of it seems ok, with a bit of work.

SupaNova2

Here are some more options:
http://www.londoninternational.ac.uk/courses/search/?solrsort=sort_title%20asc

Flippyfloppy

I've been looking into the University of London myself, however am I right in thinking that the Economics courses are taught and that there doesn't appear to be any centres in Ireland?

SupaNova2

I've been considering the postgrad in Mathematics and as far as I gather you can study at a distance, you are only required to attend a test centre for examinations.

How you study
Our programmes allow you to obtain a prestigious degree or other qualification at a reasonable cost.

You can choose to study independently or, where available, pay for additional educational support at a local institution to benefit from face-to-face tutorial support and the opportunity to interact with fellow students in person.

Assessment
When you decide you are ready, you enter for unseen written examinations. These are set and marked by our academics to ensure your work is assessed to the same standard as College-based students at LSE. Examinations are held once a year, in May/June, at local centres in over 190 countries as well as in London. You will be charged a fee by your local examination centre (this fee will vary).

Halloween Jack

Has anybody completed a distance program with the U of L?

I have been doing some reading about the programs online, the consensus seems to be that the exams are particularly difficult.

I've looked at the past papers and examiners commentaries and they seem to require quite detailed answers for the main economics modules.

I suppose what I'm wondering is quite how much of a time commitment would he required. At this stage I'm prepared to work hard but I work full-time, and the last thing I want to do is embark on something I can't finish.

SupaNova2

If you do a course in the minimum time period possible while working it may be tough, but you can do the courses at a slower pace. For the graduate diploma I'm considering:

You have between 1-5 years to complete this Diploma for Graduates.

For the Bsc in Economics:

You have between 3-8 years to complete the programme (or a minimum of 2 years on the Graduate Entry Route).

Halloween Jack

SupaNova2 wrote: »

If you do a course in the minimum time period possible while working it may be tough, but you can do the courses at a slower pace. For the graduate diploma I'm considering:


For the Bsc in Economics:

Cheers for the response. I was initially considering the grad. dip in economics, as i have a bit of economics in my undergrad. However, the economics ive done would not really be to the same standard as even the 'introduction to economics' module they offer on the BSc.

Ultimately i would like to do a masters in economics, the grad dip seems like a viable route to becoming accepted on a masters in theory, but im starting to get the impression that while i might be able to trundle through it (the grad dip) i might be better off doing the Bsc through the grad route. The maths and stats courses would probably be of great benefit to me, seeing as i havent done any maths for a long time, and i might have a better chance of attaining a good grade overall, rather than trying to get up to speed for the grad dip independantly.

The problem seems to be, that as you have stated above, in order to do it in the minimum 2 years i would have a massive workload, composed of some material i am likely to find challenging to say the least.

As i see it, i have a number of options, try the grad dip in 1 year, try the grad dip over 2 years, try the bsc in 2 years or 3 years.

Im not sure 3 years for another undergrad qualification is the best use of time, but if time was no issue i would certainly do the Bsc, as it would give me the best possible foundation for a masters later.

Its a bit of a pickle, although im fortunate enough in so far as funding is concerned as my employer will fund any study i wish to undertake in this area.