Economics and History BA

Year of entry

2024 course information

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UCAS code
VL11
Start date
September 2023
Delivery type
On campus
Duration
3 years full time
Work placement
Optional
Study abroad
Optional
Typical A-level offer
AAA (specific subject requirements)
Typical Access to Leeds offer
ABB and pass Access to Leeds
Full entry requirements

Course overview

two students talking in the library

From trade and industry to living standards and medicine, economic issues have often been at the heart of historical change. This varied and dynamic degree gives you a deep understanding of economic issues in the modern world, as well as an insight into how societies change over time.

Modules will introduce you to key concepts in both subjects, such as historiography, economic theory and statistics. Then you’ll build on this when you choose from an impressive range of optional modules spanning periods, cultures and sectors.

You could study anything from transport economics and international trade to ethics and the global banking sector, alongside the Industrial Revolution, the British East India Company, and decolonisation. It’s a fantastic opportunity to discover new perspectives on history and the present, and to gain a broad base of skills that employers seek.

The University of Leeds has plenty of useful resources for economic historians. The world class Brotherton Library holds a wide variety of manuscript, archive and early printed material in its Special Collections. The University Library's Special Collections includes extensive records of businesses in the region dating back to the Industrial Revolution. The University is also home to the M&S Archive, one of the biggest collections in the UK for the history of retail and consumption.

The University Library offers full training to help you make the most of our resources.

Take a look around our libraries:

Brotherton Library
Laidlaw Library
Edward Boyle Library

Brotherton Library Reading Room

Course details

A joint honours degree allows you to study the same core topics as students on each single honours course, but you’ll take fewer optional and discovery modules so you can fit in both subjects.

Your first year will lay the foundations for your degree. Our modules will provide you with a foundation in key economic theories, and in history you’ll have opportunities to develop and broaden your historical skills, as well as exploring different approaches to the past. You’ll also develop the mathematical skills you need, taking different modules depending on your previous qualifications.

From this point, you’ll develop your knowledge across the next two years. Core modules in your second year will improve your knowledge of microeconomics and macroeconomics. In history you’ll keep some balance across historical periods, and you’ll choose from options in both subjects so you can tailor your degree to suit you. Examples could include the economics of work and labour, medicine in the Middle Ages, or global business history.

Throughout your degree, you’ll develop your skills in independent research and analysis. You’ll put these into practice in your final year when you undertake an independent piece of research on a topic of your choice.

Course structure

The list shown below represents typical modules/components studied and may change from time to time. Read more in our terms and conditions.

For more information and a full list of typical modules available on this course, please read Economics and History BA in the course catalogue

Year 1 compulsory modules

Module Name Credits
Exploring History 20
Mathematics and Statistics for Economics and Business 1B 10
Economics and Global History 10
Economic Theory and Applications 30

Year 1 optional modules (selection of typical options shown below)

Module Name Credits
Faith, Knowledge and Power, 1500-1750 20
The Medieval World in Ten Objects 20
Medieval Lives: Identities, Cultures and Beliefs 20
Global Empires 20
Global Decolonization 20
The Making of the Twentieth Century 20
Mathematics and Statistics for Economics and Business 1A 10

Year 2 compulsory modules

Module Name Credits
Intermediate Microeconomics 10
Intermediate Macroeconomics 10

Year 2 optional modules (selection of typical options shown below)

Module Name Credits
Introduction to Health Economics 10
Australia and the World 20
Transformations of the Roman World 20
The Tudors: Princes, Politics, and Piety, 1485-1603 20
Sin in Spanish America, 1571-1700 20
Conquerors and Conquered: England, 1000-1135 20
Britain and the Industrial Revolution 20
Imperial Germany 1871-1918 20
Digital Methods for History, Art and Literature 20
20th Century Britain: Progress and Uncertainty 1945-1990 20
Communist Eastern Europe, 1945-89 20
Lost Colonists: Failure and the Family in Southern Africa, 1880-1939 20
Theories of Growth, Value and Distribution 10
Industrial Economics 10
Mathematics for Business and Economics 2 10
Macroeconomic Policy and Performance in Britain 10
Macroeconomic Policy and Performance 10
The International Economic Environment 10
International Economics 10
Business Economics 10
Economics Research Methods 10
Statistics and Econometrics 20
Labour Economics 10
Economics of Innovation 10
How to be a Successful Policy Economist 10
Ethics and Economics 10
Medieval Narratives in the Modern World: Nationalism, Terrorism, Popular Culture 20
Transport Economics 10
Project Appraisal 10

Year 3 optional modules (selection of typical options shown below)

Module Name Credits
Introduction to the Economic Evaluation of Health 10
Conquest, Convivencia and Conflict: Christian and Muslim Spain, 711-1212 40
Back to School in the Middle Ages: Schools, Teachers and Pupils in north-western Europe 700-1200 40
The Harlem Renaissance: Black Culture and Politics 1919-1940 40
The Third Reich, 1933-1945 40
Europe in an Age of Total Warfare 40
The Spanish Civil War, 1936-1939 40
American Consumer Society in Historical Perspective 40
Black British Culture and Black British Cultural Studies 40
The Soviet Sixties: Politics and Society in the USSR, 1953-1968 40
War, Regicide and Republic: England, 1642-1660 20
Early Modern Media: Printing and the People in Europe c.1500-c.1800 40
The Later Elizabethan Age: Politics and Empire 40
The Korean War 40
The Iron Lady Abroad: Margaret Thatcher and UK Foreign Policy from 1979 40
A Revolutionary Century: Resistance, Reform, and Repression in Central America, 1900- present 40
Europe on the Move: Refugees and Resettlement, 1919-59 40
Gender and Slavery in Latin America, 1580-1888 20
Doomed to Failure? European Great Power Politics from Bismarck to the Outbreak of World War I 20
Advanced Microeconomics 10
Contemporary Issues in Economic Growth 10
Transnational Corporations in the World Economy 10
Economics Joint Honours Final Year Project 30
Economic Development 20
Economics of Famines 20
Environmental Economics 10
Applied Econometrics 10
Behavioural Economics 10
Modern Theories of Money and Monetary Policy 10
International Economics: Integration and Governance 20
Economics of Business and Corporate Strategy 20
Medieval Women Mystics: Visionaries, Saints and Heretics 20
The Age of Chivalry: The Idea of Knighthood in Medieval Europe, 1050-1450 20

Discovery modules

Throughout your degree you will benefit from a range of opportunities to expand your intellectual horizons outside or within your subject area.

This course gives you the opportunity to choose from a range of discovery modules. They’re a great way to tailor your study around your interests or career aspirations and help you stand out from the crowd when you graduate. Find out more about discovery modules on our Broadening webpages.

Learning and teaching

Our tutors are experts in their fields, and their teaching is informed by their own cutting-edge research.

We use a range of teaching methods to help you benefit from their expertise, including lectures, seminars, tutorials or occasionally workshops. However, independent study is also central to this degree, since it allows you to develop your skills in research and analysis. You will be able to apply your skills and knowledge in a final year research project on a topic of your own choice.

Academic staff have bookable office hours for advice and feedback, and you’ll also benefit from working closely with your tutors during one-to-one supervision sessions, our personal tutoring schemes, on field trips (such as archive and museum visits).

The University offers a variety of tailored support for historians and philosophers; the University Library runs free classes and workshops so you can learn how to use them.

On this course you’ll be taught by our expert academics, from lecturers through to professors. You may also be taught by industry professionals with years of experience, as well as trained postgraduate researchers, connecting you to some of the brightest minds on campus.

Assessment

Assessment methods may vary, depending on the modules you choose. Exams and essays are the most common, but some modules may also include group work, oral presentations, source commentaries, annotated bibliographies, book/literature/historiographical reviews, blog posts, Wikis, podcasts, and other methods as part of the mix. We offer plenty of support, including the chance to attend extra classes on issues such as exam technique, public speaking and structuring an essay if you need them.

Entry requirements

A-level: AAA

GCSE: Grade 7/A in Mathematics

Other course specific tests:

Where an applicant is taking the EPQ in a relevant subject this might be considered alongside other Level 3 qualifications and may attract an alternative offer in addition to the standard offer. If you are taking A Levels, this would be AAB plus grade A in the EPQ.

We welcome applications from mature students with Access qualifications, and from students with a wide range of qualifications.

Alternative qualification

Access to HE Diploma

Pass diploma with 60 credits overall, including at least 45 credits at level 3, of which 30 credits must be at Distinction and 15 credits at Merit or higher. An interview and a piece of written work may also be required. Grade 7/A in Mathematics at GCSE is required.
Contact the Admissions Office for more information.

BTEC

We will consider this qualification in combination with other qualifications. Please contact the Admissions Office for more information.

Cambridge Pre-U

D3, D3, D3

International Baccalaureate

35 points overall with 17 at Higher Level and 5 in Mathematics at Standard Level (or 4 in Mathematics at Higher Level)

Irish Leaving Certificate (higher Level)

H1, H1, H2, H2, H2, H2

Scottish Highers / Advanced Highers

AA in Advanced Highers and AAABB in Highers, or A Advanced Higher and AAAAB in Highers

Welsh Baccalaureate

The Welsh Baccalaureate is not typically included in the academic conditions of an offer made to you for this course. If you choose to undertake the Welsh Baccalaureate we would strongly encourage you to draw upon these experiences within your personal statement, as your qualification will then be taken into account both when your application is initially considered by the selection panel and again when reviewed by the admissions tutor at the time your A-level results are passed to us.

Other Qualifications

European Baccalaureate: 85%

Read more about UK and Republic of Ireland accepted qualifications or contact the School’s Undergraduate Admissions Team.

Alternative entry

We’re committed to identifying the best possible applicants, regardless of personal circumstances or background.

Access to Leeds is an alternative admissions scheme which accepts applications from individuals who might be from low income households, in the first generation of their immediate family to apply to higher education, or have had their studies disrupted.

Find out more about Access to Leeds and alternative admissions.

Typical Access to Leeds offer: AAB (excluding General Studies and Critical Thinking) at A Level and pass Access to Leeds

International

We accept a range of international equivalent qualifications. Contact the Undergraduate Admissions Office for more information.

International Foundation Year

International students who do not meet the academic requirements for undergraduate study may be able to study the University of Leeds International Foundation Year. This gives you the opportunity to study on campus, be taught by University of Leeds academics and progress onto a wide range of Leeds undergraduate courses. Find out more about International Foundation Year programmes.

English language requirements

IELTS 6.5 overall, with no less than 6.0 in any component. For other English qualifications, read English language equivalent qualifications.


Improve your English
If you're an international student and you don't meet the English language requirements for this programme, you may be able to study our undergraduate pre-sessional English course, to help improve your English language level.

Fees

UK: £9,250 (per year)

International: £22,250 (per year)

Tuition fees for UK undergraduate students starting in 2023/24 and 2024/25
Tuition fees for UK full-time undergraduate students are set by the UK Government and will remain capped at £9,250 for 2023/24 and 2024/25. The fee may increase in future years of your course in line with inflation only as a consequence of future changes in Government legislation and as permitted by law.

Tuition fees for international undergraduate students starting in 2023/24 and 2024/25
Tuition fees for international students for 2023/24 and 2024/25 are available on individual course pages.

Tuition fees for a study abroad or work placement year
If you take a study abroad or work placement year, you’ll pay a reduced tuition fee during this period. For more information, see Study abroad and work placement tuition fees and loans.

Read more about paying fees and charges.

There may be additional costs related to your course or programme of study, or related to being a student at the University of Leeds. Read more about additional costs.

Scholarships and financial support

If you have the talent and drive, we want you to be able to study with us, whatever your financial circumstances. There is help for students in the form of loans and non-repayable grants from the University and from the government. Find out more in our Undergraduate funding overview.

Applying

Apply to this course through UCAS. Check the deadline for applications on the UCAS website.

Read our guidance about applying.

International students apply through UCAS in the same way as UK students. Our network of international representatives can help you with your application. If you’re unsure about the application process, contact the admissions team for help.

Read about visas, immigration and other information in International students. We recommend that international students apply as early as possible to ensure that they have time to apply for their visa.

Admissions policy

University of Leeds Taught Admissions Policy 2024

This course is taught by

School of History
Leeds University Business School

Contact us

Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Cultures Admissions

Email: artsadmissions@leeds.ac.uk
Telephone:

Career opportunities

A joint honours degree in Economics and History equips you with in-depth knowledge of two subjects, but it also offers you a valuable range of transferable skills that are actively sought by employers.

You’ll be able to analyse both quantitative and qualitative data, and you’ll have strong research and problem-solving skills. You’ll be comfortable working both independently and within a team, and you’ll have the organisational skills needed to manage two very different subjects.

Graduates have gone onto careers in diverse areas as a result. They include business and finance, management, the civil service, journalism, the media, law, education and the charity sector. Many others go on to postgraduate study. Read more about Graduate destinations.

We do everything we can to help prepare you for your career. Student-run career groups allow you to get together with other students who share your career goals, while you could also become a peer mentor or apply for one of our paid internships. Or you could take one of our career-related modules to develop your employability or explore your options.

Careers support

We encourage you to prepare for your career from day one. That’s one of the reasons Leeds graduates are so sought after by employers.

Leeds for Life is our unique approach to helping you make the most of University by supporting your academic and personal development. Find out more at the Leeds for Life website.

The Careers Centre and staff in your faculty provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more about Careers support.

Study abroad and work placements

Study abroad

On this course you have the opportunity to apply to spend time abroad, usually as an extra academic year. We have over 300 University partners worldwide and popular destinations for our students include Europe, the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong, South Africa and Latin America. 

Find out more at the Study Abroad website.


Work placements

Practical work experience can help you decide on your career and improve your employability. On this course you have the option to apply to take a placement year module with organisations across the public, private and voluntary sectors in the UK, or overseas.

Find out more about work experience on the Careers website.


Student profile: Tolly Oram

After I’d completed my second year at Leeds, I spent a year at the University of California, Santa Barbara, which has to be one of the best years I’ve had yet.
Find out more about Tolly Oram's time at Leeds