MA Political Economy (Standard Route)

Fees for entry in 2027 have not yet been set. For reference, the fees for the academic year beginning September 2026 were as follows:

• MA (full-time)
  UK students (per annum): £18,400
  International, including EU, students (per annum): £29,900
• MA (part-time)
  UK students (per annum): £9,200
  International, including EU, students (per annum): £14,950

The fees quoted above are fully inclusive of tuition, administration and computational costs.

Fees for entry are subject to yearly review. The University reserves the right to increase your tuition fee by up to 7% each year for courses lasting more than one year, including to reflect rising costs associated with delivering our educational and wider student experience. Postgraduate fees information .

Always contact the admissions team if you are unsure which fee applies to your qualification award and method of attendance.

All students should normally be able to complete their programme of study without incurring additional study costs over and above the tuition fee for that programme. Any unavoidable additional compulsory costs totalling more than 1% of the annual home undergraduate fee per annum, regardless of whether the programme in question is undergraduate or postgraduate taught, will be made clear to you at the point of application. Further information can be found in the University's Policy on additional costs incurred by students on undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes (PDF document, 91KB).

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Globalisation is transforming the world economy in radical ways. In particular, it is placing local producers under greater pressure to engage with, and compete in, the global economy in order to survive and grow.  How can producers in the developing world enhance their abilities and their competitive edge? How are such producers linked to global markets? What possibilities are there for such producers to innovate, acquire new know-how and grow? What are the new areas of competition? What evidence is there of global industrial success, and of industrial failure, within the developing world? What are the implications for policy? 

This module aims to address these questions by providing students with a thorough understanding of emergent areas within global competition and industrial development. It uses an analytical framework that incorporates macro analysis of trade and industrial policy with meso (sectoral) and micro (firm and household) level insights. In addition to providing a theoretical and conceptual understanding, it draws on recent empirical evidence and research case studies.

The unit aims to:

•  An overview of the major theories and processes related to industrialisation, globalisation, and implications for industrial development.

•  An opportunity for students to critically assess the impacts of key strategies and interventions related to industrial development.

•  An understanding of the implications of the above models and strategies on a range of developing country cases

•  An opportunity for students to develop a range of competencies in transferable areas, including research, analysis, teamwork and both written and verbal forms of communication.

The learning outcomes of the course are listed below.

This module draws on a range of teaching and learning strategies, from lectures, group presentations, class discussions and independent learning by students. Most two hour sessions will be organized around a lecture, while one session will be based on a half day factory visit.  There will be four 1.5 hour tutorials for more in-depth discussion on core readings. These essential sessions will focus on specific questions, exercises or group presentations that students will have been advised of prior to the class. Students are expected to have completed the core readings for each session – both lectures, field visits and tutorials.

• Provide a comprehensive knowledge of theoretical and analytical approaches to global industrial competitiveness at the macro, meso and micro levels.
• Build an awareness of key debates in the field and a grasp of the divergent evidence from developed, developing and emerging economies.
• Build an awareness of the interactions between industrial competitiveness and international, national and regional level policy frameworks.
• Provide an understanding of the role of production organisation, technological capabilities and innovation in achieving industrial competitiveness.
• Provide an opportunities for students to analyse regional variations in industrial competitiveness and the role of the state in (re-)shaping industrial policy today.

• Critical reading skills, including synthesis and critique of literature
• Engagement with, and participation in, key debates on industrial development and international competitiveness
• Critical thinking and analytical writing skills through the composition of short review notes and an essay engaging with a course-related theme

• Develop practical grounding of key policy debates in industrial competitiveness and its implications for international development
• Ability to produce high quality written work

• Analytical abilities and engagement with key bodies of critical literatures
• Develop practical understanding of key debates in industrial competitiveness and its implications for international development

• Critical analysis of key debate from unit based on essay titles.

• Applying theory from the unit to developing a country case based on their portfolio 
  (3,000 words)

• GTA feedback & Peer feedback within tutorials

• 1-to-1 feedback with convenor/GTA on a plan for the report

• Standard VLE feedback

Amsden, A. (2001) The Rise of the Rest: Challenges to the west from late industrializing economies, Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK.

Baldwin, R. (2016) The Great Convergence: Information Technology and the New Globalization. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA.

Chang, H.-J. (2002) Kicking Away the Ladder: Development Strategy in Historical Perspective. Anthem press, London.

Cimoli, M., Dosi, G., and Stiglitz, J., eds., 2009, Industrial Policy and Development, Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK.

Coe, N.M. & Yeung, H.W. (2015) Global Production Networks: Theorizing Economic Development in an Interconnected World. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK.

Dicken P. (2015) Global Shift: Mapping the Changing Contours of the World Economy, 7th edn, Sage. 

Hauge, J. (2023) The Future of the Factory: How Megatrends Are Changing Industrialization. OUP Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom.

Milberg, W. and Winkler, D., 2013, Outsourcing economics: Global value chains in capitalist development, New York: Cambridge University Press.

Mazzucato, M. (2015) The Entrepreneurial State: Debunking Public vs. Private Sector Myths. Anthem Press.

Milberg, W. and Winkler, D., 2013, Outsourcing economics: Global value chains in capitalist development, New York: Cambridge University Press.

Palpacuer, F. & Smith, A. (2021) Rethinking Value Chains: Tackling the Challenges of Global Capitalism. Policy Press, Bristol, UK.

Porter M., (1998) The Competitive Advantage of Nations, London: Macmillan.