MA Political Economy (Standard Route) / Course details

Our flagship MA in Political Economy is situated in the renowned Centre for the Study of Political Economy at The University of Manchester. The Centre brings together world-class research strengths and teaching from across the Faculty of Humanities to deliver a rigorous, impactful, and highly interdisciplinary course that critically examines the relationships between national and global economies, political landscapes, and public policies.

Studying our master’s in Political Economy, you will be introduced to a range of core orthodox and critical theories. Your course will be shaped by your interests, and you will choose one of four pathways to specialise in:

• Theoretical Political Economy;
• Political Economy of Society, Space and Environment;;
• Political Economy of Development;
• Political Economy of Finance, Business and Work.

Each pathway offers course units drawn from the four different schools within the Faculty of Humanities:

• School of Social Sciences;
• School of Arts, Languages and Cultures;
• School of Environment, Education and Development;
• Alliance Manchester Business School.

Through this interdisciplinary approach, you will benefit from unique exposure to the full breadth of the field of political economy.

Through the course, you will develop subject area expertise as well as highly transferrable skills such as research design, critical inquiry, and writing and communication skills, setting you up for multiple career paths in the public, private, or third sectors. You will also be well-placed to continue developing and using your research expertise, either professionally or in PhD study.

Research or Standard Route?

The key difference between our MA Political Economy (Standard Route) and our MA Political Economy (Research Route) is the amount and scope of mandatory course units you will take.

On the Standard Route, in addition to your dissertation, you will take two mandatory course unitsand five optional course units. Mandatory units on this route are:

• POLI60312 Research Design and Skills;
• POEC61011 Theoretical Approaches to Political Economy.

On the Research Route, in addition to your dissertation, you will take five mandatory course units and two optional course units. Mandatory units on this route are:

• POLI60312 Research Design and Skills;
• POLI70771 Philosophy of Politics Research;
• SOCS60230 Qualitative Research Methods;
• SOST70511 Introduction to Quantitative Methods;
• POEC61011 Theoretical Approaches to Political Economy.

This course is eligible for the 1+3 studentship offered by the Economic and Social Sciences Research Council (ESRC) North West Social Sciences Doctoral Training Partnership (NWSSDTP), offering a unique, fully-funded route into postgraduate research. If your application is successful, you’ll be able to seamlessly transition from master's-level study to a PhD. Find out more on our 1+3 ESRC NWSSDTP webpage.

Prestigious department

The University of Manchester boasts one of the largest and best-known politics departments in the UK. We are home to some of the world’s leading experts and academics in the subject, and co-hosts (with Oxford) of the British Election Study, one of the longest-running election studies in the world and the longest-running social science survey in the UK.

Unique city

In our biased opinion, there’s no better place to study politics and economics than Manchester. Politics and history, revolutionary ideas and radical reform, are etched into the city’s streets and character, from workers' rights to feminism, Marxism to devolution.

Interdisciplinary approach

Interdisciplinary study is actively pursued at Manchester, with many course units involving expertise and contributions from a number of different schools and departments at the University, such as economics, social statistics, and global development.

The MA Political Economy is taught by an interdisciplinary team using a variety of delivery methods:

• lectures;
• workshops;
• student-led presentations and debate;
• group work;
• individual research.

Most course units are assessed by written assignments and essays. Some course units may differ and may be assessed by methods relevant to the units’ contents, such as presentations or research design documents.

Part-time students

Part-time students complete the full-time course over two years. There are no evening or weekend course units available on the part-time course.