MA Economics

The unit aims to:

Introduce students to the Economic History at a graduate level.

Improve students’ skills in critical evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of historical empirical evidence.

Introduce students to writing a referee report & and an essay in this field

Being able to relate today’s economic outcomes to historical developments has frequently been highlighted by employers (especially international and national institutions and governments) as an important skill. Students of this unit will have learned about such dependencies and will have learned about pivotal conditions, periods and events that impacted economic developments.  

Students who successfully pass this unit will also have demonstrated that they are successfully able to undertake a significant research project in economic history. The skills required to do so successfully (research, summarising of existing work, identifying of interesting questions, communication of findings) are important skills required in almost any type job an economics graduate may work.

Syllabus (indicative curriculum content):

Introduction

Geography

Institutions

Culture

Demography

Colonisation

Why did Northwestern Europe become rich first?

Britain’s Industrial Revolution 
The rise of the modern economy

Industrialization and the world it created 

Student work will be organised around lectures and tutorial sessions.  

Lectures: In lectures the main content of the respective topics will be presented. This will provide the basis knowledge and understanding that will be useful for the reading that will be required for the following tutorial debates.

Tutorials: Most tutorials will be organised around debate topics based on weekly readings.

In addition, guided self study.

Any learning materials required will be delivered through the unit’s site on the CLE.

Students will be able to:

Identify the historical origins of economic developments;  

Understand and apply the key features of economic development models (such as the Malthusian model) to explain key historical economic processes and stylised facts;

Identify and discuss key empirical evidence in order to explain the historical origins of economic growth.

Students will be able to engage critically with academic research on topics in economic history to inform debates or research, and identify a topic suitable for extended research.

Students will be able to:

Succinctly summarise research findings;  

Identify relevant readings and data using library and online resources;

Organize and execute research and writing for research projects. 
 

Students will be able to demonstrate the ability to present arguments clearly in written form, and actively listen and constructively respond to feedback on their work.

The essay will be divided into a Draft essay of 1000-1500 words, worth 10%, and a Final Essay (maximum 2500 words) worth 70%.

The remaining assessment will consist of Paper Summaries (2 x 250 words) and is worth 20%.

Main textbook:

Mark Koyama and Jared Rubin (2022). How the World Became Rich: The Historical Origins of Economic Growth. Wiley

Additional weekly journal readings for the tutorials will be listed in the syllabus and made available through the Library’s online reading list.