These pages give you a flavour of the types of modules available across the three subjects and within the School itself.
Please bear in mind that you will have to select modules that meet the requirements of your course structure.
Current students can find more detailed module information in the 'Your course' section of the School's website.
The interdisciplinary modules of the School of PPE are listed below. Please check your programme specifications for which modules are available to you.
This first-year module is compulsory for PPE students on Route 1 (the non-Econometrics route). It provides a basic introduction to certain core topics in each of the three disciplines, and is designed to enhance students' analytical skills and develop an awareness of the nature of interdisciplinary studies.
A compulsory module for economics and politics students; optional module for all other students in the School.
Objectives: to explore some of the ways in which the disciplines of politics and economics complement each other, and how each discipline can bring insight to the study of social phenomena usually thought to be within the sphere of the other (for example, political science can help our understanding of the way governments manage the economy, while economics can tell us much about why people vote the way they do).
An optional module for PPE students on Routes 1 and 2.
Objectives: to examine a number of issues related to the particular methods of social scientific enquiry, the nature of social reality and the scope and limits of social scientific explanations. Critical discussion of the naturalistic methods and the interpretivist methods will relate to the work of Marx, Mill, Durkheim, and Collingwood and to other contemporary authors. The nature of social reality, including social actions and social facts, will be considered through the work of Weber and Searle.
The scope and limits of social scientific investigation will be explored through contemporary debates on the role of values in social science, feminist methodology in social science, evolutionary explanations in social science and the autonomy of social science.
A compulsory module for philosophy and politics students; optional module for all other students in the School.
Objectives: to explore the main areas of mutual concern to scholars of philosophy and politics, by examining the philosophical and political elements of public policy not merely with respect to what these disciplines can bring to decision about policy, but also as a means to consider the disciplines themselves. Indicative topics include animal experimentation, gambling, drug policy, health and disability, and crime and punishment.
A compulsory module for economics and philosophy students; optional module for all other students in the School.
Objectives: to explore the main areas of mutual concern to economists and philosophers. Investigating the relation between rationality and morality will be a main focus of this course, as will introducing decision theory, game theory, and social choice theory to the student.
This is a piece of work to encourage independent study and research in a PPE related topic. The Dissertation offers students a different mode of working from that of normal course work.
During the writing of the Dissertation you will be supported by a disseration workshop and supervised by a Disseration supervisor. Empirical work is encouraged, and the project is a chance to put forward your ideas or research rather than simply drawing on that of others.
It is not compulsory, but students can choose to take it as an addition to the taught PPE modules.
We have summarised brief descriptions about Economics modules below, but if you want to find out more, please go to the Economics web pages
An introduction to micro and macroeconomic theory and how the theory can be applied to some of the problems of microeconomic policy in the UK.
An introduction to the use of mathematics in economics. The module covers key mathematical techniques and ideas such as equation-solving, differentiation and integral calculus, and how these techniques can be used in economic analysis.
These summaries are just a selection of the second-year economics modules available to PPPE students.
These summaries are just a selection of the third-year economics modules available to PPE students.
We have summarised brief descriptions about Philosophy modules below, but if you want to find out more, please go to the Philosophy web pages
In the second year of the programme you'll choose from a range of modules which look in more depth at issues in some central areas of philosophy:
These summaries are just a selection of the third-year philosophy modules available to PPE students.
We have summarised brief descriptions about Politics modules below.
These summaries are just a selection of the second-year politics modules available to PPE students.
These summaries are just a selection of the third-year politics modules available to PPE students.