Economics A Level
Course Overview
Economics is concerned with the allocation of resources and attempts to solve a fundamental problem in human societies: what to make, how to make it, who to make it for?
A Level Economics provides an introduction to many of the real-world topics that will influence the rest of your life – unemployment, mortgage rates, economic prosperity and the environment. Our course provides a solid foundation of both macroeconomic and microeconomic knowledge that will enable you to analyse and evaluate world events with a greater degree of understanding.
Many people think economics is just about money, but it’s really about the allocation of scarce resources: in a world of infinite wants and needs, who gets what? Economics is a hard social science because it seeks to explain human behaviour in the context of economic incentives: what to make, how to make it and who to make it for. It often uses sophisticated models and diagrams to predict outcomes, which you’ll have to process and analyse.
For example, we look at how an industry determines the price level for its goods and how government policies can reduce inflation. Sometimes the free market fails to allocate resources in the right way and unwanted outcomes can occur, such as pollution or lack of access to healthcare. We also look at policies that can attempt to correct these ‘market failures’, again based on the models that economists have come up with.
As there is an emphasis on data analysis, a willingness to work with numbers is helpful. However, the ability to write clearly and to the point is vital.
Year 1 Modules
- Markets and market failure
- UK Economy – Performance and policies.
Year 2 Modules
- Business behaviour and the labour market
- A global perspective
Key Info
Minimum Entry Requirements
- Five GCSEs at Grade 5 including:
- Grade 5 in either GCSE English Language* or GCSE English Literature
- Grade 5 in GCSE Maths
*a minimum of Grade 4 in GCSE English Language is required to study this course.
Assessment
- 100% Exam
- Exam Board: Edexcel
169
Total students
19
Average class size
Why choose this course?
You should choose this course if...
- You want to understand the economic factors that will impact on your future career, consumer choices and incentives.
- You enjoy looking at national and world events like trade, GDP and taxes with an analytical eye, hoping to find explanations for the many problems our nations face.
- You want to develop a broad range of skills, such as written data analysis, diagram illustration and basic numeracy, to apply to those problems.
There are regular Subject Plus sessions each week for both first and second year students to enable them to catch up on missed material, support those who have found some of the content tricky or who want to develop a deeper understanding of content. Some of these sessions are one-to-one and some are group workshops.
Skills you'll gain
By studying A Level Economics you will develop a broad range of skills applicable to your future life and career.
These include:
- Construction of essays in economics using cause-and-effect chains of reasoning.
- Diagrammatic reading and analysis.
- An understanding of micro markets and macroeconomies and why they change.
- The ability to look at real world events and situations through an economic lens.
After Long Road
A substantial number of students go on to study either Economics or a closely related subject, with Business, Finance and Law at the top of this list. University economics graduates are the second highest-earning young professionals in the UK, so many rewarding careers become viable when choosing this pathway. Some students progress on to totally unrelated fields, with yacht design and fashion being recent examples, as the subject is also a popular third choice at Long Road.
Other students move into employment, often via the apprenticeship route, with accountancy being a favourite (although far from the only option).
I find it really interesting; to be able to understand current affairs is so rewarding. It’s so engaging to be able to understand the terminology and the reasons why the economy works the way it does. There’s lots to get your teeth into!
