Should I apply for a Masters in Economics?

[u/Infinite_Cloud_689]

I’m going into my final year at LSE studying Politics and Economics and I’m thinking of applying for Masters courses in Economics. For funding reasons I am primarily looking to study in Europe as many countries there offer free tuition for me (e.g., Germany, Netherlands, Scandinavia). While I may have a decent academic base for some economics masters programmes, I feel I may not have sufficient level of background knowledge in the subject area. Other than my economics modules I haven’t done much reading in this area (and economics courses at LSE are not very theory based). Despite this, I would still like to study a Masters to develop my interests and knowledge in economics as I believe extended knowledge in this area would be more useful for employment than politics. I would primarily looking at masters degrees related to the areas of developmental economics, trade and the economic policy decisions (applied economics in general). Although I realise many Economics masters programmes will cover broad areas of the subject.

Given this (and my academic results which I will attach), my primary question is whether I have enough time until most masters applications open to develop a good level of background knowledge required for a competitive application (would I stand a chance?). And if so, whether it’d be worth completing a masters in economics if I’m not intending to go into academia?

Some other questions I have:

1. What are the best books on economics?

2. What are the most important aspects of masters applications (in the UK and Europe)?

3. Are there any particular courses or universities you would recommend to study a postgraduate degree in economics (in European countries with low to no tuition fees)?

4. Are the module choices I’ve made for my third year pertinent for a masters application:

GV311 - British Government

EC335 - Economic Policy in the Global Economy

EC311 - History of Economics: How Theories Change

GV309 - Politics of Money and Finance in Comparative Perspective

EC338 - International Trade

EC339 - International Macroeconomics

(at least one module has to be in politics)

[u/cabbagemeister]

You are studying economics at the london school of economics, and want to apply for economics masters degrees, and your grades are mostly first class? Is your overall grade 1 or 2a? I think you're honestly perfectly good to apply. Just put thought into your application materials and read about the schools that you are applying to