ECONOMICS

Economics careers

WHAT CAN YOU DO WITH A KENT DEGREE IN ECONOMICS ?

The following information will not tell you which Economics courses are available at the University of Kent . The undergraduate prospectus has everything you need to know about these. Here you will discover what Economics graduates from Kent have gone on to do within six months of finishing their degree, and some of the opportunities for Economics graduates to use their degree in the longer term.

The great flexibility of most UK degree subjects is reflected in the fact that 40% of vacancies advertised specifically to graduates do not specify degree subject. So the jobs Kent graduates go on to do in the short-term are not necessarily ends in themselves. This reflects the contemporary culture of lifelong learning and personal development into which students now graduate

WHAT SKILLS HAVE I GAINED ON MY COURSE?

Skills you can offer employers as an Economics graduate are likely to include numeracy; analysis; verbal and written communication; problem solving; and presentation. You can probably also offer practical skills such as knowledge of computing packages or foreign languages. Graduate recruiters in all career areas value these skills as much as your subject knowledge and general intellectual ability.

WHO RECRUITS ECONOMICS GRADUATES?

A degree in Economics can lead into many career areas. Some are obvious, others are not. Few Economics graduates will begin a career as a professional economist directly after graduation – a postgraduate degree is usually required for such posts.

Statistics show that the majority of Economics students after graduation obtain employment within six months of graduating. The jobs they get are many and varied, although with an emphasis on the finance sector. Here, graduates have entered banking, accountancy, tax advisory work , insurance and trading, as well as economic analysis and research.

Graduates have also entered administration, information work, retail management, IT and the media.

Employers in the UK value graduates for their qualities and skills derived from time at university as well as life outside it. Transferable skills such as verbal and written communication, leadership, logical reasoning and teamwork are as important to getting a job as the degree subject you are offering.

OCCUPATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH ECONOMICS

Economists work in government and public sector organisations (such as the Bank of England, the Government Economic Service and local authorities); in investment banks and other financial institutions, in manufacturing and utility companies and in consultancy firms. They research and analyse economic issues and data and provide advice for use in forming policy or strategy.

PROFILE: Economist

Advises companies, financial institutions, & public bodies on economic trends. Carries out research on which to base this advice, analysing economic data, & producing forecasts & reports.
EMPLOYERS: Government Economic Service, Investment banks, Bank of England, insurance companies, stockbrokers. Economic consultancies; think-tanks, e.g. Institute for Fiscal Studies. Manufacturing & commercial companies (usually large multinationals); local authorities; international organisations.
RELATED JOBS: investment banker; financial analyst; accountant; lecturer HE; journalist.
SATISFACTIONS: Using degree subject; indirectly influencing organisational decisions.
NEGATIVES: Working to meet deadlines & under pressure.
SKILLS: spoken & written communication, analysing; decision-making; numeracy.
ADVANCEMENT: Promotion to Senior Economist or Researcher.
DEGREE: Degree in Economics normally required; Bank of England recruits from any discipline & provides training in economics.
POSTGRADUATE STUDY: Master's degree in Economics recommended - few openings for graduates with just Bachelor's degree. Some postgraduate diploma courses available as conversion courses for non-Economics graduates, e.g. at Cambridge, London (Birkbeck College), Manchester.
TIPS: Need to show good interpersonal as well as academic skills & to be aware of current events & their economic context or implications - read finance & business pages of the broadsheets.

Accountants may work in firms, carrying out audits and providing clients with advice on all areas of business such as taxation, corporate finance and business planning; or within a commercial, manufacturing or public sector organisation where they manage their employer's finances by monitoring, planning and analysing the organisation's financial and business affairs. See www.kent.ac.uk/careers/workin/accountancy.htm for more information.

Banking recruits graduates into a number of areas including corporate finance, trading, fund management, customer services, but also non-financial fields such as marketing and human resources. See www.kent.ac.uk/careers/sitebank.htm for more information.

Market researchers plan and manage the collection of data for social, business, financial and consumer research. They evaluate the data once obtained; prepare reports and present their findings to clients. See www.kent.ac.uk/careers/sitesadv.htm for more information..

OPPORTUNITIES FOR ECONOMICS GRADUATES AND POSTGRADUATES Picture of Dollar

Organisations which have in the past advertised posts for graduates for work in economic research, policy and consultancy.

Only about 3% of first-degree economics graduates go directly into specialised economics posts upon graduation: many such jobs give preference to people with a postgraduate economics degree

POSTGRADUATE STUDY

If you are interested in a career as an economist, a postgraduate degree is almost essential. Approximately 3% of graduates from Economics BA/BSc degrees begin their career in a specialised economics position each year; however, this proportion rises to over a third of those completing Master's degrees in Economics.
A few employers which recruit undergraduates into economics-related posts will sponsor you to obtain a postgraduate qualification, often on a part-time basis. The Bank of England and the Government Economic Service offer support for Masters degree study.
Most employers in other career areas target their graduate recruitment on undergraduates rather than postgraduates. This does not mean that they will not recruit postgraduates, but you may find that you are entering the organisation at the same level that you would have done with your first degree. These employers will provide on-the-job training and study leave if there are relevant professional qualifications to be gained (such as chartered accountancy) which are of value to them.
There are many reasons for choosing to continue into postgraduate study. You may wish to obtain a higher degree purely for interest rather than for career reasons. Whatever your motivation, you need to consider issues such as your suitability for further study, the options available to you and the costs involved. See the Postgraduate Study section of this site for more on these issues.

WHAT DO ECONOMICS GRADUATES DO?

Over the last three years the destinations of single and joint honours Economics graduates have broken down as follows:

In employment

69%

Further study

14%

Time out/Unavailable

7.2%

Unemployed

6.7%

Other

3.1%

Types of work entered

Business & finance professionals or associate professionals

41%

Commercial, industrial, public sector managers

13%

Administrative, clerical, secretarial positions

19%

Media, sales, advertising, PR etc

5%

Others, inc. teaching, IT, health, retail, uniformed services, etc.

32%

(Figures from HESA www.prospects.ac.uk/links/wdgd )

These statistics only cover the first six months after graduation. A significant number of graduates are, at this stage, engaged in work which they would regard as temporary - using a short-term job to gain work experience that could act as a stepping-stone to a better position, or earning money to finance postgraduate study or time out travelling, for example. Please remember this if some of the graduate destinations listed seem surprising or discouraging

Examples of jobs and postgraduate study entered by recent Kent graduates in Economics

Finance Sector

 

Alexander Hall

Trainee Mortgage Broker

Audit Commission

Trainee Auditor

BMW

Accounts Assistant

Financial Services Authority

Associate

HSBC

Commercial Management trainee

JP Morgan

Corporate & Investment Support

Miscoe Computers

Finance Assistant

NHS Trust

Finance Management trainee (CIPFA)

PricewaterhouseCoopers

Trainee Chartered Accountant

Prudential

Customer Administrator

Schroders

Fund Manager’s Assistant

Square Mile

Stock Broker

Standard & Poors

Business Development Intern

Talbot Underwriting Ltd

Underwriting Assistant

Towers Perrin

Actuarial Analyst

Wolves & Kent

Trainee Stockbroker

 

 

Arts, Design, Culture, and Media Sector

 

Channel 4 TV

Media Assistant

 

 

Retail Sector:

 

Debenhams

Distributor

Homebase

Assistant Buyer

House of Fraser

Allocator

Woolworths plc

Inventory Analyst

 

 

Marketing, Sales and Advertising Sector

 

Aladis

Marketing Executive

IG Index

Copywriter

Kent Tourism Alliance

Marketing Assistant

Octopus Communications

Trainee PR Consultant

 

 

Social & Welfare Sector

 

The City Church

Youth Worker

 

 

Further Study:

 

 

 

Boston University, USA

MA Economics

Canterbury Christ Church

PGCE Secondary

College of Europe, Bruges

MA European Economics

London School of Economics

MSc Economics

SOAS

MSc Finance & Development

University College London

MSc Econometrics

University College London

MA Business

University of Kent

Postgraduate Diploma in Actuarial Science

University of Kent

M.Phil Politics

University of St. Andrews

MSc International Strategy & Economics

University of Warwick

MSc Econometrics

 

 

LONGER-TERM PROSPECTS

These are some of the positions occupied by past KENT graduates of an older vintage:

Professional Bodies and further sources of information:

You should also investigate:

Investment banks www.kent.ac.uk/careers/sitebank.htm#invbank
Local authorities www.kent.ac.uk/careers/sitesgov.htm#LOCAL
Large manufacturing companies – see the directories below

General vacancy sources:

PROSPECTS or GET – directories listing major graduate recruiters, indexed by type of employer, type of work or degree subjects preferred. Published at the beginning of each academic year and available in the Careers Service.

Each directory also has a website with an online search facility, at www.prospects.ac.uk or www.get.hobsons.co.uk

For other directories and vacancy sources, see www.kent.ac.uk/careers/graddirectories.htm

Links

Last fully updated November 2009