Economics Personal Statement

Why do you want to study this course or subject?

As someone who is always up to date with current affairs, the foundations that our civilisation is based on interests me, and the ways in which this is done through economic theory fills me with excitement. Millions of choices are made worldwide every second, all holding economic capability – for example, I have made the choice to study economics at university. This choice has numerous microeconomic implications to many people and is a decision made to satisfy my wants. Without me noticing it, I have made a decision based on basic economics. The regularity of economic decisions and the subconscious psychological nature of these fascinate me to a level that I want to pursue the subject and learn how the world can be made better as a result of choices that are made. My long-term plans are to improve my analytical skills and develop economic theories that can positively impact the world. I am also hugely interested in technology growing within economics and how this is implemented into all sorts of scenarios in different jobs. The drive and motivation I have behind these goals will push me to take every opportunity I have at university, aiming to achieve the goals I set for myself and continue to be a model student.

How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course or subject?

My A levels all lend themselves to forms of economics, with mathematics allowing me to think critically, business studies exploring how organisations fit into the global economy and the bureaucracy that they are under, and geography as I inspect geopolitical decision making and how population affects economics as a whole. My critical thinking has developed since reading books on economics principles, while forging ever-changing opinions on how economies can be best run. My current read is ‘The Bottom Billion’ by Paul Collier, who feels strongly towards capitalist concepts and the freedom that this provides at all levels of a country’s development spectrum. While similar, my opinions are not set in stone, as I am willing to listen to other points of view and expand my knowledge. I feel that competitive spirit is inside every human being, and is key to a strong economy. Jean Tirole is one economic theorist that I have read extensively, exploring his theories on regulation and the banking industry, blaming the ‘bonus culture’ for ‘distorted decisions and significant efficiency losses, in the long run’. Delving deeper into his research uncovers how the competition for the strongest job candidates leads to lavish incentives to the employee which subsequently ‘shifts effort away from long-term investments’ and increases risk. I feel that reading many theories and opinions backed up with data can help to forge more well-rounded opinions, helping me to more deeply explore my passion.

What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?

I am positioned as Head Boy at my school of over 1000 students, with the role given to me as a result of my peers and senior staff voting for me. With this role, public speaking has helped develop my communication skills and given me confidence to represent the school at large events. I have also led a group bringing basketball facilities to my local area, a sport I am very passionate about, bringing an £8000 sport investment as a result of this hard work. I was also the managing director of my ‘Young Enterprise’ group of thirteen, leading us to high profits by the end of it. Work experience at PriceWaterhouseCooper and Thomson Reuters, Canary Wharf taught me about the various algorithms and theoretical ways that businesses operate effectively including auditing and risk management. Sport is a huge part of my life, playing football at premier division youth level, and for the club’s first team on occasion. I love training regularly, and being the captain of my youth team, supporting them as their goalkeeper and developing my teamwork and leadership skills. Daily reading on Bloomberg News and The Economist are helpful in knowing global and local news, but seeing how these headlines translate into economic thoughts is what often consumes my brain.