Economics Hot Topics for Personal Statement and Oxbridge Interview Preparation

Economics
Written By Camille Goodman

In order to really impress with future university applications, it is crucial you explore beyond the confines of your curricula. With so many different potential areas to explore, it might seem impossible to know where to start. We are here to help! This digest is centred around three hot topics in Economics today to stimulate wider reading and get you thinking ahead of applications and university interviews (particularly for Oxbridge Economics).

3 Hot Economics Topics to Kickstart Your Exploration

These are a few example key topics and debates economists are thinking about at the moment. Undertake your own research and try to add to the list! This will be extremely useful ahead of writing your Economics personal statement and when preparing for Oxford or Cambridge Economics interviews. We have included a range of thinking points and questions similar to potential Oxbridge Economics interview questions.

economics reading list

1) The Global Economy & Immigration:

For the past 300 years, the national economies of the world have been increasing in their levels of integration. In particular, there has been an increase in the flow of capital, labour and trade flows across borders. During the past half-century, this increasing interconnectedness has accelerated at an unprecedented rate. For example: The share of global GDP accounted for by exports of goods and services has risen from 12% in 1960 to almost 30% now. This increasing shift, has led Harvard economist Dani Rodrik to the conclusion that we are now in a period of ‘hyperglobalisation’.

Alongside the increasing economic inter-connectedness of people across borders, some have concluded that there is a decreasing importance of national borders in the global political economy.

Ethical Thought Experiment

  • An argument was made by Joseph Carens, drawing parallels between closed border policies and the Feudal class system.

  • During the Feudal era, wealth, income, and political power were concentrated in the hands of a few families. There was significant inequality between the upper classes and those who worked their land. Furthermore, marriage between the classes was not permitted.

  • In the present era, wealth, income and political power are concentrated in the developed world. Stark inequalities remain between the developed world and the developing world. Borders prevent those from poorer countries coming to richer nations.

  • Is it just, that borders perpetuate inequalities that most people alive today have not had any control over?

oxford economics interview questions

Resources

2) Behavioural Economics:

Behavioural economics sits at the intersection of economics and psychology, seeking to explain why people in real life do not act as our economic models might predict. This is generally beyond the curriculum of most schools’ economics syllabus, in addition to being a topic that is increasingly being debated in academic literature. Demonstrating interest in topics such as these would show interest beyond the subject and show depth and academic potential to supervisors in the personal statement.

There are a number of behavioural biases that can lead people to acting irrationally, from anchoring to myopia to inertia. Through ‘nudges’ , behavioural economics can be used to create government policies, as has been done by the DWP in its auto-enrolment scheme for private pensions. If you may be interested in this topic, we have a range of recommendations:

Resources:

Book Recommendation:

Ted Talks:

https://www.ted.com/talks?topics%5B%5D=behavioral+economics

oxbridge economics

3) Climate Change:

We are already well beyond the point where we could prevent climate change from inflicting catastrophic harm on human life. So why haven’t we done more about it?!

Some Economic Reasons:

  • The present global economic system is completely dependent on technologies which involve significant greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs).

  • Billions of different goods require the emission of carbon and other gasses in their extraction, production, shipping, marketing, and sales.

  • The movement of people across borders requires transport systems which are heavily reliant on GHG emitting activities.

  • If we enacted a law, requiring no GHG emissions as of tomorrow, the entire global economic system would collapse.

Carbon Lock-in:

  • The reason why the global economic system would collapse is because you cannot shift from one energy system to another, just like that. The reason why this is the case is because of a process called carbon lock-in.

  • The rationale behind the process is this: once everybody starts using a technology, an entire technological infrastructure builds around that technology. This infrastructure cannot just be replaced overnight.

  • Example: we have the ability to make electric cars. But, we haven’t had as long to develop our resource extraction techniques, to research ways to increase the efficiency of car batteries. We don’t have the same electric charging infrastructure that we do for cars.

Our response?

An adequate response to climate change requires a systemic shift in the global economy away from a carbon-based energy system towards a carbon-neutral energy system.

To what extent should the government intervene?

Thinking Points:

  • For many, the requirement for systemic change calls for state intervention. What are some examples of things that only the state has the sufficient capabilities to do? E.g.

    • Tax carbon-emitting economic activities and subsidise newly developing industries

    • Ban some carbon emitting activities

    • Fund large scale education on climate change

    • Fund education programs aimed to develop new low carbon technologies

  • What can private businesses do?

  • Looking beyond states and companies? Are there other organisations that can assist in the transition to a low-carbon economy? What will the effects of Covid-19 be?

Resources

Join our Economics Summer School or Take 1-1 Application Sessions (Personal Statement, Test & Interview Preparation)

  • Our Online Economics Summer School runs yearly. Each class is hosted by a subject expert, all Oxbridge-graduates, and experienced university application mentors. The sessions should be great for providing content for personal statements / interviews and are highly interactive

  • We also offer university application support via U2 Tuition (personal statement, test and interview prep (including mock interview days) with our Oxbridge/ top UK University graduate tutors), all details here

Camille Goodman
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