If students hold a bachelor’s degree or equivalent, but don’t meet the entry requirements for a master’s, a Pre-Master’s can help them gain a place on a postgraduate degree. For progression to the 1st year of a postgraduate degree at the University of Essex. Course length is determined mainly by students' English language level (UKVI IELTS score).

Students on all course lengths take a set of common or similar modules to gain a solid base of skills for university. If their course is longer than 2 terms, students will take additional modules designed to improve one or more of their English language level, academic skills, and basic knowledge of particular subjects.

Master of Arts - Political Economy

Over the last three decades, political economy has been one of the fastest growing approaches in the social sciences. At the University of Essex, they are primarily interested in the scientific study of political institutions and how they might determine economic variables.

If students are interested in how institutions shape the behaviour of political actors and how political decisions influence markets and vice versa, then they will profit from this course.

Students will have a great deal of choice for their optional modules as they will be selected from both the Department of Government and Department of Economics. Essex's MA Political Economy covers all aspects of modern political economy, including: market failure, environmental policies, the quality of governance, and monetary policy choices.

All Essex politics graduates have the distinction of a qualification from one of the world’s leading politics departments. This course is a good choice for students who wish to maintain the flexibility of pursuing a career at an international organisation, a government organisation, a private enterprise or as a political consultant. Students will develop key employability skills including analytical reasoning, research, problem-solving, and essay-writing.

Recent graduates have gone on to work for the following high-profile organisations: the Civil Service, local government, the World Bank, the United Nations, NATO, YouGov and YouGov America.

Essex's academic reputation is illustrated by the fact that many of their graduates now teach or research at universities, colleges of higher education and schools. For example, recent graduates are now research fellows and academic staff at: Mannheim, Germany; ETH Zurich, Switzerland; Duke University, USA; NATO/SHAPE, Belgium; and University of Amsterdam, Netherlands.