School of Social Sciences

Political Economy MA

Year of entry: 2026

Course Length: 12 months Full-Time | 24 months Part-Time

About the course

Explore the complex relationship between politics, economics, and society, empowering you to understand and shape the policies that impact the world today.

Study the interplay between politics, economics, and institutions in shaping a society's wealth, public policy, and overall dynamics.

We bring together world-class research strengths in the field, giving you specialist knowledge of how to conduct qualitative and quantitative research in a cross-disciplinary field. You will be taught by experts from across the Faculty of Humanities in the School of Social Sciences, the School of Environment and Development, and the Alliance Manchester Business School.

Seamlessly transition from master's to PhD study through a fully-funded 1+3 pathway with our prestigious ESRC North West Social Sciences Doctoral Training Partnership (NWSSDTP).

Our research route is particularly suitable if you’re thinking of progressing to PhD study. Explore our Political Economy courses:

• Political Economy (Standard Route) >

• Political Economy (Research Route) >

Join one of the UK's Top 10 universities for Politics and International Studies

(Times Higher Education Rankings 2025)

Study at one of the UK’s largest and most prestigious politics departments, situated in a uniquely political city

Graduate from one of the UK’s most targeted universities by top employers with a the skills needed for a meaningful career

(High Fliers, The Graduate Market Report 2024)

Compulsory Units

Theoretical Approaches to Political Economy;
Research Design and Skills;
Dissertation.

Optional Units

The Political Economy of Global Business;
Poverty, Inequality and Government in Less Developed Countries;
Macroeconomic Theory;
Economics of Environmental Policy;
Gender and Development;
Governing in an Unjust World: Justice and International Relations.

Compulsory and optional units vary by pathway. These are examples of units offered in 2024/25 and are subject to change.

Where will your course take you?

Today's turbulent world is in increasing need of graduates with unparalleled expertise on issues of political economy.

Our courses allow you to develop a variety of both subject-specific and transferable skills suited to a wide variety of roles, such as critical thinking, legal analysis, research, problem-solving and communication.

Most of our recent graduates have gone on to work with leading organisations such as local and central government agencies, international and supranational institutions such as the UN and the EU, think-tanks or research institutes, NGOs, consultancy firms, and more.

Many graduates also continue their research by studying a PhD in Politics, either at Manchester or at another leading university, where they expand the boundaries of our knowledge and pursue careers in research or academia.