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Higher education

Talk to other parents whose children are preparing for university on our Higher Education forum.

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Original poster

Tell me about Oxbridge PPE

11 replies

Theas18 · 15/10/2014 09:18

15yr old good all rounder has no idea what she'd like to do. DS mentioned this as a possibility.

DS always clear he wanted sciences. DD1 always clear it was history. DD2 so uncertain it's untrue! She'll likely follow her elder sis as she sees history as a fun/interesting option just because she knows a bit about what it can offer rather than it being " the right thing" .

All I know is it seems to be what politicians do and she wouldn't want that..but then i read it's here there is stats and al sorts involved- that'd suit her.

Can anyone give me the " what is it really" and " where does it lead"?

OP posts:

marfisa · 15/10/2014 23:35

PPE is a course offered by Oxford, not Cambridge. Have a browse around the degree webpage:
www.ppe.ox.ac.uk/

You don't have to go on to be a politician, no. Have a look at
www.ppe.ox.ac.uk/index.php/a-future-with-ppe

The Wikipedia entry on PPE is also interesting:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosophy,_Politics_and_Economics

Good luck to your DD whatever she decides to do!

joanofarchitrave · 15/10/2014 23:41

Sounds like she should also look at HSPS at Cambridge here

What would she particularly like about all the individual elements? I know someone who read Physics and Philosophy at Oxford and it's a fairly mind-expanding degree though they found the physics extremely challenging at that level.

Molio · 16/10/2014 00:01

DD2's boyfriend teaches it at Oxford. He's crazily bright. It's not a soft option.

It's also not an option at all at Cambridge. Plus, some politicians may have read PPE at Oxford but by no means all and I daresay not the majority, by a long stretch. And does your DD even want to go into politics?

Also, she's only 15! No-one needs a set career path at 15!

Molio · 16/10/2014 00:04

Sorry, just seen you don't think politics is her thing. So maybe not spend her first year doing politics even if she can drop it after that............?

Original poster

Theas18 · 16/10/2014 11:17

I think " politics is not her thing" maybe just because she knows nothing about it apart from the career high profile stuff on tv and that's not her. Unfortunately she does have to at least formulate some sort of broad career choices now - for instance the science/ arts divide needs to be broached as she needs to choose AS options before GCSE results.

She just seems to be able to ace what ever she does. Predicted all A* etc so guiding her us difficult. She'd manage almost anything academically but finding out what she'd love - tricky!

Just looking at HSPS. What an amazing course ! This is just the sort of thing I need to point her towards - the broader courses that don't slot into easy school equivalent niches. The eldest made a slight error really because she didn't think beyond school " labels " far enough - started a history/ancient history degree when really her passion was ancient history/ classics . She slid across for year 2 and never looked back (now doing MA and chasing PhD funding).

OP posts:

Pumpkin14 · 19/10/2014 10:10

PPE is a broad-based course, including Politics and Economics, and isn't just for people who want to go into Politics. I have friends who followed it by doing a PhD in Economics and are teaching the subject at University. Others, followed it by work in investment banks, and also accountancy. So, the possibilities are numerous. But, do look at the subject requirements, as I believe that Maths A/AS level is required to apply.

Original poster

Theas18 · 19/10/2014 10:22

Well had a Long chat last night.

She's liking the sound of these more small print varied courses a lot and is going to get researching. She was definitely thinking of carrying on maths and isn't daunted by it so that's good.

OP posts:

joanofarchitrave · 19/10/2014 22:45

I also think she should look at Geography. I don't know huge amounts about it but I know that it includes most things you can think of. Look at the variety in research between, say, a physical geographer and a human geographer.

MillyMollyMama · 19/10/2014 23:28

PPE at Oxford is one of the most competitive courses to get into at the University. DD has a friend who has just finished it and he was seriously brilliant. The workload is fierce and graduates are some of the most sought after. I would try and attend a subject open day at Oxford for PPE and also try and find out the academic profile of the typical student. DDs friend attended a top public school and had 5 A levels at 17. Some courses at Oxford give a lot of detail about the type of person they are looking for and the percentage of applicants that get a place. It is statistically far easier to get a place to read MFL by the way!

YonicScrewdriver · 19/10/2014 23:36

If someone is ambivalent between sciences and arts, I think sciences leave more doors open.

Maddaddam · 20/10/2014 21:36

Can I put in a plug for the social sciences if she's ambivalent between sciences and arts? I was torn between humanities, languages and sciences at that age and was going to apply for PPE - but then I did the lesser-known PPP (philosophy, psychology, physiology) - also an Oxford course. These days it's turned into PPL (psychology, philosophy, linguistics). The social sciences - anthropology, linguistics, sociology, psychology can be a really nice mix of science and other subjects.

There's also Human Sciences at Oxford which is an interesting mixed course (lots of genetics and bits and bobs of science, social science, this and that).

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