Economic history as wider reading for Oxford history application?

[lurchersforever]

DS has decided to apply to do history at Oxford. He is in Y12 and has been researching the process. There is limited support from his school, which is a decent state school but sends the odd student every couple of years or so, though they tend to have around 10 applying each year.

DS has been passionate about history pretty much all his life, but his specific areas of interest change. He is aware that he needs to show interest in the subject beyond the GCSE and A level syllabi and has recently become more interested in economic history and the emergence of capitalism in different countries. His school doesn't have much of a library and so he has been buying books on that topic (they aren't cheap...). However, he has now realised economic history is a separate degree at Oxford (and one for which A level maths is recommended, which he won't have).

He's now worried that the reading he's doing, and the genuine interest he does have, are not relevant. Any insights or advice would be great. We have no experience to draw on, school support is encouraging but not really informative and we don't qualify for any of the out-reach stuff, so we do feel quite clueless.

[titchy]

Nothing to add on the subject I'm afraid - but just wanted to mention that your local (or nearest!) library will be able to arrange to borrow books from larger libraries which would save you lining Amazon's pockets.

[clary]

If you have a local university you may be able to arrange to at least go and read there as well - I know DD used our local uni for Eng lit secondary source reading when she was taking A level (this was set up through school IIRC).

Sorry no thoughts on your main qu either!

[Penguinsa]

It will be fine having an interest in that area of history though if he prefers to read History and Economics recommended doesn't mean its essential to have Maths - you could do the course which is half history, half economics and chose the less mathematical economics options. There's also PPE - maybe visit Oxford and go to subject talks or look at their websites. And check out the entry tests. The interviews aren't about what you know but more about how you learn and think but history is quite good for that, looking at things from different viewpoints.

[BiancaBlank]

Economic history is not a separate degree at Oxford. There’s History and Economics joint honours, but he doesn’t have to apply for that!

DD has an offer for history for this year. Her area of interest is medieval history, so she read a few books round that (nothing high-falluting) and wrote about them on her personal statement. A mate of hers got an offer from a different college and his interest is 19th-century Russia. I don’t see why economic history would be any different. I think it's not so much what he reads, as that he has something interesting to say about it.

[Greenbike]

It’ll be fine. I went to this university, did this course. Tell him to read some political and social history books on a period and place he’s already read about, and then on his personal statement he can talk about the interactions of the economic, political and social forces in that period. They’ll love it.

Make sure at interview he doesn’t announce he mostly wants to do economic history if the person interviewing him specialises in something else though. He can keep that quiet until choosing papers for his second year.

[lurchersforever]

Thank you so much everyone.

Having checked, I can see it is indeed joint honours. He's usually very reliable but it seems he has got the wrong idea there and started catastrophising!

@Greenbike That's really reassuring and helpful - I think he's well on his way with doing that but just got horror-struck last night for some reason. I'll pass on your advice.

[SarahAndQuack]

Make sure at interview he doesn’t announce he mostly wants to do economic history if the person interviewing him specialises in something else though. He can keep that quiet until choosing papers for his second year.

I disagree with this. If he is interested in economic history he should discuss that. His interviewer might be passionate about medieval cookery or Stalinist gender politics, but s/he will be perfectly capable of discussing other things, and it won't look good to be sycophantic and pretend an interest in something.

[Dearover]

Take a look at the OUP "A Very Short Introduction To..." There is one on Economic History alongside many others on different periods of history. DD was given some of these when she went on UNIQ.

She ended up taking modules in the economics of the developing world alongside historians and economists. There is lots of scope to follow your interests (which will evolve) once you get there. Her own PS focused on China.

[Octavia64]

Absolutely is relevant.

The development of capitalism is a major theme in European history over the last few hundred years and although it is possible to specialise in economic history that's the kind of familiarity with broad developments in history which is important.

He might be interested in I think it is Max Weber on the Protestant work ethic and capitalism.

A more recent book that he might like is why nations fail which is kind of looking the other way round at the influence of politics of a country on its capitalist development.

https://www.wob.com/en-gb/books/daron-acemoglu/why-nations-fail/9781846684302?cqsrc=googleeads&cqcmp=19884734874&cqqcon=&cqmed=pla&cqqplac=&cqnet=x&gaddsource=1&gbraid=0AAAAADZzAIBw1PqpIMxviJGnBbjFaQBgp&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIpsffkeWXhQMVfJFQBh1QcgAXEAQYASABEgKgEvD_BwE#GOR005306805

[sakura06]

I would advise he keeps reading about topics of interest to him. Agree with others that local libraries are your friend here! A lot of books should also be cheaper second hand. Also, reading essays or books on historiography is useful e.g. 'What is History Now?' by Helen Carr; 'The Uses and Abuses of History' by Margaret Macmillan. I was a huge fan of A. J. P Taylor's essays at the same age but he tends to focus on political history.

[TizerorFizz]

@lurchersforever I would also see if you can get practice papers for HAT. Oxford says they are changing arrangements for taking the test but I would read up about the test because getting a good mark on it is vital or dc won’t get an interview.