Study Philosophy, Politics & Economics at Cambridge

Politics, Philosophy and Economics, or PPE, is a programme founded on the belief that students will benefit greatly from studying the works of economic, social, political, and philosophical thought on a combined course. The aim of this course is to provide students with the skills they need to succeed in a variety of career paths and future academic pursuits. Students will establish a solid foundation of what studying PPE at university looks like, as well as a firm understanding of the subject itself. The PPE course will be taught by three specialist tutors throughout the programme for each of the three subjects.

During the politics module, students will explore the theory of politics as an introduction to political theory, as well as the practice of politics as an introduction to comparative government and politics overall. They will also have the opportunity to explore political analysis as an introduction to empirical and quantitative methods in politics. They will further extend this foundational knowledge of politics throughout the programme in later modules.

After an introduction to each subject, students will focus on other modules, looking in detail at British politics and government from 1900 to the modern day, exploring some of the UK’s most controversial leaders such as Thatcher, Churchill and Blair. They will study the ethics of philosophy, exploring consequentialism, liberalism, virtue ethics, moral absolutism and moral nihilism. Participants will learn about the development of the world economy, giving them the opportunity to consider issues affecting industrial countries, developing countries, and economies in transition to the market. The next module will focus on look at different world politics in comparative government, helping them understand political events and developments in different countries, concluding with a look at The Republic, a Socratic dialogue authored by Plato around 375 BC. It concerns justice, the order and character of the “just city-state”, as well as “the just man”. The Republic is Plato’s best-known work and has proven to be one of the world’s most influential works of philosophy and political theory, which is why it remains an important piece of literature to explore in relation to both politics and philosophy. By the end of this unit, students will have an understanding of this influential piece of literature, as well as its influences on past and current politics and philosophy.