Exam Board – AQA

Qualification – A Level 7136

Entry requirements – 5 GCSEs at grades 9-4, including a grade 5 in English and a grade 4 in maths

“I got into economics because I wanted to make things better for the average person.”
–  Ben Bernanke

Course specification

Economics has become high profile. The credit crunch, bankers’ bonuses and fears of a Euro meltdown post-Brexit are just three topics rarely out of the news in recent years, throwing a light on the importance of, and divisions within, the discipline. Economics is an important subject as it is looked on favourably by employees for the transferable skills it provides such as analysis and evaluation. The topics studied are both interesting and enjoyed by students due to the dynamic nature of the course.

Syllabus content:

  • microeconomics, the operation of markets and market failure – this looks at the economic problem, price determination in a competitive market, production costs and revenue, competitive and concentrated markets, the market mechanism, market failure and government intervention in
    markets
  • macroeconomics, the national economy – this considers macroeconomic performance, how the macro economy works, the circular flow of income, AD/AS analysis and related concepts, economic performance, macroeconomic policy
  • individuals, firms, markets and market failure – this looks at individual economic decision making, perfect competition, imperfectly competitive markets and monopoly, the labour market, the distribution of income and wealth, poverty and inequality
  • macroeconomics, the national and international economy – this considers financial markets and monetary policy, fiscal policy and supply-side policies, the international economy

Assessment will be undertaken through formal examinations.

What doors does this open up for me?

This course gives a good foundation for higher education or employment opportunities in the business and finance sector. However, the skills of analysis and evaluation developed during the course will be valuable for any future routes.

Learning journey

Our learning journeys can be used to understand each subject in more detail.

Economics