What our students say

Jiayi Zhang and Hanzhen Zhi from China, 2018-19, MSc Global Economy

'Global economy is a discipline that emerged from the trend of the times. Today, the world is gradually becoming an entirety. It is important to know where today’s world comes from and to know its future direction, which helps students with their future outlook and employment choices. Learning about the global economy is a very diverse and challenging experience. The curriculum covers all aspects of the global economy and provides a comprehensive and in-depth explanation of it. Before I came into contact with this discipline, I only narrowly understood the performance of the global economy such as multinational corporations and exchange rates. But learning more about the subject made me realise that the scope of globalisation is so wide. It includes the development of globalisation, its origins, and other aspects such as technology, labour, international organisations, government functions, and international relations. Therefore, since you only take three courses per semester, it is not easy to fully grasp the subejct in its entirey. This programme is not a business degree. It does not specialise in business strategy such as finance or investment. It is not an economics degree either, but it covers some economic theories without complicated calculations.

Similar to other social science and humanities degrees, each course in this programme requires a large amount of reading after class to gain an understanding of what you have learned in class. The programme also includes a variety of optional courses. One of the courses I chose, Globalisation and labour, explores the migration and survival of the global workforce. Before the class, the students will do assigned reading to understand the content to be discussed in this class, which also helps to speed up the digesting of what the teacher has said in class. There will be group discussions and teacher's explanations in class, which allows for many different viewpoints to be heard.

The University of Glasgow and the School of Social & Political Sciences also offer a wide range of opportunities for Global Economy students. We are fortunate to have a three-week exchange opportunity with Kyoto University in Japan; where we will discuss our graduation thesis with Japanese professors and look at issues related to globalisation from a non-Western perspective. In addition, scholars from all over the world often visit the University and give guest lectures. These events enable students to be exposed to the most advanced academic developments without being constrained by what they have learned in class. At the same time, the process of communicating and getting along with students from all over the world is also a very important part of learning. Overall, Global Economy is a very interesting programme and the professors are very knowledgeable. My classmates and I are very happy to have chosen it.'

 

   Alexandra Damianlieva 2018-19, MSc Global Economy

Undertaking the Global Economy degree at the University of Glasgow has been the best decision I have made. The degree was very informative and well structured. The staff were incredible, every lecturer was passionate about what they taught which transferred to us. I came to Glasgow with a set idea about my dissertation but changed it for a subject that I was taught about in class so enthusiastically. The University really tried its best to make our experience as great as possible by frequent student-staff liaisons and embracing student input and feedback.

Glasgow itself has become a second home that I miss every day, now that I have moved on to my first job abroad. I will hold the memories I have made here dear to my heart and am happy to have met such a diverse group of people in my degree.