What is a Philosophy, Politics, and Economics Major?

The Philosophy, Politics, and Economics major, which is commonly referred to as “PPE,” is an up and coming major at a few schools including UPenn, Michigan, and Pomona. We often hear schools say that their curriculum lends itself nicely to interdisciplinary studies, but the PPE major takes a truly interdisciplinary approach by packaging the best aspects of several majors into one program.  

Penn’s website puts it best: “A good PPE student should be able to look at the world through different disciplinary windows – including economics, psychology and ethics – so that they can better understand how political and economic systems shape human welfare.”  

In addition to gaining an understanding of how each of these disciplines operate separately, studying PPE teaches students how to approach modern societal problems in a way that accounts for the ethical, political, and economic forces at play.  We looked through the curriculums of the schools we mentioned before and the results were incredibly interesting. If PPE is starting to sound appealing to you, you might consider looking into these courses:  

  1. PPE 313 / PSYC 265: Behavioral Economics and Psychology (Penn)

  2. PPE 402-302: Research in PPE: Social Mobility and Inequality (Penn)

  3. PPE 470: Social Policy – Philosophy and Public Policy (Penn)

  4. PHILO35 PO: Well Being and Autonomy (Pomona)

  5. PHIL033 PO: Political Philosophy (Pomona)

Generally speaking, PPE is a path to consider for students interested in:

  • Refining your reasoning skills

  • Decision making

  • Thinking critically about the links between values and institutions

  • Learning about political systems and how the government works

  • Diving into broad economic systems

  • Formulating arguments about the wellbeing of society as a whole

PPE is also a great fit for students who are having a hard time deciding between majoring in Political Science and Economics. As a standalone, Philosophy tends to be a less popular major, but when paired with Politics and Economics, students can use their knowledge of the field to inform decisions regarding the economy and the political institutions that govern countries. 

PPE is not a mainstream major just yet, but most of the schools that currently offer the program allow for concentrations. At Penn, you’ll choose between the following: Choice and Behavior, Globalization, Public Policy and Governance, Distributive Justice, and Ethics and the Professions. There is a sliding scale of flexibility, so if you’d like to learn more about the major, we suggest starting with the links included above and getting a feel for the programs themselves.

 

If you need help figuring out what you want to study, contact us here. We love helping our clients find their passions.