What can we do about the diversity problem in economics?

Economics has a well-known diversity problem. From gender to social class, ethnicity to geographic region, the profession simply does not represent wider society – and the problem is not getting better with time.

Why is this a concern? For a start, studying economics has been shown to substantially improve students’ analytical reasoning as well as their postgraduate earnings. This means that wider access to economics could improve intergenerational social mobility. Instead, given current inequalities in access, it may be doing the opposite. This is not only bad for equality of opportunity, it is detrimental to the profession itself. Economic models are necessarily informed by the modeller’s own life experiences. If economic analyses come from a relatively homogeneous group, important perspectives will be missing and public policies will be less effective and equitable as a result.

So, how do we encourage change?

1. Communicate what economists really do

A-level economics is not offered at many state schools. Without this exposure, many students will associate economics only with money, business or finance. In reality, economists work on an extraordinarily broad range of topics (from civil conflict to vaccine hesitancy) with the potential to have a powerful impact on public policy and people’s lives.

Widening participation initiatives are one way to address this. One of the most compelling examples of such initiatives in the UK is the Discover Economics programme, led by the Royal Economic Society. In collaboration with about 30 UK research universities, the programme recruits a diverse set of talented current economics undergraduate students and sends them into secondary state schools to communicate information about the breadth of the subject and the range of career options open to economists.

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2. The role model effect

Student role models from widening participation initiatives, particularly those from underrepresented demographics (Black students and women, for example), can inspire the next generation. The benefits of this are borne out in the evidence: recent research shows that providing successful and charismatic role models can double the number of women who elect to study economics.

3. Lowering barriers to access economics degrees

In some universities, students cannot apply for an economics degree without A-level maths. This adds to the already high-stakes decisions following GCSE results and can be disadvantageous to students who don’t have access to good careers advice. Comprehensive schools have a lower uptake of A-level maths – and are less likely to offer economics A level compared with selective or private schools – which may entrench inequality and reduce social mobility.  

Changing university entry requirements to require only GCSE level qualifications in maths would go some way to alleviating the problem. If students come in with a strong enough background in basic GCSE-level maths, the experience at universities such as the University of Kent suggests that the rest of what is needed to learn economics fruitfully can be delivered by the university. This requires providing more support to students in university, but we believe it is worth it to widen access.

4. A common first year

Subject specialisation in UK universities happens early and is relatively rigid: in most cases, students must pick a single area to study, making it harder to get a taste of different subjects and limiting exposure to other important skills and disciplines. Strong writing skills, and a broad, critical understanding of society, history and science – which can be gained through exposure to other disciplines – are in fact a crucial part of being a good economist. 

This problem is also connected with the issue of diversity, because more privileged students will tend to have more exposure to different fields and better access to information about them, and they will therefore be less harmed by the early specialisation. Introducing a common first year – in the style of liberal arts colleges – in order to give all students some exposure to a variety of subjects before they choose to specialise in subsequent years could help level the playing field.

5. Increasing flexibility of provision 

For many students, caring responsibilities and financial constraints mean that moving away from their hometown or undertaking full-time study are not viable options. The bulk of economics degree provision occurs through traditional full-time degree programmes at selective institutions. But looking outside of traditional forms of provision may help attract and retain a more diverse student body. One example of this in the UK is the degree apprenticeship scheme. This part-time, distance-based degree programme combines work and study and caters to young people finishing their A levels, those with vocational qualifications and mature students making a career change – leading to a more diverse student body.

Economics is a fascinating subject to study and practise. It helps us understand how people, firms and governments make decisions, and ultimately how to make the world a better place. On top of that, it offers relatively lucrative and stable career options. It is a shame, then, that many young people do not study economics owing to modifiable factors such as inequalities in information, plus financial, social and institutional barriers to access. While there is no silver bullet solution, there are some things that should be implemented, and many more that should be tried out and evaluated (see here for more suggestions), in order to address this problem in the interests of the new generation of economists and society as a whole.

Amrit Amirapu and Amanda Gosling are senior lecturers in economics at the University of Kent, UK.

Emma Gorman is a senior research fellow at the University of Westminster, UK.

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