Diploma in Applied Economics
Course Overview
The Diploma in Applied Economics at the London School of International Business and Management (LSIBM) is designed for the analyst who has moved past introductory economics and is now writing evaluation notes, running impact assessments and testing simple models in Stata, R or Python. Sitting in the Accounting, Finance & Economics faculty at Level 4, the diploma spans 9 to 12 months on-campus in central London, fully online, or by distance learning. Reading material is anchored to the HM Treasury Green Book five-case model and the OBR’s methodology handbook, so the diploma matches the working standard of a Whitehall economist.
The programme is designed around Government Economic Service assistant-plus competencies and the Society of Business Economists practitioner track. You will graduate able to run a simple regression on ONS data, write a HM Treasury Green Book compliant option appraisal, and defend a policy briefing note to a working economist. Tutors are drawn from serving Whitehall and City-consultancy economists so feedback lands in the vocabulary that graduates will actually use. The sections below detail modules, audience and progression.
Key Features
- Curriculum designed around Government Economic Service and Society of Business Economists competencies.
- Three study modes — central London campus, fully online or by distance learning.
- Fortnightly clinic hosted by a working Whitehall or consulting economist.
- Applied capstone: a Green Book option appraisal on a UK policy or commercial question.
- Structured articulation into the LSIBM Advanced Diploma in Applied Economic Analysis.
- Assessment blend of data exercises, a technical appendix and a defended briefing note.
- Structured route toward Society of Business Economists practitioner membership on completion.
- Coaching on the Government Economic Service selection process, including case-interview practice.
What You Will Learn
Applied economics is taught as the everyday craft of a UK policy or consulting economist — designing a small evaluation, running a regression, writing a defensible impact note.
- Intermediate microeconomics and macroeconomics through applied cases.
- Introductory econometrics — OLS regression, hypothesis testing, model diagnostics.
- Stata or R workflow for a small UK dataset.
- ONS release calendar, seasonal adjustment and revisions handling.
- HM Treasury Green Book five-case model and option appraisal.
- Impact assessment and simple cost-benefit analysis for UK policy.
- Public finance and tax basics — HMRC receipts, OBR forecasts.
- Sector economics — energy, transport, health or financial services.
- Writing a defensible policy briefing note in Whitehall two-page format.
- Basic difference-in-differences and matching methods for programme evaluation.
- Reading a Bank of England Monetary Policy Report and summarising it for a non-economist team.
Who This Course Is For
- Research assistants moving toward an economist stream in Whitehall or consulting.
- Data analysts asked to add econometric reasoning to their remit.
- Junior civil servants preparing for the Government Economic Service assistant-plus grade.
- Trade-association and think-tank staff writing evaluation notes.
- Career changers with a mathematics or physics background entering economics.
Career Pathways
Graduates typically move into analyst-plus roles across Whitehall, think tanks, consultancies and regulated industries. Utility regulators, competition regulators and City sector desks all recruit consistently from applied-economics candidates. Typical destinations include:
- Applied Economist (assistant)
- Policy Economist
- Impact Assessment Analyst
- Financial Analyst (economics)
- Consulting Economist (junior)
- Regulatory Economist (junior)
- Government Economic Service Assistant Economist
- Sector Research Analyst (City firm)
The diploma is the natural step onto the LSIBM Advanced Diploma in Applied Economic Analysis and supports Society of Business Economists early-career membership. Candidates often progress into a full Government Economic Service or regulator role within eighteen months.
Entry Requirements
- A relevant Certificate (Level 3) or equivalent — mature applicants with two years of professional experience are welcomed on a portfolio route. Applicants should be comfortable with quantitative material.
- GCSE English Language at grade 4/C and Mathematics at grade 4/C (or international equivalent).
- IELTS 5.5 overall (no band below 5.0) for non-native English speakers.
- A short statement of intent and one academic or professional reference.
Why Study at LSIBM
The London School of International Business and Management (LSIBM) is a specialist business-education provider based in central London and part of Harold International College. We teach in small cohorts so every student is visible to their tutor, run a single intake schedule that students can rely on, and partner with UK professional bodies — CMI, CIM, CIPD, ACCA, CIMA, CFA UK, CIPS and IOE&IT — so qualifications carry weight with employers.
London puts the City, Canary Wharf, Whitehall, Companies House, the FCA, the Bank of England and the West End within a short tube ride of every classroom. Diploma cohorts run structured cohort clinics with working practitioners — a Big-Four tax adviser, a CIM Fellow in marketing, a CIPD-chartered HR director — so students meet professional expectations well before graduation.
Apply for the Diploma in Applied Economics
Take the practitioner step with the Diploma in Applied Economics. Click Enrol Now and our admissions team will respond within one working day with intake dates, credit-transfer guidance and current fee schedule. Diploma students are eligible for direct progression to LSIBM's Advanced Diploma or Higher Diploma routes on completion.
