1

PPE HANDBOOK

PRELIMS

2016-17

Statement of Coverage This handbook applies to students starting the first year of PPE in Michaelmas term 2016. The

information in this handbook may be different for students starting in other years.

Version Version Details Date

Version 1.0 2016 handbook published Friday 23 September 2016

Disclaimer The Examination Regulations relating to the PPE Preliminary Examination 2016-17 are

available at http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/examregs/2016-17/peip-poliandecon/studentview/.

If there is a conflict between information in this handbook and the Examination Regulations

then you should follow the Examination Regulations. If you have any concerns please

contact the PPE Administrator, Violet Brand (violet.brand@politics.ox.ac.uk).

The information in this handbook is accurate as at September 2016, however it may be

necessary for changes to be made in certain circumstances as explained at

www.ox.ac.uk/coursechanges. If such changes are made a new version of the handbook will

be published together with a list of the changes and students will be informed.

The handbook (and any later versions) can be downloaded at: https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/por-

tal/hierarchy/socsci/xsocsci/ppe/page/home.

Welcome As outgoing Chair of the PPE Committee it falls to me to welcome you to PPE at Oxford. I

have been a PPE tutor (in Philosophy) here in Oxford for more than 25 years. Over that period

2

of time I have seen many changes. But the changes have taken place against the background

of a strong and successful degree that has been in existence in Oxford for just short of 100

years. The course balances the empirical with the theoretical, and the practical with the ab-

stract. Many students are drawn to one of the subjects when they apply only to find that it is

another that ultimately interests them by the end of three years. PPE is no doubt a challenging

degree, but the end result is a well-rounded intellect ready to face the future with an informed

and questioning mind. I very much hope you enjoy the next 3 years studying PPE.

Dr Anita Avramides Reader in Philosophy in the Faculty of Philosophy and

Southover Manor Trust Fellow in Philosophy at

St Hilda’s College, Oxford

Purpose of the Handbook This handbook covers the Preliminary Examination in Philosophy, Politics and Economics,

the first year of the degree. The handbook contains essential information about the Faculty of

Philosophy, the Department of Politics and International Relations, and the Department of

Economics (hereafter ‘the Departments’), and about the course; you will need to refer to it on

a regular basis throughout the year.

There is a separate handbook covering the second and third years of the degree which will be

published when you enter the second year; please see PPE WebLearn (https://web-

learn.ox.ac.uk/portal/site/:socsci:xsocsci:ppe/page/home) for a sample version.

3

Key Sources of Information

Source Information Where

Department Websites For information on the activi-

ties of the three Departments.

See ‘Important Information’ page

overleaf.

PPE WebLearn and

Department Web-

Learn

For lecture lists, reading lists

and other course materials;

also for information about ex-

ams.

See ‘Important Information’ page

overleaf.

Examination Regula-

tions

Contain the Regulations for

PPE Prelims (first year exams)

and Finals (final year exams)

as well as general regulations

on examinations.

http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/ex-

amregs/

Examination Conven-

tions

The formal record of the spe-

cific assessment standards for

the course or courses to which

they apply. They set out how

examined work will be

marked and how the resulting

marks will be used to arrive at

a final result and classification

of an award.

To be published in Hilary Term of

the year of your examination.

Sample conventions from previ-

ous years in Appendix I.

Oxford Students’

Website

Provides access to infor-

mation, services and resources

to help you get the most out of

your university experience.

https://www.ox.ac.uk/students

Student Handbook Provides general information

and guidance to help you to

make the most of the opportu-

nities on offer at the Univer-

sity of Oxford. It also gives

you formal notification and

explanation of the University’s

codes, regulations, policies

and procedures.

https://www.ox.ac.uk/stu-

dents/academic/student-hand-

book

College Handbooks College regulations and other

helpful information.

See your college website

4

Important Information

Email: It is essential that you use email. It will be used to send you important information

about your course. Please check your email regularly, and do not exceed your user

allocation as this will prevent you from receiving new messages. The IT support staff in your

college will set up an email account for you.

Course Information: PPE WebLearn holds information about the course as a whole, includ-

ing the online version of this handbook and the current PPE Lecture List. PPE WebLearn is

at: https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/hierarchy/socsci/xsocsci/ppe/page/home. You will need

to use your Single Sign On (SSO) username and password to obtain access. For more de-

tailed information about current teaching arrangements you will need to use the depart-

mental websites:

www.philosophy.ox.ac.uk

www.politics.ox.ac.uk

www.economics.ox.ac.uk

And the departmental WebLearn sites:

Philosophy https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/site/:humdiv:philfac

Politics https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/site/:socsci:politics:students:undergraduat

Economics https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/site/:socsci:econ:curr_student:undergrad

Lecture lists are published on the websites before the start of each term. They may be

updated during term, so you should check them regularly.

Reading lists are available on the departmental WebLearn/web sites.

Induction: On Friday Week 0 of Michaelmas term, incoming PPE students are invited to an

induction session in the Lecture Theatre, Manor Road Building. Please make sure to attend.

The three Directors of Undergraduate Studies for Philosophy, Politics and Economics give

ten minute talks covering:

i. an introduction to the relevant academic office holders;

ii. a review of the course structure;

iii. guidance on the location of supplementary course materials;

iv. an outline of student participation mechanisms; and

v. other useful tips.

5

Contents

Statement of Coverage ........................................................................................................................ 1

Version ................................................................................................................................................... 1

Disclaimer ............................................................................................................................................. 1

Welcome ................................................................................................................................................ 1

Purpose of the Handbook ................................................................................................................... 2

Key Sources of Information ................................................................................................................ 3

Important Information ........................................................................................................................ 4

Contents ................................................................................................................................................. 5

PART A - THE COURSE...................................................................................................... 7

1. PPE ................................................................................................................................. 7

2. Teaching and Learning ................................................................................................ 14

3. Assessment and examinations...................................................................................... 18

4. Changing your course .................................................................................................. 26

5. Departments and Facilities ........................................................................................... 27

6. Libraries and Computing ............................................................................................. 30

7. Data Protection............................................................................................................. 35

PART B - STUDENT ISSUES ............................................................................................ 40

8. Participation ................................................................................................................. 40

9. Student Support ............................................................................................................ 42

10. The Future .................................................................................................................. 46

APPENDICES ..................................................................................................................................... 49

APPENDIX A: Outline of Papers ........................................................................................ 49

A.1 The Preliminary Examination ................................................................................... 49

A.2 The Final Honour School .......................................................................................... 51

6

APPENDIX B: Examination Regulations ........................................................................... 59

APPENDIX C: Complaints and Academic Appeals ........................................................... 59

APPENDIX D: Key Contacts .............................................................................................. 60

APPENDIX E: Policies and Regulations ............................................................................. 61

APPENDIX F: Policy on the recording of lectures and other formal teaching sessions by

students ................................................................................................................................ 61

APPENDIX G: Fieldwork Safety and Training................................................................... 63

APPENDIX H: Declaration of Authorship .......................................................................... 64

APPENDIX I: Examination Conventions ............................................................................ 64

I.1 The Preliminary Examination Conventions ............................................................... 64

I.2 The Final Examination Conventions .......................................................................... 69

APPENDIX J: Advice on answering “gobbets” or commentary questions in Philosophy .. 74

APPENDIX K: Philosophy marking descriptors ................................................................. 75

APPENDIX L: Marking Criteria for Questions in Politics ................................................. 75

APPENDIX M: Marking Criteria for Economics ................................................................ 77

M.1 Marking Criteria for Problem-Solving Questions in Economics ............................. 77

M.2 Marking Criteria for Essay Questions in Economics ............................................... 78

M.3 Marking Criteria for a Thesis in Economics ............................................................ 81

APPENDIX N: Oxford Q-Step Centre ................................................................................ 82

APPENDIX O: Key dates .................................................................................................... 82

7

PART A - THE COURSE

1. PPE

1.1 PPE: the degree PPE seeks to bring together some of the most important approaches to understanding the

social and human world. It fosters intellectual capacities that you can apply across all three

disciplines and develops skills that you will find useful for a wide range of careers and activ-

ities after graduation. The degree is constructed on the belief that the parallel study of related

disciplines significantly enhances your understanding of each discipline, bringing added di-

mensions of understanding and perspective. The study of Philosophy develops analytical rig-

our and the ability to criticise and reason logically. It allows you to apply these skills to many

contemporary and historical schools of philosophical thought and to questions concerning

how we acquire knowledge and how we make ethical recommendations. The study of Politics

gives you an understanding of the issues dividing societies and of the impact of political in-

stitutions on the form of social interest articulation and aggregation and on the character and

effects of government policies. Among the big issues considered in Politics is why democra-

cies emerge and may be consolidated or why states go to war or seek peace. The study of

Economics aims to give you an understanding of the workings of contemporary economies.

This includes the study of decisions of households, the behaviour of firms, and the functioning

of markets under competition and monopoly, as well as the role of government policies in

many areas. The course also looks at the determination of national income and employment,

monetary institutions, inflation, the balance of payments and exchange rates, and considers

issues in macroeconomic policy, focusing in part on the UK economy.

In addition to the above, you should note that the UK Quality Assurance Agency (the inde-

pendent body responsible for monitoring, and advising on, standards and quality in UK

higher education) publishes Subject Benchmark Statements which set out expectations about

standards of degrees in a range of subject areas. They describe what gives a discipline its co-

herence and identity, and define what can be expected of a graduate in terms of the abilities

and skills needed to develop understanding or competence in the subject. The relevant state-

ments for PPE can be found at:

Philosophy: http://www.qaa.ac.uk/en/Publications/Documents/SBS-philosophy-15.pdf

Politics: http://www.qaa.ac.uk/en/Publications/Documents/SBS-politics-15.pdf

Economics: http://www.qaa.ac.uk/en/Publications/Documents/SBS-Economics-15.pdf

After successfully completing the PPE programme, which lasts three years, you will be

awarded a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (FHEQ Level 6).

1.2 PPE: course aims The programme aims to enable its students to:

8

- acquire a good knowledge and understanding of the academic disciplines of Philosophy,

Politics and Economics;

- engage and enhance their critical and analytical skills, to look for underlying principles, and

to identify and analyse key concepts;

- develop the skill of independent thinking, good writing skills, a facility for independent

learning and investigation and effective organisational skills;

- develop their ability to present their own critical understanding of the issues studied to tu-

tors and peers, and to engage in dialogue with them;

- develop the ability to analyse topics in Philosophy, Politics and Economics on the basis of

directed and independent reading, and to produce good quality essays and class assignments

to deadline;

- promote skills of relevance to the continued professional development of philosophical un-

derstanding, and political and economic analysis, and which are transferable to a wide range

of employment contexts and life experiences.

1.3 PPE: intended learning outcomes You will develop knowledge and understanding of:

- Philosophy: Selected philosophical texts and basic philosophical issues, concepts, theories

and arguments, and the elementary techniques of formal logic.

- Politics: Key areas of the discipline, including empirical politics and political theory, as well

as sociology and international relations.

- Economics: the basic principles of modern Economics, including appropriate mathematical

techniques.

You will also develop knowledge and understanding, at a higher level, of at least two of the

following:

- Philosophy: a higher-level knowledge and understanding of central philosophical texts of

different ages and/or traditions, and of the interpretative controversies that surround them,

and a deeper knowledge and understanding of philosophical issues, concepts, theories and

arguments, and their application to a wide variety of different problems.

- Politics: a higher-level knowledge and understanding of the philosophical, theoretical, insti-

tutional, issue-based and methodological approaches to Politics and International Relations

based on comparative study of societies, and higher level knowledge of some of the principal

sub-areas of the discipline, different methods of data analysis, and the issues currently at the

frontiers of debate and research.

- Economics: a higher-level knowledge and understanding of the principles of modern Eco-

nomics, including appropriate mathematical and statistical techniques, a knowledge and ap-

preciation of economic data and of the applications of economic principles and reasoning to a

variety of applied topics.

In addition, you will acquire and develop a particular set of intellectual, practical and trans-

ferable skills:

- Intellectual skills: the ability to gather, organise and deploy evidence, data and information

from a wide variety of secondary and some primary sources; interpret such material with

sensitivity to context; identify precisely the underlying issues in a wide variety of academic

9

debates, and to distinguish relevant and irrelevant considerations; recognise the logical struc-

ture of an argument, and assess its validity, to assess critically the arguments presented by

others, and by oneself, and to identify methodological errors, rhetorical devices, unexamined

conventional wisdom, unnoticed assumptions, vagueness and superficiality; construct and

articulate sound arguments with clarity and precision; engage in debate with others, to for-

mulate and consider the best arguments for different views and to identify the weakest ele-

ments of the most persuasive views.

- Practical skills: the ability to listen attentively to complex presentations and identify the

structure of the arguments presented; read with care a wide variety of written academic liter-

ature, and reflect clearly and critically on what is read; marshal a complex body of information

in the form of essays, and to write well for a variety of audiences and in a variety of contexts;

engage in oral discussion and argument with others, in a way that advances understanding

of the problems at issue and the appropriate approaches and solutions to them.

- Transferable skills: the ability to find information, organise and deploy it; draw on such

information, and thinking creatively, self-critically and independently, to consider and solve

complex problems; apply the techniques and skills of philosophical argument to practical

questions, including those arising in ethics and political life; apply concepts, theories and

methods used in the study of Politics to the analysis of political ideas, institutions practices

and issues; make strategic decisions with a sophisticated appreciation of the importance of

costs, opportunities, expectations, outcomes, information and motivation; motivate oneself,

to work well independently, with a strong sense of initiative and self-direction, and also with

the ability to work constructively in co-operation with others; communicate effectively and

fluently in speech and writing; plan and organise the use of time effectively; where relevant,

make appropriate use of numerical, statistical and computing skills.

1.4 PPE: the structure of the course The PPE degree is divided into two parts. The first year is designed to give you a foundation

in all three branches. In your second and third years, you may continue with all three or con-

centrate on just two. Whether or not your choice of subjects includes any of the specially de-

signed bridge papers, such as Theory of Politics, Labour Economics, or Philosophy of Science

and Social Science, your study in each subject will benefit from what you have learned and

the skills you have acquired in other parts of the degree.

Year 1

Introduction to Philosophy Introduction to the Theory

and Practice of Politics

Introductory Economics

Examination: PPE Prelims

Years 2 and 3

Philosophy and Pol-

itics

Philosophy and

Economics

Politics and Eco-

nomics

Philosophy, Politics

and Economics

Compulsory Core Compulsory Core Compulsory Core

Politics: two of 201,

202, 203, 214, 220

Compulsory Core

10

Philosophy: 103

plus one of 101, 102,

115, 116

Politics: two of 201,

202, 203, 214, 220

Philosophy: 103

plus one of 101, 102,

115, 116

Economics: 300, 301,

302

Economics: 300, 301,

302

Philosophy: 103

plus one of 101, 102,

115, 116

Politics: two of 201,

202, 203, 214, 220

Economics: two of

300, 301, 302

Optional

Four subjects cho-

sen from those

listed under Philos-

ophy and Politics.

At least one must be

a subject in Philoso-

phy; at least one

must be a subject in

Politics (other than

a thesis/supervised

dissertation); and

certain combina-

tions may not be of-

fered.

Optional

Three subjects cho-

sen from those

listed under Philos-

ophy and Econom-

ics. At least one

must be a subject in

Philosophy; one but

only one may be a

subject in Politics

(see permitted list in

Exam Regulations);

and certain combi-

nations may not be

offered.

Optional

Three subjects cho-

sen from those

listed under Politics

and Economics. At

least one must be a

further subject in

Politics (other than

a thesis/supervised

dissertation); one

but only one may be

a subject in Philoso-

phy; and certain

combinations of

subjects may not be

offered.

Optional

Two subjects (if any

subjects in Econom-

ics are chosen, you

must include the

third core subject)

Certain combina-

tions of subjects

may not be offered.

Examination: PPE Finals

Numbers in the above table refer to particular papers – see Appendix A.

The syllabus is set by the University, which grants degrees and therefore examines for them;

but most teaching, apart from lectures and some classes, is arranged by your college. The PPE

syllabus prescribes the subjects for two University examinations: the Preliminary Examination

for Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE Prelims), normally taken at the end of your first

year; and the Final Honour School (FHS) of Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE Finals),

normally taken at the end of your third year. Prelims consist of three subjects, Finals of eight.

Each subject is normally examined in one three-hour paper, except that one subject in Finals

may be a pre-submitted thesis, or a supervised dissertation in Politics. All syllabuses are pub-

lished annually in the University’s Examination Regulations, to which this handbook will fre-

quently refer. The Regulations that apply to you for Prelims are those published when you

enter the first year (i.e. the Regulations 2016-17). The Regulations that apply to you for Finals

are those published when you enter the second year (i.e. the Regulations 2017-18). You will be

notified of any subsequent changes of regulation which significantly affect you, and if there

are changes of syllabus which might affect you adversely, they will not apply to you without

your consent.

PPE Prelims is a part of the ‘First Public Examination’. Graduates of other universities can

apply through their colleges for Senior Status, which exempts them from taking the First

11

Public Examination. Everyone else must pass it in some form before entering for a Final

Honour School (or Pass School). Unless you are exempt, your college may require you to pass

the First Public Examination before your fourth term from matriculating, as a condition of

continuing with your course. If you take PPE Finals more than twelve terms after

matriculating, you are ‘overstanding for honours’ and can receive only a pass degree (unless

your First Public Examination was Moderations in Classics, which allows you fifteen terms,

or you have been granted dispensation by the University). For further details please see the

General Regulations for the First and Second Public Examination in the Examination Regulations:

http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/examregs/2016-17/grftfasecopublexam/.

1.5 PPE: choosing your options In PPE Prelims you must offer all the three papers prescribed, one each in Philosophy, Politics,

and Economics. In Philosophy the regulations require you to answer at least one question

from each of the three sections into which the paper is divided: that is, Logic, General Philos-

ophy, and Moral Philosophy. In Politics, they require you to answer questions both on the

empirical practice of Politics and Political Theory. The Economics paper has a range of ques-

tions covering Microeconomics and Macroeconomics some of which involve the application

of mathematical techniques to economic problems. In none of these cases are you forbidden

to range over the whole syllabus; and your tutors may expect you to study more than the

examination minimum. But if they do not, then you have early choices to make within the

Prelims syllabus, with the help of advice from your tutors.

After Prelims the choices are greater. First you must decide whether to select two branches

from Philosophy, Politics, and Economics, which will make you ‘bipartite’, or to keep going

with the third as well, making you ‘tripartite’. This choice may be easy for you, if you were

originally attracted to PPE for the sake of one or two of its branches and have not changed

your priorities during your first year; or it may be difficult. If it is difficult, go by what interests

you, provided that your tutors think you are suited to it; do not be too much affected by your

marks in Prelims - which can differ greatly from Finals marks. A few subjects are available

under more than one branch, and bipartite Politics and Economics candidates are allowed to

include one Philosophy subject: similarly bipartite Philosophy and Economics candidates are

allowed to include one Politics subjects - see the Examination Regulations. Further guidance on

the choice of individual subjects within the three disciplines is given in Appendix A. (Students

should be aware that they will have the opportunity to choose the Jurisprudence paper (Phi-

losophy of Law) as an option in Philosophy. Please see Appendix A for more details.)

Please note that not all options may be available to all students in any given year. You should also

plan your lecture attendance over your second and third years because of inevitable lecture clashes for

optional subjects, meaning you may need to attend one series in your second year and another in your

third.

1.6 PPE: thesis One of your eight Finals subjects may be a thesis: see 199, 299 and 399 in the Honour School

regulations in the Examination Regulations. A Philosophy thesis must be combined with at least

12

three other subjects in Philosophy. Bipartite candidates who offer a Politics or Economics the-

sis must combine it with at least three other subjects in the same branch.

If you propose to offer a thesis, the latest date for seeking approval of its topic is Friday of

Fourth Week of the Michaelmas Term preceding the Finals examination, but the right time to

start working on it is much earlier. Begin planning no later than your penultimate Easter Va-

cation, and have a talk with a tutor no later than the beginning of Trinity Term. If your tutor

thinks that your proposal is manageable, get initial suggestions for reading and follow them

up, so that work can be done during the Long Vacation. Remember that tutors can only advise:

the decision to offer a thesis is your own, and so is the choice of topic. So of course is the work;

what makes a thesis worthwhile is that it is your own independent production.

The Criteria for Assessment for PPE theses are as follows:

cogency of analysis and argument

accuracy and solidity in the backing up of the analysis and argument

clarity of expression and presentation

knowledge of how the topic fits into the existing work in its field

awareness of relevant methodological issues

respect for the scholarly conventions regarding contents pages, introductions, con-

clusions, chapters, notes, bibliographies, etc

application of appropriate theoretical or empirical models (applicable to Economics the-

ses only)

Good undergraduate thesis topics can vary in character a great deal, but all have two things

in common: they are focused, so as to answer a question, or set of questions, or advance an

argument; and they are manageable, so that the time available is enough for your research

and reflection on it, and 15,000 words is enough for an interesting treatment. Titles of past

PPE theses are listed in the PPE Examiners’ Reports, which can be found on PPE WebLearn

at:

https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/site/:socsci:xsocsci:ppe/page/14e40209-0739-4ce5-9042-

186d7ba4a8a2

If you decide to go ahead, submit your title and a 100-word outline, in accordance with the

regulations for theses in the Examination Regulations (search for Philosophy in all Honour Schools

involving Philosophy for Philosophy theses or Honour School of Philosophy, Politics and Economics

for Politics and Economics theses), for approval in Michaelmas Term. Thesis outlines in Poli-

tics should be sent to the Director of Undergraduate Studies, care of the Undergraduate Stud-

ies Coordinator at the Department of Politics and International Relations. Thesis outlines for

Economics should be sent to the Director of Undergraduate Studies for Economics, care of the

Undergraduate Administrative Officer at the Department of Economics. Thesis outlines for

Philosophy should be sent to the Undergraduate Studies Administrator at the Faculty of Phi-

losophy, Radcliffe Humanities, Woodstock Road. Do not worry if your outline is not in the

end very closely adhered to; the point of it is to make clear the general subject of the thesis

and to show that you have some idea of how to go about tackling it.

13

The regulations state that you may discuss with your tutor ‘the field of study, the sources

available, and the method of presentation’. Before you start work, go over the plan of the

whole thesis very carefully with your tutor. The plan must be yours, but the tutor can help

you make sure it is clear, coherent and feasible. Get more advice on reading. But bear in mind

that much of your reading will be discovered by yourself; so arrange to be in Oxford, or near

a large library, for some weeks of the Long Vacation.

Avoid letting your topic expand, and focus your reading on the issue you intend to write

about; 15,000 words is the length of two articles, not a book. Your tutor ‘may also read and

comment on a first draft’ (in the case of Philosophy, ‘on drafts’), and ‘the amount of assistance

the tutor may give is equivalent to the teaching of a normal paper’; so tutorial sessions can be

used for trying out first drafts of parts of the thesis. However, you have to write the finished

version on your own; make sure you allow plenty of time – almost certainly more will be

needed than you first anticipated. You must not exceed the limit of 15,000 words, excluding

bibliography. That will probably, to your surprise, become a problem; but the exercise of

pruning is a valuable one, encouraging clarity and precision which you should be aiming for

in any case.

Some general advice: (i) the examiners cannot read your mind; explain in your introduction

just what you are going to do, and in what follows present the argument, step by step, in as

sharp a focus as you can achieve: (ii) examiners will notice if you try to fudge issues or sweep

difficulties aside; it is much better to be candid about them, and to show that you appreciate

the force of counter-arguments; (iii) take grammar and spelling seriously, and always aim at

a simple English style, avoiding convoluted sentences and preferring short words to long

(there is sound advice which may be relevant in George Orwell, ‘Politics and the English Lan-

guage’, in his Collected Essays, Journalism and Letters, (1946), volume 4). Your bibliography

should list all works to which you refer, plus any others you have used that bear on the final

version. The style for references can be modelled on any book or periodical in your field. The

rules for format and submission, and for change of title, are in the Examination Regulations.

Please note that for Politics and Economics you are required to submit an electronic copy

alongside two hardcopies, and that the deadline for submission of Philosophy theses is differ-

ent to that for Politics and Economics theses. You are also required to submit a declaration of

authorship alongside your thesis; see Appendix H.

If for any reason you expect to submit your thesis late, consult your college Senior Tutor in

good time. The Vice-Chancellor and Proctors may grant permission on payment of a late-

presentation fee which they determine; but they may at the same time give permission to the

examiners to reduce the mark on the thesis as detailed in the Examination Conventions.

The Department of Politics and International Relations issues more detailed ‘Notes of Guid-

ance’ on Politics theses, which you can find on the WebLearn site by clicking on ‘Course in-

formation for all Prelims and FHS papers’ and then ‘299 Thesis’ at https://web-

learn.ox.ac.uk/portal/hierarchy/socsci/politics/students/undergraduat.

Please also note the advice on Fieldwork Safety and Training for Undergraduates included

as Appendix G to this Handbook.

14

1.7 PPE: supervised dissertations in Politics If it is available in the appropriate year, one of your eight subjects may be a supervised disser-

tation in Politics, which is similar to a thesis except that there is a group of students, studying

a common theme, all writing separate dissertations on it. The dissertation may not be com-

bined with a thesis in any branch, or with fewer than three other politics subjects if you are a

bipartite candidate. The Examination Regulations state that ‘with the approval of the Under-

graduate Studies Committee, members of staff willing to supervise a research topic shall

through the Undergraduate Studies Coordinator / Courses Team of the Department of Politics

and International Relations circulate by e-mail not later than Friday of Fourth Week of Hilary

Term a short description of an area of Politics (including International Relations and Sociol-

ogy) in which they have a special interest, a list of possible dissertation topics lying within that

area, an introductory reading list, and a time and place at which they will meet those interested

in writing a dissertation under their supervision for assessment in the following year’s [Final]

examination…’ This means Hilary Term of your penultimate year. So if the idea appeals to

you, it is best discussed with your tutor no later than the beginning of that term; if your interest

arises too late for the Hilary Term meetings, you will need your tutor’s advice about the prac-

ticalities too.

You do not need to seek formal approval for a dissertation topic (unlike a thesis). The rules on

length, format and submission, late submission, and change of title, are the same as for Politics

theses: see the Examination Regulations.

The Department of Politics and International Relations issues advice on supervised disserta-

tions, contained within the Notes of Guidance on Politics theses, which you can find on the

WebLearn site by clicking on ‘Course information for all Prelims and FHS papers’ and then

‘299 Thesis’ at https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/hierarchy/socsci/politics/students/undergrad-

uat.

2. Teaching and Learning

As you are no doubt aware, Oxford is almost unique in the way teaching is organised. You

will learn through a mixture of lectures, classes and tutorials, with the last playing a

particularly important part. This is what differentiates Oxford from most universities in the

world. The following brief notes should help you understand the importance of tutors,

tutorials and University lectures and classes for the course. All of these learning experiences

will enhance your knowledge of the subjects being studied and contribute to your

performance in the final examinations in which your degree classification is determined.

2.1 Tutors Anyone to whom you go for tutorials or college classes counts as one of your tutors. In your

preparation for PPE Prelims there are bound to be at least three of them, and over the whole

15

course there may well be eight or ten. Some will be tutorial fellows or lecturers of your own

college; some may be tutorial fellows or lecturers of other colleges, or research fellows, or

graduate students. The overall responsibility for giving or arranging your tuition will lie with

tutorial fellows or lecturers of your own college, probably one in each of Philosophy, Politics,

and Economics. Behind them stands the Senior Tutor, who must see that proper arrangements

are made if one of these people is absent through illness or on leave.

Tuition for a term is normally arranged at the end of the preceding term; so before going down

each term you should make sure that you have received reading guidance and the names of your

tutors for all the work you will be doing in the following term. (In the occasional cases in which

the name of the tutor is not yet known you should make sure you have received an explanation

and that you are confident that arrangements will be in place by the beginning of term.) Some

tutors like to see their pupils at the end of the preceding term to make detailed arrangements.

Colleges have different rules about when term ‘begins’. The official start is Sunday of First Week

of Full Term, but you will almost certainly be required back before then, and you should try to

ensure that by the Sunday at the very latest you know who your tutors for the term will be, have

met or corresponded with them, and have been set work and assigned tutorial times by them.

If you would like to receive tuition from a particular person in Oxford, ask the in-college tutor

concerned; do not approach the person yourself, who cannot take you on without a request from

your college. If you would like a change of tutor, say so if it is not embarrassing; otherwise do

not just do nothing, but take the problem to someone else in your college - your College Adviser,

the Senior Tutor, the Women’s Adviser, the Chaplain, or even the head of college, if your

difficulty is serious. Most such problems arise from a personality clash that has proved

intractable; but since in a university of Oxford’s size there are almost certain to be alternative

tutors for most of your subjects, there is no point in putting up with a relationship that is

impeding your academic progress. In these circumstances you can usually expect a change, but

not necessarily to the particular tutor whom you would prefer.

In Economics, the provision of classes and tutorials for optional subjects is coordinated by the

Department. Centrally nominated subject convenors will communicate with college tutors at

the end of each term on the allocation of students to particular tutors for the forthcoming term.

2.2 Tutorials, Classes, Collections and Data Labs What you are expected to bring to a tutorial is knowledge of the reading that was set for it (or a

variant on your own initiative if some book or article proves really inaccessible) and any written

work demanded. What you have a right to expect is your tutor’s presence and scholarly attention

throughout the hour agreed, plus guidance, e.g. a reading list, for next time. Beyond that, styles

differ, depending on how many students are sharing the tutorial, the nature of the topic, and

above all the habits and personality of your tutor. You must not expect uniformity, and you will

gain most if you succeed in adapting to differences.

In PPE it is necessary to cover eight Finals subjects, in five tutorial terms (the weeks before the

Finals examination being usually set aside for revision). So you will nearly always have more

than one tutorial a week. The three PPE disciplines have, however, agreed that you should not

normally be expected to write more than twelve tutorial essays a term. All written work for a

16

tutorial will receive either written or oral comments. Tutors submit written reports on the term’s

work as a whole, and you are entitled to see these. Many colleges have timetabled sessions at

which college tutors discuss reports with their students.

Work on a tutorial essay involves library searches, reading, thinking, and writing. It should

occupy a minimum of three days. Read attentively and thoughtfully. As your reading progresses,

think up a structure for your essay (but do not write an elaborate plan which you will not have

time to execute). Expect to have to sort out your thoughts, both during and after reading. Use

essays to develop an argument, not as places to store information. You will learn a lot if you share ideas

with fellow students, and if you try out ideas in tutorial discussion. Remember that tutorials are

not designed as a substitute for lectures, or for accumulating information, but to develop

coherent verbal arguments and the capacity to think on one’s feet, and to tackle specific

difficulties and misunderstandings. This means that note-taking, if it occurs in a tutorial at all,

should be very much incidental to the overriding dialogue. You should, however, leave time

after the tutorial to make a record on paper of the discussion.

Students are broadly encouraged to use word processors, though there are arguments for and

against. On the one hand it makes one’s notes and essays more ‘inviting’ to read later, and in

writing an essay it becomes possible to postpone commitment to all the stages in an argument

until the very end of the essay-writing process. On the other hand there is a danger of getting out

of practice in hand-writing time-limited examinations, especially University examinations, in

which word processors may not be used.

Some tuition is by means of college or University department classes, a system specially suited

to subjects in which written work is exercises rather than essays - e.g. logic, econometrics, or

statistics. In the case of certain FHS papers in Politics, reading organised by colleges is

supplemented by departmental classes. The information on the classes is included in the Course

Outline and Bibliography for each of the papers. You have a right to expect that written work for

a class will be returned to you with written or oral comments.

Most colleges will require you to sit college examinations, so-called ‘collections’, before the start

of each term. Their object is to test your comprehension of work already covered, and to give you

practice in sitting examinations. Make sure at the end of each term that you know the times and

subjects of next term’s collections.

Oxford trains you as a writer to deadlines; so equip yourself with a writer’s tools - a dictionary,

such as the Concise Oxford Dictionary, and, unless you are very confident, a thesaurus and

Modern English Usage.

As mentioned above in the intended learning outcomes (section 1.3), you are expected to

develop the ability to make appropriate use of numerical, statistical and computing skills. This

ability is provided for in both the Economics and Politics components of the course. In

Economics, opportunities to develop computing skills are provided in the Quantitative

Economics paper and the use of statistical techniques is examined in this paper. In Politics,

the Quantitative Methods component in the first year course and the second year core courses

17

Comparative Government, International Relations, and Political Sociology provides students

with hands-on experience of data manipulation, data handling and data analyses by

introducing the use of statistical software packages. Data labs organised by the DPIR are a

core element of the course, especially in the first year. These data labs are designed to provide

students with an introduction to statistical software packages like STATA and R. The labs will

allow students to develop practical statistical computing skills relating to data manipulation,

data handling and data analyses – as a complement to the lectures and tutorials.

2.3 Lectures While tutorials and classes will be mainly organised by your College, lectures are provided

centrally by the University departments. A PPE lecture list is published each term, covering all

three branches; all three departments also publish individual lecture lists; and Philosophy issues

lecture prospectuses which describe the contents of the term’s lectures. Get a copy of the lecture

list, and the relevant prospectuses, from the departmental websites. Take your copy of the list to

your meetings with tutors: all of them will have advice on which lectures to attend. Remember

that the printed lecture lists often go out of date and the most up-to-date version of the lecture

list will be online.

Provisional programmes for lectures for the remainder of the academic year are also available on

the three departments’ websites, which will help you to plan for the future. Do not expect lectures

on a subject always to coincide with the term in which you are writing essays on that subject.

Important lectures may come a term or two before or after your tutorials, and in the case of some

less popular options they may come in your second year and not be repeated in your third year:

consult your tutors early about this risk.

The importance of lectures varies from subject to subject within PPE. Some lectures give a

personal analysis of a book or a set of books. Others provide an authoritative view on a fast

developing subject, or an overview on a subject whose boundaries are not well recognised in

the literature. It is perilous to miss the ‘core’ lectures on your chosen options: although in

Oxford’s system lecturers do not necessarily set the University examinations, they may be

consulted by those who do. In Philosophy, Finals examiners are told of lecture content by

lecturers, who are encouraged to suggest questions for the examination. Prelims students in

Politics should also attend the lectures on methods in political science.

Please note the University policy on the recording of lectures, included as Appendix F to this

Handbook.

2.4 Teaching patterns During her first year, a PPE student will typically sit a total of 118 hours of lectures (38 for

Economics, 24 for Philosophy and 56 for Politics), 38 hours of tutorials (16 for Economics, 8 for

Philosophy and 14 for Politics) and 15 hours of classes (1 for Economics, 8 for Philosophy and 6

for Politics). Also, she will spend about 85% of her time conducting independent study, i.e.

looking for books in libraries, reading, preparing essays, etcetera.

18

The number of lectures an average PPE student will sit during her second and third years will

depend on her choice of subjects. Normally each subject comprises 8 hours of tutorials in total.

Students in their second and third years will dedicate about 90% of their time to independent

study. The teaching patterns for Economics are available on WebLearn here:

https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/access/content/group/a64bf967-5670-4951-acd7-c4c64e416378/option-

grid/Teaching%20Norms_2011-12_.pdf

If you have any issues with teaching or supervision, please raise these as soon as possible so that

they can be addressed promptly. Details of who to contact are provided further below in the

complaints and appeals section of this handbook (Appendix C).

2.5 Skills training and development A wide range of information and training materials are available to help you develop your

academic skills – including time management, research and library skills, referencing, revi-

sion skills and academic writing – through the Oxford Students website: www.ox.ac.uk/stu-

dents/academic/guidance/skills.

2.6 Vacations UK degree courses are among the shortest in the world. They hold their own in international

competition only because they are full-time courses, covering vacation as well as term. This is

perhaps particularly true of Oxford, where the eight-week terms (technically called Full Terms)

occupy less than half the year. Vacations have to include holiday time; and everyone recognises

that for very many students they also have to include money-earning time. Please see the

University’s guidance on paid work here: www.ox.ac.uk/students/life/experience. Nevertheless

vacation study is vital, and students are responsible for their own academic progress.

You are said to ‘read’ for an Oxford degree, and PPE is certainly a reading course: its ‘study’ is

mainly the study of material obtained from books and other documents. In term you will mostly

rush from one article or chapter to another, pick their bones, and write out your reactions.

Vacations are the time for less hectic attention to complete books. Tutorials break a subject up;

vacations allow consolidation. They give depth and time for serious thought. They are also

particularly important for reading set or core texts.

3. Assessment and examinations

3.1 Assessment structure Each of the three Preliminary papers is assessed through a three-hour written examination sat at

the end of the first year. All papers carry the same weight and in order to be admitted into the

Final Honour School (FHS), candidates have to pass these three papers. The Political Analysis

component of the Politics Preliminary paper is not formally assessed; however, you must attend

the 8 lectures and 4 data labs and you must also submit a 2,000-word methods essay in Trinity

Term of the first year.

19

Each of the eight papers (or seven papers and a thesis/supervised dissertation) candidates offer

in the Final Honour School carries the same weight. Papers are normally assessed through a

three-hour written examination sat at the end of the third year, with some exceptions (for

example, the Jurisprudence paper (which can be taken as a Philosophy option) is assessed by an

essay submitted at the beginning of the third year and a written examination at the end of the

third year).

For a detailed account of the assessment structure, please see the Examination Regulations.

3.2 Feedback on learning and assessment The mechanisms for providing you with feedback on your learning and assessment exist mostly

at the college level. Each PPE undergraduate has at least two and sometimes more meetings each

week with a college tutor. At least one of these meetings will be a tutorial focused on the

discussion of the student’s reading and of an essay completed by the student before the tutorial.

Feedback is given both in written comments on the essay and verbally in the tutorial.

In addition, students normally sit practice examinations in each paper at the start of the term

following the tutorials which are marked and returned with comments. Feedback on progress

is given termly through individual reports provided through the college reporting system:

OxCORT. The reports are discussed in a termly meeting with the student’s college’s tutors, and

academic officers of the student’s college. Problems that arise at other times are dealt with by

the college tutors and other college officers. Most colleges have special procedures to deal with

academic under-performance or issues concerning fitness to study.

3.3 Examination Procedures Each year a board of up to nine ‘moderators’, drawn from the academic staff, is appointed to

examine PPE Prelims, and a board of up to nineteen examiners, also drawn from the academic

staff except for three external members, is appointed to examine PPE Finals. The Prelims mod-

erators and Finals examiners are assisted by a number of assessors, also staff members, who

spread the load and deal with some of the specialised subjects. It is chance whether any of

your own tutors examines you. If that happens, the convention is that the tutor takes no part

knowingly in deciding your result; but since scripts are anonymous, tutors rarely take part

knowingly so the convention is seldom required to operate.

In 2016-17, the three PPE Finals external examiners will be:

Philosophy: TBC

Politics: Prof Stephen Hopgood, SOAS

Economics: TBC

Students are strictly prohibited from contacting external examiners directly. If you are unhappy with

an aspect of your assessment, you may make a complaint or appeal (see Appendix C).

It is your responsibility to enter for your examinations. You will be invited by email to enter

for your examinations when the examination entry window for your examination opens. If

20

you do not enter by the required deadline for your course then you will need to pay a late

entry fee. For further information, please see: http://www.ox.ac.uk/students/academic/exams.

The dates of examinations are published here: https://www.ox.ac.uk/students/academic/ex-

ams/timetables. Timetables are published as early as possible and no later than five weeks

before the start of the examination. Your personal timetable showing your papers and the

dates, times and location at which they will take place will be sent to you at least two weeks

before your first examination.

At University examinations you must wear full academic dress with ‘sub-fusc’ clothing. Ac-

ademic dress is a gown, and a regulation cap or mortar board. Sub-fusc clothing is your pre-

ferred items from the following list:

1. one of: dark suit with dark socks, or dark skirt with black tights or stockings, or

dark trousers with dark socks or dark hosiery

2. dark coat if required

3. black shoes

4. plain white collared shirt or blouse

5. white bow tie, black bow tie, black full-length tie, or black ribbon.

See here for further details: https://www.ox.ac.uk/students/academic/dress.

There are special University regulations on the typing of illegible scripts (NB ‘the cost of the

typing and invigilation shall not be a charge on the University’), on the use of typewriters in

examinations, on blind candidates, on dyslexic candidates, on candidates unable to take pa-

pers on certain days for religious reasons, and on the use (where permitted) of computers in

examinations. The Oxford Students website provides a summary of these regulations:

http://www.ox.ac.uk/students/academic/exams/guidance; and the Examination Regulations

provide the formal rules: http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/examregs/information/contents.

In certain examinations calculators may be helpful. A list of permitted calculators can be

found on the Economics WebLearn site: https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/hierar-

chy/socsci/econ/curr_student/undergrad/examinations. Please note that students are not al-

lowed to use any calculator other than the models on the list.

If you have any problems connected with University examinations which you want to take

further, never approach the examiners directly: always communicate through your Senior Tu-

tor. This applies to complaints as well (although every student has a statutory right to consult

the Proctors directly on any matter at any time in their Oxford career). See Appendix C for

further details.

The University regulations for PPE Prelims and PPE Finals are in the Examination Regulations.

Examination Conventions are the formal record of the specific assessment standards the formal

record of the specific assessment standards for the course or courses to which they apply.

They set out how examined work will be marked and how the resulting marks will be used

21

to arrive at a final result and classification of an award. They include information on: marking

scales, marking and classification criteria, scaling of marks, progression, resits, use of viva

voce examinations, penalties for late submission, and penalties for over-length work. The Ex-

amination Conventions for PPE Prelims and PPE Finals from 2015-16 are included in this

Handbook as Appendices; please note that these Conventions are not definitive for your cohort.

The relevant Conventions for your cohort will be sent to you by email in Hilary Term preced-

ing the examination.

3.4 PPE Prelims To complete the PPE Prelim you must pass all three subjects. If you fail one or more subjects

in June (or miss any examinations through illness), the University allows you (subject to your

college’s agreement) to retake in September any paper you failed (or missed).

Papers are marked on the scale 0-100. Please see the Examination Conventions for details of

how marks are assigned.

You should note that one of the commonest reasons for answers receiving poor marks is ir-

relevance. It is very important to direct your answer at the question which has actually been

asked.

In 2016, Distinctions were awarded to candidates whose total score on the three papers was

200 or above and who passed all three papers in a single examination. The pass mark for each

of the three papers was 40, but compensation was allowed for fail marks in the range 37-39 on

one paper, if marks on both the others were 58 or higher.

Once your results are released you will be sent an email informing you that your assessment

results and the result for the year are available to view in Student Self Service.

The particular details on how your examined work will be marked, and how the resulting

marks will be used to arrive at a final result and classification of your award, are contained in

the Examination Conventions. The Conventions applying to your cohort will be sent to you by email

in the Hilary term before the Examination.

Please note that, in order to enter for Finals, you must have passed the PPE Prelim as a whole

(or some other ‘First Public Examination’), but your Prelims results do not contribute to your

Finals result nor to the classification of your degree.

You can access the examiners’ reports for previous years at: https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/por-

tal/site/:socsci:xsocsci:ppe/page/14e40209-0739-4ce5-9042-186d7ba4a8a2.

3.5 PPE Finals All papers, theses and supervised dissertations have the same weighting; and are normally

double marked blind. The class boundaries are set as an average mark with each paper

weighted equally except that ‘the highest Honours can be obtained by excellence in a minority

of subjects offered provided that adequate knowledge is shown throughout the examination’

(see Honour School of Philosophy, Politics and Economics in the Examination Regulations), and a

22

Fail mark in one or more subjects may disqualify for Honours or even, in extreme circum-

stances, for a Pass degree (see the Examination Conventions for PPE Final Honour School).

The mark scale for individual papers is divided by classes:

First Upper-Sec-

ond

Lower-Sec-

ond

Third Pass Fail

100 – 70

(Excellent

First: 89-80;

Exceptional

First: 100-90)

69 – 60 59 – 50 49 – 40 39 – 30 29-0

(Outright

Failure of

FHS: 9-0)

British universities tend to use a standard scale for marking individual papers, whereby the

range 70-100 indicates a First; 60-69 a 2.1; 50-59 a 2.2; 40-49 a Third; 30-39 a Pass (i.e. not Hon-

ours); and 0-29 a Fail. However, they turn these individual marks into an overall Degree clas-

sification according to different principles. One is to allocate each paper to a particular class

(First, 2.1, 2.2, Third, etc.), and then to establish which class predominates. The other is to add

up the marks on all papers and establish the average. Principle one does not require a First-

class mark on every paper to obtain a First overall, or a 2.1 on every paper to obtain a 2.1

overall, and so on. Principle two requires an average mark a little below 70 for a First, a little

below 60 for a 2.1, etc.

PPE currently uses a hybrid of these two principles: it requires both an average mark set just

below the class threshold for an individual paper and at least two papers falling within the

appropriate range for that degree classification. For example, in the academic year 2015-16, a

First required both an average of 68.5 or above and two marks of 70 or above and no mark

below 50.

There are separate marking descriptors (i.e. qualitative criteria governing whether an exam

script is classed as a First or a 2.1 etc.) for Philosophy, Politics and Economics. These are in-

cluded in the Examination Conventions, and copies of the versions used in 2015-16 are refer-

enced in Appendices K, L and M. Please note that these are not definitive for your cohort; the

definitive versions will be included in the Examination Conventions sent to you in Hilary

Term of the year of the examination. The Examination Conventions are kept under review by

PPE Committee, in light of advice from the internal and external examiners.

Once your results are released you will be sent an email informing you that your assessment

results and the result for the year are available to view in Student Self Service.

You can access the internal and external examiners’ reports for previous years at: https://web-

learn.ox.ac.uk/portal/site/:socsci:xsocsci:ppe/page/14e40209-0739-4ce5-9042-186d7ba4a8a2.

23

3.6 Preparing for examinations When planning your examination strategy, it is sensible to keep in mind the nature of the

examination method which the University uses (the conventional method in UK higher edu-

cation over the past two centuries). If the examiners allowed you to set the questions, you

could prepare good answers in a few months; by setting the questions themselves, they ensure

that a candidate cannot be adequately prepared without study over a broad area. They will

therefore not be interested in answers which are in any way off the point, and they will se-

verely penalise ‘short weight’ - too few properly written out answers. The examiners are look-

ing for your own ideas and convictions and you mustn’t be shy of presenting them. When you

have selected a question, work out what it means and decide what you think is the answer to

it. Then, putting pen to paper, state the answer and defend it; or, if you think there is no an-

swer, explain why not. Abstain from presenting background material. Do not write too much:

most of those who run out of time have themselves to blame for being distracted into irrele-

vance. Good examinees emerge from the examination room with most of their knowledge

undisplayed. Examiners’ reports (see link under 3.4 above) can be helpful in identifying the

characteristics of good and bad answers in the various papers.

3.7 Academic integrity: good practice in citation and the avoidance of

plagiarism

Plagiarism is presenting someone else’s work or ideas as your own, with or without their

consent, by incorporating it into your work without full acknowledgement. All published and

unpublished material, whether in manuscript, printed or electronic form, is covered under

this definition. Plagiarism may be intentional or reckless, or unintentional. Under the regula-

tions for examinations, intentional or reckless plagiarism is a disciplinary offence. Please see:

www.ox.ac.uk/students/academic/guidance/skills/plagiarism.

To avoid plagiarism, it is important for all students within individual subject areas to be aware

of, and to follow, good practice in the use of sources and making appropriate reference. You

will need to exercise judgement in determining when reference is required, and when material

may be taken to be so much a part of the ‘general knowledge’ of your particular subject that

formal citation would not be expected. The basis on which such judgements are made is likely

to vary slightly between subject areas, as may also the style and format of making references,

and your tutor or course organiser, where appropriate, will be in the best position to advise

you on such matters; in addition, these may be covered, along with other aspects of academic

writing, in your induction. By following good practice in your subject area you should de-

velop a rigorous approach to academic referencing, and avoid inadvertent plagiarism. Advice

on good practice is available here: www.ox.ac.uk/students/academic/guidance/skills.

Cases of apparently deliberate plagiarism are taken extremely seriously, and where examiners

suspect that this has occurred, they bring the matter to the attention of the Proctors. The Ex-

amination Regulations, Regulations for the Conduct of University Examinations: Part 19 state:

24

‘4. No candidate shall plagiarise by presenting someone else's work as their own, or by

incorporating other people's work or ideas into their own work without full acknowl-

edgement. This includes: verbatim quotation, cutting and pasting from the internet, and

paraphrasing without clear acknowledgement; collusion; inaccurate citation; failure to

acknowledge assistance; use of material written by professional agencies or other per-

sons; and autoplagiarism.’

The University employs a series of sophisticated software applications to detect plagiarism in

submitted examination work, both in terms of copying and collusion. It regularly monitors

online essay banks, essay-writing services, and other potential sources of material. It reserves

the right to check samples of submitted essays for plagiarism. Although the University

strongly encourages the use of electronic resources by students in their academic work, any

attempt to draw on third-party material without proper attribution may well attract severe

disciplinary sanctions.

Cases of plagiarism range from the culpably fraudulent to the carelessly inadvertent. Honesty

is all you need to avoid the first, the cultivation of academic good practice will ensure that

you do not fall foul of the second. You must avoid:

The submission of other people’s work as your own. You should not use professional

essay writing agencies nor submit any work which has been written in full or in part

by any other person. It is also forbidden to submit work which you have already sub-

mitted (partially or in full) for another degree course or examination.

The verbatim quotation of other people’s work without clear indication and due

acknowledgement (i.e. quotation marks or indentation, together with a full citation.)

Inadvertency in this may be avoided by scrupulous note-taking. Whenever taking

notes always write down the full details of the source (author, title, page numbers,

lecturer’s name and date of lecture, URL.) Where exact words are copied or taken

down quotation marks should be used; your notes should make it completely clear, in

case your memory does not, which of its words and ideas are your own and which

other people’s. The risk of plagiarism is increased where material is ‘cut and pasted’

from electronic resources. If you copy material in this way make sure it is fully refer-

enced and does not become confused with your own work. You should be aware that

there exist sophisticated systems to detect such copying.

Close paraphrase. Linking together phrases from a source with just a few words

changed here and there is not enough to avoid the charge of plagiarism

The reporting of ideas without acknowledging them as your own. When you write,

there should be no room for doubt which are your ideas and which are other people’s.

Note that where an idea is unattributed it will naturally be taken as the author’s own.

How often you provide references must to some extent be a matter of style and judg-

ment; to begin each sentence of a paragraph of exposition with “Davidson says that…”

would be redundant, but where you are substantially indebted to a particular author

it may well not be enough to cite his or her work once in a footnote at the start or the

end of the essay.

25

The surest way to avoid suspicion of plagiarism is by careful referencing. Tutors may be more

concerned to check that you understand than that your essays display scholarly references,

and no examiner expects full references in a three hour exam, but it is good practice to give

proper references. There are many ways to do this (footnotes, author and date, bibliography,

etc.). In general there is no one preferred system. Tutors and style guides are a source of ad-

vice. Note that some electronic sources explicitly tell you how to make references to their ar-

ticles.

You should not reference anything that you have not actually consulted. Where your

knowledge of a primary source is via a secondary one this should be made clear (e.g. R.Des-

cartes, The Principles of Philosophy, quoted in J.Cottingham, Descartes (Blackwell, 1986) p.92).

Some ideas may be taken as part of the ‘general knowledge’ of a particular subject and, as

such, do not call for a formal reference. You will need to exercise judgment in determining

when this is the case. If in doubt, seek advice or err on the side of caution.

Some illustrations of plagiarism:

Source text

‘Even more important, however, and certainly more generally applicable, is the argument

from queerness. This has two parts, one metaphysical, the other epistemological. If there were

objective values, then they would be entities or qualities or relations of a very strange sort,

utterly different from anything else in the universe. Correspondingly, if we were aware of

them, it would have to be by some special faculty of moral intuition, utterly different from

our ordinary ways of knowing everything else.’ (J.L.Mackie, Ethics, Inventing Right and Wrong

(Penguin, 1977) p.38)

Examples

(1) An important argument is that from queerness. It has two parts, one metaphysical

and one epistemological. Metaphysically, if objective values existed, then they would

be very strange entities, unlike anything else in the universe. Epistemologically, if we

were aware of them, it would have to be by some strange faculty of moral intuition,

quite different from our ordinary awareness.

Without reference of any kind to any source, this would be taken as the author’s own words

and ideas; when in fact it simply copies phrases verbatim from the source with just a few

words changed here and there.

(2) It has been argued against objective values on the grounds of queerness. The case

can be made in either metaphysical or epistemological terms. If objective values ex-

isted, they would be strange things, utterly different from anything else in the uni-

verse, and they would have to be known in an equally strange way, utterly different

from our ordinary ways of knowing everything else

26

This is a mixture of verbatim copying and close paraphrase. Two phrases have been copied

from the source, but no quotation marks or reference provided. The phrase ‘It has been ar-

gued’ is insufficient for this purpose.

(3) ‘The argument from queerness’ (Mackie, 1977, p.38) has been stated as follows. ‘If

there were objective values, then they would be entities or qualities or relations of a

very strange sort, utterly different from anything else in the universe.’ Correspond-

ingly, if we were aware of them, it would have to be by some special faculty of moral

intuition, utterly different from our ordinary ways of knowing everything else

By selective use of quotation marks and referencing this suggests that the second point here

is the writer’s own, when it is in fact just as heavily indebted to the source as the material

explicitly acknowledged. All quoted material must be enclosed in quotation marks and ade-

quately referenced.

Remember:

Always make clear the extent of your borrowing. A text reference, such as (Mackie,

1977, p.38), can leave it unclear whether the debt you wish to acknowledge is with

regard to a clause, a sentence, a few sentences or an entire paragraph that you have

written.

Try always to express the ideas and arguments you encounter in your own words; this

is part of what it means to really understand them.

3.8 Factors affecting performance Information on what to do if you would like the examiners to be aware of any factors that may

have affected your performance before or during an examination (such as illness, accident or

bereavement) are available on the Oxford Students website: www.ox.ac.uk/students/aca-

demic/exams/guidance.

4. Changing your course Sometimes the course you have chosen will not seem to be working out for you and you may

wish to consider changing. Do not seek to change course at the first sign of difficulty. All courses

that are worth anything bring the student up against obstacles, and your tutors will guide you

past them. Seek the advice of your tutors at all times when in difficulty. Discuss problems also

with your contemporaries; you are not in competition with them, and you should get into the

habit of helping and being helped. But if, having thought the matter through, you wish to explore

the possibility of changing, the first rule is, ‘Do not delay’ - you could be losing vital learning

time. Talk to your current tutors or, if that is embarrassing, to your College Adviser or the Senior

Tutor or any other Fellow whom you know. If you decide you really do want to change, there

are three bodies which must approve: the University, your college, and those who are paying for

you. College approval is usually the most difficult.

The University is unlikely to be a problem. There are no restrictions on examination entry:

provided that your college approves, you may be a candidate in any part of the First Public

27

Examination; and the condition for entering for a Final Honour School, besides college approval,

is that (if not exempt) you should have passed some part of the First Public Examination - any

complete Prelims or Mods will do. However, a few departments, such as Psychology, do have

quotas for acceptance on to their courses.

Your college has admitted you to read for a particular Honour School, or a particular

combination of First Public Examination plus Honour School. You cannot change without its

permission, which is liable to be refused if the `receiving’ tutors think you unsuited to their

course, or do not have room (in some courses, e.g. Law and English, the teaching resources are

often very strained).

Awards, scholarships, sponsorship, etc. may be tied to a particular course, and you may need the

awarding body’s permission to change course. Your Senior Tutor will can help with the

correspondence, once your college has agreed to let you change.

5. Departments and Facilities The Departments of Politics and International Relations, of Economics, of Sociology, and of

Social Policy are in the Social Sciences Division, one of four Divisions in the University,

between which the academic departments and faculties are divided. The Faculty of

Philosophy is part of the Humanities Division.

The administration of the PPE degree is carried out by the PPE Administrator on behalf of all

three subjects within PPE. The contact details are as follows:

Email. violet.brand@politics.ox.ac.uk

Phone. 01865 2 88564

The PPE administrator is normally available in Room 126, Manor Road Building, from 09:00

to 17:20 Monday to Friday.

On PPE WebLearn (https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/site/:socsci:xsocsci:ppe/page/home) you

can find helpful information about the degree, as well as the full contact details for each of the

relevant undergraduate administrators:

Alice Evans (Politics; alice.evans@politics.ox.ac.uk)

James Knight (Philosophy; james.knight@philosophy.ox.ac.uk)

Katherine Cumming (Economics; econundergrad@economics.ox.ac.uk)

If you would like to contact your student representative (see section 8.1.2), please approach

one of the undergraduate administrators; they will let you know who your current

representative is. Do contact the undergraduate administrators as well if you need to get in

touch with a disability, or any other departmental, officer.

The members of the Departments and Faculties are those employed to carry out teaching or

research within the University. Further details of staff in Philosophy, Politics and Economics,

including their research interests, are available on the web sites:

28

www.philosophy.ox.ac.uk

www.politics.ox.ac.uk

www.economics.ox.ac.uk

For further contact details, please see Appendix D.

5.1 The Manor Road Building The Departments of Politics and International Relations, of Economics and of Sociology are

all located in the Manor Road Building on Manor Road. This building also houses the Social

Science Library and a Common Room. Coffee, tea, breakfast and lunch may be purchased in

the canteen on the first floor. In addition, there is a Lecture Theatre, an IT Room and seven

Seminar Rooms. The full address is: Manor Road Building, Manor Road, Oxford, OX1 3UQ.

Opening hours are:

Term-time

Monday-Friday: 09:00-22:00

Saturday: 10:00-18:00

Sunday: 11:00-19:00

Vacations

Monday-Friday: 09:00-19:00

Saturday: 10:00-18:00 (Christmas and Easter)

Saturday: 10:00-16:00 (Long Vacation)

Sunday: Closed

On all visits, bring your university card for access. Some undergraduate lectures and classes

are held in the Manor Road building.

5.2 The Philosophy Faculty The Philosophy Faculty is based at the refurbished Radcliffe Infirmary building on the Wood-

stock Road, known as ‘Radcliffe Humanities’ or ‘Rad Hum’. As well as housing the Philoso-

phy Centre, the Grade II* listed building also contains a combined Philosophy and Theology

Library and the administrative offices of the Humanities Division. The move means that Phi-

losophy has become the first academic unit to be located within the Radcliffe Observatory

Quarter.

The Radcliffe Humanities building houses the Faculty’s administrative staff, provides offices

for some of the Faculty’s research projects and centres, and offers dedicated space for Philos-

ophy graduate students (as well as some general study space, available for use by all Human-

ities graduates). It contains four large teaching rooms, two of which – the Ryle Room on the

first floor and the Lecture Room on the second floor – are allocated to the Philosophy Faculty.

The building also contains some smaller meeting rooms which can be booked for small group

teaching or supervisions. Enquiries about room bookings on the site should be directed to the

Faculty’s Secretarial Assistant, Annelies Lawson (annelies.lawson@philosophy.ox.ac.uk).

29

There are also a common room (on the ground floor), and vending machines (for drinks and

snacks).

Radcliffe Humanities is also home to the Philosophy and Theology Faculties Library and to

the offices of the Humanities Division. Some of the Faculty’s research centres and projects are

based on the top floor of the building, alongside the Division’s newly formed Oxford Research

Centre for the Humanities (“TORCH”), and other Humanities research projects.

The Philosophy and Theology Faculties Library is open from Monday to Friday 09.30-19.00

and on Saturday 10.00-16.00 during term time and 09.30-17.00 Monday to Friday during va-

cation. The Radcliffe Humanities building is open during these times.

5.3 Department of Politics and International Relations The Department is located on the first floor of the Manor Road Building. It is open Monday

to Friday 08:30-22:00 in term-time and 08:30-19:00 in vacation, except on Bank Holidays and

between Christmas and the New Year. It contains the offices of the Head of Department,

Departmental administrative staff and the Director of Undergraduate Studies. The

Undergraduate Studies Coordinator for Politics is situated in the Courses Office (Room 195),

and is normally available for enquiries regarding Politics from 09:00 to 17:20 Monday to

Friday.

5.4 Department of Economics The Department is located on the second floor of the Manor Road Building. Opening hours:

9.30-18.00. Most members of the Department have an office and collect mail there and the

Undergraduate Administrator, to whom enquiries may be addressed, is based there (Monday-

Friday, 8:30-17:00). Lecture handouts and other course materials are available on the

Economics website.

5.5 Department of Sociology The Department is concerned primarily with graduate degrees in Sociology. However,

members give lectures and tutorials for PPE undergraduates in various ‘Politics’ papers,

including Political Sociology, Sociological Theory, and Sociology of Post-Industrial Societies.

Its research programme includes work on social and political change, the sociology of

elections, ethnicity and national identity, sociology of the family, and demography and the

life course and ageing. A number of PPE students have written theses based on the

Department’s research projects.

The Department is located on the third floor of the Manor Road Building. All students are

invited to attend the weekly departmental seminars. Further information on the Department

and the seminars can be found at www.sociology.ox.ac.uk.

5.6 Department of Social Policy and Intervention The Department is located at Barnett House, 32 Wellington Square (Tel: (2)70325). It is primar-

ily concerned with graduate degrees in Comparative Social Policy and Evidence Based Social

Intervention. Its senior members give lectures and convene tutorials for PPE and History &

30

Politics undergraduates in Social Policy and in Demography. Its research programme includes

work on social deprivation, poverty and disadvantage, the family, parenting and childcare,

demography and population ageing, social security and welfare reform, mental health and

anti-social behaviour, health and health care; there are growing programmes of research on

the comparative politics of the welfare state and on social policy in South Africa. The tutorials

are usually held in the Department; lectures and classes will be held in the Department or in

the Manor Road Building. Further information on the Department can be found at

www.spi.ox.ac.uk.

6. Libraries and Computing

6.1 Libraries The library provision in Oxford University is very good but can seem complex. The Social

Science Library (SSL) in the Manor Road Building has books for loan on Criminology, Eco-

nomics, Politics and International Relations, International Development, Sociology, Social Pol-

icy and Social Intervention, and Socio-Legal Studies. It has an extensive run of periodicals

online and in print. Opening hours are:

Term (Weeks 0 - 9)

Monday to Friday 09:00 - 22:00

Saturday 10:00 - 18:00

Sunday 11:00 - 19:00

Vacation

Monday to Friday 09:00 - 19:00

Saturday (Christmas and Easter Vacations) 10:00 - 18:00

Saturday (Summer Vacation) 10:00 - 16:00

Sunday CLOSED

Services provided include access to print and online resources as well as self-service photo-

copying, printing and scanning. Always bring your University card with you for access to the

Library, and to borrow books. Library staff will help you locate any material you may need.

Provision for Philosophy is split between the lending collections in the the Philosophy and

Theology Faculties Library at Radcliffe Humanities, Woodstock Road and the reference col-

lections at the Bodleian, with the most popular items located in the Philosophy Reading Room

in the Bodleian.

Your local College library also has a good selection of books which can be borrowed. Each

library is equipped with computers for searching databases and catalogues, and for checking

email and printing. Looking at the websites, picking up a paper guide, or asking the library

staff can provide you with further information about specific services and library rules and

regulations.

31

Some general information for all libraries is as follows.

Admission: The University Card, which is distributed by your College, will be required to

enter and/or to borrow books or to order items from closed stacks. The best policy is to always

carry your University Card with you. If you lose your University Card, request a replacement

as soon as possible from your College Secretary.

Induction: There are library induction sessions for all PPE students during Noughth Week.

You will be taught how to use SOLO, the online catalogue for Oxford’s electronic and printed

library collections; PCAS, the system for printing, copying and scanning ; and OxLIP+, the OU

local interface to a large selection of subject databases and internet resources. You will receive

further instructions from your college about the timing and location of these sessions.

Finding books: Begin by checking SOLO for items listed on your reading lists. Ask library

staff for assistance if you cannot find the books you need. You can recommend new book

purchases via the library's website.

Finding journal articles: First look for the title of the journal using SOLO. If you do not know

the issue or the page number of the article, ask library staff who can help you search for the

item in one of the many subject databases available from OxLIP+, e.g. EconLIT, Philosopher’s

Index. Many journals are now available electronically via OU e-Journals. Feel free to ask li-

brary staff for further information and assistance.

Borrowing from a library or reading in the library: Once you have found the books or journal

articles you wish to read, you may have a choice of either borrowing the item or reading the

confined copy in the library (see individual libraries' websites for details). Central Bodleian

Library books cannot be borrowed.

Printing, copying, and scanning: The PCAS system in operation across The Bodleian Librar-

ies Group offers a range of services (see the link from the Bodleian Libraries website), paid for

using an online account topped up by a debit/credit card.

Opening hours: These vary between libraries and are longer during term-time than in vaca-

tions. See http://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/libraries/opening-hours for opening hours of all li-

braries, and see the individual libraries' websites for further details.

Library Main subjects covered Web address

BOD Official Papers

(Bodleian Law Li-

brary)

Official Papers (Parliamentary papers, gov-

ernment publications etc.)

http://www.bod-

leian.ox.ac.uk/bodley

32

BOD Philosophy

Reading

Room (Lower Read-

ing

Room, Old Bodleian)

Philosophy http://www.bod-

leian.ox.ac.uk/bodley

BOD Upper Camera History, Education, History of Art, Anthro-

pology

http://www.bod-

leian.ox.ac.uk/bodley

History Faculty Li-

brary

History http://www.bod-

leian.ox.ac.uk/history

Philosophy and The-

ology Faculties Li-

brary

Philosophy and Theology http://www.bod-

leian.ox.ac.uk/ptfl

Radcliffe Science Li-

brary

Science and Medicine http://www.bod-

leian.ox.ac.uk/science

Weston Library History and Current Affairs – political, eco-

nomic and social – of Commonwealth and

Sub-Saharan Africa

http://www.bod-

leian.ox.ac.uk/weston

Said Business School,

Sainsbury Library

Business and Management

Studies

http://www.bod-

leian.ox.ac.uk/business

Social Science Li-

brary

Economics, International

Relations, Politics, Social Policy, Social Work,

Socio-Legal Studies, Sociology and

Criminology, International

Development, Refugee Studies, Russian and

East European Studies

http://www.bod-

leian.ox.ac.uk/ssl

Vere Harmsworth Li-

brary

American Studies/History –

Political, Economic and Social – from colonial

times to the

present

http://www.bod-

leian.ox.ac.uk/vhl

Other libraries which may be of use to PPE students include: Bodleian Japanese, Bodleian Law

and Sackler.

33

Photocopying facilities and copyright law: The copying of books and journals and the use of

self-service photocopiers are subject to the provisions of the Copyright License issued to the

University of Oxford by the Copyright Licensing Agency for the copying (from paper on to

paper) of:

up to 5% or one complete chapter (whichever is the greater) from a book;

up to 5% or one whole article (whichever is the greater) from a single issue of a journal;

up to 5% or one paper (whichever is the greater) from a set of conference proceedings.

We hope you will enjoy using Oxford’s libraries. Please respect other library users and take

care of library books and facilities.

6.2 Computing All Colleges have a computer room, with software for word-processing and other

applications, connections to the central University machines and the Internet, and printers.

The Manor Road Building has an IT Room with 48 computers connected to the Internet. They

are equipped with a wide range of specialist social sciences research software. The room is

mainly used for computer-based courses.

The Bodleian Social Science Library has 52 networked computers. The standard desktop

offers: Microsoft Office 2007 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Access); internet access (the SOLO

Library catalogue, OxLIP+ including OU e-Journals, and the World Wide Web); and a range

of other software include Endnote, Refworks, Nuance PDF creator Pro, GIMP, Adobe Digital

Editions, and Windows Media Player. To use library computers you will need to log-in with

your University Card barcode number and your library password. To set up your library

password please see instructions available at http://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/ssl/how/set-a-

new-library-password. Readers are welcome to use their own laptops in most library study

spaces; power sockets and Ethernet points are provided. To use the wireless service, connect

to the Bodleian-Libraries network and log-in with your University Card barcode and Library

password. Ethernet cables and USB sticks (as well as a range of other stationery) are available

to buy at the SSL issue desk.

Oxford University Computing Services (OUCS) is at 13 Banbury Road, Oxford OX2 6NN. The

Service Desk opening hours, and contact numbers, are here: http://help.it.ox.ac.uk/helpcen-

tre/index.

Undergraduates have access to various IT training courses. Further details may be obtained

on-line at www.oucs.ox.ac.uk.

6.3 IT Skills By the end of your first year we expect you to have the essential IT skills set out below; those

listed as ‘desirable’ would be useful for your future employment but are not a requirement of

your course. While many students coming to Oxford will already possess most if not all of

these skills, those who need to develop any are required to do this in their own time. Your

college will provide the basic hardware, software and support.

34

For those who would prefer to attend IT courses, the IT Learning Programme (ITLP) provides

lively, hands-on, teacher-led IT courses throughout the academic year. See here for further

details: http://www.it.ox.ac.uk/services/catalogue/itlp.

Course descriptions, charges and dates for all IT courses can be found online at

http://courses.it.ox.ac.uk. If you can’t attend a taught course, much of the course material is

also available at: http://portfolio.it.ox.ac.uk

The Bodleian Libraries also provide information skills courses. See here for further details:

http://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/using/skills.

Skill Recommended software Course

Essential

Word-processing MS Word* (1) Word: Fundamentals

(2) Word: Building long documents

(3) Word: Managing your thesis

Email and use of

the Internet

Mozilla Firefox, Internet

Explorer or Chrome

(1) A selection of the “Wiser” courses

offered by the Bodleian Libraries

(2) Online Presence series of courses

(3) Online Security series of courses

Data Analysis R (via RStudio**) (1) Lab Sessions in Political Analysis I and II

(2) Supplementary online tutorials available

at http://tryr.codeschool.com

Desirable

Spreadsheets MS Excel* (1)Excel: Fundamentals

(2)Excel: Functions and Cell Referencing

Presentation and

drawing

MS Power Point* (1) PowerPoint: Fundamentals

(2) PowerPoint: Getting the message across

(3) Presentations: Creating conference

posters using PowerPoint

Database and filing

systems

MS Access* (1) Access: Fundamentals

(2) Database: Design essentials

*These are part of the integrated Microsoft Office suite. The University has a site license for this software

(available via the IT Services shop) for use in departments and colleges but it cannot supply copies to

individual students. You can obtain your own copy from a local supplier (see

http://www.oucs.ox.ac.uk/shop/).

** You can download the RStudio software for free from: https://www.rstudio.com/ide/download/.

35

For second and third year students, various papers in PPE may have integrated practical

sessions involving the use of relevant software. You will need to use IT during your course.

Many tutors encourage students to present at least some of their essays in word-processed

form.

6.4 Web and email It is essential that you use email as this will be used to communicate information to you by

department and college staff. Your college will supply you with an email account. Your email

address will be: firstname.lastname@collegename.ox.ac.uk.

All the information you may need about PPE is available at the following websites:

PPE WebLearn

For up-to-date versions of this handbook, information on exams (including examiners’

reports), the combined lecture list.

https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/site/%3Asocsci%3Axsocsci%3Appe/page/4aaf6674-cb26-

4ed9-9f54-ce452cd3046b

The Departments’ WebLearn sites

For up-to-date departmental lecture lists, course listings, lecture lists, further information on

exams, the undergraduate joint consultative committees (UJCCs). Links to the Departments’

WebLearn sites can be found on PPE WebLearn (see above).

The Departments’ Websites

www.philosophy.ox.ac.uk

www.politics.ox.ac.uk

www.economics.ox.ac.uk

All students should also be aware of the University’s IT code of conduct, available on-line at

www.admin.ox.ac.uk/statutes/regulations/196-052.shtml.

7. Data Protection

DATA PROTECTION ACT 1998: INFORMATION ON STUDENT PERSONAL

DATA

This section of the handbook will help you understand the purposes for which your College

and the University of Oxford, including its departments, faculties and administration (‘the

University’) process (i.e. collect and use) your personal data and any disclosures that they

may make of those data outside the College/University. It is important that you are aware of

the personal data which is held about you, especially the sensitive personal data as defined

by the Data Protection Act 1998 (see section A.2 below), where special provisions apply.

7.1 Data processing

36

In order to fulfil their educational, pastoral, and administrative responsibilities before, during

and after your studies at Oxford, your College and the University will need to collect and

process personal data about you. The Data Protection Act 1998 requires that any such infor-

mation is processed fairly and lawfully, is held securely, and is kept up-to-date. In some cases

this processing is permitted under the Data Protection Act 1998 as being necessary to enable

your College and the University to fulfil their operational responsibilities and where your

rights and legitimate interests are not prejudiced by the processing. Your consent is not

needed for processing of this data, which is described in section 1(a) below). There are other

cases where your consent is similarly not required and these are described in 1(b) and 1(c)

below. The final category of processing is that of sensitive personal data which does require

your consent and that is described in section 2 below. In all cases data will be collected by

your College and may be passed to the University and vice versa, so that necessary processing

can be undertaken. Data may also be shared with other Colleges.

1. Non-sensitive personal data

Categories of the non-sensitive personal data which may be collected and processed are set

out below; these lists are not exhaustive but indicate the main sorts of such data.

(a) Non-sensitive data which may be collected during the applications process and during

your studies at Oxford

Name, address, telephone number and email address; any other contact details; date of birth

and gender; marital and family/household details; name of doctor; person to be contacted in

case of emergency and contact details; school and admissions documentation; matriculation

details and course studied; information on academic performance; examination details; dis-

tinctions, prizes, positions of responsibility held; membership of University clubs and socie-

ties; disciplinary action taken; financial matters (including loans, fees, college invoices, schol-

arships and bursaries etc).; information provided to the College/University during the course

of your studies; information needed to permit access to College/University facilities such as

computing facilities, libraries and for the issue of the University card, where access will be

subject to regulations available from the provider of the facility; passwords and IDs used to

access College or University facilities; provision of student advice and support (e.g. OUSU

and Careers Service).

Your consent for such processing is not required as it is processing needed to allow the Col-

lege(s) and the University to fulfil their educational, pastoral and administrative responsibil-

ities.

(b) Additional non-sensitive data which may be collected and processed after your studies

have been completed.

Details of qualifications and skills; employment details; membership of professional bodies;

publications.

Processing of data of this kind does not require your written consent but you may wish to

indicate to your College/the University if you do not wish it to be collected or processed.

37

(c) Alumni data

Unless you request otherwise, your College and the University will add your details to their

alumni records so that you may receive relevant publications and information about alumni

activities, events and programmes and be kept informed more generally about the activities

of your College and the University. Your data may also be included in College/University

alumni publications.

Such data will be held securely and will be treated confidentially for your benefit and the

benefit of your College and the University. The data will be available to your College, the

University’s Development Office, International Offices, faculties, academic and administra-

tive departments, and to the Oxford University Society and other recognised alumni societies,

sports and other clubs associated with your College and the University. It may be disclosed

to bodies outside your College/the University where such bodies are acting as agents of your

College/the University.

Data will be used for a full range of alumni activities as described above. Data may also be

used in fundraising programmes, which might include an element of direct marketing

by your College/the University. Data will not, however, be passed to external commercial or-

ganisations without your explicit consent.

2. Sensitive personal data

The Data Protection Act 1998 defines sensitive personal data as information about racial or

ethnic origins; political opinions; religious beliefs or other beliefs; trade union membership; physical or

mental health; sex life; criminal allegations, proceedings or convictions. Save in limited circum-

stances specified in the Act, those collecting and processing sensitive personal data are re-

quired to seek explicit consent to do so. However, much of the sensitive personal data han-

dled by the Colleges and University will be provided by students themselves so that consent

to process in those cases is not an issue.

The Colleges and University have no need or intention to collect information concerning the

political beliefs, sexual orientation, or trade union affiliations of students. Nor do they have

any need or intention to collect or process data on religious beliefs or practices except in so far

as students may, for example, require special dispensation to avoid sitting examinations on

certain days or may have special dietary requirements. However the student will probably

have volunteered the sensitive data him/herself so consent to collect and process is unlikely

to present a problem.

If a student is convicted of an offence under the criminal law, this may be the subject of further

disciplinary proceedings within the Colleges when data may be collected and processed; this

will not happen without the student’s knowledge. Conviction of a criminal offence may in

certain limited circumstances have to be mentioned in a reference to an employer or profes-

sional body.

The University and Colleges may need to process information relating to a student’s

health. For example, it may be necessary to ask for dispensation to miss an examination or

38

special provision may be needed for certain health problems or in cases of disability, or sus-

pension of status may be needed for graduate students.

If a student is following a course leading to a professional qualification, the College/University

will need to be able to report to the appropriate professional body, such as the General Med-

ical Council, that he or she is ‘a safe and suitable entrant to a given profession’.

The Data Protection Act allows action to be taken to process personal sensitive data, and to

disclose such information to an individual/body outside the College/University, without con-

sent, where it is regarded as in the student’s vital interest. However, this is generally likely to

apply only in cases of illness or accident where the student is unable or unwilling to give

consent. This exemption may only be used in exceptional circumstances.

There is also an exemption in the Act to allow collection of data without explicit consent in

order to identify or keep under review the existence or absence of equality of opportunity or

treatment between persons of different racial or ethnic origins. Such data is collected by the

Colleges and University for the purposes of monitoring and of upholding equal opportunities

policies.

If you have any concerns about the processing of any information in the sorts of circumstances

outlined above you should contact your College Data Protection Officer or the University Data

Protection Officer via email to data.protection@admin.ox.ac.uk.

7.2 Disclosure of data to bodies outside your College/the University

Your College/the University may be required to provide non-sensitive personal data to the

Inland Revenue, Community Charge Registration Officers, local authority electoral registra-

tion, assessment and valuation departments, other education and training establishments and

examining bodies, and students’ sponsors (e.g. local authority education departments, the

Student Loan Company and funding councils (and including the Higher Education Statistics

Agency)).

Your College/the University will respond to requests for references, transcripts or other infor-

mation on your educational attainments, from employers or prospective employers or from

other educational institutions, funding bodies or recognised voluntary organisations. How-

ever, the information will not be provided unless the request is made in writing and appears

to be bona fide.

Disclosure may also be necessary in certain other circumstances, for example to comply with

legal or statutory requirements; in any legal proceedings; or for medical reasons to medical

staff.

Your College/the University will not normally send information about you to outside organi-

sations at home or overseas other than of the kind indicated. Your personal data will not be

placed on any website by your College or the University without your consent.

39

You should be aware that many countries outside the European Economic Area do not have

data protection legislation and so may not always protect your personal data to the same

standard.

7.3 Keeping your personal data up-to-date The Data Protection Act 1998 requires that your College and the University take reasonable

steps to ensure that any personal data which they process is accurate and up-to-date. It is

therefore important that you let the relevant College officer know of any changes to your per-

sonal data, or of any error in those data. The University will be informed of changes as ap-

propriate.

7.4 Queries and access requests The Data Protection Act 1998 gives you the right to know what personal data your College

and the University are processing, subject to certain exemptions provided in the legislation

and to consideration of third party rights. If you wish to seek access under the Data Protection

Act provisions, you should contact either your college in the case of personal data processed

by your College or the University’s Data Protection Officer, via email to data.protection@ad-

min.ox.ac.uk. A fee is required for such access.

General queries about the Data Protection Act 1998 may be addressed to the University’s Data

Protection Officer using the email address: data.protection@admin.ox.ac.uk.

7.5 Archives The College and University records are normally archived as a matter of routine, but your

College and the University are not liable for any failure to archive, or maintain the archive or

for deletion of archive material however arising and you are advised to retain any original

certificates issued by the University safely and securely.

As indicated in section 2 above it is possible that sensitive data may appear on your file. It is

unlikely that your College or the University will have to process sensitive data without your

knowledge and consent. It may, however, be necessary to process information about your

health. If when you leave Oxford you are concerned about the retention of any such mate-

rial on your file or about the possibility that other types of sensitive data (as defined by the

Act) may have been collected, you should discuss these concerns with the college Data Pro-

tection Officer in the first instance.

40

PART B - STUDENT ISSUES

8. Participation

8.1 Consultation Consultation of students is a serious concern to the departments and faculties and takes a

number of forms discussed below. It is important that you give us your views and feel free to

do so, in order that we may deal with problems that arise both relating to you personally and

to the course. Feedback from students takes both an institutional form via the Undergraduate

Joint Consultative Committees (UJCCs) and also involves you as individuals making the effort

to complete lecture or tutorial report forms or to seek out college or departmental officers for

discussion. Confidentiality is preserved when we seek feedback and will be maintained if you

wish it when you discuss issues of concern to you. It is important that you remember that both

the college and the departments will seek and welcome your feedback in various ways.

8.1.1 Student Feedback The feedback which you provide to lecturers and tutors is valued and is taken seriously. It has

an important contribution toward maintaining the quality of the education you receive at Ox-

ford.

Lecture questionnaire forms will be provided for you to comment on each set of lectures. Lec-

ture questionnaires are distributed either electronically or as paper copies. Paper copies will

be handed out by the lecturer towards the middle or end of his or her set of lectures, and

further copies will be available from department or faculty offices. Completed forms may ei-

ther be given to the lecturer at the end of the lecture or sent to the departmental office. The

results of the questionnaire are seen by the lecturer and also by the Director of Undergraduate

Studies or Teaching/Lectures Committee or panel. The DUS and/or committee or panel are

responsible for ensuring that any problems reported through the questionnaires are ad-

dressed. These are reported on to the JCC and the department or faculty.

You will also be expected to provide feedback on tutorial teaching to your college, and alt-

hough colleges may differ in the exact ways in which they provide for this, in general they

will ask your views on the amount and quality of teaching, reading materials, timeliness of

comments on essays and tutorial performance, and feedback on your progress on the course.

Colleges also arrange for you to hear or read reports written by your tutor and to make com-

ments on them, and also for you to submit your own self-assessment of your progress to date

and your academic goals.

Students on full-time and part-time matriculated courses are surveyed once per year on all

aspects of their course (learning, living, pastoral support, college) through the Student Barom-

eter. Previous results can be viewed by students, staff and the general public at:

https://www.ox.ac.uk/students/life/student-engagement?wssl=1.

41

Final year undergraduate students are surveyed through the National Student Survey. Results

from previous NSS can be found at www.unistats.com.

8.1.2 Undergraduate Joint Consultative Committees (UJCCs) Each department/faculty has an Undergraduate Joint Consultative Committee on depart-

mental/faculty matters (UJCC). The UJCC is the forum through which departmental/faculty

officers will keep you informed of developments within the department/faculty. Typical

agenda items include course developments, lecture arrangements, library provision and IT.

Senior members will look to you for comments and suggestions which may bring beneficial

changes. It is also the forum in which you should raise any matters of concern to you relating

to the organisation, content and delivery of the course.

The Politics UJCC comprises the Director of Undergraduate Studies, the Undergraduate Stud-

ies Coordinator or Courses Manager, and an undergraduate representative from each College.

It meets once a term at 13:00 on Monday of Third Week in Michaelmas, Hilary and Trinity

Terms. The undergraduate representatives must be reading for a degree in PPE or HP.

The Economics UJCC comprises several senior members, including the Director of Under-

graduate Studies, and an undergraduate representative from each college. The undergraduate

representatives must be reading for one of the Honour Schools involving Economics. The

UJCC meets once per term. It elects one of its undergraduate representatives as Chair. The

Chair prepares the agenda and minutes for meetings.

The Philosophy UJCC is likely to be reformed in structure, but will always aim to elicit con-

tributions from junior members from across all eight of the joint honour schools involving

Philosophy, not just from PPE. It meets once a term in the Ryle Room at Radcliffe Humanities,

Woodstock Road. The UJCC convenors attend their respective faculty meetings and should

send one representative to attend the PPE Committee, which is the body of academics and

administrators responsible for the organisation of the degree. In addition, the Chair of the

Philosophy UJCC serves as an undergraduate representative on the Philosophy Undergradu-

ate Studies Committee.

If you do not know who your representative is, please approach the relevant undergraduate

administrator (see Section 5: Departments and Key Contacts); she should let you know who

the representatives are.

8.1.3 Students representatives on the Divisional Board Student representatives sitting on the Divisional Board are selected through a process organ-

ised by the Oxford University Student Union (OUSU). Details can be found on the OUSU

website (www.ousu.org) along with information about student representation at the Univer-

sity level.

8.1.4 Library Committees The Committee on Library Provision (CoLP) in Social Sciences may include student represent-

atives from the relevant UJCCs. The Committee meets once a term.

42

9. Student Support

Each College has their own system of support for students. Please refer to your College hand-

book or website for more information. There is also a wide range of sources of support avail-

able in the University, including in relation to mental and physical health, and disability. See

here for further details: www.ox.ac.uk/students/welfare.

9.1 Equality and Diversity

Equality and Diversity at Oxford

“The University of Oxford is committed to fostering an inclusive culture which promotes equality,

values diversity and maintains a working, learning and social environment in which the rights and

dignity of all its staff and students are respected.” Equality Policy (2013).

Oxford is a diverse community with staff and students from over 140 countries, all with dif-

ferent cultures, beliefs and backgrounds. As a member of the University you contribute to-

wards making it an inclusive environment and we ask that you treat other members of the

University community with respect, courtesy and consideration.

The Equality and Diversity Unit works with all parts of the collegiate University to develop

and promote an understanding of equality and diversity and ensure that this is reflected in all

its processes. The Unit also supports the University in meeting the legal requirements of the

Equality Act 2010, including eliminating unlawful discrimination, promoting equality of op-

portunity and fostering good relations between people with and without the ‘protected char-

acteristics’ of age, disability, gender, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership,

pregnancy and maternity, race, religion and/or belief and sexual orientation. Visit our website

for further details or contact us directly for advice: www.admin.ox.ac.uk/eop or equality@ad-

min.ox.ac.uk.

The Equality and Diversity Unit also supports a broad network of harassment advisors in

departments/faculties and colleges and a central Harassment Advisory Service. For more in-

formation on the University’s Harassment and Bullying policy and the support available for

students visit: www.admin.ox.ac.uk/eop/harassmentadvice

There is range of faith societies, belief groups, and religious centres within Oxford University

that are open to students. For more information visit: www.admin.ox.ac.uk/eop/religion-

andbelief/faithsocietiesgroupsorreligiouscentres/

Student Welfare and Support Services

The Disability Advisory Service (DAS) can provide information, advice and guidance on the

way in which a particular disability may impact on your student experience at the University

and assist with organising disability-related study support. For more information visit:

www.ox.ac.uk/students/shw/das

43

The Counselling Service is here to help you address personal or emotional problems that get

in the way of having a good experience at Oxford and realising your full academic and per-

sonal potential. They offer a free and confidential service. For more information visit:

www.ox.ac.uk/students/shw/counselling

A range of services led by students are available to help provide support to other students,

including the peer supporter network, the OUSU Student Advice Service and Nightline. For

more information visit: www.ox.ac.uk/students/shw/peer

OUSU also runs a series of campaigns to raise awareness and promote causes that matter to

students. For full details, visit: ousu.org/get-involved/campaigns

There is a wide range of student clubs and societies to get involved in - for more details visit:

www.ox.ac.uk/students/life/clubs

9.2 Harassment There are confidential advisers who can be contacted for help on any matter related to harass-

ment:

Politics

Prof Lois McNay - Tel: (2) 70651) - lois.mcnay@some.ox.ac.uk

Dr Paul Martin - (Tel: (2)77987) - paul.martin@wadh.ox.ac.uk

Economics:

Dr Howard Smith - (Tel: (2)71061) - howard.smith@economics.ox.ac.uk

TBC

Philosophy:

Dr Ursula Coope - (Tel: (2)76328) - ursula.coope@ccc.ox.ac.uk

Dr Michail Peramatzis - (Tel: 2(78372) – michail.peramatzis@philosophy.ox.ac.uk

You will also find that your college has people that you can approach if you feel harassed.

You may wish to go to your tutor or to the Senior Tutor; alternatively, if you wish to deal with

someone who is not connected directly with your academic work or your course, consult the

Chaplain, Women's Adviser, or Welfare officers in your college.

9.3 Disability The University operates a code of practice to provide equality of opportunity for those with

disabilities. Detailed information about provision and sources of assistance, including the

University’s Disability Statement and the Access Guide to University buildings and colleges (which

gives details about the accessibility of most University buildings) can be found at:

http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/eop/disab/. Further information and advice are available from

the University’s Disability Office at disability@admin.ox.ac.uk.

44

Local information on access and resources can be found on the Philosophy Faculty website at

www.philosophy.ox.ac.uk. The Disability Co-ordinator for the Philosophy Faculty is Dr Hilla

Wait, Tel: (2)76927, email hilla.wait@philosophy.ox.ac.uk.

The Disability Officer for the Department of Politics and International Relations is Mr Andrew

Melling, Tel: (2)78727, email andrew.melling@politics.ox.ac.uk.

Observations or complaints concerning disability issues should be addressed via college and

departmental complaints procedures.

9.4 Complaints Procedures The University complaints and academic appeals policy is provided in Appendix C of this

handbook. It is the policy of the departments/faculty responsible for the teaching of PPE to

deal with all complaints from individuals fairly, promptly, and in confidence. Complaints

concerning College matters should in the first instance be referred to your College authorities.

Complaints concerning University matters, including all centrally-provided lectures and clas-

ses, should normally be addressed in the first instance to the Director of Undergraduate Stud-

ies for Philosophy or to the Heads of the Departments of Politics and International Relations

or of Economics. In the case of harassment, complaints should be made to the individuals

named in Section 9.2 of this Handbook. Alternatively, students can approach the Secretary of

the Faculty of Philosophy or the respective Directors of Undergraduate Studies in Politics or

Economics. The names of these officers are set out in Appendix D.

Note that although tutorial and class teaching for the option papers in Economics is arranged

by the Economics Department, any complaints should first be taken to the college tutor, as for

other tutorial teaching. The college tutor will take the matter up with the option tutor and/or

the convenor in the first instance, and if not satisfied will ask the Director of Undergraduate

Studies to take up the issue. If the matter is still not satisfactorily resolved, the college Senior

Tutor should be informed (either by the undergraduate concerned, or the college tutor) who

will then take up the issue with the Director of Undergraduate Studies and/or the Head of

Department.

In addition, the University’s Proctors provide a special forum for dealing with complaints.

They have power to investigate directly complaints from any member of the University and

to take appropriate measures to provide redress. Details can be found in the Proctors’ and

Assessor’s Memorandum, which sets out complaints procedures, and provides further infor-

mation on disciplinary procedures, equal opportunities policy, harassment, disability and

other welfare issues; see here: https://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/proctors/info/pam.

It is important to remember, in a collegiate University, that even on matters relating exclu-

sively to University teaching and examining, your college tutor, or your college’s Senior Tutor

and its other officers concerned with welfare, provide an immediate and well-informed source

of advice about the best procedure to adopt.

9.5 Illness and personal issues

45

If illness, or other personal issues such as bereavement, seriously affect your academic work,

make sure that your tutors know this. If at all possible choose a Fellow of your college in

whom to confide - otherwise it will be difficult for the college to help. Help may involve:

excusing you tutorials for a while; sending you home; asking the University to grant you

dispensation from that term’s residence (to qualify for the BA you must reside and study in

Oxford for nine terms - or six if you have Senior Status - and a term for that purpose means

forty-two nights); or permitting you to go out of residence for a number of terms, with

consequent negotiations with your funding body as appropriate.

If illness or other issues have interfered with preparation for a University examination, or

have affected you during the exam itself, your college will, if appropriate, report the fact to

the Vice-Chancellor and Proctors, who will pass the information to your examiners ‘if, in their

opinion, it is likely to assist the examiners in the performance of their duties’. Your college

also reports to the Proctors if illness, disability or other factors have prevented you from

attending part of a University examination, or makes it desirable that you should be examined

in a special place or at a special time. The college officer concerned is the Senior Tutor. You

must deal with your Senior Tutor, never with the examiners. Give the Senior Tutor as much

notice as possible; in particular, examinations specially invigilated in a special place (usually

your college) take a lot of organising, and the deadline for getting permission in respect of

foreseeable issues such as dyslexia is Second Week of the term of the examination. In the case

of illness or disability, you will probably need a medical certificate; college doctors have the

relevant University forms.

For further information about factors affecting performance during your examination, please

see section 3.8 of this handbook and the Oxford Students’ website:

www.ox.ac.uk/students/academic/exams/guidance.

9.6 Scholarships, Prizes and Grants After your first year you will be eligible for a scholarship or exhibition from your college, on

academic criteria which the college decides and applies. The University administers a number

of trust scholarships, mostly narrow in remit and none specifically for PPE subjects; they are

listed in the University’s Statutes, Decrees and Regulations (the ‘blue book’), which you can

consult in your college office or a library.

University prizes are listed in a supplement of the University Gazette each year, which can be

found on the university website. Those particularly concerning PPE are as follows:

• The Henry Wilde Prize (value about £500) is offered for an outstanding performance in the

Philosophy subjects in one of the Final Honour Schools; and a Gibbs Prize (value up to £100)

is offered for an outstanding performance in the Philosophy subjects in PPE.

• Gibbs Prizes in Politics are awarded for the best performance in Politics written papers

(value £400 and £300 plus the option of two £200 proxime accessit awards) and for the best

Politics thesis (value £400 plus the option of one £200 proxime accessit award) in PPE and

History and Politics for Finals. There is also a Gibbs prize for the best Politics written paper in

46

the Preliminary Examination for PPE and History and Politics (value £300 plus the option of

two £200 proxime accessit awards).

• Hicks/Webb Medley Prizes are awarded for the best Economics performance (value £300)

in PPE and History and Economics. Three prizes may be awarded.

• The George Webb Medley Undergraduate Thesis Prize is awarded for the best Economics

thesis (value £150) in one of the Final Honour Schools.

• The John Hicks Foundation Prizes are awarded for the best overall performance in

Macroeconomics (value £150), Microeconomics (value £150) and Quantitative Economics

(value £150) in PPE and History and Economics.

• The Gladstone Memorial Essay Prize (value about £500) is awarded for a thesis on some

subject connected with recent British History, Political Science, or Economics, or with some

problem of British policy - domestic, imperial or foreign - in relation to finance or other

matters, submitted for the Honour School in History, History and Economics, or PPE.

• The Arnold Historical Essay Prize (value about £500) is awarded for the best thesis in

History, which may be a PPE thesis.

• The Duns Scotus Prize in Medieval Philosophy (value £150) may be awarded each year, if

there is a candidate of sufficient merit, by the examiners of the Medieval Philosophy paper in

any of the Final Honour Schools involving Philosophy.

• The Elizabeth Anscombe Thesis Prize (value £100) is awarded each year to the best Final

Honour Schools Philosophy Thesis across all Final Honour Schools involving Philosophy.

The Access to Learning Fund is provided by the UK government to assist ‘Home’

undergraduates and postgraduates who are in financial difficulty. Application forms are

available from your college or can be requested from Student Financial Support by emailing

student.funding@admin.ox.ac.uk. See here for details:

http://www.ox.ac.uk/students/fees-funding/assistance/hardship/alf.

The University Hardship Committee also makes grants and loans for the relief of unexpected

financial hardship, which must have been unforeseeable at the time of admission. It meets

once a term (Week 6 in Michaelmas and Hilary, and Week 4 in Trinity). Application forms are

held in your college office and must be submitted by your college before the Committee

meeting (Friday of Week 3 in Michaelmas and Hilary, and Friday of Week 1 in Trinity). See

here for details: http://www.ox.ac.uk/students/fees-funding/assistance/hardship/uhf.

10. The Future

10.1 Taking your Degree

47

Once your name has appeared on the PPE Class List or Pass List, you may ‘supplicate’ for the

degree of Bachelor of Arts, that is, ask to be ‘presented’ to the Vice-Chancellor or the Vice-

Chancellor’s deputy, either in person or in absentia as you choose. Your college presents you,

and you must apply through it. If you wish to be presented in person, you must apply many

months in advance: there are about a dozen ceremonies each year (usually in the Sheldonian),

but they are heavily booked. You may ask your college for up to three tickets entitling guests

to attend a degree ceremony, and your college will probably invite you, and possibly your

guests, to lunch on the day. Dress is sub-fusc, and you must also make sure that you have,

perhaps by loan from your college, an undergraduate gown, mortar board or cap, and also a

BA gown and hood. The same procedure applies to the degree of MA, for which you may

supplicate - together with or after your BA - in or after your twenty-first term from

matriculation. Further information on degree ceremonies, transcripts, and preparing to leave

is here: https://www.ox.ac.uk/students/graduation?wssl=1.

10.2 Proceeding to Further Study If you are considering graduate study, the beginning of your final year is the latest time by

which you should research the various degrees on offer and choose the ones that appeal to

you. At that time you might also discuss the options with your tutors. Most applications for

graduate study, particularly to institutions in the northern hemisphere, must be submitted by

December or January. Deadlines are often strictly enforced and the competition for a place on

a particular degree may be intensive. Your initiatives are likely to fail if they are not completed

in good time.

Every year a number of PPE finalists apply to continue their studies at Oxford. There are three

main application deadlines at Oxford, though many degrees participate in only one or two of

the deadlines. You will be able to find a comprehensive list of deadlines, as well as information

about the application process, on the Graduate Admissions website at:

http://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/postgraduate_courses/index.html.

Graduate students must secure their own funding to cover fees and maintenance, both of

which can be costly. The closing dates for some fellowships and scholarships, especially those

overseas, may fall in advance of the application deadline for your chosen degree programme,

and the competition for funding can also be fierce, so it is important to research the deadlines

for these opportunities and to plan your applications in a timely manner.

There are two UK Government funding bodies: the Arts and Humanities Research Council

(AHRC) and the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). They provide studentships

to a small number of UK students (fees and maintenance) and EU students (fees only). You

can find out more information about them, including which one supports your chosen

discipline, at www.ahrc.ac.uk and at www.esrc.ac.uk. Both research councils now operate a

quota system, which means that your department selects the successful studentship

nominees. You will need to check the local procedures for AHRC and ESRC studentship

applications at the institution to which you intend to apply.

If you are applying to continue your studies at Oxford, you should indicate your wish to be

considered for an AHRC studentship on the graduate application form (all students who are

48

eligible for an ESRC studentship are automatically considered). The department to which you

are applying will consider all students who ask for awards and will contact directly those

whom it chooses. In addition to Government funding bodies, other sources can also provide

funding to graduate students. You may find the following links helpful:

Humanities Division Funding

http://www.humanities.ox.ac.uk/prospective_students/graduates/funding

Social Sciences Division Funding

http://www.socsci.ox.ac.uk/students/for-postgraduates/esrc-dtc

University Fees and Funding

www.ox.ac.uk/feesandfunding/

10.3 Careers A wide range of careers is available to PPE graduates, and in recent years employers have

recruited very actively. You are strongly recommended to start thinking carefully about your

career plans early in your course. A PPE Careers Induction Session will be held in Week 1 of

Michaelmas Term 2016; you will be notified of the time and location by email.

The University’s Careers Service (www.careers.ox.ac.uk) is at the disposal of all students both

while studying and for four years after they leave Oxford. Their advice is that students should

contact them early in the second year to be able to take full advantage of the extensive range

of resources available through them. The Careers Service is located at 56 Banbury Road,

Oxford OX2 6PA (Tel: 274646).

49

APPENDICES

APPENDIX A: Outline of Papers

A.1 The Preliminary Examination

A.1.1 Introduction to Philosophy The purpose of the course is to introduce you to some central philosophical issues and to help

you to acquire some concepts and ways of thinking which will be useful if you continue with

the study of Philosophy, or even if you do not.

The course has three parts, I General Philosophy, a topic-based introduction to key issues in

epistemology and metaphysics, II Moral Philosophy, studied in connection with J. S. Mill:

Utilitarianism, and III Logic, studied in connection with a course designed especially for Ox-

ford students, based on a manual by Prof Volker Halbach of New College, the Logic Manual.

In the preliminary examination you are required to answer four questions, including at least

one question from each of the three parts. Lectures are provided on all three parts and you

should be sure to attend them.

Logic (usually taught in college classes) is the study of patterns of valid inference, and in-

volves some study of a formal system. Students are required to do exercises and proofs in a

formal system, and also to understand the relation between the elements of the formal system

and the kinds of inference and argument used in ordinary language. Even if you do not go on

to further study of logic, you are likely to find it useful in further philosophical study to have

some familiarity with a formal logical language and the ability to use it to investigate logical

relationships and to understand its use by others.

In parts I and II (usually taught in tutorials or small groups) students are introduced to central

issues in philosophy. General Philosophy introduces students to key topics in epistemology

and metaphysics, including knowledge and scepticism, induction, mind and body, personal

identity, free will, and God and evil. Moral Philosophy is studied in conjunction with J. S.

Mill’s Utilitarianism and involves the study of an influential but controversial moral theory,

with discussions of subjects such as happiness and pleasure, the criterion of right action, the

role and foundation of moral principles, and justice. Students learn how to read and to eval-

uate philosophical writings, how to identify the author's arguments and conclusions, and are

encouraged to think critically and write lucidly about the issues discussed.

50

In the preliminary examination you are required to answer four questions, including at least

one question from each of the three parts. Work in each of the three parts is marked by sepa-

rate markers, and so you must use separate booklets for your work in each part, to be sure that all of

your work is marked and you receive appropriate credit.

A.1.2 Introduction to the Theory and Practice of Politics This course introduces students to the empirical and theoretical study of Politics, to some of

the key concepts of the discipline and to major methods of contemporary analysis. The pa-

per will be divided into two sections. Candidates are required to answer four questions, of

which at least one must be from section (a) and at least two from section (b).

(a) The Theory of Politics. Questions will be set on the following topics: (i) the nature and

grounds of rights; (ii) the nature and grounds of democracy; (iii) the role of civil society;

(iv) power in the democratic state; (v) the nature and grounds of liberty; (vi) state pater-

nalism; and (vii) free speech. Questions will also be set on the following texts: (i) John

Locke: Second Treatise on Government; (ii) Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Social Contract; (iii) Alexis

de Tocqueville: Democracy in America; (iv) Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, The Communist

Manifesto; (v) John Stuart Mill, On Liberty.

(b) The Practice of Politics. Questions will be set on the following topics: (i) regime types;

definition and measurement of variations between types of democracy; (ii) political

institutions and practice outside the advanced industrial democracies; stability, state

capacity and state formation; (iii) the state and its institutions (executives, legislatures,

parties and party systems, electoral systems, courts, constitutions and centre-periphery

relations); (iv) parties and party systems; political values and identity politics.

Candidates are also expected to complete the course of study in Political Analysis, including the

submission of an assessed methods essay, but Section (c) is not formally examined in the same manner

as Section (a) and Section (b).

Section (c) Political Analysis. The political analysis component of the Politics Prelims course

introduces students to quantitative methods by means of an 8-week route through the

empirical research process. Using a running example from the literature on political

institutions, it goes through each step in the research process from defining a research

question to preliminary statistical analysis. The objective is to learn how quantitative methods

help political scientists to address questions of theoretical and empirical interest. In order to

improve students’ understanding of quantitative methods, this component also includes four

data labs where students will be introduced to a powerful statistical software called R Studio.

After completing the political analysis component, students will be able to:

i. critically read and evaluate statements about causal relationships based on data analysis;

ii. demonstrate knowledge of some of the core threats to causal inference, such as endogeneity,

superiousness, selection effects or issues with the validity and reliability of measurement, etc.;

iii. summarise quantitative information and assess the level of uncertainty accompanying

these summary statistics.

51

The political analysis component will consist of 8 lectures and 4 data labs. Both lectures and

data labs are taught in Hilary by the Oxford Q-Step Centre (OQC) staff. For more information

on the OQC, see www.oqc.ox.ac.uk as well as Appendix N of this handbook. The data labs

will use the R Studio software, which is an open source software that can be downloaded on

a personal computer for free (see https://www.rstudio.com/ide/download/).

The political analysis component will not be summatively assessed in the PPE Prelims

examination paper. It will be assessed through the submission of one methods essay of no

more than 2000 words via WebLearn by noon on Tuesday, Week 2, Trinity Term. In this essay,

students will be expected to provide an empirical answer to one of two questions on regime

type classification and its consequences by using data sets which will be provided by the OQC

staff via WebLearn. More information on the political analysis component will be provided at

induction sessions in 0th week of Michaelmas Term and at the start of Hilary Term.

A.1.3 Introductory Economics This course is compulsory for those taking PPE Prelims, and is shared with students taking

Prelims in Economics and Management, and History and Economics. For those who are

intending to continue with Economics it provides an introduction to economic analysis,

equipping you with the concepts and tools which will be developed further in the later years

of the course. The course covers both microeconomics and macroeconomics, and includes the

mathematical techniques used in Economics, mainly simple algebra and calculus. For those

who will not carry the study of Economics beyond Prelims it is designed to provide a

reasonably complete perspective, at an introductory level, of microeconomic and

macroeconomic issues and how economic analysis tackles them. While A-level economics and

A-level maths will be helpful, many students will not have one or other, or even either, of

these. The microeconomics part of the course covers the functioning of the market economy:

the decisions of households, who have wants and budget constraints; the behaviour of firms,

who employ labour and capital and choose their level of output; and the functioning of

markets under competition and monopoly. The macroeconomics part of the course looks at

the determination of national income and employment, monetary institutions and the money

supply, inflation, the balance of payments and exchange rates, and macroeconomic policy.

The paper is divided into two sections and you must answer three questions from Part A

which requires detailed answers on particular topics and one from Part B where broader essay

style questions are set.

A.2 The Final Honour School

For your second and third years you may choose to continue with all three subjects or to pur-

sue only two of them. This is a matter you should discuss with your college tutors. There are

various requirements to take particular papers, and restrictions on the option papers you can

take, and these are listed in detail in the Examination Regulations. The Examination Regulations

also contain the regulations for each paper. Course outlines, teaching arrangements and read-

ing lists are available on the websites for each of the three departments.

52

What follows here is an outline (not necessarily the actual regulations) of what the compulsory

core papers in each of the three branches involve. You may well find it helpful to look at recent

examination papers (available at https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/hierarchy/oxam) to help

build up a picture of these papers. If you find the examination questions interesting you are

more likely to find working on the paper engaging.

The list of optional papers available to you will be published (if finalised) in the PPE FHS

Handbook 2017-19. For a sample of the optional papers that may become available to you,

please consult the latest version of the PPE FHS Handbook on PPE WebLearn:

https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/site/%3Asocsci%3Axsocsci%3Appe/page/85b8c669-f86c-

489d-8591-75c006ee0b6d.

A.2.1 Philosophy

Formal requirements

Students must take two core subjects: 103 Ethics, and one of papers 101 Early Modern Philos-

ophy, 102 Knowledge and Reality, 115 Plato: Republic, or 116 Aristotle: Nicomachean Ethics. In

your choice of further subjects you should be guided by the Normal Prerequisites (see the

Examination Regulations, Philosophy in All Honour Schools including Philosophy). For example,

you may only take 199 (Philosophy Thesis) if you are taking at least three other Philosophy

subjects. You may take only one from 106 (Philosophy of Science and of Social Science) and

124 (Philosophy of Science). You may not take both of 117 (Frege, Russell, and Wittgenstein)

and 118 (the Later Wittgenstein), or both of 110 (Aquinas) and 111 (Duns Scotus and Ockham).

Bi-partite Politics and Economics students may take any one Philosophy subject (except 199,

Thesis in Philosophy), but should be guided by the Normal Prerequisites.

The official syllabuses for subjects may be found in the Examination Regulations, Philosophy in

All Honour Schools including Philosophy and it is these which form the framework within which

exam questions on a paper must be set. But to help your initial choices, see below brief, infor-

mal descriptions of the core subjects, followed in some cases by a suggested introductory

reading. You should always consult your tutor about your choice of options.

101. Early Modern Philosophy: The purpose of this subject is to enable you to gain a critical

understanding of some of the metaphysical and epistemological ideas of some of the most

important philosophers of the early modern period, between the 1630s and the 1780s.

This period saw a great flowering of philosophy in Europe. Descartes, Spinoza and Leibniz,

often collectively referred to as "the rationalists", placed the new "corpuscularian" science

within grand metaphysical systems which certified our God-given capacity to reason our way

to the laws of nature (as well as to many other, often astonishing conclusions about the world).

Locke wrote in a different, empiricist tradition. He argued that, since our concepts all ulti-

mately derive from experience, our knowledge is necessarily limited. Berkeley and Hume de-

veloped this empiricism in the direction of a kind of idealism, according to which the world

53

studied by science is in some sense mind-dependent and mind-constructed. (Kant subse-

quently sought to arbitrate between the rationalists and the empiricists, by rooting out some

assumptions common to them and trying thereby to salvage and to reconcile some of their

apparently irreconcilable insights.) Reading the primary texts is of great importance.

The examination paper is divided into two sections and students are required to answer at

least one question from Section A (Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz) and at least one from Section

B (Locke, Berkeley, Hume). NB: previously this paper was known as “History of Philosophy

from Descartes to Kant” and further allowed study of Kant (who remains available within

paper 112)

R.S.Woolhouse, The Empiricists

J.Cottingham, The Rationalists (both O.U.P. Opus series).

102. Knowledge and Reality: The purpose of this subject is to enable you to examine some

central questions about the nature of the world and the extent to which we can have

knowledge of it.

In considering knowledge you will examine whether it is possible to attain knowledge of what

the world is really like. Is our knowledge of the world necessarily limited to what we can

observe to be the case? Indeed, are even our observational beliefs about the world around us

justified? Can we have knowledge of what will happen based on what has happened? Is our

understanding of the world necessarily limited to what we can prove to be the case? Or can

we understand claims about the remote past or distant future which we cannot in principle

prove to be true?

In considering reality you will focus on questions such as the following. Does the world really

contain the three-dimensional objects and their properties - such as red buses or black horses

- which we appear to encounter in everyday life? Or is it made up rather of the somewhat

different entities studied by science, such as colourless atoms or four-dimensional space-time

worms? What is the relation between the common sense picture of the world and that pro-

vided by contemporary science? Is it correct to think of the objects and their properties that

make up the world as being what they are independently of our preferred ways of dividing

up reality? These issues are discussed with reference to a variety of specific questions such as

'What is time?', 'What is the nature of causation?', and 'What are substances?' There is an op-

portunity in this subject to study such topics as reference, truth and definition, but candidates

taking 102 and 108 should avoid repetition of material across examinations. However, if your

answers are well-crafted and relevant to the specific question set, this is unlikely to be a prob-

lem.

Jonathan Dancy, Introduction to Contemporary Epistemology (Oxford), chs. 1-3; Michael J. Loux,

Metaphysics (Routledge)

103. Ethics: The purpose of this subject is to enable you to come to grips with some questions

which exercise many people, philosophers and non-philosophers alike. How should we de-

cide what is best to do, and how best to lead our lives? Are our value judgments on these and

54

other matters objective or do they merely reflect our subjective preferences and viewpoints?

Are we in fact free to make these choices, or have our decisions already been determined by

antecedent features of our environment and genetic endowment? In considering these issues

you will examine a variety of ethical concepts, such as those of justice, rights, equality, virtue,

and happiness, which are widely used in moral and political argument. There is also oppor-

tunity to discuss some applied ethical issues. Knowledge of major historical thinkers, e.g. Ar-

istotle and Hume and Kant, will be encouraged, but not required in the examination.

John Mackie, Ethics (Penguin), chs. 1-2.

115. Plato, Republic: Plato’s influence on the history of philosophy is enormous. The purpose

of this subject is to enable you to make a critical study of the Republic, which is perhaps his

most important and most influential work. Written as a dialogue between Socrates and others

including the outspoken immoralist Thrasymachus, it is primarily concerned with questions

of the nature of justice and of what is the best kind of life to lead. These questions prompt

discussions of the ideal city - which Karl Popper criticised as totalitarian -, of education and

art, of the nature of knowledge, the Theory of Forms and the immortality of the soul. In stud-

ying it you will encounter a work of philosophy of unusual literary merit, one in which phi-

losophy is presented through debates, through analogies and images, including the famous

simile of the Cave, as well as rigorous argument, and you will encounter some of Plato’s im-

portant contributions to ethics, political theory, metaphysics, philosophy of mind and aesthet-

ics. You are expected to study the work in detail; the examination contains a question requir-

ing comments on chosen passages (see Appendix F), as well as a choice of essay questions.

Julia Annas, An Introduction to Plato's Republic, Introduction and ch. 1.

Set translation: Plato: Republic, trans. Grube, revised Reeve (Hackett).

116. Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics: The purpose of this subject is to give you the opportunity

to make a critical study of one of the most important works in the history of philosophy. Like

Plato in the Republic, Aristotle is concerned with the question, what is the best possible sort of

life? Whereas this leads Plato to pose grand questions in metaphysics and political theory, it

leads Aristotle to offer close analyses of the structure of human action, responsibility, the vir-

tues, the nature of moral knowledge, weakness of will, pleasure, friendship, and other related

issues. Much of what Aristotle has to say on these is ground-breaking, highly perceptive, and

still of importance in contemporary debate in ethics and moral psychology.

You are expected to study the work in detail; the examination contains a question requiring

comments on chosen passages (see Appendix F), as well as a choice of essay questions.

J. L. Ackrill, Aristotle the Philosopher, ch. 10.

Set translation: Aristotle: Nicomachean Ethics translated and with notes by T.H. Irwin (Hackett)

second edition.

A.2.2 Politics

55

You should choose your core subjects with care. The choice of two from five core subjects is

deliberately permissive. In the first year, you acquire the basic tools of political analysis, but

the discipline of Politics consists of several distinct schools of analysis, none of which is self-

evidently more fundamental than the others. The core papers are each designed to enhance

your ability to conceptualise, to compare, and to develop analytical skills. In a joint honours

degree, to require you to take papers covering all approaches would leave no space for choice

and specialisation. Your choice of core subjects will however have a bearing on your

subsequent work in Politics, and you are strongly advised to consult your college tutor and

option-paper tutors before selecting any optional subject. For a number of options, it is

helpful, though not essential, already to have taken a related core subject. Thus the study of

political systems in particular areas or countries is based on issues that are raised in

Comparative Government and Political Sociology; several subjects in the area of political

theory are most readily tackled with the background provided by Theory of Politics; the two

optional subjects in International Relations follow most naturally from the core paper, as to a

lesser degree, do those in Sociology from the core paper in Political Sociology. The

Department sets no ‘normal prerequisites’ (papers you should normally have studied before

studying others) similar to those in Philosophy. It prefers to leave final decisions on the

appropriateness of particular choices to the individual, in conjunction with college tutors, and

to leave open the possibility, where you might otherwise lack sufficient background, that you

attend additional lectures or follow a course of directed vacation reading covering important

material from the relevant core subject.

A. Core subjects

Three of the five core papers contain a further Political Analysis component. These are papers 201, 214

and 220. Candidates taking these papers are expected to complete the course of study in Po-

litical Analysis, which consists of further lectures and data labs. They are also expected to

submit an assessed methods essay in each of the papers they propose to take in the Final Hon-

our School.

201. Comparative Government: This course is a comparative study of the main political insti-

tutions through which contemporary societies are governed. It focuses on the origins and ef-

fects of democratic institutions and attempts to understand the differences between forms of

government and what effects they have within the polity. As such, topics studied include

those such as state-building, judiciaries, bureaucracies, the origins of parties, interest groups

and the nature of political activism. Through reference to the distinct methodological ap-

proach used by different scholars in studying these phenomena, students acquire an under-

standing of the utility and limits of different means of analysis. The course builds on material

covered at Prelims, for instance by developing on conceptual ideas about regimes to move

towards causal theories of democratization and factors sustaining authoritarian regimes. It

provides students with an understanding of key concepts and tools of empirical political anal-

ysis, and in this way also prepares them for the more specialised study of specific regions or

single countries that follow as options later in the PPE syllabus. While the main instruction is

via the usual mixture of lectures and tutorials, students should note that the range of

knowledge covered makes the lectures even more vital than they might be for some courses.

56

The lecture course is formed of sixteen lectures, and students are expected to treat it as a com-

mitment running right through the academic year.

202. British Politics and Government Since 1900: This course consists of the close study of

political developments in Britain since 1900 and the major academic debates surrounding

them. It allows students to study a single political system in depth, over a period long enough

both to make visible long-run processes of social, economic and political change, and to permit

comparisons and contrasts to be drawn between the situations of political actors at different

times. It is also a period with an extraordinarily rich and rewarding academic literature, which

encourages students to explore problems of evidence and interpretation, and to consider a

range of explanations, based on different scholarly traditions, for the same events. These in-

clude techniques and methods as diverse as archivally-based historical analysis, political bi-

ography and political science modelling. Among the topics covered are the decline of the

Liberal Party and the rise of the Labour Party; the political effects of the two world wars and

the widening franchise; the development of the institutions and procedures of modern gov-

ernment; the changing party system under mass democracy; the challenges and failures of

political extremism; the domestic impact of foreign policies such as appeasement, decolonisa-

tion and European integration; the challenges posed to modern governments by relative eco-

nomic decline, and efforts to transform the system such as tariff reform, social democracy and

Thatcherism.

203. Theory of Politics: The course is designed to acquaint students with the political concepts

central to the theoretical, normative and interpretative analysis of politics. The study of

concepts such as liberty, justice, authority or power provides the foundation for

understanding the nature of political thought. These concepts underpin the study of politics

in general and are therefore crucial to enhancing the awareness of the relation between

political thought and action. Students are also directed towards discursive ideologies

displaying complex conceptual arrangements such as liberalism or socialism. The course is

devised so as to develop a manifold range of skills necessary for constructing critical

arguments in political theory, for working with problems of consistency and justification, for

analysing the complexities of the usage of political language, for understanding the principal

forms through which political thought presents itself, both as theory and as ideology, and for

appreciating the main current and recent debates that command attention in the field. To those

ends philosophical, ideological and historical analyses are all appropriate, and the merits of

each type may be assessed and contrasted. Students are therefore encouraged to explore

different ways of approaching these issues, though they are also enabled, if they so wish, to

choose a specific strategy from among these approaches. Students are also invited, in

consultation with their tutors, to balance a broad appreciation of the field with a development

of their own interests within the wide choice of available concepts and ideologies. The

literature to which they are directed is therefore diverse, encompassing classical texts, seminal

philosophers and theorists, significant journal articles, and typical examples of ideological

debate. Both substantive arguments and methodological issues are consequently aired. By

extending the initial understanding of political thought gained by students in the first year

introduction to politics, or by building on other related introductory lectures and subjects, the

course provides the basis for specialization in political theory, as well as tools that other

57

specializations may draw upon. It will enable students to reflect on the principles underlying

politics, to make reasoned assessments of political discourse, and to develop their own

arguments at a requisite degree of sophistication.

214. International Relations: The aim of this core subject is to introduce PPE students to the

academic study of International Relations and to develop a broad knowledge and

understanding of the major issues in international relations, concentrating on the period since

1990. The subject seeks to strike a balance between empirical knowledge and theoretical

understanding. Those taking the subject will have the opportunity to study some of the major

questions in contemporary international relations (e.g. the role of the United Nations and of

alliances such as NATO; the impact on international relations of globalization and of

democratization; the development of European integration; the international impact of civil

wars and humanitarian disasters; and problems that arise from national self-determination

and attempts to promote human rights). But they will also develop a broad knowledge of the

most important analytical and theoretical tools that are needed to make sense of these

questions. This knowledge of the principal theories and concepts is intended to tie in closely

with work for the Further Subjects in International Relations (International Relations in the

Era of the Cold War [subject 213] and International Relations in the Era of the Two World

Wars [subject 212].

220. Political Sociology: The course builds on some of the concepts, theories and knowledge

introduced in the Politics Prelims syllabus - notably the study of electorates, parties and

interest groups, and the study of the interaction of political ideas such as democracy with

political processes. In this Final Honour School subject students will study in more detail the

major theoretical approaches to social class, race and ethnicity, gender, religion, nationality,

states, interest groups including unions, parties, movements and single issue campaigns, and

the interrelationships between culture, economy, social structure, and political processes and

institutions. The theoretical approaches will be critically assessed in the light of empirical

evidence from a range of countries, and also put in the context of the philosophically rigorous

analysis of power and change. To aid students in attaining a comprehensive grasp of the field

of study, they will have the opportunity to look at ‘approaches’ such as structuralism, rational

choice theory, political culture theory, and the historical and comparative perspective as such,

as well as studying the application of these to the specific topics mentioned. Thus by the end

of the course students should have an understanding of recent sociological explanations of

political processes and events, a grasp of the competing approaches in the field, an

understanding of the main methods of data collection and analysis, and an appreciation of the

role of models and theories in sociological knowledge.

A.2.3 Economics

A. Core subjects Students continuing with Economics must take three compulsory core papers in Economics -

Quantitative Economics, Microeconomics and Macroeconomics - as part of their Finals, except

58

that tripartite students may take only two Economics papers in total, in which case they may

choose any two of these three.

300. Quantitative Economics: This is a core Finals course; the lectures and classes will be given

in Trinity Term. The QE course is designed to give students a good understanding of the

rationale for and intuition about the application of statistical methods to the analysis of a range

of applied economics issues, such as the economics effects of education or the behaviour of

aggregate consumption. Topics covered will include statistical and causal inference,

multivariate regression analysis, testing and interpretation of regression results and empirical

applications and interpretation of current and recent literature in a number of areas of

empirical economics.

301. Macroeconomics: This is a core Finals course; the lectures are given in Hilary Term. The

course will introduce you to the ideas and tools of modern macroeconomic analysis, and show

how these tools can be applied to issues in macroeconomic policy. The Macroeconomics paper

in Finals will contain two sections. Part A will consist of shorter questions designed to ensure

that students demonstrate a reasonable coverage of the syllabus. Part B will consist of

questions requiring longer answers showing more detailed knowledge of particular topics.

You will be required to answer questions from both sections. The course will cover:

macroeconomic theories and their policy implications; macroeconomic shocks and

fluctuations; unemployment and inflation; exchange rates, interest rates and current account;

intertemporal adjustment, growth theory and monetary and fiscal policy.

302. Microeconomics: This is a core Finals course; the lectures are given in Michaelmas Term.

The Microeconomics paper in Finals will contain two sections. Part A will consist of shorter

questions designed to ensure that students demonstrate a reasonable coverage of the syllabus.

Part B will consist of questions requiring longer answers showing more detailed knowledge

of particular topics. You will be required to answer questions from both sections. The course

aims to introduce you to some of the fundamental ideas and tools of modern microeconomic

theory and their applications to policy issues, such as competition and environmental policies.

The course will cover: Risk, expected utility theory; welfare economics and general

equilibrium, public goods and externalities; game theory and industrial organisation;

information economics and applications of microeconomics.

B. Option subjects In Hilary Term of your second year there will be an Economics Options Fair, at which one of

the tutors teaching each option will be available to give an introduction to the content of the

course, and answer questions on its organisation and teaching arrangements. The details of

the choices available for the following year will be announced at the Options Fair at the

beginning of the fourth week of the first Hilary Full Term of your second year, and will be

posted on the Department's WebLearn site at the same time.

59

APPENDIX B: Examination Regulations

The Examination Regulations are available at: www.admin.ox.ac.uk/examregs/

For the Preliminary Examination, the Regulations that apply to you are those for students

starting in 2016-17. At the above link, search for 'Preliminary Examination in Philosophy, Pol-

itics and Economics', and then the view the regulations for the appropriate year. Do also read

the Related Regulations listed under that search, especially 'Regulations for the Conduct of

University Examinations' and 'General Regulations for the First and Second Public Examina-

tion'.

For the Final Examination, the Regulations that will apply to you are those for students

starting in 2017-18. These will not be published until you enter the second year. If you

would like to view a sample (i.e. not definitive) version of the regulations, search for 'Hon-

our School of Philosophy, Politics and Economics' and then view the latest regulations. Do

also read the Related Regulations listed under that search, especially 'Philosophy in all Hon-

our Schools including Philosophy' (the latter lists the regulations for Philosophy FHS pa-

pers), 'Regulations for the Conduct of University Examinations' and 'General Regulations for

the First and Second Public Examination'.

APPENDIX C: Complaints and Academic Appeals

Complaints and academic appeals within the three faculties/departments

The University, the Social Sciences and Humanities Divisions and the three faculties/depart-

ments all hope that provision made for students at all stages of their course of study will make

the need for complaints (about that provision) or appeals (against the outcomes of any form

of assessment) infrequent.

Where such a need arises, an informal discussion with the person immediately responsible

for the issue that you wish to complain about (and who may not be one of the individuals

identified below) is often the simplest way to achieve a satisfactory resolution.

Many sources of advice are available from colleges, faculties/departments and bodies like the

Counselling Service or the OUSU Student Advice Service, which have extensive experience in

advising students. You may wish to take advice from one of these sources before pursuing

your complaint.

General areas of concern about provision affecting students as a whole should be raised

through Joint Consultative Committees or via student representation on the faculty/depart-

ment’s committees.

Complaints

60

If your concern or complaint relates to teaching or other provision made by the faculty/de-

partment, then you should raise it with Director of Undergraduate Studies (see Appendix D:

Key Contacts) or with the Director of Graduate Studies as appropriate. Complaints about de-

partmental facilities should be made to the Departmental Administrator (see Appendix D). If

you feel unable to approach one of those individuals, you may contact the Head of Depart-

ment/Faculty (see Appendix D). The officer concerned will attempt to resolve your con-

cern/complaint informally.

If you are dissatisfied with the outcome, you may take your concern further by making a for-

mal complaint to the Proctors under the University Student Complaints Procedure

(https://www.ox.ac.uk/students/academic/complaints).

If your concern or complaint relates to teaching or other provision made by your college, you

should raise it either with your tutor or with one of the college officers, Senior Tutor, Tutor

for Graduates (as appropriate). Your college will also be able to explain how to take your

complaint further if you are dissatisfied with the outcome of its consideration.

Academic appeals

An academic appeal is an appeal against the decision of an academic body (e.g. boards of

examiners, transfer and confirmation decisions etc.), on grounds such as procedural error or

evidence of bias. There is no right of appeal against academic judgement.

If you have any concerns about your assessment process or outcome it is advisable to discuss

these first with your subject or college tutor, Senior Tutor, course director, director of studies,

supervisor or college or departmental administrator as appropriate. They will be able to ex-

plain the assessment process that was undertaken and may be able to address your concerns.

Queries must not be raised directly with the examiners.

If you still have concerns you can make a formal appeal to the Proctors who will consider

appeals under the University Academic Appeals Procedure (https://www.ox.ac.uk/stu-

dents/academic/complaints).

APPENDIX D: Key Contacts

PPE Administrator

Ms Violet Brand 88564

Philosophy

Chair of the Faculty Board: Dr Edward Harcourt 72741

Chair of the Faculty: Prof Chris Timpson 77584

Director of Undergraduate Studies: Prof Paul Lodge (for MT) 82883

Undergraduate Studies Administrator: Mr James Knight 76925

61

Politics and International Relations

Head of Department: Dr Elizabeth Frazer 88560

Chair of the Sub-faculty: Prof Patricia Thornton 76324

Director of Undergraduate Studies: Dr Karma Nabulsi 74151/79017

Undergraduate Studies Coordinator: Miss Alice Evans 78706

Economics

Head of Department: Prof Margaret Stevens 71092

Director of Undergraduate Studies: Professor Ian Crawford 81441

Undergraduate Administrator: Ms Katherine Cumming 71098

Sociology

Head of Department: Prof Melinda Mills 86181

Director of Taught Courses: Prof Colin Mills 86182

Departmental Secretary: Ms Jane Greig 81740

Social Policy and Intervention

Head of Department: Prof Rebecca Surender 80326

Social Policy Paper Convenor: Ms Fran Bennett 70321

Courses Administrator: Mr Robin McGahey 70326

Libraries

Social Science Library, Manor Road Building 71093

Philosophy and Theology Faculties Library, Radcliffe Humanities 76927

Social Science Division

Enquiries 14850

Humanities Division

Enquiries 80106

Nightline 70270

APPENDIX E: Policies and Regulations

The University has a wide range of policies and regulations that apply to students. These are

easily accessible through the A-Z of University regulations, codes of conduct and policies

available on the Oxford Students website: www.ox.ac.uk/students/academic/regulations/a-z.

APPENDIX F: Policy on the recording of lectures and other

formal teaching sessions by students

62

Introduction

1. The University recognises that there are a number of reasons why students might wish

to record lectures or other formal teaching sessions (such as seminars and classes) in or-

der to support their learning. The University also recognises that in most cases copy-

right in lectures resides with the University or with the academic responsible for the

lecture or formal teaching session, and that academics and students may have concerns

about privacy and data protection. This policy sets out the circumstances in which such

recordings may take place; the respective roles and responsibilities of those involved in

such recordings; and the implications of breaches of this policy.

2. For the purposes of this policy, the term 'recording' refers to any audio or visual re-

cording of a lecture or other formal teaching session, made with any type of audio or

visual recorder.

Permission to record a lecture or other formal teaching session

3. Students who have been given permission to record lectures or other formal teaching

sessions as a reasonable adjustment on disability-related grounds do not need to ask

for permission to record from individual academics. Students who believe they have

disability-related grounds for recording should contact the University’s Disability

Advisory Service (http://www.ox.ac.uk/students/welfare/disability/study or disabil-

ity@admin.ox.ac.uk) for further information on the process for obtaining such per-

mission.

4. Students may request permission to record any lectures or other formal teaching ses-

sions. All such requests should be made in writing (including by email) prior to the

lecture course or equivalent, to the academic responsible. Subject to paragraph 3

above, the decision on whether to grant permission is at the discretion of the

academic. Students may only record lectures where the academic responsible for the

session has given their consent prior to the start of the lecture in writing (e.g. by

email), and recordings of lectures may not be made by students unless this consent has

been given. Retrospective requests are not permissible under this policy and covert re-

cording of lectures will be treated as a disciplinary offence.

5. Students granted permission in writing to record a formal teaching session other than

a lecture should ask the session leader to check at the start of the session that there are

no objections from others present to a recording being made.

6. Where recordings are made available routinely by departments and faculties, stu-

dents may not make personal recordings unless they have been given permission to

record as a reasonable adjustment.

Use of recordings

7. Recordings of lectures or other formal teaching sessions may only be made for the

personal and private use of the student.

8. Students may not:

63

(a) pass such recordings to any other person (except for the purposes of

transcription, in which case they can be passed to one person only);

(b) publish such recordings in any form (this includes, but is not limited to,

the internet and hard copy publication). Students may store recordings of

lectures for the duration of their programme of study. Once they have

completed the programme of study, students should destroy all record-

ings of lectures or other formal teaching sessions.

Implementation

9. Where a student breaches this policy, the University will regard this as a discipli-

nary offence. All such breaches will be dealt with in accordance with Statute XI

(http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/statutes/352-051a.shtml).

APPENDIX G: Fieldwork Safety and Training

Fieldwork

Many students will, as part of their course, be required to undertake fieldwork. Fieldwork is

considered as any research activity contributing to your academic studies, and approved by

your department, which is carried out away from the University premises. This can be over-

seas or within the UK. The safety and welfare of its students is paramount to the University.

This includes fieldwork and there are a number of procedures that you must follow when

preparing for and carrying out fieldwork.

Preparation

Safe fieldwork is successful fieldwork. Thorough preparation can pre-empt many potential

problems. When discussing your research with your supervisor please think about the safety

implications of where you are going and what you are doing. Following this discussion and

before your travel will be approved, you will be required to complete a travel risk assessment

form. This requires you to set out the significant safety risks associated with your research,

the arrangements in place to mitigate those risks and the contingency plans for if something

goes wrong. There is an expectation that you will take out University travel insurance. Your

department also needs accurate information on where you are, and when and how to contact

you while you are away. The travel assessment process should help to plan your fieldwork

by thinking through arrangements and practicalities. The following website contains some

fieldwork experiences which might be useful to refer to https://www.socsci.ox.ac.uk/field-

workers-experiences

Training

Training is highly recommended as part of your preparation. Even if you are familiar with

where you are going there may be risks associated with what you are doing.

64

Departmental course: no Departmental courses available

Safety Office courses http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/safety/overseastravelfieldwork/

(run termly)

Emergency First Aid for Fieldworkers.

Fieldwork Safety Overseas: A full day course geared to expedition based fieldwork.

Useful Links

More information on fieldwork and a number of useful links can be found on the Social

Sciences divisional website:

http://www.socsci.ox.ac.uk/services/research-and-impact/fieldwork/fieldwork;

http://www.socsci.ox.ac.uk/services/research-and-impact/fieldwork/fieldwork-more-

information

Please note that for Politics theses, if your thesis involves human participants, you may need

to get ‘research ethics’ approval, which is designed to protect both you and those you are

studying. For details, please see ‘Courses’ followed by ‘299 Thesis’ on the Department of Pol-

itics undergraduate WebLearn page.

APPENDIX H: Declaration of Authorship

The declaration of authorship that you must use when submitting your thesis will be sent to

you, along with a letter from the chair of examiners, before your thesis submission date.

Electronic copies of the declaration will also be available on PPE WebLearn: https://web-

learn.ox.ac.uk/portal/site/%3Asocsci%3Axsocsci%3Appe/page/14e40209-0739-4ce5-9042-

186d7ba4a8a2

APPENDIX I: Examination Conventions

I.1 The Preliminary Examination Conventions These are the PPE Prelims Examining Conventions for 2015-16. They are included in this handbook

as a sample only. The conventions under which you will be examined will be sent to you by email in

Hilary term of the year of the examination.

1. Introduction

Philosophy, Politics and Economics – Preliminary Examination

Examination Conventions 2015-2016

65

Examination Conventions are the formal record of the specific assessment standards for the

course or courses to which they apply. They set out how examined work will be marked and

how the resulting marks will be used to arrive at a final result and classification of an award.

The supervisory body responsible for approving the examination conventions is the Social

Sciences Board’s Teaching Audit Committee.

2. Rubrics for individual papers

Three three-hour written examinations, taken in Trinity Term, will be set as follows:

(i) Introduction to Philosophy

(ii) Introduction to the Theory and Practice of Politics

(iii) Introductory Economics

Please consult the front page of the examination paper from the most recent year available

for the rubrics of individual papers, including the number of questions candidates can typi-

cally choose from, and the balance of compulsory and optional questions. Past papers are

available on Oxam.1 Where a new rubric has recently been introduced, the Departments /

Faculties that constitute PPE will normally supply sample papers on WebLearn, or other-

wise alert candidates to the changes.

For Introductory Economics candidates may use a calculator, but only one from the list of per-

mitted types as specified by the Department of Economics here.2

The use of calculators in the examination room is subject to the conditions set out under

‘Regulations for the Conduct of University Examinations: Part 10’ in the Examination Regula-

tions 2015-16.3

3.

3.1 University scale for standardised expression of agreed final marks

Agreed final marks for individual papers will be expressed using the following scale:

70-100 Distinction

1 Available here: https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/hierarchy/oxam/ 2 Available here: https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/hierarchy/socsci/econ/curr_student/undergrad/examina-tions/page/home 3 Available here: http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/examregs/2015-16/rftcofunivexam/

66

40-69 Pass

0-39 Fail

3.2 Qualitative criteria for different types of assessment

Qualitative criteria are available for Philosophy here,1 for Politics here,2 and for Economics

here.3

Note that the aggregation and classification rules in some circumstances allow a stronger

performance on some papers to compensate for a weaker performance on others.

3.3 Verification and reconciliation of marks

Examination papers are blind marked by a single Examiner or Assessor. Once first marks

have been reported, the Chairman will arrange to have certain scripts marked by a second

Examiner or Assessor in the subject (‘blind’ of the first mark) according to the following:

(a) (i) Any script for which the first mark is 42 or less will be double marked.

(ii) Scripts where an increase of 3 marks would result in the compensation of a mark of

37–39 will be double marked.

(b) Scripts of candidates whose aggregate mark over the three papers is 197–199 will nor-

mally be double marked.

Where a script has been double-marked, the final mark will be agreed by the first and sec-

ond markers. If the markers cannot reach an agreed mark, they may instead assign revised

marks, which will normally lie within the range of the two initial marks. (They may confirm

their original mark.) Revised marks are reported to the Secretary, superseding the original

marks. A third Examiner or Assessor will consider the explanation for disagreement pro-

vided by the markers, read the script, and assign it a mark. The mark assigned will lie within

the range of existing marks; it will be reported to the Secretary, superseding all existing

marks for that script.

3.4 Scaling

The Examiners may choose to scale marks where in their academic judgement:

1 Available here: https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/x/bHVhD9 2 Available here: https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/hierarchy/socsci/politics/students/undergraduat - click on ‘Information on examinations’ and then see under ‘Marking criteria for Politics exam essays and theses in PPE’ 3 Available here: https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/hierarchy/socsci/econ/curr_student/undergrad/examina-tions/page/home - see ‘Assessment Criteria’

67

a) a paper was more difficult or easy than in previous years, and/or

b) a paper has generated a spread of marks which are not a fair reflection of student

performance on the University’s standard scale for the expression of agreed final

marks, i.e. the marks do not reflect the qualitative marks descriptors.

Such scaling is used to ensure that candidates’ marks are not advantaged or disadvantaged

by any of these situations. In each case, Examiners will establish if they have sufficient evi-

dence for scaling. Scaling will only be considered and undertaken after moderation of a pa-

per has been completed, and a complete run of marks for all papers is available.

If it is decided that it is appropriate to use scaling, the Examiners will review a sample of pa-

pers either side of the classification borderlines to ensure that the outcome of scaling is con-

sistent with academic views of what constitutes an appropriate performance within in each

class.

Detailed information about why scaling was necessary and how it was applied will be in-

cluded in the Examiners’ report and the algorithms used will be published for the infor-

mation of all Examiners and students.

3.5 Short-weight convention and departure from rubric

Unless otherwise specified, questions on a paper will carry equal weight. Where a candidate

has attempted fewer than the required number of questions, he/she will be given 0 marks for

the question(s) not answered, and there will be no other penalty.

If a candidate answers the required total number of questions, but fails to include the re-

quired number of questions from a particular section (or, in the economics paper, questions

on both macroeconomics and microeconomics), and answers too many questions from an-

other section, they will receive a mark of 0 for their lowest-marked question(s) from the in-

correct section. In the event of too many answers being provided, the Examiners can use

their discretion in deciding which of the answers to consider.

4. Progression rules and classification conventions

4.1 Qualitative descriptors of Distinction, Pass, Fail

See 3.2 above.

4.2 Final outcome rules

40 is always a passing mark and 36 is never a passing mark on a paper. 37–39 are failing

marks which may be compensated for as provided by conventions 4.2 (a)–(d) below.

(a) If three papers are taken, 37–39 are considered pass marks on a paper only if marks on

both other papers are at least 58.

68

(b) If a candidate has passed one or two papers in a previous examination in the same calen-

dar year, the marks on those papers are carried forward to determine whether a mark of 37–

39 in the new paper constitutes a fail or pass mark.

(c) Where fewer than three papers are taken in a single calendar year, the following conven-

tions will apply:

(i) If two papers are taken, 37–39 shall constitute a pass mark only if the mark on the

other paper is at least 58. The marks on the two papers are then carried forward. If a

candidate receives a mark of 37-39 in the paper taken in the new calendar year, this is

a pass mark if and only if the marks on both the carried forward papers are at least 58.

(ii) If only one paper is taken, 40 is the minimum pass mark and no compensation can

take place.

(d) When reporting marks to colleges, where a candidate has passed overall despite being

awarded 37–39 on one paper, there will be an annotation to the effect that this is a failing

mark which has been compensated for.

Failure to sit a required element of assessment will result in the failure of the whole Prelimi-

nary Examination.

Candidates will be considered to have passed the Preliminary Examination if they pass all

three papers, with any appropriate compensatory adjustments, as outlined above. Each pa-

per will count equally towards the total. The total achievable mark across all papers is 300.

Distinction

A Distinction will be awarded to any candidate who has marks totaling at least 200 and

passes all three papers at a single examination.

4.3 Progression rules

No candidate shall be admitted to Final Honour School PPE unless he or she either (a) has

passed or been formally exempted from the Preliminary Examination or (b) has successfully

completed the Foundation Course in Social and Political Science at the Department for Con-

tinuing Education.

5. Resits

Candidates who do not pass the examination at their first sitting are entitled to one further

attempt for any paper(s) failed, as follows:

(i) Candidates must re-take any papers failed at the next available attempt (nor-

mally September)

(ii) If a candidate has passed one or two papers, those marks are carried forward in

accordance with 4.2 (b)

69

(iii) The final outcome rules detailed under 4.2 apply

6. Factors affecting performance

Where a candidate or candidates have made a submission, under Part 13 of the Regulations

for Conduct of University Examinations, that unforeseen factors may have had an impact on

their performance in an examination, a subset of the board will meet to discuss the individ-

ual applications and band the seriousness of each application on a scale of 1-3 with 1 indicat-

ing minor impact, 2 indicating moderate impact, and 3 indicating serious impact. When

reaching this decision, Examiners will take into consideration the severity and relevance of

the circumstances, and the strength of the evidence. Examiners will also note whether all or

a subset of papers were affected, being aware that it is possible for circumstances to have

different levels of impact on different papers. The banding information will be used at the

final meeting of the board of Examiners, which evaluates the impact of the circumstances re-

ported and decides on the candidate’s classification. Further information on the procedure is

provided in the Policy and Guidance for Examiners, Annex B and information for students is

provided at www.ox.ac.uk/students/academic/exams/guidance.

7. Details of Examiners and rules on communicating with Examiners

Professor Elias Dinas (Chair)

Professor Christopher Bowdler

Professor Ian Crawford

Dr Gideon Elford

Professor Guy Kahane

Professor Joseph Schear

Candidates should not under any circumstances seek to make contact with individual inter-

nal Examiners.

I.2 The Final Examination Conventions These are the PPE FHS Examining Conventions for 2015-16. They are included in this handbook as a

sample only. The conventions under which you will be examined will be sent to you by email in Hil-

ary term of the year of the examination.

Introduction

Final Honour School (FHS) of Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE)

Examining Conventions 2016

Candidates sitting their Examinations in Trinity Term 2016 are bound by these Conventions,

and by the Examination Regulations 2014-15 (the year in which candidates will normally

have entered FHS).

Examination Conventions are the formal record of the specific assessment standards for the

course or courses to which they apply. They set out how examined work will be marked and

how the resulting marks will be used to arrive at a final result and classification of an award.

70

The supervisory body responsible for approving the Examination Conventions is the Social

Sciences Board’s Teaching Audit Committee.

Rubrics for Individual Papers

Candidates may offer either Philosophy, Politics and Economics or Philosophy and Politics or

Politics and Economics or Philosophy and Economics. Candidates must take eight subjects

and must satisfy the requirements of particular branches of the school, as set out in the Ex-

amination Regulations 2014-15.1 All eight examination components are weighted equally.

Please consult the front page of the examination paper from the most recent year available

for the rubrics of individual papers, including the number of questions candidates can typi-

cally choose from, and the balance of compulsory and optional questions. Past papers are

available on Oxam.2 Where a new rubric has recently been introduced, the Departments /

Faculties that constitute PPE will supply sample papers on WebLearn, or otherwise alert

candidates to the changes. The rubric for Jurisprudence is stated in the FHS Examination

Conventions published by the Law Faculty, which will be made available to PPE candidates.

For the regulations for individual papers, see the Examination Regulations 2014-15.

All papers are assessed by means of 3-hour unseen examinations, except Jurisprudence, Su-

pervised Dissertations and Theses. Jurisprudence is assessed by means of an essay of 3000-

4000 words (written over the Long Vacation between second and third years and handed in

by noon on Friday of Week 0 of Michaelmas Term) and a 2-hour unseen examination (taken

at the end of the third year). Supervised Dissertations and Theses in Politics and Economics

must be submitted no later than noon on the Thursday of Week 0 of Trinity Term in the

third year, in accordance with the Examination Regulations 2014-15 (see ‘399. Thesis’).3 The-

ses in Philosophy must be submitted no later than noon on Friday of Week 0 of Trinity Term

in the third year, in accordance with the Examination Regulations for Philosophy in all Hon-

our Schools including Philosophy 2014-15 (see ‘199. Thesis’).4

Marking Conventions

The degree classification is determined by the eight separate marks awarded for the exami-

nation components. Marks are awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

First 70-100 (Excellent First: 80-89; Exceptional First: 90-100)

Upper-Second 60-69

1 Available here: http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/examregs/2014-15/hsop-poliandecon/studentview/ 2 Available here: https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/hierarchy/oxam/ 3 Available here: http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/examregs/2014-15/hsop-poliandecon/studentview/ 4 Available here: http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/examregs/2014-15/piahsinclphil/studentview/

71

Lower-Second 50-59

Third 40-49

Pass 30-39

Fail 0-29 (Outright Failure of FHS: 0-9)

Qualitative Criteria

Qualitative Descriptors for Philosophy

Qualitative descriptors for Philosophy are available here

https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/x/bHVhD9.

Qualitative Descriptors for Politics

Qualitative descriptors for Politics are available here https://web-

learn.ox.ac.uk/portal/hierarchy/socsci/politics/students/undergrad-

uat under ‘Marking criteria for Politics exam essays and theses in

PPE’.

Qualitative Descriptors for Economics

Qualitative descriptors for Economics are available here

https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/hierarchy/socsci/econ/curr_stu-

dent/undergrad/examinations/page/home under ‘Assessment Crite-

ria’.

Qualitative Descriptors for Jurisprudence

Candidates should consult the FHS Examination Conventions of the

Law Faculty.

Verification and Reconciliation of Marks

All examined components are subjected to double-blind marking: the two markers submit

their initial marks without knowing what the other has given, and may not subsequently

change those initial marks. If the two markers give different initial marks they will be so in-

formed and asked to confer and produce either an agreed mark or, in exceptional circum-

stances, an explanation of their inability to agree, in which case a third reader will be asked

to produce a decisive mark. Agreed marks may lie outside the range of the initial marks.

Third-reader marks must lie within the range of the initial marks.

The external Examiners may recommend changes to agreed or third-reader marks. The

Board of Examiners may accept or reject these recommendations, and may make other

changes to agreed or third-reader marks.

72

Candidates taking Jurisprudence are subject to the verification and reconciliation procedures

operated by the Law Faculty, and should consult the Law Faculty’s FHS Examination Con-

ventions.

Scaling of Marks

The Chair and Convenors will consider statistical analyses of the mark profiles of all mark-

ers and subjects, and judge whether to recommend to the Examiners that the marks be re-

scaled; the Examiners will decide whether to rescale marks at the First Marks Meeting. Any

decision to rescale marks will follow the guidelines set out in the document ‘Policy and

Guidance for Examiners and others involved in University Examinations’.

Classification Rules

All papers count equally towards the examination outcome. For the Jurisprudence paper,

the essay is weighted 50% and the 2-hour examination 50%.

Failure to obey rubrics. Rubrics are the instructions to candidates on the cover sheet of (or

elsewhere in) a paper, including instructions on how many questions must be answered. In

cases of short weight papers, the maximum achievable mark will be lowered by the propor-

tion of the paper missing. For example, in a paper requiring three (equally weighted) an-

swers where a candidate has written only two, the maximum achievable mark will be 67. In

a paper requiring four answers where a candidate has written only two, the maximum

achievable mark will be 50. In cases where a partial answer has been completed, markers

will use their discretion to decide what proportion of the answer is missing.

Penalty for over-length work. Where a candidate submits a Thesis (or other piece of written

coursework) which exceeds the word limit prescribed by the relevant regulation, the exam-

iners, if they agree to proceed with the examination of the work, may reduce the mark by up

to one class (i.e. from a 1st to a 2:1, or its equivalent).

The marks as agreed by the Board of Examiners are converted into classes as follows:

For a First Class: an average mark of 68.5 or above and two marks of 70 or above and no

mark below 50.

For an Upper-Second Class: an average mark of 59.0 or above and three or more marks of 60

or above.

For a Lower-Second Class: an average mark of 49.0 or above and three or more marks of 50

or above.

For a Third Class: an average mark of 40.0 or above and three or more marks of 40 or above.

For a Pass (i.e. non-Honours) Degree: an average mark of 30.0 or above.

73

A mark of 9 or below on any script (or Thesis / Supervised Dissertation) leads to failure of

the whole examination, whatever the other marks.

Late submissions

Late submission of items of assessment which must be submitted to the Examination

Schools, such as Theses, Supervised Dissertations, and Jurisprudence essays, will be penal-

ised as follows:

Submission Lateness Penalty

Up to one day (submitted on the day but after

the deadline)

- 5 marks

Each additional day (i.e. two days late = - 6

marks, three days late = - 7 marks, etc. Each

weekend day counts as a full day for the pur-

poses of mark deductions)

- 1 mark

Maximum deduction for late submission - 20 marks

Failure to submit a required element of assessment will result in the failure of the whole FHS

Examination.

Factors Affecting Performance

Where a candidate or candidates have made a submission, under Part 13 of the Regulations

for Conduct of University Examinations, that unforeseen factors may have had an impact on

their performance in an examination, a subset of the Board will meet to discuss the individ-

ual applications and band the seriousness of each application on a scale of 1-3 with 1 indicat-

ing minor impact, 2 indicating moderate impact, and 3 indicating serious impact. When

reaching this decision, Examiners will take into consideration the severity and relevance of

the circumstances, and the strength of the evidence. Examiners will also note whether all or

a subset of papers were affected, being aware that it is possible for circumstances to have

different levels of impact on different papers. The banding information will be used at the

final meeting of the Board of Examiners, which evaluates the impact of the circumstances re-

ported and decides on the candidate’s classification. Further information on the procedure is

provided in the Policy and Guidance for Examiners, Annex B and information for students is

provided at www.ox.ac.uk/students/academic/exams/guidance.

Details of Examiners and Rules on Communicating with Examiners

Professor David Vines (Chair)

Professor Peter Kail

Professor Josh Parsons

Professor Jeff McMahan (tbc)

Professor Daniel McDermott

Professor James Tilley

Professor Sudhir Hazareesingh

Professor Michael Hart

Professor Patricia Thornton

74

Professor Karma Nabulsi

Professor David Gill

Professor Rui Esteves

Professor Ferdinand Rauch

Professor Guido Ascari

Professor Hussein Kassim (University of East Anglia)

Professor Amrita Dhillon (Kings College London)

Dr James Wilson (University College London)

Candidates should not under any circumstances seek to make contact with individual inter-

nal or external Examiners.

APPENDIX J: Advice on answering “gobbets” or commentary

questions in Philosophy

If you are offering Philosophy at PPE Finals, you may well be taking one of the papers in

Ancient Philosophy, that is to say 115 Plato’s Republic or 116 Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics.

These papers include a compulsory commentary or “gobbets” question, where you are ex-

pected to comment on and elucidate certain passages of text. The advice below is reproduced

from the handbook for Literae Humaniores (or “Classics”), and concerns how to go about a

“gobbets” question in Philosophy:

The first requirement is to identify the argumentative context of the passage, e.g. `This

passage occurs in Socrates' response to Thrasymachus' claim that the ruler properly so-

called is expert in promoting his own advantage; in reply Socrates urges that all exper-

tise aims to promote the advantage of that on which the expertise is exercised, hence

the expert ruler must aim to promote, not his own advantage, but that of the subject'.

You should then set out the specific contribution of the passage to the argumentative

context, e.g. a sub-argument (in which case the steps of the argument should be set out),

or a distinction (in which case you should clearly state what is being distinguished from

what), or the introduction of some key concept, which should be clearly elucidated.

Where appropriate, elucidation should be followed by criticism; thus if the passage con-

tains a fallacious or unsound argument, or a faulty distinction, the flaw should be

briefly identified. If the significance of the passage goes beyond the immediate argu-

mentative context (e.g. in introducing a concept which is important for a wider range

of contexts) that wider significance should be indicated. Wider significance may be in-

ternal to the work as a whole, or may extend beyond it, for instance by relating to some

theme central to the thought of the author (such as Plato's Theory of Forms or Aristotle's

Categories) or to some important topic in modern philosophy. Your primary focus in

philosophy gobbets should be on argumentative and conceptual content. Details of sen-

tence construction, vocabulary etc should be discussed only in so far as they affect the

content thus conceived. The same goes for the identification of persons etc named in

75

the passage; note that where the passage is taken from a Platonic dialogue it will usually

be relevant to identify the speaker(s).

It is vitally important to observe the time constraints imposed by the number of pas-

sages to be translated and commented on. Brevity, relevance and lucidity are crucial. It

is especially important not to be carried away in expounding the wider significance of

the passage (see above); a gobbet should not expand into an essay on the Theory of

Forms or the problem of universals. Use your own judgement on how much you can

afford to put in.

APPENDIX K: Philosophy marking descriptors

Philosophy has unified marking descriptors that apply to work across all eight joint

Philosophy schools. After extensive consultation and deliberation, the Faculty has developed

the descriptors with students in mind: there is an amount of gradation within the marking

bands that aims to show students how marks vary according to quality. The descriptors are

reviewed by the Undergraduate Studies Committee during each academic year. Please see

here: https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/x/bHVhD9

APPENDIX L: Marking Criteria for Questions in Politics

These are the marking criteria used for marking Politics (FHS, i.e., Finals) essays in 2015-16.

Unless you are informed of any changes, these criteria will be used when your Finals are

marked.

Markers will look for the following qualities in Politics essays:

1. Command of Material: secure knowledge and understanding of relevant concepts, models

and evidence; incisive explanation and insight; evidence of wide reading.

2. Analysis: Well-focused and analytical approach, addressing the question directly; coherent

and cogent argument and discussion.

3. Exposition: Efficient, organised; and structured; well-written and fluent; interesting and

pleasant to read.

4. Judgement: Perceptive appreciation of strengths and weakness of theoretical approaches to

Politics; well-judged application of theory and use of illustrative examples.

5. Independence: Evidence of independent thinking and insight in approach to the question,

explanation of concepts, or analysis of data and examples.

Outstanding and thought-provoking; evidence of

deep critical understanding, novel ideas and origi-

nality of approach.

Excellent

1st

93

76

First Class

(70-100)

An analytical and well-

written essay, demon-

strating excellent com-

mand of material,

breadth of knowledge,

cogent argument, good

judgement and inde-

pendent insight.

Comprehensive; highly analytical; knowledgeable

and elegantly written; strong evidence of original

thought and independent evaluation of material.

High 1st 85

Clear, thorough, well-focused and well-argued. Se-

cure command of material and evidence of ability to

form independent critical assessment.

Mid 1st 78

An essay demonstrating many first-class qualities,

but with identifiable gaps, occasional misinterpreta-

tion or small mistakes, will be given this mark.

Low 1st 73

Upper

Second

(60-69)

A structured and

well-written essay

addressing the ques-

tion; good command

of the relevant core

material; clear expla-

nations and argu-

ments, and evident

understanding.

Thoughtful and well-argued; analytical approach;

secure understanding and explanation. But lacking

the breadth, judgement or independence of a 1st

class essay. Or an otherwise 1st class essay marred

by a significant deficiency.

High

2.1

68

Competent essay making good use of relevant mate-

rial. Careful explanations and arguments. May con-

tain some gaps or mistakes, or occasional confusion

or lack of focus.

Mid

2.1

65

A generally competent essay, but more limited

with respect to coverage of material, clarity of ex-

planation, or political insight; or relying on text-

book or lecture material without independent

judgement. Mostly well-written but may include

some confused or less well-focused sections, or a

significant mistake.

Low 2.1

62

Lower Sec-

ond

(50-59)

Reasonably well-

written essay, rele-

vant to the question

and making use of

appropriate material,

showing under-

standing of essential

concepts. But limited

in scope or with no-

table deficiencies of

analysis or exposi-

tion.

Focused on the question; showing knowledge and

understanding of core material. Including valid ar-

guments and effective explanation, but lacking a se-

cure grasp of the topic, or with important gaps in

coverage.

High 2.2 58

Relying on limited material, or with significant mis-

takes in interpretation or explanation of relevant

material. Or: a well-constructed essay that fails to

address the question asked; or an otherwise very

good answer that is significantly unfinished.

Mid 2.2 55

Relevant in broad terms to the question, including

relevant material and attempting to construct argu-

ments. Poorly written, some misunderstanding and

confusion, and/or very limited coverage.

Low 2.2 52

Achieves a minimal re-

sponse to the question,

Some evidence of understanding, insight and

thoughtfulness; some attempt to link the material

High 3rd 48

77

Third

(40-49)

revealing some basic

knowledge of core ma-

terial. Some attempt to

provide structure and

argument. But very

limited coverage and/or

serious inaccuracy and

evident confusion.

used to the question. But poor explanations or inad-

equate exposition; large parts of the answer irrele-

vant, confused or making no substantive contribu-

tion.

Showing knowledge of material that is at least mar-

ginally relevant, but little sign of deeper thought or

understanding. Very poor exposition; no successful

analysis. Or, a better essay that completely misses

the point of the question.

Mid 3rd 45

A very poorly written and confused essay, or a very

short one, showing little evidence of understanding.

Low 3rd 42

Pass 35 A very poor or short answer that nevertheless demonstrates some grasp of ma-

terial that can be interpreted as addressing the question asked, and an attempt

to organise it appropriately.

Pass

(High

Fail in

Prelims)

35

Fail 25 Containing some relevant information and evidence of having understood the

question, either as part of a confused and badly-written essay, or in an answer

that is not presented in essay form (for example, an answer presented in bullet

points or one that progresses no further than an introductory section).

Fail 25

Low Fail

12

A minimal answer, containing some evidence of knowledge of related topics or

interpretation of the question.

Low Fail 12

Zero No meaningful answer Zero 0

APPENDIX M: Marking Criteria for Economics These are the marking criteria for problem-solving questions, essay questions and theses in

Economics used in 2015-16 both for PPE Prelims and FHS PPE. Unless you are informed of

any changes, these criteria will be used when your Prelims and Finals are marked.

M.1 Marking Criteria for Problem-Solving Questions in Eco-

nomics [This version 6.11.12]

80 – 100 •

•

•

Full, clear, accurate answer, well-presented and well-explained, includ-

ing appropriate economic interpretation or application

Some exceptional qualities: either in the insight shown or the

sophistication of the approach

No more than minor mistakes; faultless answers may be given 100%

78

70 – 79 •

•

Accurate, clear and methodical; correct in all important respects

Good explanation of the approach and the steps in the solution

Showing awareness of economic interpretation or application

60 – 69 • Appropriate choice of approach, and corresponding explanation

• Successful completion of significant steps; accurate use of notation

• Evidence of thinking about the meaning of answers and awareness if they

don’t seem sensible

50 – 59 • Evidence of understanding of the question and standard techniques

• Systematic approach; some success in deriving a solution, even if marred

by carelessness or significant mistakes

• Some attempt to explain and justify working

40 – 49 • Displaying relevant knowledge or competence

• Attempt to apply a reasonable approach and use the information

provided in the question in a systematic way

• Serious mistakes or confusion; inadequate or inaccurate explanations

30 – 39 • Evidence of some competence or knowledge of a possible approach

• Little or no systematic analysis

• Absence of explanation, or obvious confusion or lack of understanding

0 – 30 • Very little evidence of relevant knowledge or understanding

• No attempt to apply a systematic approach

• Serious confusion in interpretation of the question

Questions involving several parts with marks weightings

Parts of the question involving problem-solving will be marked according to the criteria

above. Parts requiring description, explanation and/or illustration of concepts or models

will be marked by applying the basic criteria for essay questions. The overall mark will

normally be the appropriately weighted sum, but markers will use discretion where it is

required to give candidates credit for the quality of the answer as a whole: for example, if

some of the answer to one part of a question is given in answer to another part.

M.2 Marking Criteria for Essay Questions in Economics [This version 6.11.12]

Markers will look for the following qualities in economics essays:

1. Command of Material: secure knowledge and understanding of relevant concepts, mod-

els and evidence; incisive explanation and economic insight; evidence of wide reading.

79

2. Analysis: Well-focused and analytical approach, addressing the question directly; co-

herent and cogent argument and discussion.

3. Exposition: Efficient, organised; and structured; well-written and fluent; interesting and

pleasant to read.

4. Judgement: Perceptive appreciation of implications of formal models; well-judged ap-

plication of theory and use of illustrative examples.

5. Independence: Evidence of independent thinking and insight in approach to the ques-

tion, explanation of concepts, or application or interpretation of models.

The following table provides a guide to the expected level of achievement corresponding

to each class, and step-mark.

First Class

(70 -100)

An analytical

and well-written

essay, demon-

strating excellent

command of ma-

terial, breadth of

knowledge, co-

gent argument,

good judgement

and independent

insight.

Outstanding and thought-provoking; evidence

of deep critical understanding, novel ideas and

originality of approach.

Excellent 1st 93

Comprehensive; highly analytical; knowledgeable

and elegantly written; strong evidence of inde-

pendent insight.

High 1st 85

Clear, thorough, well-focused and well-ar-

gued. Secure command of material showing

independent thought; no significant mis-

takes or misunderstanding.

Mid 1st 78

An essay demonstrating many first-class quali-

ties, but with identifiable gaps, occasional mis-

interpretation or small mistakes, will be given

this mark.

Low 1st 73

Upper

Second

(60 - 69)

A structured and

well-written essay

addressing the

question; good

command of the

relevant core ma-

terial; clear expla-

nations and argu-

ments, and evi-

dent understand-

ing.

Thoughtful and well-argued; analytical ap-

proach; secure understanding and explanation.

But lacking the breadth, judgement or inde-

pendence of a 1st class essay. Or an otherwise 1st

class essay marred by a significant deficiency.

High 2.1 68

Competent essay making good use of relevant

material. Careful explanations and arguments.

May contain some gaps or mistakes, or occa-

sional confusion or lack of focus.

Mid 2.1 65

A generally competent essay, but more limited

with respect to coverage of material, clarity of ex-

planation, or economic insight; or relying on text-

book or lecture material without independent

judgement. Mostly well-written but may include

some confused or less well-focused sections, or a

significant mistake.

Low 2.1 62

80

Lower

Second

(50 – 59)

Reasonably well-

written essay, rel-

evant to the ques-

tion and making

use of appropriate

material, showing

understanding of

essential concepts.

But limited in

scope or with no-

table deficiencies

of analysis or ex-

position.

Focused on the question; showing

knowledge and understanding of core mate-

rial. Including valid arguments and effective

explanation, but lacking a secure grasp of

the topic, or with important gaps in cover-

age.

High 2.2 58

Relying on limited material, or with significant

mistakes in interpretation or explanation of rele-

vant material. Or: a well-constructed essay that

fails to address the question asked; or an other-

wise very good answer that is significantly unfin-

ished.

Mid 2.2 55

Relevant in broad terms to the question, includ-

ing relevant material and attempting to con-

struct arguments. Poorly written, some misun-

derstanding and confusion, and/or very limited

coverage.

Low 2.2 52

Third

(40 - 49)

Achieves a mini-

mal response to

the question, re-

vealing some

basic knowledge

of core material.

Some attempt to

provide structure

and argument.

But very limited

coverage and/or

serious inaccu-

racy and evident

confusion.

Some evidence of understanding, insight and

thoughtfulness; some attempt to link the material

used to the question. But poor explanations or in-

adequate exposition; large parts or the answer ir-

relevant, confused or making no substantive con-

tribution.

High 3rd 48

Showing knowledge of material that is at least

marginally relevant, but little sign of deeper

thought or understanding. Very poor exposition;

no successful analysis. Or, a better essay that com-

pletely misses the point of the question.

Mid 3rd 45

A very poorly written and confused essay, or a

very short one, showing little evidence of un-

derstanding.

Low 3rd 42

Pass

35

A very poor or short answer that nevertheless demonstrates some

grasp of material that can be interpreted as addressing the question

asked, and an attempt to organise it appropriately.

Pass

(High

Fail in

Prelims)

35

81

M.3 Marking Criteria for a Thesis in Economics The Subject of the Thesis

There is no restriction on the choice of topic, other than that the subject “should fall within

the scope of the honour school”. The subject may overlap with one or more of your papers –

it will almost certainly be related in some way to at least one of the core papers, and may

fall within the general area of one of your options. The regulations state that in finals papers

candidates should “avoid repetition ... of material used in their theses”. There is no need to

be unduly concerned about this: writing an essay that directly addresses a particular ques-

tion addressed in your thesis, rehearsing the same arguments, would constitute repetition;

but writing an essay on a related topic – for example “externalities” or “exchange rates” –

would not.

Undergraduate theses in economics may vary considerably in character, but they should be

focused so as to answer a question, or set of questions, using arguments, models and/or evi-

dence. There is no requirement that the thesis should contain ‘original research’ – the ideas,

models, and evidence incorporated in the thesis may have been published elsewhere – but

the thesis should demonstrate ‘independence of mind’ in the way that such material is or-

ganised, presented and discussed.

Assessment Criteria for Theses in Economics*

A thesis need not be original in the sense that its ideas and illustrative material are unique

to it; but it should demonstrate independence of mind. Markers will be looking above all

for:

cogency of analysis and argument

application of appropriate theoretical or empirical models

accuracy and solidity in the backing up of the analysis and argument

clarity of expression and presentation

knowledge of how the topic fits into the existing work in its field

awareness of relevant methodological issues

Fail

25

Containing some relevant information and evidence of having under-

stood the question, either as part of a confused and badly-written es-

say, or in an answer that is not presented in essay form (for example,

an answer presented in bullet points or one that progresses no further

than an introductory section).

Fail 25

Low

Fail

12

A minimal answer, containing some evidence of knowledge of related topics or interpretation of the question.

Low Fail 12

Zero No meaningful answer. Zero 0

82

respect for the scholarly conventions regarding contents pages, introduc-

tions, conclusions, chapters, notes, bibliographies, etc.

*These criteria apply to economics theses examined from 2010/11 onwards

APPENDIX N: Oxford Q-Step Centre

The Oxford Q-Step Centre (OQC), initiated with generous funding from the Nuffield

Foundation, HEFCE and ESRC, aims to increase the data literacy of our undergraduate

students within the Politics, Philosophy and Economics (PPE) and History & Politics (HP)

joint schools here at the University of Oxford. OQC will provide a home for quantitative

methods teaching and research within the Departments of Politics and International Relations

and Sociology. OQC will engage in outreach activities such as a summer school, e-learning

and an internship programme focussing on the development of QM skills in a professional or

policy context. These internships will give students practical experience of applying their

methods skills in a workplace setting, exposing them to long-term career options at the stage

of their undergraduate studies when many will be forming views about future professions. At

OQC, we will teach data literacy and statistical methods through a problem-driven approach.

We will use real-world problems that scientists study and policy makers care about to show

how data and statistical techniques can help us to answer important questions we have about

the world. OQC will help reform existing courses rather than developing new ones so that the

data analysis tools that students will learn will facilitate their understanding of substantive

questions. For further information, please visit www.oqc.ox.ac.uk.

APPENDIX O: Key dates

Term dates 2016-17

Michaelmas 2016

Sunday, 9 October to Saturday, 3 December

Hilary 2017

Sunday, 15 January to Saturday, 11 March

Trinity 2017

Sunday, 23 April to Saturday, 17 June

Further term dates are available at:

http://www.ox.ac.uk/about/facts-and-figures/dates-of-term

Examination dates

Start of the Preliminary examination: June 2017

83

You will be informed of the actual dates by Trinity term of the year of the examination.