Courses

You will enroll for 32 credits (usually four full year classes, but may go up to a maximum of six).

• Please review your courses with your academic or study abroad advisor to ensure they will transfer back to your home school and that you are following your home school’s policies.
• Please be flexible – we can’t guarantee specific courses. If your participation in the program depends on a particular course, be sure to make a note on your online course form.

Choosing Your Courses

LSE’s courses available to study abroad students are listed by department on the LSE Course Directory. Select the course name to review the course description, pre-requisites, assessment information, and reading lists.

• Make sure to list at least one alternate course for every course you select, totaling 6-8 courses, on your academic preferences form.
• List your choices and alternates in order of preference.
• Full year courses carry 8 semester hours of credit.
• Half-unit courses carry 4 semester hours of credit.
• You will enroll in 32 credits (usually four full year classes).

The LSE academic year is divided into two 12-week terms followed by a 6-week summer term. Most courses are full year courses and run through the fall term (Michaelmas Term - MT) and spring term (Lent Term - LT). All courses, regardless of whether they are taught over the full year or a single semester, are assessed by exams that are held during the summer term (ST). Courses that only run in one term are known as 'half-units' ('H'). Enrollment in two half units is equivalent to enrollment in one full year course. LSE advises against taking more than two half-unit courses.

Enrollment Process

LSE will pre-register students in courses based on their academic preferences form; however, final selection of courses is confirmed only after students arrive at LSE and consult their personal tutors. A few courses are not available to General Course students and some will require the permission of the course tutor.

Departmental Information

• Students at LSE are placed in one department for the purposes of enrollment.You will need to choose the department in which you wish to enroll.
• You will be required to take at least one course in your department of enrollment (two courses if you are enrolled in the Economics department).
• You may then choose to round out your schedule with courses from other departments at LSE, if you wish to do so.

If your enrollment is conditional upon entry into a specific course or courses, it is very important that you indicate these requirements at the bottom of the academic preferences form on your Arcadia Passport.

Special Considerations

The London School of Economics (LSE) strongly recommends against taking a full load of 300-level courses. LSE will likely not schedule you for more than one 300-level course per year. If you choose to take a 300-level course, you should select one course in your academic specialty, and then round out your schedule with courses at the 100- or 200-level.

Course Restrictions

• 3.3 GPA if applying to social science departments (such as Sociology, Political Science, and History).
• 3.5 GPA if applying to departments that focus on quantitative subjects (such as Accounting, Economics and Statistics).
• Economics Classes: Economics classes at LSE are highly mathematical in nature and are very intensive. Students without at least a 3.5 GPA and background in mathematics and economics may not be approved to take economics classes at LSE.
• Econometrics Classes: Econometrics classes, in particular EC220, EC221, and EC333, are very rigorous. Students will not be approved for these courses unless they have a very strong background and high grades in both economics and in higher-level mathematics (e.g. advanced calculus, linear algebra, etc.).

For details on specific prerequisites for quantitative courses, visit the LSE website.

Grade Scale

For each class, the LSE will provide Arcadia with a class grade of essay/project/assessed work AND a final examination grade. Final grades are an average of classwork completed through the year and the exam.

The following scale is vetted and provided by the General Course (LSE's year-long study abroad programme). This scale provides Average Exam and Class grades using the topmost number in each percentage range.

Intellectual property copyright AACRAO EDGE.