Economic and Social History

The University of Edinburgh
Undergraduate PhD Full-time 3 Years History

About this course

We host one of the largest economic and social history research groupings in the UK.

Staff research interests are wide-ranging, including the study of:

  • economic development

  • financial history

  • energy policy

  • globalisation

  • slavery

  • urban history

  • consumption

  • material culture

  • museums and collecting

  • leisure

  • religious belief

  • popular culture

  • medicine and disease

  • gender

  • sexuality

  • the family

    The diversity of our research means we can support students’ economic and social history study in a vast range of time periods and geographical regions and from the early modern period to the present day.

    Particular areas of expertise available for research are:

  • culture and society in early modern Britain

  • slavery in the Atlantic world since 1700

  • the material culture of gender in 18th-century Britain

  • urban society and civil society in historical context

  • cinema and society in modern Britain

  • gender, crime and deviancy: Britain 1860–1960; energy policy in Britain since 1920

  • the economic history of China in the 20th century

  • the history of health and medicine in Britain since 1750

    The University’s economic and social historians host three research groups: material and visual cultures of the past; enlightenment and popular culture; and economic and social history.

  • Study Options

    This course is available in 2 study options:

    Part-time

    Duration: 6 Years

    Qualification: PhD

    Location: Edinburgh

    Full-time Shown above

    Duration: 3 Years

    Qualification: PhD

    Location: Edinburgh

    Career Prospects

    Graduates from this course typically go into the following occupations:

    2435 Professional/Chartered company secretaries
    3412 Authors, writers and translators
    2472 Archivists, conservators and curators
    4112 Local government administrative occupations
    4214 Company secretaries and administrators
    4135 Library clerks and assistants

    Course Details

    Qualification
    Doctor of Philosophy - PhD
    Study Mode
    Full-time
    Duration
    3 Years
    Start Date
    2025
    Academic Year
    2025
    Campus / Location
    Edinburgh
    Scheme
    Undergraduate
    Subjects
    History