Public and Private Sectors

Due to its analytical rigor, combination of normative and empirical analyses, and emphasis on the development of transferable skills, PPE prepares students for a wide variety of careers in the private and public sectors. 

PPE assisted in securing a job and law school for me. Particularly for my job interview, the interviewer questioned me about PPE and I was able to describe how the interdisciplinary degree rounded out my critical thinking and writing skills.

Miles Franklin, now at the American University Law School

PPE helped me qualify for a variety of positions and stand out during the interview process. When asked during an interview, I was able to demonstrate how PPE taught me to provide creative solutions. PPE is a major part of my current success.

Anusha Ghosal, now employed at RADinfo Systems

In my job interviews, PPE was nearly always discussed. The ability to analyze issues from a multidisciplinary viewpoint is incredibly useful and something that applies to business problems as well as more traditional economic and ethical issues.

James Vasile, now employed at Epic Systems

PPE graduates have successful careers in management, marketing, consulting, industry, investment banking, finance, business administration, law, journalism, government, public administration, public policy, think tanks, health care, international affairs, international development, and non-profit organizations.

Graduate School

In addition, PPE prepares students exceptionally well for academic programs, especially for law school, medical school, business school, and masters and doctoral programs in philosophy, political science, and economics, as well as related social sciences. Students’ scores for the most common standardized admission tests for graduate school, such as the GRE, LSAT, and GMAT, support this claim.

 
 
 

LAW SCHOOL. Our students have been admitted to some of the nation’s most prestigious law schools. Here is an interview with one of our recent graduates who was admitted to Duke University School of Law about her law school experience and an interview with a recent PPE alumnus who, after a few years of work experience, was admitted to the University of Virginia School of Law.

To learn more about the general admission test for law school and general questions about the law school application process, please visit the Law School Admission Council’s website. For more specific questions, please visit Virginia Tech’s Pre-Law website and, if questions remain, please consider contacting the University’s Pre-Law advisor, Professor Wayne Moore.

 
 

4+1 M.A. PROGRAMS AT VIRGINIA TECH. PPE majors who are in good standing and fulfill the necessary academic requirements are eligible to apply for Virginia Tech’s accelerated (4+1) M.A. Programs in Philosophy, Political Science, or Economics (for the accelerated M.A. in Economics, we strongly advise students to double-major in PPE and Economics).

PPE helped me to get my interview, and then my job.

Shane Joynes, now employed at Epic Systems Corporation

PPE was instrumental in strengthening my ability to formulate and present strong arguments, which has served me well in my academic and professional pursuits.

Aaron Wilson, now employed at Capital One

PPE allowed me to do in-depth research on topics of my own interest, which was extremely relevant for my career. I found the work instrumental to growing the company I joined after graduation.

Paul Rice, now employed at Hatch and Owner of NFK Hopper

M.A. Programs Abroad

In particular in Europe and the U.K., there are many (one- and two-year) PPE-related master’s degree programs that are taught in English and often have significantly lower tuition rates than in the U.S. The following programs may be of particular interest:

M.Sc. Philosophy of the Social Sciences and M.Sc. Philosophy and Public Policy at the London School of Economics (U.K), M.A. Political Economy at King’s College London (U.K.), M.Sc. Politics, Economics and Philosophy at the University of Hamburg (Germany), M.A. Philosophy & Economics at the University of Bayreuth (Germany), M.A. Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Witten/Herdecke University (Germany).

London School of Economics, ©LSE

In addition, students may consider the M.Sc. Philosophy, Politics & Economics at the University of Groningen (Netherlands), Research Master in Philosophy and Economics at the Erasmus University Rotterdam (Netherlands), M.A. Philosophical Perspectives on Politics and the Economy at Leiden University (Netherlands), M.A. Philosophy and Economics at the University of Vienna (Austria), M.A. Master’s Programme in Political, Economic and Legal Philosophy at the University of Graz (Austria), M.A. Political, Legal, and Economic Philosophy at the University of Bern (Switzerland), and M.A. Political Economy and Philosophy at the University of Zurich (Switzerland).

Alumni Perspectives

Placement Record

LAW SCHOOL (SELECTED). New York University, Duke University, University of Virginia, Georgetown University, Wake Forest University, American University, Washington and Lee University, University of California, Los Angeles, University of Texas at Austin, University of Richmond, Northeastern University, The George Washington University, Arizona State University, George Mason University, College of William & Mary, University of Baltimore, University of Iowa, University of Colorado, Albany Law School, Hofstra University, Elon University, Villanova University, Florida State University, University of Massachusetts, University of Tennessee. 

GRADUATE SCHOOL (SELECTED). M.B.A (University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School), M.B.A. University of Virginia, Darden School of Business), M.B.A. (Columbia University), M.B.A. (University of Oklahoma), Ph.D. Philosophy (University of Southern California), M.S. Intelligence Management (University of Maryland), M.P.A. Public Policy (Virginia Tech), M.A. International Relations (Johns Hopkins University), M.A. International Development Policy (Georgetown University), M.P.S. Real Estate, Finance (Georgetown University), M.A. School Psychology (Tufts), M.P.S. Sports Industry Management (Georgetown University), MSW Social Work (Columbia University), M.A. Accounting (Virginia Tech), M.A. Political Science (Virginia Tech), M.A. Philosophy (Virginia Tech), M.S. Commerce (University of Virginia), VM.S. Agricultural and Applied Economics (Virginia Tech); M.A. in Urban and Environmental Planning (University of Virginia), M.A. in Urban and Environmental Planning (Virginia Tech), M.Sc. in Analytics (Georgia Tech).

Nobel Prize Winner Amartya Sen at Public Lecture 

INTERNSHIPS, FELLOWSHIPS, AND JOBS (SELECTED). Capital One, Goldman Sachs, Apple, Booz Allen Hamilton, AT&T, KPMG, Deloitte, JPMorgan Chase & Co, Gartner, IBM, Infinity, Turo, ACC Network, Principal Financial Group, Collins Aerospace, Moog, Epsilon, Whitlock, Leidos, Insight Partners, Moonshot Global Consulting, Bank of America, Pratt & Whitney, Easy Street Capital, Fannie Mae, Level Access, Ørsted, Dixon Hughes Goodman, Insight Partners, Baker Tilly Virchow Krause, Grant Thornton, Easy Street Capital, Novahill Advisors, Epic Systems Corporation, Varonis Systems, BAE Systems, Marriott International, Mastercard, SGK Global Marketing Red Hat, Intelsat, Carmax, EastBanc Inc., Sealed Air, memoryBlue, Deloitte Government & Public Services, Federal Housing Financial Agency, National Security Agency, Pentagon Federal Credit Union, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Federal Reserve System, Federal Housing Finance Agency, U.S. International Trade Commission, U.S. Department of State, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Senate Budget Committee Office, U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives, Virginia’s Office of the Governor, Virginia’s Office of the Secretary of Education, FairVote, Mitchell Law Firm, Paine Hamblen Attorneys, Jackson Lewis P.C., Spiller-Reddick Immigration Law, General Dynamics, International Refugee Assistance Project, Campaign Staffer, The Lex Fellowship, Community Organizer for a Political Party, American Civil Liberties Union, Teach for America, Pure Joy Honey (Tanzania), Seed Change (Tanzania), SAMERTH, Images for Good, GoodSeeker, The Independence Fund, The Counterterrorism Group, Westat, Humana.