Oxford University created the first PPE degree in 1920. Since then, some two dozen colleges and universities have adopted the idea and developed their own versions of it. The King’s College PPE program takes its inspiration from this tradition, but has its own distinct content. PPE at The King’s College has three particular distinctions. First, it is built on the Common Core. All King’s College students, not just those studying PPE, take a sequence of 20 courses that are designed to give students a firm grounding in politics, philosophy, and economics, as well as in history, theology, mathematics, and writing.

Second, all PPE courses at The King’s College have a strong theological component. It is based on the idea that Christianity gives powerful insights into the key questions that political theorists, philosophers, and economists pursue.

Third, students in the PPE program prepare for public debate and advocacy. The curriculum places persuasive writing and speaking at the center of nearly every course. The aim is to prepare graduates who are not just knowledgeable about the world, but ready to act in the world.

The Common Core component of the PPE program introduces students to the fundamental principles of the three disciplines, plus theology. Upper level courses in the PPE major focus on contemporary issues and more advanced topics. The program, however, is completely integrated. As students advance in their sophistication with the ideas and techniques of the three disciplines, basic questions raised during freshman year are raised again.

In the discipline of politics, PPE students study the constitutional history of the United States from its founding up to and including the expansion of civil rights. Students also consider the hallmarks of statesmanship by examining various plays by Shakespeare as well as the writings of great statesmen such as John Adams and Abraham Lincoln. American foreign policy presents real world challenges for the United States in this time of international volatility. PPE students study these challenges with the goal of assessing and determining future policy decisions as they relate to the international community.

In the discipline of philosophy, PPE students study the major theories that form the systematic treatment of ethics, including the nature of values, considerations of human freedom, and the sources of moral goodness and moral evil. Aesthetics, the human capacity to perceive beauty and ugliness, equips PPE students with the ability to understand how the arts can both reflect and instigate cultural change. Students explore New York’s museums, architecture, music and other arts to develop aesthetic perception as well as critical competence.
In the discipline of economics, PPE students study how economic analysis can be applied to the role and function of government, governmental decision-making, and the interaction between public and private interests. Further study concentrates on the choices that political states face regarding economic management as well as the limits that markets place on such policies.

During their junior year, PPE students write a thesis in which they apply what they have learned about institutions to the arena of public policy making.

Additional coursework in writing and statistics continue building a strong foundation for analytical and rhetorical skills. And in addition to the required courses, all PPE students take eight electives.

Students may choose, however, to use five of their electives to take a concentration. The King’s college offers PPE students four concentrations: Theology, Media, Literature and Foundations of Education. Each concentration introduces disciplines or fields of study that students may pursue in graduate school or as a career. PPE students may also take courses within a concentration without taking the whole five-course sequence.