I’ll start by explaining exactly what LSE100 actually is. It’s a course at LSE that all undergraduate students are required to complete in their first year of study. The aim of the course is to provide an opportunity to step outside of your own degree programme and undertake an interdisciplinary study of a chosen theme. The themes to choose from change every year; this year we had the option of “How can we avert climate catastrophe?”, “How can we control AI?” and “How can we create a fair society?”.
The course was split into two parts, each worth 50% of your grade for the course. Part one was the individual assessment. There was a list of events provided related to your chosen topic; you chose one and are required to write an essay of roughly 1,500 words analysing the event. Part 2 was a group project where you were assigned a topic by your seminar teacher and required to provide a solution to a chosen focus problem.
Personally, I really enjoyed the individual assessment aspect of LSE100. It was really refreshing to research and write about something that was not part of my degree. I also appreciated the freedom that students got when it came to this task. We were able to choose any event and, whilst I did choose one from the list provided, we were allowed to suggest our own event if something else piqued our interest, as long as our teacher approved it.
I also found it quite a straightforward essay to write. You were provided with all of the marking criteria beforehand as well as a suggested structure and list of questions that they would like you to answer within your essay. This meant that, for me at least, there were no feelings of uncertainty about what you needed to do to get a good grade. The whole process was very transparent which is something that I know many students appreciate.
Regarding the group project, I found working with my group to be very stimulating. We were put in a group together by our seminar teacher, based on the topic preferences that we submitted via a survey. This meant that we all had a common interest but we all had our own respective disciplines and specialisms.
One of the main points of LSE100 is that it’s interdisciplinary. For the individual assessment you were required to analyse your event from the perspective of a range of social science disciplines, which can be challenging since you only study one to two disciplines at most. But the group project introduced you to students with completely different disciplines to yours. In my experience, this has certainly broadened my horizons in terms of how I approach problems and I enjoyed listening to the ideas of my group mates in our seminars and meetings.
The ability to work in a group is a valuable skill when it comes to careers. It can be tricky at first, but LSE100 is a great opportunity to work on this skill if you choose to make the most of it. It’s also a great opportunity to develop your skills as a social scientist, by considering issues from the perspective of a wide range of social science disciplines. And if nothing else, it is something a bit different from your degree programme that takes you out of your box every other week and allows you to explore your own interests.
Overall, I am a fan of LSE100 and believe that, if you make the most of it, it can be a valuable experience from which you will gain skills that you will be utilising throughout the rest of your life and career.
