6 Life-Saving YouTube Channels That Got Me Through The London School of Economics and Political Science Exams

Sometimes all that glitters is not gold. Sometimes, a reputation isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Unfortunately, I found that LSE’s online resources didn’t cut it in terms of the fundamentals.

Some context here: I was a dentist for 8 years, and before transitioning to healthcare management, I studied a BSc in Economics learning via the University of London / London International. This houses lots of online distance-learning degrees from the different London universities, including the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). This is who delivered my course material.

Though a prestigious name, I’d done my research, and I wasn’t to expect much support. But that was fine. It was affordable and convenient for me to work at the same time.

My A-levels in mathematics and chemistry were enough to get me enrolled. But not enough to get me started. It had been over a decade since I’d done any real maths. Dentistry really doesn’t involve a lot. If you can count how many cartridges of local anesthetic you administer, that’s about as far as it goes. As for statistics: well, basic hypothesis testing and what makes up a false positive and negative were as expansive as they got.

To say I was thrown in at the deep end was an understatement. I also failed my first mathematics exams and the more advanced statistics exam. Admittedly, I probably enrolled in too many modules at once. Failing meant I had more time to really practice the fundamentals and become comfortable. And it allowed me to find some truly spectacular teachers on YouTube.

The LSE material wasn’t bad, though it was a little scanty in places. Some mathematics and statistics videos were okay. But often the basics were skipped.

Sadly, though I completed my degree with honors and distinction in clinical dentistry, you need to explain to me every. single. step. when you do a calculation — like I’m 8 years old. Because it’s been a while. I’m used to ripping out molars, not integration and derivatives. I turned to YouTube.

Here are 6 of the best mathematics, statistics, and economics, resources for non-mathsy folk like me… or if it’s just been a while (like 10 years) since you did an equation.

1. blackpenredpen

I am in love, love, love with this guy! His enthusiasm is infectious, and he’s full of amazing tips and tricks that I can 100% attribute to my passing my foundational mathematics exams. The most useful I found was his integration by parts method.

To showcase the best of his dynamism, I’ve included a link to the introduction of one of the cutest videos where he’s psyched about testing his new marker. Enjoy. If you think you don’t understand derivatives or integration by partial fractions, you are GUARANTEED to after watching this guy’s videos.

I present the life-saving DI integration method:

And the tutorial on integration by substitution which includes a review of marker pen…

2. Economics in Many lessons

Personality wise, following blackpenredpen is a tough call, and these guys can seem pretty dry in comparison. But don’t let that fool you. The 21.2k subscribers should tell you you’re onto a winner with this channel.

These tutorials are the EASIEST way to master economics problems, especially algebraic ones. Each step is broken down and explained at a good pace. There are so many topics covered and he has an incredible number of playlists which cover the following and more:

• Macroeconomics
• Statistics
• Managerial economics
• Consumer theory
• Labor economics
• Monopoly
• Bonds
• Microeconomics
• Aggregate demand and supply
• Empirical economics
• Even sports economics to lighten things up

All up, there isn’t much you can’t find on this channel. But for what you can’t, check out my other links. But as you can see from the embed above, what you get is quality, simplicity, and digestibility.

3. Josh Starmer at StatQuest

This friendly fella from the genetics lab at UNC Chapel Hill is becoming a bit of a celebrity, with kudos from LinkedIn heroes like Isaac Faber.

Almost satirical, yet paying homage to cheesy educational videos of the 80s and 90s, Starmer has carved out a niche in explaining statistics and machine learning that has gained an almost cult-like following.

Resist the urge to hit pause when you’re first greeted with some singing at the start of the tutorial. Just because you’re explaining a coplex topic like regression or machine learning, it doesn’t mean you have to use complex teaching methods or skip on the building block approach used in elementary school. And Josh Starmer knows this. Expect lots of visuals, great pace and perfect segmentation.

4.Professor Knudson

Statistics has had a resurgence as data science has become a popular career choice. As a result, applied statistics has had a lot of air time, and continues to do so. Unfortunately, the LSE exams in statistics are heavily proof-based. Not the sexiest or most practical approach. But thank goodness for Professor Knudson, who has all the statistical proofs you need. The squeaky pen is kind of her thing.

5. Ashley Hodgson

This bird deserves a special shout out as I found her after what seemed like weeks of searching for a clear way to explain price leadership duopoly / oligopoly.

It was one of those problems that seemed to be always on past exam papers, yet the commentary and study guidance didn’t get through to me. Sadly the economics in many lessons guys didn’t have quite the approach that would stand the test of the LSE exams either.

So for this particular microeconomic problem, my savior was Ashley Hodgson and her dainty whiteboard. She can be yours, too.

6. Matt Birch

Matt Birch has a few lessons which can also be found on Economics in Many Lessons, but I found he excelled at Bertrand competition in a differentiated market, and deconstructing monopoly problems. At first glance, the videos may seem simple, being screencast on the iPad, but isn’t simple what you need in the complex world of economics!? Here’s a taster below.