BA International Relations
Entry requirements
A level: ABB IB: 32 points overall with 16 points from the best 3 HL subjects
About this course
BA Hons in International Relations, a politics and international relations degree centred on political structures, global governance, and contemporary world affairs. Core topics include Statistics, Research Methods, Policy Analysis, Historical Research, Critical & Analytical Thinking, Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning, and Global & Comparative Perspective. Students can apply for annual internships through the Richardson Institute for Peace Studies to work alongside external policy and research organisations. The first year introduces foundational ideas through modules such as Origins and Foundations of International Relations, Global Challenges in World Politics, Global Governance and International Institutions, and Critical Perspectives on Global Politics, examining core concepts of the state system, sovereignty, and global order. The second year builds on this knowledge with compulsory study in Reshaping Global Order and Understanding Political Research, alongside optional choices covering topics like authoritarianism, global capitalism, and the politics of the Global South. The final year centres on the Politics and International Relations Dissertation, allowing students to complete an independent research project on a topic of personal interest. Optional modules in the final year let students explore specialized areas such as Critical Studies of War and Security, Parliamentary Studies, Policymaking in the Real World, and The Politics of Borders and Migration.
Modules
- Origins and Foundations of International Relations
- Global Challenges in World Politics
- Global Governance and International Institutions
- Critical Perspectives on Global Politics
- Political Theory for a Troubled World
- Parties, Populism and Protest
- Medieval and Early Modern Worlds
- History of Philosophy: Ideas that Shaped the West
- Foundations of Microeconomics
- Thinking Sociologically
- Reshaping Global Order
- Understanding Political Research
- Authoritarianism, Repression and Resistance in the 21st century
- Global Capitalism and its Discontent
- Global Superpowers
- Politics of the Global South
- War, Peace and Modernity
- Employability, Purpose and Social Impact (Discovery module)
- Global Challenges and Collaborative Solutions (Discovery module)
- Taking an Idea and Making it Happen (Discovery module)
- Politics and International Relations Dissertation
- Critical Studies of War and Security
- Critical Political Theory
- Democracy Under Pressure
- Environment and Development
- Europe and America
- Parliamentary Studies
- Policymaking in the Real World
- Politics of Latin America and Africa
- Politics of the Middle East and Asia Pacific
- Russia and China
- Security, Strategy and Technology
- The Politics of Borders and Migration
- The Politics of Crises and the Future of Governance
- Queer Futures (Discovery module)
- People Power and Collective Action (Discovery module)
- Confronting the Climate Crisis (Discovery module)
- Artistic Fusions (Discovery module)