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Postgraduate courses

We offer a comprehensive range of courses including Master of Arts (MA), Master of Science (MSc), Master of Research (MRes) and a Graduate Diploma in Politics, many of which can be studied on a full-time or part-time basis.

Our courses are modular in structure and normally include a core module in the course area, compulsory modules in political theory and methods, and up to two optional modules in a relevant field. Full module details are available on the module directory. Assessment varies slightly by module but will be by a combination of coursework (including essays, simulations, presentations and in-class tests), exams and a dissertation (for all courses).

Master of Arts (MA) and Master of Science (MSc)

What is the difference between our MA and MSc?

• MA Political Science / MSc Political Science (ESRC funding available)
  Our MA or MSc Political Science gives a good overview of a how political scientists explain political outcomes, how normative theory informs empirical research and how political science can be used to explain the real world. The MSc is designed for those who already have a solid background in approaches and methods

 

• MA Politics
  This course is an academically rigorous programme but what is unique is the flexibility and choice you have when taking modules: there are no compulsory modules so you can structure your masters to the areas that interest you. It gives a background to the study of politics but isnt as theory-focused as our other masters.

 

• MA Conflict Resolution / MSc Conflict Resolution
  Our new MA/MSc Conflict Resolution provides an overview of the evolving field of international conflict resolution and allows you to explore methods such as mediation, negotiation, arbitration, collaborative problem solving, peacekeeping operations, and other applications.

 

• MA European Integration and European Politics / MSc European Integration and European Politics
  This course will give you the opportunity to deepen your understanding of the study of European Politics and social scientific research, asking questions such as: 'Do different models of Europe, as supranational, intergovernmental, transnational, or multileveled, suggest different forms of democratic governance?'.

 

• MA Global and Comparative Politics / MSc Global and Comparative Politics
  This course is designed to provide students with a general overview of classic topics as well as contemporary debates in the field of global and comparative politics.

 

• MA Ideology and Discourse Analysis (ESRC funding available)
  How do ideologies form and sustain political identities? What are the main ideologies and political discourses that frame and organise our social lives today? This course attempts to answer some of these key questions.

 

• MA International Relations / MSc International Relations (ESRC funding available)
  MA/MSc International Relations focuses on general theoretical perspectives of the disciplines and provides you with the tools to understand historical and contemporary events by placing these within an analytical framework.

 

• MA Political Behaviour / MSc Political Behaviour
  Why do some people protest in the streets while others sit at home? Why do people vote the way they do? Can we predict behaviour from social characteristics or psychological variables such as values, attitudes, political preferences and evaluations of political and economic outcomes? This course aims to answer these questions and many more.

 

• MA Political Economy / MSc Political Economy (ESRC funding available)
  The scheme covers all aspects of modern political economy including market failure, the political logic of policy choices, and the trade-off between different political goals.

 

• MA Political Theory
  How are we to understand political life as the expression of violence, tradition, domination, the search for freedom, the struggle for equality? How should we think about democracy as the participation of citizens, the contest of representatives or the search for a common good through deliberation? What is justice equality for all human beings, solidarity among some human beings or the free play of personal choice?

 

• MA Public Opinion and Polling / MSc Public Opinion and Polling
  This course introduces students to the latest theoretical debates about the nature, significance and measurement of public opinion. At the same time it provides background knowledge and practical skills needed to undertake surveys of public opinion and to give you skills which are required by anyone seeking employment in polling and market research industry.

Master of Research (MRes)

• MRes International Relations
  This is a two year course which enriches the MA/MSc International Relations by additional training in research design and research methods. Students will learn how to develop theories, conduct research, and explore the empirical implications of theoretical models using the most appropriate empirical methods.

 

• MRes Politics
  This is a two year course that adds additional training in research design and research methods to the Departments MA/MSc Politics. Students will learn how to develop theories, conduct research, and explore the empirical implications of theoretical models using the most appropriate empirical methods.

 

• MRes Political Economy
  A two year scheme that adds additional training in research design and research methods to the departments MA Political Economy. Students will learn how to develop theories, conduct research, and explore the empirical implications of theoretical models using the most appropriate empirical methods.

Graduate Diploma

• Graduate Diploma in Politics
  The Graduate Diploma in Politics is a nine-month course primarily designed to provide a foundation for Masters level study in politics. It aims to develop knowledge and understanding of the major conceptual and theoretical foundations of the discipline of political science.

Joint Courses

• MA Philosophy, Politics and Environmental Issues
  Offered jointly with the Department of Philosophy, this course provides students of various backgrounds with advanced, critical knowledge of past and present philosophical reflections about nature, both within continental and analytic philosophy. It also helps them to chart the new and quickly developing field of environmental ethics and introduces them to the main theories in that area. It expounds the basics of the natural science behind environmental problems (such as global warming and ozone depletion) and develops the students knowledge of the most important theories and concepts in environmental politics.

 

• MA Ethics, Politics and Public Policy (administered by Philosophy Department)
  Offered jointly with the Department of Philosophy, this MA investigates the ethical dimension of public policy and corporate behaviour, a dimension that is of increasing importance. Amongst the areas that may be considered from this perspective are health policy, the environment, international relations, business investment and planning, employment relations, and the financing of public policy.

 

Last modified on 26 October 2012