International Relations

With globalisation, sustainability, terrorism and foreign intervention now major forces in the world, this course prepares you to meet important global challenges.

While the 21st century presents us with instability and insecurity, it also offers plenty of opportunities for development and innovation. Studying international relations will help you to make sense of current issues and create innovative solutions for a better future.

You'll explore both historic and contemporary issues from a broad range of perspectives, giving you an insight into the complexities and contradictions of global politics, and begin to understand the relationships between institutions of international governance.

Through real-world case studies drawn from the fields of international law, human rights, security, economics and development, diplomacy, war and conflict resolution, you'll learn to apply international relations theory to practice and develop the skills and processes necessary to plan for change – from building research proposals to policy briefs.

You'll quickly gain confidence in thinking critically and analytically – able to understand the world around you and develop creative solutions that could change it for the better.

Your skills and knowledge will be assessed via a wide range of written work such as essays, research reports, policy briefs and article reviews. You'll also prepare research proposals, data analysis reports and give individual and group presentations to develop your oral communication skills and your expertise in articulating and presenting your ideas.