International Relations (Research Training)

Entry requirements

The minimum entry requirement is a very good 2nd class Honours degree or equivalent in a cognate subject, plus a satisfactory reference. Candidates who do not meet this requirement will be considered on a case by case basis and are normally interviewed as part of the application process.

Months of entry

September

Course content

The global challenges of the twenty first century place important demands on students of international politics. Not only do we need to understand the ongoing changes in the nature of war and conflict, but we are also today faced with important transformations in global power relations, international flows of goods, people and diseases and, indeed, shifts in the nature of political communities on the globe. Whatever your background, whether in international politics or another discipline, this flagship MA programme provides you with the necessary tools to tackle these shifting landscapes. With a wide range of modules and departmental expertise at your disposal, the scheme will expose you to envisioning new, different, better ways forward in our efforts to cope with the challenging political, military, social, economic and environmental contexts we live in today.

The MA International Relations course enables you to grasp the complexity of this turbulent moment in world politics and to think through its meanings, both theoretical and practical. Whether your background is in International Relations or a different discipline, the range of modules and academic expertise that our MA programme provides will encourage you to stretch your horizons and explore the many different possibilities for envisioning international politics today.

Why study MA International Relations at Aberystwyth University?

• Opportunity to study at the world’s first university department of International Politics
• Top 5 in the UK for Student Experience and Teaching Quality for the subject of Politics (GUG 2022)
• Top 10 in the UK for Research Rating for the subject of Politics (GUG 2022)
• Opportunity to specialise in many different pathways such as security studies, postcolonial politics, theory/critical theory, and intelligence and strategic studies.
• Opportunity to integrate into the research culture of a department at the forefront of understanding and tackling the challenges of ‘how we might live’ in the 21st century.
• Opportunity to study in a challenging and highly stimulating intellectual environment and to engage with the most pressing and thought-provoking issues and topics in international politics.
• 76% of the Department’s publications were deemed either world leading or internationally excellent, making the Department the best in Wales and 7th in the UK - REF 2014
• The Department has over 30 academic and research staff, all of whom are research-active.
• The Department hosts a wide variety of academic events which postgraduate students are encouraged to attend, including guest lectures by leading experts and academics, round table discussions about past, present, and future international issues, and the weekly Departmental research seminars.

Information for international students

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Fees and funding

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