Politics
Entry requirements
Our standard postgraduate entry requirement is a second-class honours degree (2:2 or above) from a UK university, or an equivalent international qualification.
Applications are reviewed on their individual merits and your professional qualifications and/or relevant work experience will be taken into consideration positively. We actively support and encourage applications from mature learners.
Months of entry
October
Course content
Why choose this course?
- It offers you training in research skills, including beginner to advanced social data analysis, qualitative methods and experimental design.
- It is taught by leading researchers at the Birkbeck Institute for Social Research and the Birkbeck Centre for British Political Life.
- It is recognised by the UK Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) for the award of 1+3 studentships which are designed to fund students for a course of postgraduate study combining a taught Master's degree and a PhD.
What you will learn
This course’s core modules are designed to strengthen your fundamental approaches to social and political research: statistical analysis and qualitative methods. You will then be able to specialise in more advanced methods, including social science experiments and advanced data analysis.
Option modules offer you further methods training and deeper understanding across a range of subjects within the broad field of political studies including politics, international relations and public policy.
How you will learn
All core methods training modules can be studied either on campus or online. You will also have access to pre-recorded lectures, and the course benefits from coursework and seminars that will help you focus on mastering the craft of social research. Your studies culminate in the completion of a research dissertation in which you will apply the skills you have learned to tackle a research question of your choice.
This course follows an evening timetable with all classes taking place in the evening.
- Birkbeck's MRes degrees are recognised by the UK Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) for the award of 1+3 studentships. These studentships fund students for a four-year, full-time (or six-/seven-year part-time) course of postgraduate study combining a taught Master's degree and a PhD.
- Birkbeck is a world-renowned centre of original, influential research in politics. We organise a lively programme of seminars and conferences and are home to affiliated research centres, such as the Birkbeck Centre for British Political Life, which run seminars, conferences and other events where some of the world's best scholars present their latest research.
- Our academic staff are international authorities in their respective fields, publishing and delivering stimulating teaching in a wide range of political topics including civil society and the state, public policy, development, gender, international security and terrorism, and social and political theory.
- Our location in central London puts you at the heart of the UK’s political life and at the centre of academic London. You can walk down to Parliament and Whitehall, while Bloomsbury contains some of the world’s most famous libraries and centres of research. Our departmental building was once a key location for members of the Bloomsbury Group, so you could be studying in rooms that have hosted distinguished visitors, including T.S. Eliot, George Bernard Shaw and Maynard Keynes.
- You can take advantage of the rich research collections nearby, including Senate House Library, which is right next door to Birkbeck, the British Library, which is five minutes’ walk away, and the British Library of Political and Economic Science at the London School of Economics, which is walkable from Birkbeck. Birkbeck Library has a large politics collection, including the major specialist journals, and provides you with access to an extensive range of online materials.
On successfully graduating from this MRes Politics, you will have gained an array of important transferable skills, including:
- data analysis
- research design
- project management
- critical evaluation.
Graduates can pursue career paths in government or advisory bodies where research skills are required, as well as policy research, higher education, the voluntary sector and journalism. Possible professions include:
- Civil Service fast-streamer
- higher education lecturer
- government social research officer
- politician’s assistant
- local government officer
- newspaper journalist
- public relations officer.
We offer a comprehensive careers service - Careers and Enterprise - your career partner during your time at Birkbeck and beyond. At every stage of your career journey, we empower you to take ownership of your future, helping you to make the connection between your experience, education and future ambitions.
Information for international students
If you don't meet the minimum IELTS requirement, we offer pre-sessional English courses and foundation programmes to help you improve your English language skills and get your place at Birkbeck.
Qualification, course duration and attendance options
- MRes
- part time24 months
- Campus-based learningis available for this qualification
- full time12 months
- Campus-based learningis available for this qualification
Course contact details
- Name
- Student Advice Service
- studentadvice@bbk.ac.uk
- Phone
- +44 (0)20 3907 0700