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Overview
Develop your understanding of both historical and current political tensions and relations
This course will allow you the time and space needed to develop your skills and knowledge as a student. You will be given the support to become a creative and inclusive humanities scholar.
You will be taught to analyse and critically study concepts and global issues, as well as gain a strong inter-disciplinary grounding, including in History and Philosophy.
Gain a rich understanding of the workings of modern politics and international relations as you incorporate strands from international law and diplomacy.
You will explore Britain’s wider place in the world through a theoretical approach to both contemporary politics and international relations. You will also examine interstate relationships across Eurasia, Africa, Asia and North America.
Pursue your interests
The course will allow you to choose your own area of interest and develop your knowledge and skills to take a critical perspective on political events and their outcomes for the modern world.
Build your academic skills on an initial foundation year
This four-year course includes an integrated, introductory foundation year that develops your academic skills and confidence, as well as provides you with an overview of core aspects of humanities that you will build upon in your further years of study.
This option is for you if you are interested in Politics and International Relations but do not meet the course entry requirements for BA (Hons) Politics and International Relations yet, or if you want more time to prepare for higher education.
Learn from experts
You will learn from academics who are experts in their fields and use latest research to underline their teaching to ensure that you have access to the current debates within the study of politics.
On this course you will:
- Study Politics both from policy-oriented and academic perspectives.
- Examine current debates in contemporary politics and international relations.
- Explore global challenges of the twenty-first century: terrorism, global warming, migration, climate and health.
- Analyse politics and international relations in the UK, USA, China, Russia, South East Asia, and Africa.
- Learn from our team of expert staff.
- Develop your critical thinking, team-working, research and digital skills, all vital for post-degree employment.
The Course
Discover your interests and follow your passions
This course introduces you to the exciting and complex worlds of contemporary politics and international relations as you explore your interests in diplomacy and political debate.
Integrated Foundation Year (Year One)
The initial foundation year develops the academic skills you will need to excel at degree level, as well as provides you with a broad overview of key aspects of Politics and International Relations.
Year Two
After progressing from your foundation year, you will receive a solid grounding in the theoretical approaches and research methods in the study of Politics and International Relations.
The course introduces you to the political histories and contexts of Britain, Russia, China, and the United States.
Year Three
In your third year, you will begin to mould your degree around your interests, as you explore international human rights, organisations, conflicts and security challenges.
Year Four
By your final year, you will have a strong sense of what political area you would like to focus on for your final dissertation project.
Alongside your thesis, you will have the opportunity to explore more specific aspects of Politics and International Relations, including: the politics of East Asia, international diplomacy, the effects of globalisation, and the evolution of international law.
Modules
Select a year
Skills and Scholarship in Humanities
This module provides you with an introduction to and practice of the key skills associated with the success in Humanities. Foregrounded areas will include: defining research questions; accessing research (using libraries, archives, galleries, and online sources); engaged reading of different materials (including a substantial range of sources); constructing arguments and developing structure in communication; communication in written and oral formats, including concise and longer formats.
This module is a toolkit for the skills and scholarship needed to thrive and to enjoy the humanities.
Understanding Ideas, Images and Creativity: Reading Humanities through concepts, objects and pictures
Humanities used to be primarily engaged with written materials and the production of analytical new research in written forms. This is no longer the case (in fact since about circa 1975).
Humanities engage with multiple non-text based sources including: paintings, objects, advertising, film and television, music and sound, posters, photography, graphic narratives, landscapes, and digital materials (including AI generated sources).
This module aims to introduce you to this space and support you to use it as part of your development as a scholar. It also consciously asks you to contextualize and explore non-text sources in their frequently changing multiple and global contexts.
Global Skills for the twenty-first century
Humanities scholarship today is no longer bound by national frameworks. Ideas of frontiers and borders no longer limit the questions we ask. However, what are the skills for understanding this ‘world’ and how are they practised in inclusive and reflective approaches that are democratic and thoughtful?
This module therefore explores: questions of translation, cultural influence and power; cultural intersections and cultural differences, framing the global north and the global south after empire, unpacking where experiences are globalizing and hybrid or that are valued for their specificity and localized meaning and value.
It will ask how did views of the world get things wrong (e.g. early anthropology) and how do scholars think of ‘the world’ today.
Engaging with the ‘Cultural Life’
This module prepares you for exploring and working with ‘culture’ – meaning all forms of public expression associated with the humanities.
It asks what it means to be interested in culture? How we learn to access and explore culture and what barriers may limit access?
It will offer you a chance to define and pursue your own form of cultural activity – ranging from engaging with a form (e.g. writing or blogging criticism) or making new culture (creative writing; curation).
Research Project or Making Humanities Work for You
This module allows you to engage in either an independent research project in any area of the Humanities (subject to staff approval) or to engage in an equivalent 10 days of work experience.
It offers you the chance to pursue your own interest in your preferred humanities area or explore work experience targeted to a future career.
EU Law I
This module introduces you to European Union law and the impetus behind the formation of the European Union. This provides an insight into the law-making institutions of the European Union, the different sources of EU law and the relationship between EU law and the law of member states. In addition, it shows you how to examine the impact of the different EU laws on the enforceability of an individual’s legal rights. Throughout, you will also continue to develop legal reasoning, research and referencing skills.
Introduction to Political Ideas
This module introduces you to the academic analysis of politics, where you will gain an understanding of politics both as an activity and as a discipline. The module also focuses on the space of politics, and the conceptual approaches, ideology, schools and methods in politics.
Introduction to Soft Power: Britain and its Cultural Diplomacy in the Twenty-First Century
This module examines the role of literature, arts and other cultural forms and processes in conducting international relations.
It is an introduction to the notions of soft power and cultural diplomacy and how Britain and other states, and intergovernmental organisations have used it to exert their power.
The module introduces students to the history and practice of organisations such as the BBC; BBC World Service; the British Council; UNESCO.
Research in Politics and IR
This module provides a general introduction to studying Politics and International Relations. You will examine some of the key research skills such as desk research (literature search, identifying existing datasets) as well as guiding you through different referencing styles, note-taking, how to present a coherent argument, and how to critique.
Russia and China: An Introduction to Post-Communism
This module introduces you to the contemporary politics of the two great powers, Russia, and China, and explores their comparative journeys into versions of post-Communism. You will understand the evolution and/or collapse of ‘communist’ ideology and practice in each state. It acknowledges the new state-society dynamics in each state, offering an introduction to politics and society in the twenty-first century Russia and China.
The United States: An Introduction (1763 – The Present)
This module analyses the distinctive origins of American political thought and constitutional practice, the structures and effects of slavery, the origins of the civil war, the evolution of popular culture with special reference to jazz, the pursuit of civil rights and the emergence of the United States as a world power.
War and Peace Twentieth Century Europe and Global Conflict
This module provides you with an overview of European political, cultural, and military history during the 20th century through the study of its major conflicts and global forces.
The central focus of the module is the international history of the major Great Powers between 1914 and 2000. You will examine of some of the common debates that often surround the origins of the First World War; the Second World War; the Cold War and debates on the ‘New World Order’.
Britain and Europe: Brexit – Before, During and After
This module explores the history and contemporary politics of Britain’s relationship with continental Europe. You will chart in place the reasons for European integration and the expansion of the ‘European Union’ from the 1950s to the present day. the module also investigates the rise of populist politics and the idea of Euroscepticism. In doing so, it highlights the processes associated with the ongoing ‘Brexit’ arrangements, as well as internal contemporary shaping of the EU itself.
Contemporary Issues in International Relations I: Global Security Challenges
This module focuses on the emerging global security challenges because of tensions between nations in recent years.
As part of this, you will consider the causes, consequences, and contemporary expressions of issues such as:
- terrorism
- cyber-security
- bio-security
- migration
- corruption
- trans-national crime.
You will also consider how western and non-western states engage with these challenges as you consider what models of global governance and power actually help model solutions to these key socio-political and economic problems in the twenty first century.
EU Law II
This module continues the study of EU law, which examines the substantive law of the European single market, focusing on free movement of goods, services and people. You will also look at individual rights under EU law, including the protection of fundamental rights linked to EU citizenship.
International Human Rights
This module examines different sources of human rights law, its impact on the English Legal System and considers different substantive areas of the law under the European Convention on Human Rights including absolute, limited and qualified rights.
International Organisations
This module provides a thematic and historical introduction to the idea of international organisations (inter-governmental organisations). It will introduce you to the core international institutions and their histories through the twentieth century, including:
- United Nations (UN)
- North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO)
- Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)
- World Health Organisation (WTO)
- UNESCO
- Red Cross
- Amnesty International
- and others.
You will be encouraged to rethink twentieth century history by not only developing a strong political understanding of these important bodies but also through original social history. The module will provide you with an in-depth understanding of the history and practice of some of the major international organisations and their role in international world politics.
Identity and Conflict in Russia and Eurasia
This module provides you with an understanding of contemporary Russia and Eurasia.
You will examine the recent conflicts across the region through the prism of nationalism and identity politics.
The module re-examines these conflicts by focusing on the sources of demand for national self-determination in secessionist conflicts in:
- Azerbaijan (Nagorno Karabakh)
- Georgia (Abkhazia/South Ossetia)
- Moldova (Transnistria)
- Ukraine (Crimea/Eastern Ukraine)
- Chechnya (Russian Federation)
- as well as causes of intra- and inter-ethnic violence in Central Asia.
Contemporary Issues in International Relations II: Climate Change and Activism
This module explores a key international relations question concerning environmental and climate change.
You will examine the various organisations and campaign groups involved and their perspectives on the issue and explore the role of diplomacy in global negotiations and initiatives on the topic.
Civil Society, NGOs and International Development
This module analyses the link between civil society/NGO sector and international development.
You will examine some of the main players within the charity sector development organisations (such as Oxfam), as well as some of the important international development NGOs.
In addition, you will explore the role and power of smaller local groups and individuals engaged in the so-called citizen journalism, social media protest and other forms of political engagement.
Globalisation and Its Malcontents
This module looks at key moments in the development of globalization focusing on moments in which the world came together, such as the Bretton Woods conference in 1944, when the terms of global trade were outlined after the rupture of the Second World War.
You will use these examples to contextualise the work of theorists like Arjun Appadurai to develop your understanding of how globalization has shaped 20th-century history and politics.
International Law
This module introduces you to international law: the body of law which governs the legal relations between or among states and nations.
You will study the theories, principles and processes of international law, including its sources, legal personality, jurisdiction, and realms of responsibility.
In addition, you will also be introduced to debates about the regulation of international activities, including the use of force, dispute settlement processes, human rights, and the role of the UN.
International Diplomacy, Sustaintable Growth and Cultural Heritage
This module explores how nation state actors, international organisations, NGOs and other global heritage institutions (e.g. British Museum/Guggenheim) work in a world of international heritage management. You will consider key questions of post-colonial power, diplomacy, agency, censorship, freedom of speech.
Multi-Media and Public Communications
This module develops your professional/creative non-fiction/journalism and related public communication skills.
It will provide you with the opportunity to test these skills in a context that considers: writing that requires different rhetorical paradigms and communication in English to ‘non-native’ speakers.
These core theoretical conceptual questions will underpin your training and practice in multi-media public communications.
The Politics of East Asia
This module explores the politics and international relations in East Asia through analysis of the interconnections between regional development and geopolitical contestation in history and today.
You will consider the legacies of the Imperial Chinese tributary system, through to the European and Japanese imperialism in East Asia and East Asia’s experiences during the Cold War, before finally examining the contemporary developments in the region.
Experience
Discover facilities that support your academic learning
Close community
Learning Resource Centre
Library
Expert staff
Subject specific librarians
Royal Literary Fellows
Local cultural links
Teaching and Assessment
Feel the support of internationally-recognised research staff
Teaching
At our university, you will find a friendly atmosphere and an encouraging team of staff who will work hard to support your learning.
All of our tutors have recognised national and international research expertise and a passion for their respective subject areas. This ensures that you have access to the latest debates within the study of Politics and International Relations with Humanities Integrated Foundation Year.
Much of our teaching is in small groups. Our commitment to smaller class sizes allows you to feel more confident to discuss your ideas in a supportive environment.
It also allows your tutors to get to know you and how best to aid your development.
Assessment
Our BA (Hons) Politics and International Relations with Humanities Integrated Foundation Year course uses a range of assessment methods, including:
- Essays
- Source evaluations and reviews
- Research projects
- Collaborative project work
- Examinations
- Dissertation.
Modules are assessed at every stage of the course, allowing you to clearly see your academic progress throughout your degree.
Work Placements
Gain vital workplace experience with our local partners
We understand the importance of ensuring that you have the knowledge, skills and experience to compete successfully in today’s challenging jobs market.
We offer you work placement opportunities built directly into our courses to ensure you can gain the experience needed to stand out.
You can choose to organise your own work placement, or take advantage of our extensive network of local partners to gain experience within settings that can also support your academic studies.
Study Abroad
Explore the opportunity to study part of your course abroad
As a student at the University of Chichester, you can explore opportunities to study abroad during your studies as you enrich and broaden your educational experiences.
Students who have undertaken this in the past have found it to be an amazing experience to broaden their horizons, a great opportunity to meet new people, undertake further travelling and to immerse themselves within a new culture.
You will be fully supported throughout the process to help find the right destination institution for you and your course. We can take you through everything that you will need to consider, from visas to financial support, to help ensure that you can get the best out of your time studying abroad.
Careers
Open up your future career options
Our graduates continue to succeeded in a range of positions after their studies through the supportive environment, varied modules, and the commitment to students provided by our staff.
Career paths include:
- The Civil Service
- International organisations
- Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs)
- Defence and security
- Public administration
- Business
- Law
- Communications and PR
- Education
- Journalism
Postgraduate pathways
- MA Cultural History
- MRes The History of Africa and the African Diaspora
- PGCEs
- MA Creative Writing
- Postgraduate Research (MPhil/PhD)
University of Chichester alumni who have completed a full undergraduate degree at the University will receive a 15% discount on their postgraduate fees.
Course Costs
Course Fees 2024/25
UK fee
International fee
For further details about fees, please see our Tuition Fees page.
For further details about international scholarships, please see our Scholarships page.
To find out about any additional costs on this course, please see our Additional Costs page.
Entry Requirements
Typical Offer (individual offers may vary)
UCAS
A Levels
BTEC National Diploma
T Level
IELTS
FAQs
Frequently asked questions
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