Study location	United Kingdom, Colchester Campus
Type	Bachelor courses, full-time
Nominal duration	3 years
Study language	English
Awards	BA
Course code	L258

Tuition fee	To be confirmed

Entry qualification	High school / secondary education (or higher) The entry qualification documents are accepted in any language

Language requirements	English Accepted proof of proficiency: Cambridge English, IELTS, TOEFL or other equivalent IELTS: 6.0 TOEFL (IBT): 76 CAE: B2 with 52+ CAE (from Jan 15): 169+

Other requirements	At least 1 reference(s) must be provided.

More information	Expenses, accommodation, working etc. essex.ac.uk/..tercourse=UG00221&subgroup=1

Overview

Based in the top politics department in the country, this course should interest you if you want to understand how the international system works, how decisions are made and how lines are drawn. Taking this course gives you a foundation in politics, while the study of international relations develops your research and critical analysis skills, teaching you methods of analysis and giving you awareness of the world system.

This course explores many major areas of international relations, including:

- Conflict and security studies
- Comparative politics
- International political economy
- Political theory
- Politics of the Middle East

Politics at Essex is all about moving from opinions to evidence. You will quickly learn to ask – and how to answer – the “how do you know?” question. We train our students to be fearless and independent, to question everything and to draw on the broadest possible range of facts and ideas.

Our Department of Government is one of the most prestigious in Europe, with an outstanding record of teaching, research and publication. We are rated top in the UK for research (REF 2014), and have consistently been the highest-rated politics department in the country since national assessments began.

Programme structure

Year 1

Introduction to International Relations
Co-Operation and Conflict
Scientific Reasoning for the Social Sciences
Comparative Political Analysis
Career Portfolio
Introduction to Politics (optional)
Democracy: Forms and Futures (optional)
Politics and Power (optional)
Introduction to United States (optional)

Year 2

Politics of the Middle East
International Relations: Theories and Approaches
Conflict Analysis
Career Portfolio
Political Analysis: Introduction to OLS (optional)
International Organisations (optional)
International Politics of the Middle East (optional)
International Economic Development (optional)
Political Development in Asia (optional)
Discourse, Rhetoric and Power (optional)

Final year

Political Parties in Britain and Europe (optional)
International Security Studies (optional)
Authoritarianism (optional)
Development, State Building and Conflict (optional)
Career Portfolio
Political Economy (optional)

Career opportunities

Politics students are in demand from a host of employers, in international development, politics, the civil service fast stream, management, journalism, police, armed forces, commerce, business, finance, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), teaching and graduate research.

Our notable alumni include the former President of Costa Rica and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, Dr Oscar Arias, and the Speaker of the House of Commons, Rt Hon John Bercow MP, and our recent graduates have gone on to work for a wide range of high-profile companies including:

The World Bank
NATO
United
Houses of Parliament Research Unit
United Nations Development Program
ICM research
IMG Media