International Relations with a Year in Industry

As technology, transport, and a more complex and globalised economy make our world smaller, the value of peaceful and cooperative relationships between states and nations is increasingly important. At the same time, the threats that states, communities, and individuals face are increasing in intensity and breadth. How do states cope with the changing nature of conflicts and new threats to security? How do we maintain and strengthen peaceful relations between people and states? What role can international institutions play alongside state actors in a complex and interconnected world?

Our three-year BA International Relations degree provides you with an opportunity to investigate the impact of a globalised world on states and citizens, the role of digital communication in shaping citizenship understanding of events, or the evolution of global human rights. The drivers and forces behind international cooperation and conflict form part of the degree just as much as the impact of conflict on the relation between states and people. You will learn how power, norms and institutions, as well as legal frameworks, affect our day-to-day lives and how historical events still have a noticeable impact on the global world order.

Our International Relations programme is a flexible degree offering a wide range of specialist modules that allow you to tailor your future career goals while developing your individual interests.

You will be taught by innovative experts in international relations, intelligence and security studies with strong national and international links. You will have the opportunity to enhance your skills development through varied assessments and learning experiences, through joining extra-curricular activities such as student societies and journals or volunteering activities, or the option of joining one of our competitively selected summer-abroad programmes.

This course offers you the opportunity to spend a Year in Industry, in the UK or overseas, enabling you to gain valuable workplace experience. The University advocates for paid-only placements, which on average have a salary of over £20,000. Unpaid placements are considered on a case-by-case basis.

In Year 1, you will typically study areas including: International Relations in a Changing World; Interpreting Politics: The Faces and Uses of Power; Foundations in Social Sciences Research and Academic Skills; Forging a Nation: US History and Politics; The Colour Line: Race and Racism in World Politics.

In Year 2, you will typically study areas including: Anarchy and Order: Theories in International Relations; Global Justice and Human Rights in the Age of Globalisation; Placement Preparation: Year in Industry / Year in Practice; Placement Preparation: Year in Industry / Year in Practice; Disunited Kingdom? Class, Race, Gender and Social Division in Twentieth-Century Britain; The State and Political Institutions; Investigating Gender.

In Year 3: Year spent in Industry

In Year 4, you will typically study areas including: Researching Politics 1; Researching Politics 2; Dissertation; Senedd Cymru/The Welsh Parliament; The Russian Civil War; Philosophy, Mental Health and Illness; Capitalism and Justice; The Philosophy and Politics of Identity; Global Environmental Politics.

Throughout your undergraduate International Relations with a Year Abroad BA (Hons) degree, you will develop excellent research and analytical skills and learn to present your ideas effectively both verbally and in writing.

We offer a variety of assessment methods within our programmes. In addition to traditional examinations and essays, examples of alternative assessment include:

• Reading diary
• Literature/ article review
• Case study
• Critical review

For a full breakdown of course structure and assessment please visit our course page https://www.swansea.ac.uk/undergraduate/courses/social-sciences/politics-philosophy-international-relations/ba-international-relations/ or get in touch with us at study@swansea.ac.uk