Get degree ideas using our A level explorer tool

Politics and International Relations

Entry requirements


A level

A,A,B

Excluding General Studies and Critical Thinking.

Considered on a case by case basis.

Cambridge International Pre-U Certificate - Principal

D3,M1,M2

GCSE/National 4/National 5

GCSE requirements: English grade 4/C required

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

34

Considered on a case-by-case basis alongside an A Level.

Considered on a case-by-case basis alongside two A Levels.

Considered on a case-by-case basis.

Please contact the school for further information.

Scottish Advanced Higher

A,A

Scottish Highers at AABBB are also required

Scottish Higher

A,A,B,B,B

Scottish Advanced Highers at AA are also required

Welsh Baccalaureate - Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate (first teaching September 2015)

A

A Levels at AB are also required.

UCAS Tariff

112-147

We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.

About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subjects

International relations

Politics

How do relationships between nations shape our world? Who holds the power? What are the political processes that impact our day to day lives?

On our BA Politics and International Relations, you’ll consider these questions by studying the core areas of comparative politics, political theory and international relations. You will sharpen your awareness of current affairs and your comprehension of the complex processes that underpin our society.

You can broaden your understanding of domestic and global politics and tailor your degree to your interests and career goals through optional modules. These explore diverse specialist areas such as social justice, global security and secret intelligence. You can also enhance your CV by studying abroad in locations like China, Europe and the USA.

You also have the option to take a specialised pathway that includes training in quantitative analysis, giving an extra dimension to your degree.

You will graduate with specialist knowledge and the transferable skills and confidence you need to stand out to employers as you start your career.

Modules

In year one, you will typically take modules which are designed to introduce you to key concepts and theories across the broad field of politics and international relations.

You will explore controversies in British politics, key political ideas and historical developments, and compare modern democratic states.

Year two covers core topics on elections and 20th century international politics. You will choose from range of optional modules from across the three core areas of political theory, comparative politics, and international relations.

In year three, you will have the option to write a dissertation based on a topic of your choice under the supervision of a member of staff.

You may also choose from a wide range of modules related to our research areas. You have free choice in this year and can tailor the course to your interests and career aspirations.

You can take a specialised pathway to graduate with a BA Politics and International Relations (Quantitative Methods) degree. This pathway includes training in the quantitative analysis of a range of datasets.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£9,250
per year
England
£9,250
per year
EU
£20,500
per year
International
£20,500
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course location:

University Park Campus

Department:

School of Politics and International Relations

Read full university profile

What students say


We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

74%
International relations
74%
Politics

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Politics

Teaching and learning

79%
Staff make the subject interesting
86%
Staff are good at explaining things
82%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
65%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

66%
Library resources
84%
IT resources
78%
Course specific equipment and facilities
63%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

92%
UK students
8%
International students
45%
Male students
55%
Female students
88%
2:1 or above
5%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

A
B
A

After graduation


The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Politics

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£21,000
med
Average annual salary
96%
med
Employed or in further education
67%
med
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

20%
Sales, marketing and related associate professionals
15%
Business, research and administrative professionals
13%
Business, finance and related associate professionals

The numbers of people taking politics degrees fell sharply last year and we'll keep an eye on this one - it can't really be because of graduates getting poor outcomes as politics grads do about as well as graduates on average. Most politics or international relations graduates don't actually go into politics - although many do, as activists, fundraisers and researchers. Jobs in local and central government are also important. Other popular jobs include marketing and PR, youth and community work, finance roles, HR and academic research (you usually need a postgraduate degree to get into research). Because so many graduates get jobs in the civil service, a lot of graduates find themselves in London after graduating. Politics is a very popular postgraduate subject, and so about one in five politics graduates go on to take another course - usually a one-year Masters - after they finish their degrees.

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Politics

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£24k

£24k

£29k

£29k

£36k

£36k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

Explore these similar courses...

Share this page

This is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Course location and department:

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here