Political decision-making and action at the international level are shaped by complex psychological mechanisms that are often under-explored or overlooked by mainstream approaches to International Relations. This programme focuses on the individual, group, and mass-level phsychological dynamics and processes that determine political outcomes. Our students gain an in-depth understanding of the psychological underpinnings of International Relations and the empirical tools to engage with timely issues and puzzles in international politics.
In the School of Government and Society we offer much more than a degree. As a student here, whether undergraduate or postgraduate, you have the opportunity to take part in a wide range of events, with some or all of the costs paid for by the School.
Our MSc degree aims to equip students with the tools to address the complex psychological mechanisms which influence political decision and action. It examines processes at the individual, group, mass, and state levels, and engages with theoretical and empirical analyses. It uses timely issues and puzzles in international politics and highlights the role of political psychology in explaining, describing, and predicting their origins and outcomes.
You will gain a multidisciplinary understanding of the psychological underpinning of International Relations, alongside structured training in Research Methods.
Topics and issues examined include:
Our MSc degree has one more distinctive feature: it is offered by the Institute for Conflict, Cooperation and Security (ICCS), a world-leading interdisciplinary research centre, in partnership with the Department of Political Science and International Studies. Our MSc students can also become members of the four ICCS Research Working Groups: Trust; Political Settlements; International Political Psychology; Unmanned and Remote-Piloted Systems.
Who is the programme for?
Our MSc degree is designed for individuals interested in pursuing studies and careers in this innovative new field at the intersection of political psychology and international relations. Undergraduate-level qualification in IR and/or Security or experience in a cognate discipline (politics, psychology, sociology, history, geography) is desirable but not essential. We welcome all students who share our strong motivation to engage in the multidisciplinary study and practice of global political psychology.
You might also be interested in one of our other MSc programmes Global Cooperation and Security
We advocate an enquiry-based approach to learning, which means that we encourage you to become an independent and self-motivated learner. Through the programme of study we offer, we will develop the qualities that employers value in today's university graduates - qualities that will set you apart in your future career.
To help you develop the above-mentioned skills, we adopt a range of teaching methods. They may include:
Our MSc students pursue exciting and stimulating career opportunities with a range of organisations including government agencies, international organisations, the armed forces, NGOs, think-tanks, the media, the political world, and multinational corporations. Our excellent academic training is complemented by networking opportunities and voluntary work placements. Our four research-focused working groups invite applications throughout the year in the following areas:
In addition, the Careers Network provides a valuable source of information on employment opportunities, internships, and funding.
The School offers a number of opportunities for learning enhancement throughout the year, including Model NATO, which sends a student delegation each February to participate in a role play exercise of decision making in NATO. Students are also encouraged to attend the regular seminars offered by Institute for Conflict, Cooperation and Security (ICCS), Department of Political Science and International Studies (POLSIS) and International Development Department (IDD) to complement and broaden their studies.
Student Enhancement Fund
The Student Enhancement Fund allows students to take greater control of their own personal development, encouraging creative thinking about enhancement opportunities and providing tailored experiences for individuals or groups of students with specific interests and career ambitions. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis for up to £100 (individuals) or £300 (groups).
This programme examines political, economic, and socio-cultural transformations in the Global South and interrogates the dynamics, challenges and opportunities confronting its societies – with a specialist focus on how globalisation, international economic interdependence and the internationalisation of political structures and processes are changing politics globally.
You’ll learn about the experiences and viewpoints of people and nations of the Global South regarding development issues. You’ll also review strategies, programmes and policies in development, including organisations and donors promoting development, and assess the progress made by different development actors towards key international development goals.
You’ll explore debates and controversies at the centre of contemporary development challenges and analyse both the theories and realities of development, to understand the different approaches, practices and discourses involved.
Research insight
MA Global Development has a close working relationship with the Global Development and Justice research group that aims to examine central debates within the field of global development from an interdisciplinary perspective.
The Global Development and Justice research group is also actively involved, amongst others, in the Centre for Global Development, a university-wide network that promotes cross-disciplinary approaches to the field, as well as the Leeds Centre for African Studies.
Core modules examine key issues surrounding global development, such as markets, inequality, democratisation, gender, health, education, human rights, conflict, violence and crime – with an additional compulsory module focusing on your specialism.
You’ll also learn about various aspects of development practice, like the theoretical and analytical principles of Project Cycle Management. Additionally, you’ll hone your research and writing skills and then showcase them in your compulsory dissertation – an independent piece of research on a topic of your choice.
These modules will equip you to analyse, understand and discuss the major changes, problems and opportunities facing societies and people in the Global South. You’ll study some of the broader social, political, and economic causes of the problems, and the achievements and setbacks that people have experienced in their efforts to tackle them at the global, national and local levels and improve their societies and lives. You’ll learn to analyse, understand, and discuss development in the Global South in the 2010s in all its dynamism, complexity and significance.
The wide-ranging list of optional modules means that you can explore a diverse range of related subjects of interest to you, including natural resources struggles, global health, gender and globalisation, education, international political economy or issues related to Africa and China.
If you are a part-time student, you can choose how to spread your studies across two years. However, we recommend that you at least take your compulsory modules in your first year, and you have to take the compulsory dissertation module in your second year.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
Modules are conducted through a mix of lectures, seminars and workshops. Tutors also provide you with individual advice on written work and you should begin to develop expertise in improving your work through face-to-face discussion with your tutors, formative assessment and through detailed feedback. You’ll be expected to carry out a good deal of independent, detailed and considered study.
All part-time students attend exactly the same classes as full-time students which usually take place between 9am and 5pm; there are no evening classes.
Each module is assessed separately, through assessments that range from long essays to projects and assignments, offering you the opportunity to work in your particular field of interest within each topic area. You will also carry out a dissertation into a research area of your choice.
This programme is aimed at students who would like to pursue either a professional career or further research in international development and related fields, and generally have a desire to put their education into practice in the Global South.
You’ll gain a wide range of professional skills on top of your subject knowledge. You’ll have an understanding of project design and management in a development context, as well as being able to analyse quantitative and qualitative data. You’ll be able to construct clear arguments, critically assess different options for action, analyse policy documents, write research reports and give presentations. You’ll also be trained to make decisions in complex and unpredictable situations.
Our programme equips you for various career paths. Compatible careers include working in international development agencies, international organisations, governments, politics, NGOs, research organisations, policy making, companies, media, and academia.
Graduates have gone on to work in, for instance, non-governmental organisations in the UK or overseas, research and consultancy firms, international organisations (such as the UN), the Civil Service, the media, or have continued with further study (e.g. PhD research).
We encourage you to seek practical work experience in the international development field, and advise you on how to go about it.
We encourage you to prepare for your career from day one. That’s one of the reasons Leeds graduates are so sought after by employers.
The Careers Centre and staff in your faculty provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more at the Careers website.
Today's global community has brought with it unique and unforeseen challenges, from the threat of environmental catastrophe and resource shortages, to infrastructural and economic failure and global terror. Geopolitics and Security at Royal Holloway, University of London equips students with the knowledge and skills needed to tackle these era-defining issues to mitigate the impact of potential crises and foster critical reflections on the strategies and techniques which seek to keep us secure..
This flexible Masters programme lets you select from a range of specialist courses to suit your own interests and career ambitions, choosing from options in both the Departments of Geography and Politics and International Relations. Graduates will gain a Masters degree in a discipline offering excellent employability prospects, while professionals seeking further academic training will learn transferable risk management skills ideal for further career development.
You'll join a vibrant research community and contribute to our renowned research culture with your own independent dissertation project. You’ll benefit from networking and placement opportunities with leading organisations and institutions, enjoy exciting field working opportunities in the UK and abroad, and work with leading researchers and research groups such as our Politics, Development and Sustainability Group in Geography with established track record in grant awards (eg from the ESRC, AHRC, Leverhulme Trust, EPSRC, British Academy, British Council, Falkland Island Government and the EU Marie-Curie fund).
Study Geopolitics and Security at Royal Holloway and you’ll graduate with a range of transferable skills to take with you into the workplace or further study. Learn to reflect on some of the most profound challenges of our times in this exciting Masters programme.
Core modules
Optional modules
In addition to these mandatory course units there are a number of optional course units available during your degree studies. The following is a selection of optional course units that are likely to be available. Please note that although the College will keep changes to a minimum, new units may be offered or existing units may be withdrawn, for example, in response to a change in staff. Applicants will be informed if any significant changes need to be made.
Formal and informal assessment is carried out by a variety of methods including coursework, oral and group work presentations, policy, briefing and media reports, video and documentary production, scenario planning and role-play, and a dissertation. Field visits to important sites and organisations, including RUSI, the IMO, the FCO, the RGS and others will also be available, supporting collegial interaction between students and staff. Emphasis is placed on informal assessment (especially through group work) so that students have plenty of opportunities to receive formative support and guidance.
Each year, the group will work on a major week-long project working with a cohort of French Masters students to devise the security planning of a major mega-event.
This programme is delivered in a single stage, equating to either one-year of full-time study or two years part-time, (or up to five years of part-time study by agreement with the Programme Director)
On completion of the course you will have:
Geopolitics and Security at Royal Holloway, University of London has a strong emphasis on skills development and employability, putting graduates in an excellent position to progress to further study or a rewarding career in their chosen field. Ideal for both recent graduates and professionals seeking further training, this programme will provide you with excellent field experience, placement and networking opportunities for a career working in commercial or political organisations such as banking, energy, media, think tanks, NGOs and government, where risk (management), threat and insecurity are critical to strategic policy development..
Our recent alumni have progressed to fulfilling careers in government, the media, risk and security consultancies, non-governmental organisations and public organisations both in the UK and abroad. An ideal stepping stone for PhD progression, Geopolitics and Security will help you to achieve your career and academic ambitions.
This programme examines political, economic, and socio-cultural transformations in the Global South and interrogates the dynamics, challenges and opportunities confronting its societies – with a focus on key contemporary debates about Africa's politics, culture, society and sustainable development.
You’ll learn about the experiences and viewpoints of people and nations of the Global South regarding development issues, as well as the inter-relationships between global, national and local actors in contested strategies for development.
You’ll also review strategies, programmes and policies in development, including organisations and donors promoting development, and assess the progress made by different development actors towards key international development goals.
You’ll explore controversies at the centre of contemporary development challenges and analyse both the theories and realities of development, to understand the different approaches, practices and discourses involved.
Research insight
MA Global Development has a close working relationship with the Global Development and Justice research group that aims to examine central debates within the field of global development from an interdisciplinary perspective.
The Global Development and Justice research group is also actively involved, amongst others, in the Centre for Global Development, a university-wide network that promotes cross-disciplinary approaches to the field, as well as the Leeds Centre for African Studies.
Core modules examine key issues surrounding global development, such as markets, inequality, democratisation, gender, health, education, human rights, conflict, violence and crime. You’ll also learn about various aspects of development practice, like the theoretical and analytical principles of Project Cycle Management. Additionally, you’ll hone your research and writing skills and then showcase them in your compulsory dissertation – an independent piece of research on a topic of your choice.
These modules will equip you to analyse, understand and discuss the major changes, problems and opportunities facing societies and people in the Global South. You’ll study some of the broader social, political, and economic causes of the problems, and the achievements and setbacks that people have experienced in their efforts to tackle them at the global, national and local levels and improve their societies and lives. You’ll learn to analyse, understand, and discuss development in the Global South in the 2010s in all its dynamism, complexity and significance.
The wide-ranging list of optional modules means that you can explore a diverse range of related subjects of interest to you, including natural resources struggles, global health, gender and globalisation, education, international political economy or issues related to Africa and China.
If you are a part-time student, you can choose how to spread your studies across two years. However, we recommend that you at least take your compulsory modules in your first year, and you have to take the compulsory dissertation module in your second year.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
Modules are conducted through a mix of lectures, seminars and workshops. Tutors also provide you with individual advice on written work and you should begin to develop expertise in improving your work through face-to-face discussion with your tutors, formative assessment and through detailed feedback. You’ll be expected to carry out a good deal of independent, detailed and considered study.
All part-time students attend exactly the same classes as full-time students which usually take place between 9am and 5pm; there are no evening classes.
Each module is assessed separately, through assessments that range from long essays to projects and assignments, offering you the opportunity to work in your particular field of interest within each topic area. You will also carry out a dissertation into a research area of your choice.
This programme is aimed at students who would like to pursue either a professional career or further research in international development and related fields, and generally have a desire to put their education into practice in the Global South.
You’ll gain a wide range of professional skills on top of your subject knowledge. You’ll have an understanding of project design and management in a development context, as well as being able to analyse quantitative and qualitative data. You’ll be able to construct clear arguments, critically assess different options for action, analyse policy documents, write research reports and give presentations. You’ll also be trained to make decisions in complex and unpredictable situations.
Our programme equips you for various career paths. Compatible careers include working in international development agencies, international organisations, governments, politics, NGOs, research organisations, policy making, companies, media, and academia.
Graduates have gone on to work in, for instance, non-governmental organisations in the UK or overseas, research and consultancy firms, international organisations (such as the UN), the Civil Service, the media, or have continued with further study (e.g. PhD research).
We encourage you to seek practical work experience in the international development field, and advise you on how to go about it.
This programme examines political, economic, and socio-cultural transformations in the Global South and interrogates the dynamics, challenges and opportunities confronting its societies.
You’ll learn about the experiences and viewpoints of people and nations of the Global South regarding development issues, as well as the inter-relationships between global, national and local actors in contested strategies for development.
You’ll also review strategies, programmes and policies in development, including organisations and donors promoting development, and assess the progress made by different development actors towards key international development goals.
You’ll explore debates and controversies at the centre of contemporary development challenges and analyse both the theories and realities of development, to understand the different approaches, practices and discourses involved.
Optional modules will also allow you to specialise in aspects of development that suit your interests.
Research insight
MA Global Development has a close working relationship with the Global Development and Justice research group that aims to examine central debates within the field of global development from an interdisciplinary perspective.
The Global Development and Justice research group is also actively involved in the Centre for Global Development, a university-wide network that promotes cross-disciplinary approaches to the field, and the Leeds Centre for African Studies.
Core modules examine key issues surrounding global development, such as markets, inequality, democratisation, gender, health, education, human rights, conflict, violence and crime. You’ll also learn about various aspects of development practice, like the theoretical and analytical principles of Project Cycle Management. Additionally, you’ll hone your research and writing skills and then showcase them in your compulsory dissertation – an independent piece of research on a topic of your choice.
These modules will equip you to analyse, understand and discuss the major changes, problems and opportunities facing societies and people in the Global South. You’ll study some of the broader social, political, and economic causes of the problems, and the achievements and setbacks that people have experienced in their efforts to tackle them at the global, national and local levels and improve their societies and lives. You’ll learn to analyse, understand, and discuss development in the Global South in the 2010s in all its dynamism, complexity and significance.
The wide-ranging list of optional modules means that you can explore a diverse range of related subjects of interest to you, including natural resources struggles, global health, gender and globalisation, education, international political economy or issues related to Africa and China.
If you are a part-time student, you can choose how to spread your studies across two years. However, we recommend that you at least take your compulsory modules in your first year, and you have to take the compulsory dissertation module in your second year.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
Modules are conducted through a mix of lectures, seminars and workshops. Tutors also provide you with individual advice on written work and you should begin to develop expertise in improving your work through face to face discussion with your tutors, formative assessment and through detailed feedback. You’ll be expected to carry out a good deal of independent, detailed and considered study.
All part-time students attend exactly the same classes as full-time students which usually take place between 9am and 5pm; there are no evening classes.
Each module is assessed separately, through assessments that range from long essays to projects and assignments, offering you the opportunity to work in your particular field of interest within each topic area. You will also carry out a dissertation into a research area of your choice.
This programme is aimed at students who would like to pursue either a professional career or further research in international development and related fields, and generally have a desire to put their education into practice in the Global South.
You’ll gain a wide range of professional skills on top of your subject knowledge. You’ll have an understanding of project design and management in a development context, as well as being able to analyse quantitative and qualitative data. You’ll be able to construct clear arguments, critically assess different options for action, analyse policy documents, write research reports and give presentations. You’ll also be trained to make decisions in complex and unpredictable situations.
Our programme equips you for various career paths. Compatible careers include working in international development agencies, international organisations, governments, politics, NGOs, research organisations, policy making, companies, media, and academia.
Graduates have gone on to work in, for instance, non-governmental organisations in the UK or overseas, research and consultancy firms, international organisations (such as the UN), the Civil Service, the media, or have continued with further study (e.g. PhD research).
We encourage you to seek practical work experience in the international development field, and advise you on how to go about it. Careers support.
The Environment, Politics and Society MSc programme explores the way scientific, political and cultural practices shape our understanding of the relationship between society and the environment. It is an academic rather than vocational programme with most students pursuing further education or careers in international organisations, the public sector, NGOs or charities.
The programme explores the social, economic, cultural and political processes through which expert and lay knowledges of environmental and political changes is acquired, communicated and incorporated in decision-making. It equips students with a range of social science methods and personal transferable skills which are essential for social and environmental politics, practices and policy.
Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits.
The programme offers two routes: standard and research. Standard consists of four core modules (60 credits), options (60 credits) and a research project (60 credits). Research consists of five core modules to include both qualitative and quantitative methods modules (75 credits), options (45 credits) and a research project (60 credits).
A Postgraduate Diploma (120 credits) is offered.
Core modules
All modules running are dependent on staff sabbaticals.
Optional modules
Students may also select one module outside the department with the permission of the programme convenor.
Module availability is dependent on staff sabbaticals.
Dissertation/report
All students undertake an independent research project which culminates in a dissertation of 15,000 words.
Teaching and learning
The programme is delivered through a combination of lectures, seminars, presentations, discussions, workshops, practical classes and field trips. Dissertation seminars provide opportunities to meet previous MSc students to discuss their dissertations and subsequent career. Assessment is through coursework and the research dissertation.
Fieldwork
The Changing Landscapes optional modules have additional costs related to fieldwork.
Further information on modules and degree structure is available on the department website: Environment, Politics and Society MSc
The first cohort of students on the Environment, Politics and Society MSc graduate in 2017. The programme is fundamentally academic in character rather than vocational and we anticipate careers destinations to be broadly similar to the Environment, Science and Society programme which preceded it. Graduates of Environment, Science and Society have gone on to work for governments, environmental non-governmental organisations and consultancies, multi-lateral bodies, the media and think tanks, often in policy, research or communication roles. The MSc also provides an excellent foundation for PhD research.
Employability
The programme's combination of core social science methodological training, detailed exploration of contemporary environmental issues and critical engagement with environmental science, policies and politics, provides a distinctive skill set for those wanting careers in the environmental sector that do not simply replicate current governance approaches. This holistic experience is different from more technical, managerial environmental programmes and facilitates access to careers in international organisations (UNDP, World Bank), government (UK DECC, UK Home Office, Lewisham Council), NGOs (WWF, Greenpeace), education (the Open University, UCL, and the University of Hong Kong) and a wide varity of charitable organisations.
The MSc offers core conceptual training and the ability to specialise your degree through optional modules and the dissertation. You will have the opportunity to learn from previous graduates and other academics and practitioners in seminars
The programme encourages small-group discussions of conceptual debates about practices of environment and geo-politics, drawing on fellow students' diversity of nationalities and academic and work backgrounds.
The MSc offers core conceptual training and the ability to specialise your degree through optional modules and the dissertation. You will have the opportunity to learn from previous graduates and other academics and practitioners in seminars.
The Research Excellence Framework, or REF, is the system for assessing the quality of research in UK higher education institutions. The 2014 REF was carried out by the UK's higher education funding bodies, and the results used to allocate research funding from 2015/16.
The following REF score was awarded to the department: Geography
81% rated 4* (‘world-leading’) or 3* (‘internationally excellent’)
Learn more about the scope of UCL's research, and browse case studies, on our Research Impact website.
Interest in development, environment and issues of sustainable development has never been so intense. UN climate change summits, Sustainable Development Goals and the World Social Forum have brought environmental and development issues and problems long on local and national agendas, onto the international scene.
Study Practising Sustainable Development at Royal Holloway, University of London and you’ll address the complex, dynamic network of natural, social, political and economic processes, graduating with a range of transferable research skills to take into your chosen career.
This popular programme continues to evolve and expand in both scope and appeal, attracting student from more than 30 countries and a diverse range of backgrounds. You’ll learn from expert academics with experience in different developing regions and economies in transition, including Latin America, the Caribbean, South, East and South-East Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.
You’ll join a department that is consistently highly ranked for the international quality of its research, and contribute to this leading research culture with your own dissertation project.
The Politics, Development and Sustainability (PDS) research group consists of over 20 research-active staff, 35 PhD students and 50 Master’s students on four MSc programmes. We are committed to conducting collaborative research which seeks to understand and contribute to addressing problems of social inequality, environmental destruction and injustice. The breadth of its members’ research places it in an ideal position to contribute to theoretical and policy debates on key challenges facing Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean today.
Study Practising Sustainable Development at Royal Holloway and you’ll learn to tackle issues that are high on the national and international agenda, graduating with excellent employability prospects in the UK and abroad. This programme is also offered at Postgraduate Diploma level for those who do not have the academic background necessary to begin an advanced Masters degree.
Core modules
Optional modules
In addition to these mandatory course units there are a number of optional course units available during your degree studies. The following is a selection of optional course units that are likely to be available. Please note that although the College will keep changes to a minimum, new units may be offered or existing units may be withdrawn, for example, in response to a change in staff. Applicants will be informed if any significant changes need to be made.
Assessment is carried out by a variety of methods, including coursework and a dissertation.
On completion of the course you will have:
This course is delivered in a single stage, equating to either one-year of full-time study or two years part-time, (or up to five years of part-time study by agreement with the Programme Director)
Practising Sustainable Development at Royal Holloway, University of London is a highly-regarded programme that provides graduates with excellent employability prospects in the environmental and developmental sectors. Our alumni have gone on to enjoy rewarding careers as environmental and development workers, activists, teachers and researchers in a variety of international institutions and agencies.
You’ll be equipped with a range of transferable skills, including research design, project development, environmental monitoring and geographic information systems, making you a highly attractive candidate for employers in a variety of sectors. The programme can also be used as part of an ESRC (Economic and Social Research Council) research training pathway for PhD study.
The MSc Urbanisation and Development reviews urbanism from colonial to contemporary periods, emphasising demographic, social, economic, cultural and political processes.
At a time when three-quarters of the world's urban population, and over 90 per cent of future urban population growth, will be in the developing world, it is vital we understand the relationships between urban and development issues from both theoretical and empirical standpoints. This programme pays particular attention to the origins and claims of development theory and practice, and the aims and achievements of contemporary urban policy from a wide variety of thematic and theoretical perspectives.
The programme attempts to provide a conceptual and empirical basis from which to understand urban problems and critically evaluate prescribed solutions. You will develop an understanding of urban theory and development theory and how they apply to real world situations. You will learn how policy intentions and outcomes can be evaluated from economic, social, political and cultural perspectives, from international to local scales, and in ways sensitive to concerns for gender, ethnicity, social justice and democratic deepening.
Graduates enter a wide variety of employment including the public sector, non-governmental and civil society organisations, international agencies, research and consultancy, as well as further study.
Further information on graduate destinations for this programme
Develop your understanding of financial markets and find solutions to global economic issues
New part-time MSc Humanitarianism, Conflict and Development at the University of Bath
