This programme is aimed at those looking for a taught graduate programme in history in an international context. It caters for a wide variety of students, including those who have studied history at an undergraduate level and those who are making the transition from related subjects such as political science, modern languages, economics, law or journalism.
All of the teaching in the department is done either by the Department's full-time academic staff or specially engaged post-doctoral teaching staff. The teaching is therefore very much in line with the LSE's emphasis on research-led teaching - in other words, instruction by those who are at the cutting edge of their disciplines.
You will take at least two specialised history options, choosing from options that span the globe geographically and range chronologically from the Renaissance to the end of the Cold War (see potential pathway options below). You will also have the opportunity to take a relevant course offered by another LSE department, and to prepare a detailed, research-based 10,000 word dissertation. Teaching is research-led and delivered by those who are at the cutting edge of the field.
Potential MSc History of International Relations Pathways:
MSc History of International Relations students wishing to develop a specialism in the history of war, conflict and peace can choose a combination of the following courses totalling three units:
MSc History of International Relations students wishing to develop a specialism in the history of the Cold War can choose a combination of the following courses totalling three units:
MSc History of International Relations students wishing to develop a specialism in the history of Africa and the Africa diaspora can choose a combination of the following courses totalling three units:
MSc History of International Relations students wishing to develop a specialism in the history of Europe can choose a combination of the following courses totalling three units:
MSc History of International Relations students wishing to develop a specialism in the history of the Americas can choose a combination of the following courses totalling three units:
MSc History of International Relations students with an interest in the ways in which states and societies have managed processes of modernisation and in the historical development of the modern world might consider taking a combination of courses totalling three units.
You can also decide not to focus on a particular pathway and choose your own personal combination of any courses of the International History Department’s MSc courses, totalling three units:
- HY400 - Crisis Decision-Making in War and Peace
- HY411 - European Integration in the Twentieth Century
- HY422 - Presidents, Public Opinion and Foreign Policy: From Roosevelt to Reagan
- HY424 - The Napoleonic Empire: The Making of Modern Europe (Not available in 2021/22)
- HY429 - Anglo-American Relations: From World War to Cold War
- HY432 - From Cold Warriors to Peacemakers: The End of the Cold War Era
- HY434 - he Rise and Fall of Communism in Europe 1917-1990
- HY435 - Political Islam: From Ibn Taymiyya to Isis
- HY436 - Race, Violence and Colonial Rule in Africa
- HY440 - The Iranian Revolution
- HY441 - Islam, State and Conflict in Southeast Asia
- HY444 - The Cold War in Latin America
- HY448 - Living with the Bomb: An International History of Nuclear Weapons and the Arms Race from the Second World War to the End of the Cold War (Not available 2021/22)
- HY459 - The Ottoman Empire and its Legacy, 1299-1950
- HY461 - East Asia in the Age of Imperialism 1839-1945
- HY463 - The Origins of the Cold War 1917-1962
- HY465 - The International History of the Balkans since 1939: State Projects, Wars and Social Conflict
- HY469 - Maps, History and Power: The Spaces and Cultures of the Past
- HY472 - China and the External World 1711-1839 (Not available in 2021/22)
- HY478 - Genesis of the Modern World: Europe, China and India, 1550-1840
- HY483 - Land and Conflict in Latin America since 1750
- HY484 - Empire, Colonialism and Globalisation (half-unit)
- HY486 - Practicing Abolition in the Atlantic World, c. 1807-1870
- HY488 - European Empires and Global Conflict 1935-1948 (half-unit)
- HY491 - Race, Gender and Reproduction in the Caribbean 1860s to 1930s (half-unit)
- HY4A5 - Women as Weapons: The Conservative Political Tradition in the Cold War (half-unit)
- HY4A6 - Technocracy, Social Engineering and Politics in the Era of the World Wars (1914-1945) (2021/22 only) (half-unit)
- HY4A7 - Islam, Power and Culture in Mughal India (half-unit) (2021/22 only)
- HY4A8 - Asian Borderlands (half-unit)
- HY4A9 - China and the United States since 1948 (half-unit)
Pathways are simply suggested as potential ways to help you focus your course choices within the History of International Relations Degree and are not prescriptive: you are also free to opt not to follow any pathway should you prefer.
Applicants are advised to note that places on any LSE course in any given year are subject to availability and not guaranteed. Also, courses appearing in the same pathway may be subject to timetabling clashes and not all courses will be available in any particular year.