IR4A2      Half Unit
International Relations: Global Applications

This information is for the 2024/25 session.

Teacher responsible

Dr Jennifer Jackson Preece CBG.7.05

Availability

This course is available on the MSc in International Relations, MSc in International Relations (LSE and Sciences Po) and MSc in International Relations (Research). This course is not available as an outside option.

Course content

This course is a graduate-level introduction to global applications of international relations. It provides an opportunity to gain an analytically deeper understanding of the issues that shape the development of the contemporary international order, and reflect critically on the practical applications of the discipline. The course encourages students to engage in debating the nature of, and possible responses to, contemporary challenges in international politics, while emphasizing the need for critical analytical depth when reflecting on the implications of global policy. The course complements IR4A1 with a more applied policy focus. Students will develop an awareness of the relationship between the discipline of International Relations as a field of knowledge and the practices of world politics.

Teaching

10 hours of lectures and 13 hours and 30 minutes of seminars in the AT.

A 3-hour online simulation exercise will replace the lecture and classes in Week 11. Students on this course will have a reading week in Week 6, in line with departmental policy.

Formative coursework

Students deliver one seminar presentation and write one 2,000-word essay proposal for their seminar teachers.

Indicative reading

  • John Baylis, Steve Smith and Patricia Owen (eds), The Globalization of World Politics 8th ed (OUP: 2020)
  • Chris Brown, Understanding International Relations 5th ed (Palgrave: 2019)
  • Jenny Edkins and Maja Zehfuss (eds), Global Politics: A New Introduction (Routledge: 2019)
  • Mary Kaldor and Iavor Rangelov (eds), The Handbook of Global Security Policy (Wiley-Blackwell: 2014).

Assessment

Essay (100%) in the WT.

Key facts

Department: International Relations

Total students 2023/24: 90

Average class size 2023/24: 11

Controlled access 2023/24: Yes

Value: Half Unit

Guidelines for interpreting course guide information

Course selection videos

Some departments have produced short videos to introduce their courses. Please refer to the course selection videos index page for further information.

Personal development skills

  • Leadership
  • Self-management
  • Team working
  • Problem solving
  • Communication
  • Specialist skills