MSc Theory and History of International Relations

The MSc Theory and History of International Relations is a specialist, multidisciplinary degree taught by the Department of International History and the Department of International Relations – both have a global reputation for their high quality research and dynamic contributions to the development of their respective disciplines.

This unique joint degree programme has been designed for students who want to understand and appreciate both the theoretical and the empirical approach to the study of international relations. The curriculum offers students the opportunity to take courses tailored to their specific interests, in terms of method, time-frame and geographical scope. The choices available are wide and deep since this is a joint degree with the International Relations Department and the International History Department (where it's based).

The curriculum combines an exceptional level of analytical training in theory, balanced with the discipline of historical based case-studies and advanced research. You'll be taught by leading experts in both disciplines. You can choose one broad course from each department. For your third option you can chose one of many highly specialised courses offered by either department. You'll then complete your degree by doing a history dissertation, which will give you the chance to conduct your own empirical research on a detailed historical case study.

This well-balanced and bespoke programme, allows you to develop your intellectual understanding and ability to analyse a wide range of international relations’ history, organisations, trends and challenges including world wars, East-West conflict, North-South relations, European integration, globalisation, diplomacy and peace-building.

A hugely flexible joint degree, it can be tailored to provide you with a more advanced understanding of international relations and theory, or it offers an exceptional foundation if you're making the transition from related disciplines such as political science, modern languages, economics, sociology, law or journalism. You'll have the opportunity to study alongside students drawn from a wide range of disciplines. In addition, you'll benefit from being in the wider LSE learning environment with its many guest lecturers and speakers including policymakers, world-leaders and practitioners, all tackling today’s complex and rapidly changing world of international relations.

This popular, long-established and well-respected programme will better equip you to progress towards your chosen career including within the field of analysis, consultancy, research, policy making, global and local governance, crisis intervention, peace-building, risk assessment, journalism, intelligence gathering and academia.

Watch the Virtual Graduate Open talk given by Master's Admissions Advisor Dr Paul Stock in November 2025.

General reading

• Antony Best, Jussi Hanhimaki, Joe Maiolo, and Kirsten Schulze, International History of the Twentieth Century and Beyond (Routledge, 2014 3rd edition)

Subject specific recommendations

• Mark Mazower, Dark Continent: Europe's Twentieth Century (1999)
• Jeremy Friedman, Shadow Cold War: The Sino-Soviet Competition for the Third World (2015).
• Elizabeth Economy, The Third Revolution: Xi Jinping and the New Chinese State (2019).
• Hazel V Carby, Imperial Intimacies: A Tale of Two Islands (Verso 2019)
• Kristina Spohr, Post Wall, Post Square, How Bush, Gorbachev, Kohl, and Deng Shaped the World after 1989 (YUP, 2020)
• O. A. Westad, The Global Cold War: Third World Interventions and the Making of Our Times (2011)
• Desmond Dinan, ed, Origins and Evolution of the European Union (OUP, 2014)
• David van Reybrouck, Congo: The Epic History of a People (2014 edn)
• Nelson Mandela, Conversations with Myself (2010)

Theory and History of International Relations

• Joseph Nye, Understanding International Conflicts (2006)
• Chris Brown, Understanding International Relations (5th ed, 2019)

The structure of the degree is intended to ensure a good balance between International History and International Relations. You choose one broad course in each department, before using your third option to select one of the many highly specialised courses offered by the two departments. You then complete your degree by doing a history dissertation, which will give you a chance to conduct your own empirical research on a detailed historical case-study.

Watch videos about our courses

Dissertation

This component of the degree reflects our belief that master's level history students should be willing to engage in detailed historical research. In preparing this piece of work, students are provided with guidance about how to choose an appropriate topic, how to identify and locate the necessary sources, and how to write up their research findings. This is done through a combination of departmental workshops and discussions between individual students and their dissertation supervisor. But ultimately the dissertation is a test of the research abilities and writing skills of each individual student.

While in London, preparing your dissertation, you can take advantage of numerous world-class research libraries and archives. These include the National Archives (formerly the Public Record Office), the British Library, the libraries of specialised schools of the University of London such as the Institute for Historical Research, the School of Oriental and African Studies, and the School of Slavonic and East European Studies, and the LSE's own library, the British Library of Political and Economic Sciences. The LSE's archive also contains much valuable research material, as do the collections of the Imperial War Museum, the Warburg Institute and many others.

History is a wide ranging and challenging subject to study. It seeks to understand the past and to make sense of the present, adding an important dimension to the understanding of many aspects of human society. The department is world renowned in its field, offering a unique perspective on the history of relations between states, peoples and cultures. We pride ourselves on giving students the benefit of ground-breaking research throughout our teaching programmes.

Our degrees will give you a broad international perspective on the past. We give attention both to domestic and international issues and many of the courses we offer deal with major events in the history of international relations.

Since the behaviour of countries in the international arena cannot be understood without a knowledge of their distinct social, political, economic and cultural characteristics, we provide courses covering major aspects of the history of ideas and mentalities.

LSE was founded in 1895 originally as an institute of higher education for graduate students. The department reflects this tradition and takes its responsibility for undergraduate teaching and supervision very seriously. We admit nearly as many undergraduate students as master's students. We have one of the most cosmopolitan undergraduate communities in London and one of the most vibrant and dynamic.

Learn more about our programmes, research, public events and people.

Department of International History

Who's who

Professor Vladislav Zubok

Programme Director and Professor of International History

Department of International History

• Cold War
• Modern history
• Europe
• European Union
• Modern warfare
• Russia

We welcome applications from all suitably qualified prospective students. At LSE, we want to recruit students with the best academic merit, potential and motivation, irrespective of background.

We carefully consider each application and take into account all the information included on your application form, such as your:

• academic achievement (including predicted and achieved grades)
• statement of academic purpose
• two academic references
• CV.

See further information on supporting documents.

You may need to provide evidence of your English language proficiency. See our English language requirements.

Programme and admissions enquiries

For questions related to your application or the admissions process, please check our admissions frequently asked questions page.

If you have any queries which aren't answered on the website, please contact the department's Graduate Admissions Advisor.

This multidisciplinary degree taught by the Department of International History and the Department of International Relations is designed for students who want to understand and appreciate the theoretical and the empirical approach to the study of international relations. Students are taught by leading experts in the field and can specialise in recent international history. The choice of courses on offer means this course has the potential to provide you with a more advanced understanding of international relations and theory. Or it can give you an exceptional foundation if you're making the transition from related disciplines such as political science, modern languages, economics, sociology, law or journalism.

Applications for this programme are considered on a rolling basis. This means that applications will close once the programme is full.

There is no fixed deadline. However, if you’d like to be considered for any funding opportunities, you must submit your application (and all supporting documents) by the funding deadline. See the fees and funding section below for more details.

For this programme, the tuition fee is different for home and overseas students depending on their fee status.

For this programme, the tuition fee is different for home and overseas students depending on their fee status.

All taught courses are required to include formative coursework which is unassessed. It's designed to help prepare you for summative assessment which counts towards the course mark and to the degree award. LSE uses a range of formative assessment, such as essays, problem sets, case studies, reports, quizzes, mock exams and many others. Summative assessment may be conducted during the course or by final examination at the end of the course. An indication of the formative coursework and summative assessment for each course can be found in the relevant course guide.

This well-known and respected programme provides an excellent preparation for careers in business, consulting, government, international agencies, the media, politics and law, or for advanced academic research.

LSE History graduates find employment in almost any job sector due to the wide range of transferable skills developed during their studies.

Very few people with a degree in History go on to work as historians, but students with a degree in International History have many skills that are in high demand today.

History students learn to read and process large amounts of information, to sift out unreliable data, to analyse and organise the material available, and to form a coherent argument orally or in writing. Students at LSE learn to set and achieve personal goals, manage their time to meet deadlines, and have confidence speaking in public. In our knowledge-based economy, employers value these skills. Learning history is learning skills.

LSE History students continue to have one of the best rate of employability and earnings after graduation in the UK. The Complete University Guide 2020 places History at LSE 6th overall for job prospects. Guardian's University 2021 League Tables placed History at LSE in 2nd place for percentage of graduates who find graduate-level jobs, or are in further study at professional or HE level, within fifteen months of graduation. The 2019 report on Graduate Outcomes Subject by Provider from the Department for Education places History at LSE top of the table with earnings superior to any other university in the UK with 2010-11 LSE graduates' median salary at £43,200 five years after graduating.

A report on relative labour market returns, also from the Department for Education, which calculated the difference in earnings by subject and university choice throughout Britain five years after graduation, ranked History at LSE number one in June 2018. The report illustrates the average impact the different universities and subjects would have on the future income of an individual. History at LSE averaged a lifetime earnings boost of £14,000 for men and £15,000 for women when compared with studying history at any other university in the UK, including Oxford, St Andrews, Cambridge, KCL and UCL.

Further information on graduate destinations for this programme

Support for your career

The department is committed to supporting students' options after graduation in the world of work or futher studies by organising a careers programme tailored specifically to International History students with the help of LSE Careers.

Find out what other MSc Theory and History of International Relations students have been doing since graduating

From CV workshops through to careers fairs, LSE offers lots of information and support to help you make that all-important step from education into work.

Many of the UK’s top employers give careers presentations at the School during the year and there are numerous workshops covering topics such as job hunting, managing interviews, writing a cover letter and using LinkedIn.

See LSE Careers for further details.