International Relations
Entry requirements
A level
Specific A Level subjects not required
The Access to HE Diploma. Plus GCSE English at grade 4 / C or above.
GCSE/National 4/National 5
5 GCSEs at grade 4 / C or above to include English.
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
Any subject.
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
Specific BTEC subjects not required
Scottish Higher
UCAS Tariff
[1] 4 qualifications for tariff points allowed [2] May also include AS level and EPQ [3] Specific subject not required
About this course
This course has alternative study modes. Contact the university to find out how the information below might vary.
This exciting course examines contemporary world politics across three main study themes: International Relations, Globalisation, and Politics.
Coventry University offers you an exciting and innovative International Relations degree. You will learn about international affairs in depth by:
* Studying questions of power, political decision-making, conflict, peace, foreign policy, democracy, human rights, and social movements.
* Considering how foreign policy decision-makers and international organisations respond in the face of war, social movements, terrorism, political struggles, democratic advances, and setbacks.
* Reflecting on how these issues have impacted regions around the world, such as the Middle East, Africa, Central and Eastern Europe, and China.
**Key Course Benefits**
* You should get a deeper understanding of the rationale for and value of cooperative relationships between nations, and of the foreign policy challenges.
* You will explore how the world is becoming ever more interdependent with the resulting global socio-political changes. This includes the rising cost of foreign aid and the impact of non-English speaking immigrants within the education system – increasingly affecting people at a local level.
* You will examine major themes of post-war international politics, including: The dominant relationship between the superpowers, the consequences of decolonisation, the emergence of the 'Third World', the spread of revolutionary wars, the development of European integration, the spread and final collapse of communism and its effect on world politics at the end of the Cold War.
Modules
This course has a common first year
The common first year enables you to work alongside students doing similar courses to you, to widen your knowledge and exposure to other subject areas and professions. You will have the opportunity to collaborate with other students, so you can share your insights and experience which will help you to develop and learn.
If you discover an interest in a specific subject you have studied, upon successful completion of your first year, you could swap degrees with another course in your common first year (subject to meeting progression requirements).
Common first year courses
History BA (Hons)
History and Politics BA (Hons)
International Relations BA (Hons)
Politics BA (Hons)
Politics and International Relations BA (Hons)
Year One Modules
Themes and Concepts in History, Politics and International Relations
Nations and Nationalism
Global Histories
World Politics since 1945
Politics in Action
Ideas. Ideologies and the State
Year Two
In year two, you will continue to develop the skills and knowledge you’ve learnt. We do this by embedding the following four principles into the curriculum and developing your:
Technical skills – digital fluency, backed with the right academic knowledge
Study skills – to be an adaptive, independent and proactive learner
Professional skills – to have the behaviour and abilities to succeed in your career
Global awareness – the beliefs and abilities to be a resilient, confident and motivated global citizen
You will develop more advanced knowledge and skills to do with: global security, foreign policy, and the far right in contemporary Europe, amongst others.
Modules
Contemporary Global Security
Foreign Policy Analysis
Emerging Powers and Global Order
Ethics and International Relations
Humanity and the Natural World
The Far Right in Contemporary Europe
Placement Year
There’s no better way to find out what you love doing than trying it out for yourself, which is why a work placement* can often be beneficial. Work placements usually occur between your second and final year of study. They’re a great way to help you explore your potential career path and gain valuable work experience, whilst developing transferable skills for the future.
If you choose to do a work placement year, you will pay a reduced tuition fee* of £1,250. For more information, please go to the fees and funding section. During this time you will receive guidance from your employer or partner institution, along with your assigned academic mentor who will ensure you have the support you need to complete your placement.
Final Year
Year three aims to bring you to the level to enter the world of work by consolidating your knowledge and skills from year one and two. You will have the chance to develop your interests and choose from a wide range of optional modules. For example, you could choose modules on the Middle East, the United States, or China to enhance your intercultural and political awareness.
Modules
Independent Project
United States' Foreign Policy since 1945
Chinese Politics, Foreign Relations and Security
International Relations of South Asia
Global Organised Crime
Politics of the Middle East
Nationalism and Democratisation in Post-Communist Europe
Race and Resistance in the Americas
We regularly review our course content, to make it relevant and current for the benefit of our students. For these reasons, course modules may be updated. Before accepting any offers, please check the website for the most up to date course content. For full module details please check the course page on the Coventry University website.
*For further information please check the course page on the Coventry University website
Assessment methods
This course will be assessed using a variety of methods which will vary depending upon the module.
Assessment methods can include:
Phase tests
Essays
Group work
Presentations
Reports
Projects
Coursework
Individual Assignments
The Coventry University Group assessment strategy ensures that our courses are fairly assessed and allows us to monitor student progression towards achieving the intended learning outcomes.
Tuition fees
Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:
The Uni
Coventry University
School of Humanities
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.
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
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
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.
Top job areas of graduates
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.
£17k
£27k
£30k
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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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
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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?
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