Politics and International Relations (4 years full time including sandwich year)
UCAS Code: L246
Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
Other A Level combinations possible to achieve 112 points. Minimum of 2 A Levels, can be combined with other Level 3 qualifications eg. AS levels/Extended Project to achieve 112 points. General Studies not accepted.
Can be considered in combination with other Level 3 qualifications e.g. A2's in different subjects.
Access to HE Diploma
Mature applicants (21 years and older) will need to pass a QAA-approved Access to Higher Education Diploma in a relevant subject with 60 credits, minimum 45 credits at Level 3 including 21 at merit. Applicants under 21 years will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
4 in Mathematics at Standard Level. English Language required at 5 Standard Level or 4 Higher Level.
Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017)
A minimum of 112 UCAS points usually from 5 Higher Level subjects
Combined with other level 3 qualifications to achieve 112 tariff points
OCR Cambridge Technical Diploma
Grade combinations below 112 points considered when combined with other Level 3 qualifications including AS and Extended Project to achieve 112 points.
Combined with other level 3 qualifications to achieve 112 tariff points
OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Diploma
Grade combinations below 112 points considered when combined with other Level 3 qualifications including AS and Extended Project to achieve 112 points.
Combined with other level 3 qualifications to achieve 112 tariff points
Combined with other level 3 qualifications to achieve 112 tariff points
Combined with other level 3 qualifications to achieve 112 tariff points
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
Grade combinations below 112 points considered when combined with other Level 3 qualifications including AS and Extended Project to achieve 112 points
Scottish Higher
Achieve a minimum of 112 tariff points achieved from either five Highers or a combination of two Highers offered with two Advanced Highers. Where only Highers have been taken a minimum of (BBCCC) are required.
UCAS Tariff
We welcome a wide range of qualifications and qualification combinations. Don't worry if you can't see your specific qualification listed, just contact our team of experts.
About this course
**Reasons to choose Kingston**
– You’ll be able to combine your study of politics and international relations with a special focus on human rights and social justice.
– The course has a strong emphasis on the practical skills needed to be successful in the world of politics-related work.
– This course helps you make an informed contribution to political life in your community and become active in our democratic society.
**Sandwich Year**
This course has a sandwich year which takes place between Year 2 and your Final Year. During this sandwich year you will take a placement within a relevant setting, ensuring you gain essential experience to add to your CV and help you secure a graduate job.
**About this course**
How can citizens work together to achieve common goals? How can the UK adapt to the continuing challenges of Brexit? How do world events impact on our daily lives? This course gives you the knowledge to debate these questions and many others. Crucially, you’ll also develop the skills necessary to make a practical difference in the world and enhance your employability.
This course offers a wide choice of topics, such as political ideals, global terrorism and developmental economics. You’ll have the opportunity to specialise in areas of particular interest.
You’ll complete a research project on a topic of interest, for which you’ll have training in research skills. The project will culminate in a presentation at our annual student conference.
Modules
Year 1
- Introduction to Human Rights
- Introduction to International Relations
- Another World is Possible: Order and Revolution in Political Ideology
- Pathways to Power: Active Citizenship in the UK
Year 2 (Core)
- Modern Political Thought
- International Relations and Global Governance
Year 2 (Optional)
- Crime, Media and Policy
- Contemporary Issues in Economics
- Criminality, Deviance and the State in Early Modern Britain and Europe
- Age of Extremes: Themes in Twentieth Century World History
- Securing Human Rights: Contemporary Themes and Issues
- Latin America: Power, Politics and El Pueblo Rising
- Voices of Contemporary Europe
- Globalisation, Development and Social Justice
- How to Change the World
- Globalisation and Social Change
Final Year (Core)
- Advanced Research Project (Extended)
Final Year (Optional)
- Global Terrorism and Transnational Crime
- Development Economics
- Beatles to Blair: Britain since 1960
- Britain, the US and the World in the Twentieth Century
- Britain, Europe and the Extreme Right, 1918-to the Present
- Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity
- Human Rights and Political Violence
- Identity, Culture, Politics
- Crimes of the Powerful: Corporations, the State and Human Rights
- Cold War, Hot War: the Politics of the Middle East
- Social Justice Through the Arts
- Social Intersections: Gender, Race and Class
- War and Society
- Migration and Social Transformation
Tuition fees
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The Uni
Kingston University
Department of Politics
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.
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
£23k
£25k
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).
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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