MA in International Political Economy
London, United Kingdom
DURATION
1 up to 2 Years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time, Part time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
Request application deadline *
EARLIEST START DATE
Sep 2025
TUITION FEES
GBP 35,800 / per year **
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* first application deadline
** International students | UK students: £19,550 per year
Key Summary
Introduction
The International Political Economy MA will give you an in-depth knowledge of the political and economic forces that are transforming our world. You will explore at an advanced level the main theories and issues concerning the interaction of governments, business and other societal actors within different regions and across the globe. It is one of the most international courses in its field in the UK, currently attracting students from over 30 countries, offering you a rich diversity of backgrounds and perspectives.
Key benefits
- Develop an in-depth understanding of the major interests, institutions and ideas that shape the global political economy
- Explore the interaction of politics and economics at the international level from a variety of perspectives in an interdisciplinary programme hosted by an interdisciplinary department
- Study at a world-class institution, ranked 12th in the world, and 5th in Europe, for politics and international relations by the 2024 QS World University Rankings.
- Learn from world-leading scholars who contributed greatly to King’s College London being ranked first in the United Kingdom for research power in the field of politics and international relations in the 2021 Research Excellence Framework according to Times Higher Education
Course essentials
This course offers an in-depth analysis of the major scholarly debates in international political economy. We will give you an understanding of global issues from a variety of perspectives, including critical and heterodox. You will examine a wide range of interdisciplinary approaches on the required module - International Political Economy: Theory and Issues - and then choose from a wide range of modules covering specific regions or issues to allow you to pursue your own interests in greater depth. In addition, they would be gaining invaluable first-hand working experience in London, which will enhance their employability as well as support their academic and intellectual development.
The course is ideally suited to anyone with a degree in International Relations, Economics, Politics, International Political Economy and European & International Studies. We also welcome graduates from other disciplines in the humanities, the social sciences and law, as well as those from a professional background, as more diversity will enrich your experience.
This course is primarily taught at the King’s College London Strand Campus. Please note that locations are determined by where each module is taught and may vary.
Duration: One year full-time, September to September, two years part-time
Admissions
Curriculum
Structure
Required modules
Courses are divided into modules, and all students on this course take modules totalling 180 credits.
Part-time students are required to take the 45 credit required module in Year 1, and the 15 credit Research Design module and the 60 credit dissertation in Year 2.
International Political Economy: Theories & Issues (45 credits)
Research Design (15 credits)
Dissertation (60 credits)
Optional modules
In addition, you will take a range of optional modules totalling 60 credits offered by both European & International Studies and other departments.
Grouped here to give prospective students a sense of the breadth of our teaching offer, optional modules in this programme may typically include:
Themes
- Democratic Legitimacy of International Cooperation (15 credits)
- Capitalism, liberalism and democracy (15 credits)
- The Political Economy of Europe (15 credits)
- Global Governance & International Organisations (15 credits)
- Introduction to Economics for International Political Economy (15 credits)
- International Political Economy of Energy Markets (15 credits)
- The Political Economy of Europe (15 credits)
- Research Methods for Social Sciences (15 credits)
- Platform capitalism: platform firms and the state (15 credits)
- The International Political Economy of Production (15 credits)
- The Middle East In The Global Political Economy (15 credits)
- The European Union & Global Capitalism (15 credits)
- Power and Poverty in Africa-EU Relations (15 credits)
- Political Economy of Development in Muslim Societies (15 credits)
- Global Governance & International Organisations (15 credits)
- The Political Economy of Development (15 credits)
- The Political Economy of the Financial Crisis (15 credits)
- The Politics of Economic Inequality (15 credits)
- Comparative Capitalism: Eastern & Western Models (15 credits)
- Quantitative Research Methods (15 credits)
- Macroeconomics of demand distribution and finance (15 credits)
- Lived Democracy (15 credits)
- Postcolonial Political Economy (15 credits)
- Multinational Corporations and Global Supply Chains (15 credits)
- Evaluating Public Policy (15 credits)
- The Political Economy of Corruption (15 credits) [Political Economy]
- The New Political Economy of the Media (15 credits) [Department of Political Economy]
- Ethics and Public Policy (15 credits) [Department of Political Economy]
- Business and Politics (15 credits)
- Comparative Political Economy (15 credits) [Political Economy]
- The Political Economy of Organised Crime (15 credits)
- Institutions and Economic Development (15 credits) [Department of Political Economy]
- Economic History (15 credits)
- Political Economy of Discrimination (15 credits)
- The Political Economy of Economic Ideas (15 credits) [Department of Political Economy]
- Climate Change Economics and Policy (15 credits) [Department of Political Economy]
- Climate policy and global energy transitions (15 credits)
- The Political Effects of Climate Change (15 credits) [Department of Political Economy]
- Media Elections and Campaigning (15 credits) [Department of Political Economy]
- Gender Politics and Public Policy (15 credits) [Department of Political Economy]
- Gender, Society and Development (15 credits) [Department of International Development]
- Industrial Economics and International Development (15 credits) [Department of International Development]
- Displacement and Development in the Contemporary Era (15 credits)
- Environment and Development: Crises, Power, and Transformations (15 credits)
- Political Economy of Development in Muslim Societies (15 credits)
- Platform capitalism: platform firms and the state (15 credits)
- States and Citizens in Political Anthropology (15 credits)
- Comparative Capitalism: Eastern & Western Models (15 credits)
- Cyber Security: Privacy, Ethics and Human Rights (15 credits) [School of Security Studies]
Theories and Methods
- Introduction to Economics for International Political Economy (15 credits)
- Research Methods for Social Sciences (15 credits)
- The Politics of Economic Inequality (15 credits)
- Quantitative Methods in Political Economy (15 credits) [Political Economy]
- Quantitative Research Methods (15 credits)
- Liberty, Equality and Justice: Political Theory and Public Policy (15 credits) [Department of Political Economy]
- Advanced Quantitative Methods for Causal Inference (15 credits) [Department of International Development]
- Advanced Qualitative Methods (15 credits) [Department of International Development]
- People, Protest and Mobilisation: Exploring Social Movement Theory (15 credits) [Department of Political Economy]
- Experimental Economics (15 credits)
- Ethics in International Relations (15 credits) [School of Security Studies]
Regional focus
Europe
- Global Politics: Transatlantic, Transpacific and Eurasia (15 credits)
- Global Labour and Development (15 credits)
- Money and Financial Crisis in Global Perspective (15 Credits)
- Lobbying and Policy Making in the EU (15 credits)
- International Political Economy of Energy Markets (15 credits)
- The Political Economy of Europe: Political Science Perspectives (15 credits)
- The European Union & Global Capitalism (15 credits)
- Russia and the EU (15 credits) [King's Russia Institute]
- Britain & Europe Since 1945 (15 credits) [Political Economy]
- Election Campaigning Public Opinion and Politics in Britain (15 credits) [Department of Political Economy]
- From Blair to Brexit: Britain since 1997 (15 credits) [Department of Political Economy]
- Parties, Voters and Political Culture in Britain 1945-2010 (15 credits)
- Open Markets and Barriers to Trade: The EU Model for Integrating Private and Public Markets your European Internal Market (15 credits) [School of Law]
- Disruptive Technology and the Global Order (15 credits)
Africa
- African Crisis and Opportunity (15 credits)
- Power and Poverty in Africa-EU Relations (15 credits)
Russia
- Oil, Gas & Modernisation In Russia (15 credits) [King's Russia Institute]
- Politics of Energy Security in Eurasia (15 credits) [King’s Russia Institute]
- Governance and Economic Growth in Transition (15 credits) [King’s Russia Institute]
- Contemporary Ukrainian Politics & Policy (15 credits) [King’s Russia Institute]
- Russia’s War in Ukraine (15 credits) [King’s Russia Institute]
- New & Emerging Security Threats in Post-Soviet Eurasia (15 credits)
- Russia and the European Union (15 credits)
- Clandestine Side of Globalisation: Organised Crime, Terrorism and Corruption (15 credits)
South America
- Contemporary Brazil (15 credits)
- Contemporary India (15 credits)
- India in Global Politics (15 credits)
Middle East
- The Middle East In The Global Political Economy (15 credits)
- Divided Cities, Contested States: Urban Violence and Transformation in the Middle East (15 credits) [School of Security Studies]
East Asia
- Environment, Sustainability and Climate Change in China (15 credits)
- Doing Business in China (15 credits)
- China's International Relations, 1949-Present (15 credits)
- Contemporary Chinese Society: Change and Transformation (15 credits)
- China and Global Governance (15 credits) [Lau China Institute]
- Contemporary Chinese Politics (15 credits)
- The United States and China (15 credits)
You may choose to take optional credits from level 7 modules outside of the programme’s approved module list, subject to approval by the Programme Director.
You may also take up to 30 extra credits, in addition to the required 180 credits.
Students may also take a non-assessed 15-credit language module from the Modern Language Centre, King’s College.
King’s College London reviews the modules offered regularly to provide up-to-date, innovative and relevant courses of study. Therefore, the modules offered may change. We suggest you keep an eye on the course finder on our website for updates.
Please note, that we cannot guarantee spaces on modules listed that are run by other departments outside of European & International Studies.
King’s College London reviews the modules offered on a regular basis to provide up-to-date, innovative and relevant programmes of study. Therefore, the modules offered may change. We suggest you keep an eye on the course finder on our website for updates.
Please note that modules with a practical component will be capped due to educational requirements, which may mean that we cannot guarantee a place to all students who elect to study this module.
Program Tuition Fee
Career Opportunities
Graduates from this programme have gone on to prestigious positions, including in UK government departments such as the Foreign Office, Department for International Development, Department for International Trade, and the Treasury; global governance bodies such as the World Bank, United Nations, the World Federation of Exchanges, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the African Development Bank and the International Telecommunication Union.
Major business media organisations such as Argus and Bloomberg, major financial institutions such as Citi, Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse and HSBC; research and consultancy firms such as McKinsey & Co, Ipsos and the Boston Consulting Group; and lobbying groups within the European Union and beyond.
Overall, our graduates have embarked on highly successful careers in the public, private and third sector in the United Kingdom, the European continent, as well as in Asia, Africa, and the Americas.