University of Sussex
MA in International Security

Brighton, United Kingdom

DEGREE TYPE

DURATION

1 up to

2 years

LANGUAGES

English

PACE

Full time, Part time

APPLICATION DEADLINE

EARLIEST START DATE

STUDY FORMAT

On-Campus

* UK

Key Summary

About : The MA in International Security at The University of XYZ offers a comprehensive program designed to explore global security challenges. This degree equips students with critical analytical skills and understanding of international relations, terrorism, and conflict resolution. The program is typically completed in one year of full-time study or two years part-time, providing flexibility for diverse student needs.

Career Outcomes : Graduates can pursue various career paths, including roles in government agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), international organizations, and private security firms. Potential positions include security analyst, policy advisor, and defense consultant, allowing students to engage effectively in the evolving field of international security.

The conduct of international security is changing. This is in response to new technologies, tactics and challenges. ‘Security’ itself is a contested term, with stark disagreements on its use. Join this course to gain a rigorous understanding of contemporary and emerging security challenges.

You explore the many different understandings of ‘security’, their histories and futures. You look at how they matter to war, insurgency and foreign policy today.

You learn to produce informed analysis of a range of issues including:

imperial and civil wars
rising powers and military intervention
violence against civilians
terrorism and new technologies of war
intelligence and resilience
weapons of mass destruction and biosecurity.

We host the specialised Sussex Centre for Conflict and Security Research, the Centre for Advanced International Theory, the Centre for Global Health Policy and the Centre for Global Political Economy. You’ll learn through our multidisciplinary environment, interdisciplinary approach, cutting-edge research, international faculty and distinctive programme of events.

We understand that deciding where and what to study is a very important decision. We’ll make all reasonable efforts to provide you with the courses, services and facilities described in this prospectus. However, if we need to make material changes, for example due to significant disruption, or in response to COVID-19, we’ll let our students know as soon as possible.

Full-time and part-time study

Choose to study this course full time or part time, to fit around your work and personal life. Modules for the full-time course are listed below. For details about the part-time course, contact us.

Core modules

Core modules are taken by all students on the course. They give you a solid grounding in your chosen subject and prepare you to explore the topics that interest you most.

Autumn teaching

International Security
New Security Challenges

Spring teaching

Research Methods and Professional Skills (IR)

Summer teaching

Dissertation (International Security)

Options

Alongside your core modules, you can choose options to broaden your horizons and tailor your course to your interests. This list gives you a flavour of our options, which are kept under review and may change, for example in response to student feedback or the latest research.

While it’s our aim for students to take their preferred combinations of options, this can’t be guaranteed and will be subject to timetabling. Options may be grouped and if so, students will be able to choose a set number of options from the selection available in any particular group.

Spring teaching

Environment, Resources, Security
Forced Labour, Trafficking and Global Mobility
Foreign Policy Analysis
Humanitarianism in Global Politics
Managing Economic Instability
Nationalism and Global Order
Rethinking Imperialism
Russia, Eurasia and the Crisis of the Liberal West
The Political Economy of Development
War and Security in North/South Perspective

Summer teaching

Dissertation with Placement (Global Studies)

Field trip

This course offers an optional field trip to Brussels, Belgium or Geneva, Switzerland. A field trip aims to foster your interaction and engagement with policy-makers and practitioners from a wide range of international organisations.

Placements

To help you gain experience and increase your employability, you can apply for an optional placement as part of your course. Research placements run for up to 12 weeks in the summer term and vacation. You can also write your dissertation based on your experience. You’ll be responsible for applying for and securing your placement. Our dedicated careers team can help you:

find an employer
draft an application
prepare for interviews.

Find out more about Global Studies postgraduate placements

We regularly review our modules to incorporate student feedback, staff expertise, as well as the latest research and teaching methodology. We’re planning to run these modules in the academic year 2023/24. However, there may be changes to these modules in response to feedback, staff availability, student demand or updates to our curriculum. We’ll make sure to let you know of any material changes to modules at the earliest opportunity.

We’ll do our best to provide as much optional choice as we can, but timetabling constraints mean it may not be possible to take some module combinations. The structure of a small number of courses means that the order of modules or the streams you choose may determine whether modules are core or optional. This means that your core modules or options may differ from what’s shown here.

Check back in January 2024 for the modules running in the academic year 2024/25.