About this program
International Relations MA Hons
The MA (Hons) in International Relations will teach you to explore issues such as the origins of war and peace, the making of foreign policy, trade regimes, international terrorism, human rights, international law, and the interaction of political and economic development.
Students will develop the skills to:
- assess developments in the international system and specific geographical regions
- analyse the ways in which states relate to other international actors
- develop normative theories that relate the world as it is to the world as it might be.
Admission requirements
These grades are the overall standards required to consider you for entry. Find out more about Standard, Minimum and Gateway entry requirements using academic entry explained and see which entry requirements you need to look at using the entry requirements indicator.
- SQA Highers
- GCE A-Levels
- IB points
International applicants
If English is not your first language you will need an overall IELTS score of 7.0, with a minimum score of 6.5 in each component (Reading, Writing, Listening and Speaking), or an equivalent English language qualification.
For more information about admission requirements, please visit the university website.
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Learn moreProgram content
Sub-honours
- Concepts in Global Politics
- Foreign Policy and Diplomacy in Global Politics
Second-year students take both:
- Theoretical Approaches to International Relations
- Studying International Relations
Honours
If you decide to take international relations in your third and fourth years, you choose from a wide variety of advanced options, including modules in conflict and conflict resolution, human rights, international law, international security, globalisation, terrorism, and comparative politics including Africa, Middle East, Latin America, China, Central and East Asia.
Here is a sample of Honours modules which have been offered in previous years:
- Activism and Resistance
- Armed Conflict in Postcolonial Africa
- Asian Security
- Gender and Terrorism
- Geopolitics of Energy in the Caspian Region
- Human Rights in Theory and Practice
- Ideologies and Social Movements in the Middle East
- Indian Foreign Policy
- International Political Economy
- International Security
- Music, Politics and International Relations
- Peacekeeping and Humanitarian Intervention
- Political Islam and International Relations
- Refugees and International Relations
- The Arab-Israeli Conflict
- US Foreign Policy: The Dilemma of Power.
Scholarships & funding
Several scholarship options are available. Please check the university website for more information.
Program delivery
When not attending lectures and tutorials, you will be expected to continue learning independently through self-study. Typically, this will involve:
- working on individual and group projects
- undertaking research in the library
- preparing coursework assignments and presentations
- preparing for examinations.
Tuition
Career paths
International relations graduates are dynamic, globally aware, and self-motivated. They can transfer their critical reading, writing and communication skills, as well as advanced analytical abilities, to a variety of professional and internationally orientated environments.
They possess invaluable reasoning and questioning skills attained by completing a highly competitive degree.
Message the school
About this institute
University of St Andrews
The University of St Andrews is Scotland’s first University. As a 600 year-old institution, we are known across the globe for our world leading quality and depth of research. For six centuries some of the world’s brightest and most promising...
Why study at University of St Andrews
Studying in St Andrews is a unique and rewarding experience that will take your skills and knowledge to the next level.
Students at St Andrews have access to some of the world’s best professors and lecturers and a degree from the University of St Andrews is sought after by employers around the world.
In addition to award-winning teaching and research, the University of St Andrews has an array of facilities which result in high levels of student satisfaction and a world class reputation.
Reviews
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University of St Andrews
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The IR programme is great for anyone who is interested in global politics, and even the dense theoretical bits and taught in a way that makes them interesting. A lot of effort has been put into decolonising the curriculum and opening our minds to critical theories and our positionality which makes the course different to other unis and really we...