BA (Hons) International Affairs

Overview

International Affairs at Durham examines how states, institutions, and non-state actors shape world order. You will analyse conflict, cooperation, human rights, and economic diplomacy through historical and contemporary lenses. Debate-style seminars develop argumentation skills; research methods training prepares you for policy briefs and dissertation work. Edinburgh's diplomatic community provides guest lectures and networking opportunities throughout the programme. BA (Hons) International Affairs is taught as one award, not a list of unrelated modules. The published length is 3 years full-time, and the credit total is 360. Students move from Introduction to IR Theory through Introduction to IR Theory; Global History since 1945; International Political Economy; Research & Academic Writing Skills; Comparative Politics & Government; International Law & Human Rights Foundations, and finish on Honours International Affairs Dissertation. Each course has a question, a method, and a submission. In this field, students apply the method of the subject to a defined problem and defend the result. Reading is a core text, a case or dataset, and a critique. The artefact a marker expects is a submission that shows the method, the evidence, and the limit of the claim. The award is built so that a graduate can do the following in practice: Critically assess theories of international relations and foreign policy Draft policy briefs for governmental and NGO audiences Evaluate humanitarian and development interventions Teaching assumes the student can read a source, attempt a problem before the seminar, and revise after feedback. Attendance at live seminars is part of the design. The capstone or final course must use the methods of the earlier courses; a project that ignores them does not pass. The pages for each course name the topics that are examined. Those topics are the syllabus. A brochure line is not a substitute for them.

Model United Nations and crisis simulation weekends are embedded in Years 2 and 3.

Who This Programme Is For

• ✦Students interested in diplomacy, NGOs, or government
• ✦Debaters and writers passionate about global issues
• ✦Future postgraduate researchers in political science

Programme Structure & Delivery

Learning Outcomes

• ✦Critically assess theories of international relations and foreign policy
• ✦Draft policy briefs for governmental and NGO audiences
• ✦Evaluate humanitarian and development interventions
• ✦Present research findings in academic and public forums

Career Pathways

• ✦Policy Officer
• ✦Diplomatic Service Trainee
• ✦NGO Programme Officer
• ✦Journalist
• ✦Think Tank Researcher

Curriculum