Skip navigation
Social and Political Thought at University of Sussex - UCAS

Course options

2024 - 20252025 - 2026
Apply

There are other course options available which may have a different vacancy status or entry requirements – view the full list of options

Course summary

4th in the UK for our research impact in Philosophy in REF 2021 (Times Higher Education) Politics is inextricable from human society and our teaching reflects this. Our interdisciplinary approach goes beyond the academic divisions between sociology and social theory, and political theory and political philosophy. You have the opportunity to work on a wide range of research projects, including:

  • various European traditions of social theory, political sociology, and Marxist and Frankfurt School critical theory
  • Anglo-American political theory, constructivist theory from Kant to Rawls, and communitarian or neo-Aristotelian theory
  • figures of social and political thought, from Aristotle to Habermas
  • issues in postcolonialism, feminism and race critical theory.
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 government or regulatory requirements, or unanticipated staff changes, we’ll let you know as soon as possible.

Modules

If you do not already have a relevant MA or equivalent, we may require you to take one or more MA modules in your first year. We offer a wide range of research training modules for students. If you have not completed comparable research training elsewhere, you are required to take some of these modules. Recent and current thesis titles include: Adorno and film; Arendt and Foucault; Benjamin and Kafka; Benjamin’s materialism; Bureaucratisation and reformism in social democracy; Collective intentionality; Communitarianism in current political discourse; Darwinism, homosexuality and the left; Gender and the social construction of whiteness; Habermas and religion; Hegel on freedom; Intellectual origins of New Labour; Justice, community and singularity; Justice, difference and feminism; Marcuse and the new social movements; New forms of participatory democracy; Paternalistic legislation; Regional modernities: UK and Denmark; Sartre and political philosophy; The concept of fetishism; Trotsky and the state.

Assessment method

Research project

Entry requirements

You’re normally expected to have a Masters degree and an upper second-class (2.1) undergraduate honours degree. Your qualification should be in a subject relevant to your chosen area of research. You may also be considered for the degree if you have other professional qualifications or experience of equivalent standing.

Fees and funding

Tuition fees

No fee information has been provided for this course

Tuition fee status depends on a number of criteria and varies according to where in the UK you will study. For further guidance on the criteria for home or overseas tuition fees, please refer to the UKCISA website .

Additional fee information

Please click on the course URL to see up-to-date fee information.

Sponsorship information

Students with appropriate interests and qualifications can apply for AHRC awards; there are financial opportunities for research students to contribute towards undergraduate teaching. Our goal is to ensure that every student who wants to study with us is able to regardless of financial barriers, so that we continue to attract talented and unique people. Details of our scholarships are not yet set for entry in the academic year 2025/26.

Social and Political Thought at University of Sussex - UCAS