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2023 - 20242024 - 2025
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Course summary

Overview Understand the political issues shaping – and dividing – societies around the world, and discover the integral role politics plays in every aspect of people’s lives globally. On this BA (Hons) Politics degree, you’ll tackle the major issues facing people and politicians today, including Brexit, the NHS, and life in a ‘post-truth’ world. You’ll learn how the political world works and look at how our Parliament functions, and how the law and our institutions interact. You’ll study the historic moments that have shaped our democracy – and learn the skills required to play your part in changing minds, shaping policy and fighting inequality. Course highlights

  • Learn from staff at our Centre for European and International Studies Research (CEISR), whose research directly impacts government policy
  • Tailor your degree by choosing optional modules that match your interests and career ambitions, from gender in politics, to radicalisation and the rise of the far-right
  • Attend events and talks led by people working in local, national and international government (including current MPs and staff from the US Department of Defence), and political journalism
  • Go on field trips to locations such as the Houses of Parliament
  • Take part in a simulated ‘academic conference’, where you’ll present a paper that will be discussed with your peers
  • Have the opportunity to organise your own political campaign in your 2nd year, on a political issue you care about
  • Have the chance to study abroad at one of our partner institutions – including Science Po Strasbourg (France), Maastricht University (Netherlands), Université libre de Bruxelles (Belgium) and University of Szeged (Hungary)
100% of graduates in work or further study 15 months after this course (HESA Graduate Outcomes Survey 2018/19) Careers and opportunities The knowledge you gain on this course, coupled with the communication, research, critical thinking and analysis skills you learn, means you'll have lots of career options when you graduate. What sectors can you work in with a politics degree? Many of our politics graduates go into people-focused roles, or in roles that allow them to do research, shape social policies or bring about social change. Areas you could go into include:
  • local and central government
  • consultancy and think tanks
  • lobbying
  • research and policy
  • teaching and lecturing (with additional training or further study)
  • community development
  • charity work
  • careers advice
  • advertising
  • marketing and media
What jobs can you do with a politics degree? Previous graduates have gone onto work in jobs such as:
  • political researcher, Houses of Parliament
  • assistant to Member of Parliament
  • civil servant, Department for the Cabinet Office
  • senior policy advisor, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
  • communications officer, House of Commons
  • local government administrator, Government of Jersey
  • public affairs consultant
  • social researcher
  • information officer
  • conference producer
After you graduate, you'll get help, advice and support for up to 5 years from our Careers and Employability service as you advance in your career. "The lecturers were great and made the university experience what it was. The curriculum was varied and they really knew how to push you to achieve great things." – Antony Innes , BA Hons Politics student

Modules

Year 1 Core modules in this year include:

  • Analysing Politics: Britain and Beyond
  • Global Development
  • Key Themes in International Relations
  • Political Thought
  • Professional Practice: Skills for Academic and Professional Success
There are no optional modules in this year. Year 2 Core modules in this year include:
  • Bending the Truth a Little? Researching Politics and International Relations
  • Comparative European Politics
Optional modules in this year currently include:
  • Autocracy and Democracy
  • British Political Leadership
  • Campaigning in Action
  • Economics and Politics of Development
  • Empire and its Afterlives in Britain, Europe, and Africa
  • Engaged Citizenship in Humanities and Social Sciences
  • Global Security
  • Ideology and Politics
  • Intercultural Perspectives on Communication
  • Introduction to Teaching
  • Marketing and Communication
  • Modern Foreign Language
  • Modernity and Globalisation
  • Nationalism and Migration: Chaos, Crisis and the Everyday
  • News, Discourse and Media
  • Principles of Economic Crime Investigation
  • Professional Experience
  • Rethinking Nazi Germany: Politics, History, Society
  • Space, Place and Being
  • Transitional Justice and Human Rights
  • Wildlife Crime: Threats and Response
  • US Politics
Placement year (optional) On this course, you can do an optional work placement year between your 2nd and 3rd years to get valuable experience working in industry. We’ll help you secure a work placement that fits your situation and ambitions. You’ll get mentoring and support throughout the year. Year 3 Core units in this year include:
  • Dissertation / Major Project
  • Post Brexit Politics
Optional units in this year currently include:
  • Digital Media and Democracy
  • Global Capitalism: Past, Present and Future
  • Independent Project
  • Looking for Utopia, Finding Dystopia? Ideas and Ideologies in the New Millennium
  • NGOs and Social Movements
  • Politics and Culture of the Hispanic World in 20Th Century Literature and Film
  • Professional Development: Recruiters and Candidates
  • Professional Experience
  • Religion and Politics in Global Perspective
  • The European Union: A Global Power in the Making?
We use the best and most current research and professional practice alongside feedback from our students to make sure course content is relevant to your future career or further studies. Therefore, some course content may change over time to reflect changes in the discipline or industry and some optional modules may not run every year. If a module doesn’t run, we’ll let you know as soon as possible and help you choose an alternative module.

Assessment method

You’ll be assessed through:

  • article reviews
  • essays
  • projects
  • briefing papers
  • simulations, podcasts and creative videos
  • individual and group presentations
  • 10,000 word dissertation
You’ll be able to test your skills and knowledge informally before you do assessments that count towards your final mark. You can get feedback on all practice and formal assessments so you can improve in the future. The way you’re assessed may depend on the modules you select. As a guide, students on this course last year were typically assessed as follows: Year 1 students: 25% written exams, 8% practical exams and 67% coursework Year 2 students: 15% written exams, 5% practical exams and 80% coursework Year 3 students: 100% coursework

How to apply

31Jan

This is the deadline for applications to be completed and sent for this course. If the university or college still has places available you can apply after this date, but your application is not guaranteed to be considered.

Application codes

Please select a course option – you will then see the application code you need to use to apply for the course.

Points of entry

The following entry points are available for this course:

  • Year 1
  • Year 2
  • Year 3

Entry requirements for advanced entry (i.e. into Year 2 and beyond)

We welcome applications for advanced entry. If you’d like to apply for advanced entry, you need to select the required year when you complete your UCAS application.

Entry requirements

Qualification requirements

English language requirements

TestGradeAdditional details
IELTS (Academic)6English language proficiency at a minimum of IELTS band 6.0 with no component score below 5.5.
PTE Academic54An overall score of 54 with a minimum of 51 in each skill.
TOEFL (iBT)7979 with a minimum of 18 in Reading, 17 in Listening, 20 in Speaking and 17 in Writing.
Cambridge English AdvancedCambridge English: Advanced (CAE) taken after January 2015. An overall score of 169 with no component score less than 162.
Cambridge English ProficiencyCambridge English: Proficiency (CPE) taken after January 2015. An overall score of 169 with no component score less than 162.
Trinity ISEPassTrinity College Integrated Skills in English (ISE) Level III with a Pass in all 4 components

Unistats information

Operated by the Office for Students
67%
Student satisfaction
60%
Employment after 15 months (Most common jobs)
90%
Go onto work and study

The student satisfaction data is from students surveyed during the Covid-19 pandemic. The number of student respondents and response rates can be important in interpreting the data – it is important to note your experience may be different from theirs. This data will be based on the subject area rather than the specific course. Read more about this data on the Discover Uni website.

Fees and funding

Tuition fees

No fee information has been provided for this course

Additional fee information

**Undergraduate fees for 2024 entry will be available shortly.** For more information about fees, go to port.ac.uk/ug-tuition-fees
Politics at University of Portsmouth - UCAS