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Politics at University of Portsmouth - UCAS

Course options

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

Course summary

This is a Connected Degree Portsmouth is the only University in the UK with the flexibility to choose when to do an optional paid placement or self-employed year. Either take a placement in your third year, or finish your studies first and complete a placement in your fourth year. You can decide if and when to take a placement after you've started your course. 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)
Worried about your grades? If you're not sure you meet the entry requirements, or need some help to get uni-ready, then we offer this course with a foundation year to bring you up to speed. When you successfully finish, you'll get a guaranteed place on this course. 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:

  • Analysing Politics: Britain and Beyond (20 credits)
  • Critical Thinking and Professional Identity (40 credits)
  • Global Development (20 credits)
  • Key Themes in International Relations (20 credits)
  • Political Thought (20 credits)
There are no optional modules in this year. Year 2 Core modules:
  • Bending the Truth a Little? Researching Politics and International Relations (20 credits)
  • Comparative European Politics (20 credits)
Optional modules:
  • Autocracy and Democracy (20 credits)
  • British Political Leadership (20 credits)
  • Climate Crises (20 credits)
  • Democracies On Five Continents: Politics and Policy Challenges (20 credits)
  • Empire and Its Afterlives in Britain, Europe, and Africa (20 credits)
  • Engaged Citizenship in Humanities and Social Sciences (20 credits)
  • Gender and Social Justice (20 credits)
  • Global Security (20 credits)
  • Ideology and Politics (20 credits)
  • Intercultural Perspectives On Communication (20 credits)
  • Marketing & Communication (20 credits)
  • Modernity and Globalisation (20 credits)
  • Nationalism and Migration: Chaos, Crisis and the Everyday (L5) (20 credits)
  • News, Discourse, and Media (20 credits)
  • Principles of Economic Crime Investigation (20 credits)
  • Professional Experience L5 (20 credits)
  • Puritans to Postmodernists: American Literature (20 credits)
  • The Geopolitics and Geo-Economics of Africa (20 credits)
  • Transitional Justice & Human Rights (20 credits)
  • Us Politics (20 credits)
  • Wildlife Crime: Threats and Response (20 credits)
Placement year (optional) Choose to do a work placement year after your second or third year on this Connected Degree - we're the only UK university to offer flexible sandwich placements for undergraduates Year 3 Core units in this year include:
  • Post Brexit Politics (20 credits)
Optional units:
  • Digital Media and Democracy (20 credits)
  • Dissertation (Politics) (40 credits)
  • France in the World: Global Actor Or Global Maverick? (20 credits)
  • Global Capitalism: Past, Present and Future (20 credits)
  • Independent Project (Politics) (20 credits)
  • Looking for Utopia, Finding Dystopia? Ideas and Ideologies in the New Millennium (20 credits)
  • Major Project (40 credits)
  • NGOs and Social Movements (20 credits)
  • Professional Development: Recruiters and Candidates (20 credits)
  • Professional Experience L6 (20 credits)
  • Religion and Politics in Global Perspective (20 credits)
  • The European Union: a Global Power in the Making? (20 credits)
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

Application codes

Course code:
L200
Institution code:
P80
Campus name:
Main Site
Campus code:
-

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.

This course may be available at alternative locations, please check if other course options are available

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.
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.
PTE Academic62An overall score of 62 with a minimum of 59 in each skill.
TOEFL (iBT)7979 with a minimum of 18 in Reading, 17 in Listening, 20 in Speaking and 17 in Writing.
Trinity ISEPassTrinity College Integrated Skills in English (ISE) Level III with a Pass in all 4 components.

Student Outcomes

Operated by the Office for Students
70%
Employment after 15 months (Most common jobs)
80%
Go onto work and study

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

EU £9535 Year 1
England £9535 Year 1
Northern Ireland £9535 Year 1
Scotland £9535 Year 1
Wales £9535 Year 1
Channel Islands £9535 Year 1
Republic of Ireland £9535 Year 1
International £17200 Year 1

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

Students who are resident in EU countries: please note that the net fee is inclusive of the Transition Scholarship Placement Year and Year abroad (at the time of publishing for 2024/25): UK/Channel Islands and Isle of Man students – £1,385 EU – £1,385 (including Transition Scholarship) International (Non-EU) – £2,875. Fees are accurate at the time of publishing and are subject to change at any time without notice. All fees are subject to annual increase. For more information about fees, go to port.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/undergraduate-fees-and-student-finance/tuition-fees-living-costs-and-other-study-costs
Politics at University of Portsmouth - UCAS