Course summary

Politics at York St John University is about more than the sound and fury of the daily headlines. It examines the point where power, principle and policy intersect, and gets to grip with the practical implications of some of the most pressing questions of our time. How should the state respond to the challenge of planetary climate change? Are new communications technologies making historical patterns of political participation redundant, or more urgent? What are the new horizons for social justice? And how might we imagine the good society in an era of globalisation? The Politics degree at York St John will familiarise you with the history of political thought and help you to understand its implications for national and global governance in the twenty-first century. You will be based in the School of Humanities, Religion and Philosophy, which is home to experts not just in politics and government, but also history, ethics and rhetoric. You will examine the role of political institutions in determining social behaviour, the means by which these institutions are held to account, and the broader conflicts that are transforming the ways in which we understand the relationship between citizen and state. By the end of your degree, you will be able to explain the historical drivers of social change, analyse the current political landscape and identify the challenges that will shape our shared future. This route offers you a four year (full-time) degree course, which will include opportunities for you to engage with the subject area of your choice, to select from a range of subjects to broaden your knowledge and understanding, and will provide structured study skills support as you build your confidence to study at degree level. You will be taught alongside other students studying the Foundation Year from Social Sciences, Languages & Linguistics, Education, Religion & Philosophy and Media.