Course summary

Politics is about power, conflict and ideas. The study of politics involves analysis of the ways in which individuals and groups define and interpret political issues and seek to shape government decisions. It encompasses a broad spectrum of activities relating to public affairs, from elections and bureaucracies to wars and terrorism. Because it is at the junction of power and morality, politics has always attracted the attention of philosophers and historians, and its study, originating in Athens in the fourth century BC, is the seed bed of all the social sciences. In studying the degree, you will follow courses from a range of subfields in political science: comparative politics, rational choice theory, political economy, public administration and public policy, European politics and political theory. You will learn about the concepts and theories which underpin the study of politics, including ideas such as justice, democracy, liberty, sovereignty and rights. You will compare political phenomena in a variety of cultures and countries, learning about the diversity of political processes and using empirical analysis to answer broad theoretical questions about the political world.