Welcome to your International Relations course

Welcome to University of Staffordshire

We know you're already passionate about your subject, which is why we're excited you've chosen University of Staffordshire as the place to turn possibility into reality.

To give you an insight into what life as an International Relations student is like, your course leaders have prepared introductions to the course and further activities.

Welcome to your MA International Relations (IR) degree course at Staffordshire University. This is a rigorous academic course designed to give you in-depth knowledge and understanding of the discipline of International Relations. It will also equip you with excellent critical and communication skills which are transferable to a range of professions and should foster a fascination with some key contemporary issues in world politics. We have put together this page of introductory information to help you prepare.

Thank you for choosing our degree. We very much look forward to working with you.

First activity

Your first module on the course will be an International Relations Theory module. Theory provides ‘the lens’ through which we view the world, and it is an essential starting point in the study of IR. Your first module starts by examining mainstream IR theories which define and delimit the discipline of International Relations. In the first few weeks you will be learning about the classic debate between the liberal and realist views of the world: can international law and institutionalization facilitate co-operation and a more peaceful world or is IR inevitably about state interest, power and war? This central debate remerges in several different guises through the history of the study of IR and remains as relevant as ever given contemporary developments. It is also challenged by other more critical viewpoints which will be studied as the module proceeds.

Course delivery

As a distance learning programme this course is designed to fit around all the other commitments in your life. You will therefore be working independently for much of the time, demonstrating the ability to manage information, concepts and methods as well as the ability to organise time and your programme of study. The value of your MA will therefore be much greater than ‘just’ a qualification in International Relations: it will demonstrate self-motivation, discipline, self-reliance, and other general competencies as well as academic ability.

Each week you will follow a carefully structured programme of work based around active learning – undertaking tasks which help you to really engage and work with the material you are studying, rather than just passively reading or listening to the words of others. You will use the interactive facilities of Blackboard to communicate with tutors and other students that will enable you to develop essential learning skills, compare notes and follow up on aspects of modules that you have found interesting or particularly challenging. New media technology will enable you to participate fully in the activities of the department and to feel part of a supportive and dynamic learning community.

All required tutor-led activities will be asynchronous, meaning you will never be asked to log into Blackboard at a particular time or on a particular day. This is to accommodate the various time zones of our diverse international cohort of students, who will be joining in from across the world; in recent years we’ve had students logging in from places including Hong Kong, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Canada, as well as the UK.

Module leaders on this MA are given a lot of independence to provide teaching in a way that suits them, their students and their subjects best. This means that module content can vary considerably, from recorded lectures and podcasts to carefully structured reading, optional seminars or one-on-one meetings provided online. Please don’t expect exactly the same learning experience on every week of every module, this would not benefit you and would in any case quickly become tedious. Get to know each module carefully as it starts, and if you’re ever unsure, contact the module leader, they will be eager to help you.

If you’re ever unsure of anything then don’t hesitate to contact the course leader, Dr Fiona Robertson-Snape, who will happily help you. Her email address is: f.robertson-snape@staffs.ac.uk.

Pre-learning

We do not require any pre-learning but if you are eager to start getting a feel for IR then there are huge numbers of relevant books which you might read. Any good book on a related topic will give you insights and information which will enhance your overall understanding whether that be a diplomatic memoir or a book about a particular war, or some aspect of international co-operation.

In order to start thinking about theory you might want to access this article. Stephen M. Walt, International Relations: One World, Many Theories, Foreign Policy No. 110, Special Edition: Frontiers of Knowledge (Spring, 1998), pp. 29-32+34-46
Walt, One World, Many Theories.pdf

Or you could watch this general introduction to the discipline of International Relations put together by the LSE.

We will provide you with online textbooks for each module which will be available to you once your module is live on Blackboard. For the International Theory module we will supply you with the three books below:

Dunne, Kurki and Smith (2020) Theories of International Relations: Discipline and Diversity, Oxford U.P

Jackson and Sorensen (2022) Introduction to International Relations: Theories and Approaches, Oxford U.P

E H Carr (2001) Twenty Years' Crisis – but first published in 1946, but I wanted to give you a classic work of IR Theory.

You might though choose to buy yourself hard copies or supplement those textbooks with your own so that you can get ahead. There are some excellent ones out there. We suggest

Andrew Heywood, Global Politics, Palgrave Macmillan – this is really introductory, under-graduate level but a great starting point.

John Baylis, Steve Smith & Patricia Owens (eds) The Globalization of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations, Oxford University Press

Chris Brown (2019) Understanding International Relations, fifth edition.

No publication date is included as whilst the latest edition is always best textbooks are expensive. However, you can pick up older editions very cheaply on ebay or Amazon and these are fine to get you started.

There are also some useful websites. E-International Relations contains free articles and a whole library of IR books, all of which are free access and a valuable resource for you before you get access to the University Library as an enrolled student.

Finally, this is a bit of fun but also does give real insight into International Relations theory: Drezner, Daniel, Theories of International Politics and Zombies: Revived Edition

Equipment and software

As a minimum, to study on the course, you must have:

A desktop or laptop computer (PC or Mac) - essential
A reliable Broadband internet connection – essential
A headset with a USB connection including integrated microphone and noise-cancellation capability – desirable
A webcam - desirable

As a minimum, to study on the course, you will need to:

Use the Staffordshire University’s Blackboard Virtual Learning Environment
Use your Staffordshire University e-mail
Access key Staffordshire University websites
Access to the Online Staffordshire University Library Portal for Library Catalogue and access to e-Resources (such as subscribed e-books and journals)

You might also choose to:

Access and use the Staffordshire University provided Microsoft ™ Office 365 products (such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, etc.) which are free to download for students.

Take part in remote tutorials and Webinars (using Blackboard Collaborate online videoconferencing, Microsoft ™ Teams ® or other web-based Audio/Visual capabilities)

Software you will need to have on your computer is as follows:

Web browser – you will need to be signed up with an internet service provider (ISP) in order to be able to access the internet and connect to the Staffordshire University web pages. either Explorer or Chrome or Firefox; up-to-date versions can be downloaded.

Word-processing facilities – We require all work to be submitted in Microsoft Word. As a student of Staffordshire University you can download Microsoft Office 365 for free. You can install it on up to 5 different computers, as well as your mobile devices (phones, tablets, etc.).

Adobe Acrobat – for reading on-line documents and electronic journals – this can be downloaded for free.

If you use a Mac, ensure it has:

an internet connection and the Chrome web browser.

Office software: see above about Office 365

Whilst some features of the courses may be accessible via other devices, we wouldn't recommend having a tablet, smart phone or chrome book as a primary mode of accessing the course.

You will need to be a proficient computer user, though technical help will be available if you have trouble with specific applications or tasks. The amount of time you will need to spend connected to the internet per week will be very variable. Most weeks it will be several hours. You can also download all the reading onto your own home computer and safely store it for future use.

There is a variety of software which can be downloaded from the University’s website and can also be accessed via the button below. This software is free for all of our students, as we understand to reach your full potential and succeed in your degree you need the tools to help you.

Download software

Pathways

You have the opportunity to attach a pathway to your MA IR degree. There are currently three pathways to chose from: Intelligence, Russian Studies or Contemporary China. The pathway modules all run in the second year so it is not necessary to make a final decision at this point. You will have the opportunity to add, drop or change a pathway at the end of your first year. If you take a pathway then you are expected to also write your dissertation on a topic related to that pathway.

Meet the team

Dr Fiona Robertson-Snape

Senior Lecturer

Fiona's expertise is in international relations theory and international ethics. Her research interests cover international society, human rights and international criminal justice.

Fiona's profile

Alun Thomas

Associate Professor

Dr Alun Thomas is Associate Professor of Eurasian Studies, specialising in the modern history and contemporary politics of Russia and Central Asia. His research interests include border-making, state-building, and economic change.

Alun's profile

Dr Tony Craig

Associate Professor

Dr Tony Craig is Associate Professor in Modern History. His research primarily focuses on the contemporary security history of Britain and Ireland.

Tony's profile

Dr Anthony Mckeown

Lecturer

Anthony teaches International Relations in the Modern Era; Global Policy Analysis and Money, Trade and Development.

Anthony's profile

Dr Sarah Irving

Lecturer

Dr Sarah Irving is a Lecturer in modern Middle Eastern history, specialising in the social and cultural history of Late Ottoman and Mandate Palestine and the broader Levant region.

Sarah's profile

What to expect on Welcome Week

We're so excited for you to join us on campus and to welcome you to where you matter. During your welcome week you'll be able to meet our friendly student services teams, connect with new friends, join societies, explore on-campus venues attend club nights and much more.