More Info
Objectives
Structure
Master thesis and requirements for graduation
Specialisations
Contact information
Objectives
The programme has the following objectives:
1.to enable students to acquire academic knowledge, understanding and skills, and train them in the use of scientific methods in the field of International Relations;
2.to enable students to develop the following academic and professional skills:
independent academic reasoning and conduct,
the ability to analyse complex problems,
the ability to clearly report academic results, both in writing and orally;
- to prepare students for an academic career and further education;
- to prepare students for a career outside academia.
Structure
Students wishing to replace the additional (non-specialisation) elective (10 EC) with an external course or internship, please contact the study adviser to discuss your options. Other courses can't be replaced.
If you wish to receive an exemption for one or more courses based on similar previously completed courses on Master level, please contact the study adviser.
September 2023 semester for students who started in February 2023 (with the specialisation International Studies):
Regions in World Politics (5 EC)
Elective (10 EC) - students must choose one core specialization elective and can choose one elective from the complete list of electives on offer for the specialization (core specialization electives and additional electives).
Thesis (15 EC)
September 2023 semester for students starting in September 2023:
Core Course Global Order in the Modern Era (10 EC)
Humanities-Based International Relations (5 EC)
Thesis Seminar and Methods in IR Research (5 EC)
Elective (10 EC) - students must choose one core specialization elective and can choose one elective from the complete list of electives on offer for the specialization (core specialization electives and additional electives).
February 2024 semester for students starting in September 2023:
Regions in World Politics (5 EC)
Elective (10 EC) - students must choose one core specialization elective and can choose one elective from the complete list of electives on offer for the specialization (core specialization electives and additional electives).
Thesis (15 EC)
February 2024 semester for students starting in February 2024:
Core Course Global Order in the Modern Era (10 EC)
Humanities-Based International Relations (5 EC)
Thesis Seminar and Methods in IR Research (5 EC)
Elective (10 EC) - students must choose one core specialization elective and can choose one elective from the complete list of electives on offer for the specialization (core specialization electives and additional electives).
September 2024 semester for students starting in February 2024:
Regions in World Politics (5 EC)
Elective (10 EC) - students must choose one core specialization elective and can choose one elective from the complete list of electives on offer for the specialization (core specialization electives and additional electives).
Thesis (15 EC)
Master thesis and requirements for graduation
A thesis is an academic essay, written by the student in consultation with a supervisor. The thesis must show that the student is capable of analyzing existing literature in a critical manner, and of conducting independent research. Moreover, this process must be recorded in an academically sound report.
Generally speaking, students are encouraged to select the topic of their thesis themselves, based on a Master’s course that they followed. In most cases, the first supervisor of the thesis will be the lecturer responsible for the Master’s course which inspired the thesis. In case of doubt, students can always consult other supervisors within the Humanities Faculty.
During the first semester, students will complete the 5 EC course Thesis Seminar and Methods in International Relations Research in which they will choose a topic for their thesis, formulate a research question, and submit a research proposal and literature review. Students who have not fulfilled the requirements of this course or have not received the approval of the Examinations Committee will not have their MA thesis supervised.
The thesis for the MA International Relations is a maximum of 15.000 words including notes, bibliography and appendices. The thesis is supervised by a lecturer in the Humanities Faculty, who possesses expertise in the relevant field. The thesis is judged by two lecturers involved in the program.
In assessing the quality of the thesis, the following aspects play an important role:
Formulating and analyzing the research question;
Structure of the thesis;
Integration of primary and secondary literature into the argument;
Argumentation skills;
Style, use of language and lay-out;
Independent and original research
Graduates of the programme have attained the following learning outcomes, listed according to the Dublin descriptors:
1. Knowledge and understanding
a. knowledge and understanding of the discipline of International Relations, including its evolution, key
debates and paradigms;
b. insight into regional and global politics grounded in the diversity of human understanding and experience
across time and space.
2. Applying knowledge and understanding
a. the ability to conduct independent academic research that is original and reflects insight into the key
discussions of the field;
b. the ability to comprehend diverse perspectives and apply appropriate theoretical frameworks and
methodological approaches in the conduct of research.
3. Judgement
a. the ability to locate primary and secondary sources and critically evaluate evidence derived from them;
b. the ability to recognize and assess arguments on the basis of their quality and reliability;
c. the ability to analyze complex issues, logically, systematically, and coherently;
d. the ability to draw original, evidenced-based conclusions.
4. Communication
a. the ability to present analyses in a cogent manner both orally and in writing and through a variety of
formats (including digital) to academic and non-academic audiences;
b. the ability to debate constructively and negotiate effectively
5. Transferable skills
a. the ability to apply the academic research skills acquired during the programme of study to professional
environments;
b. the ability to work creatively and effectively, in a self-directed manner and with proper time-management,
both individually and in a team;
c. the capacity to assimilate feedback from supervisors and peers and in turn offer feedback to the work of
others.
Specialisation in Global Order in Historical Perspective
1. Knowledge and understanding
a. the ability to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of theories, concepts, and methods by which global
order is analysed to an advanced level that provides a basis for originality in developing and/or applying ideas
within a research context.
b. the ability to demonstrate an understanding of the historical development of the global order (including its
origins, institutions, norms, and power dynamics).
c. the ability to demonstrate an understanding of contemporary challenges to the global order, from the
perspectives of diverse actors, including states, international institutions, non-state organizations, in the Global
South as well as the Global North.
2. Applying knowledge and understanding
a. the ability to conduct independent academic research that reflects insight into key discussions of global order;
b. the ability to analyse, from a historically grounded and a theoretically informed perspective structures and
agents of power at the global level, and policy issues concerning global governance.
c. the ability to evaluate evidence on issues relating to global order, based on the deployment of research methods
in history and area studies.
Specialisations
Global Order in Historical Perspective is one of the specialisations of the Master International Relations.
The Master International Relations has five specialisations:
Contact information
For more information, please contact the study adviser.
Career Preparation
Career Preparation in the MA International Relations
The programme
How can you use the knowledge and the skills that you acquire during the MA International Relations? What skills do you already have, and what further skills do you still want to learn? How do you translate the courses that you choose into something that you’d like to do after graduation?
These questions and more will be discussed at various times during your study programme. You may already have spoken about them with your study coordinator, the Humanities Career Service or other students, or made use of the Leiden University Career Zone. Many different activities are organised to help you reflect on your own wishes and options, and give you the chance to explore the job market. All these activities are focused on the questions: ‘What can I do?’, ‘What do I want?’ and ‘How do I achieve my goals?’.
Activities
You will be notified via the Faculty website, your study programme website and email about further activities in the area of job market preparation. The following activities will help you to thoroughly explore your options, so we advise you to take careful note of them:
Transferable skills
Future employers are interested not only in the subject-related knowledge that you acquired during your study programme, but also in the ‘transferable skills’. These include cognitive skills, such as critical thinking, reasoning and argumentation and innovation; intrapersonal skills, such as flexibility, initiative, appreciating diversity and metacognition; and interpersonal skills, such as communication, accountability and conflict resolution. In short, they are skills that all professionals need in order to perform well.
It is therefore important that during your study programme you not only acquire as much knowledge as possible about your subject, but also are aware of the skills you have gained and the further skills you still want to learn. The course descriptions in the e-Prospectus of the MA International Relations include, in addition to the courses’ learning objectives, a list of the skills that they aim to develop.
The skills you may encounter in the various courses are:
Collaboration
Persuasion
Research
Self-directed learning
Creative thinking
Courses of the MA International Relations
Courses of the study programme obviously help to prepare you for the job market. As a study programme, we aim to cover this topic either directly or less directly in each semester.
Contact
If you have any questions about career choices, whether in your studies or on the job market, you are welcome to make an appointment with the career adviser of the the Humanities Career Service 071-5272235, or with your coordinator of studies, Janneke Walstra
