Entry requirements

International Relations 1-30 and International Relations 31-60 or equivalent.

Progression level in relation to degree requirements

The course is not part of a main field of study.

Course contents

The aim of the course is that students independently will develop an advanced, in-depth understanding and knowledge of global politics. The course focuses on theories of global politics and allows in-depth study of issues such as diplomacy, security, ethical problems and foreign policy.

• Module 1: International Security (7,5 hp)
• Module 2: International Political Theory (7,5 hp)
• Module 3: Development, Diplomacy and Foreign Policy (15 hp)

The first module, International Security, provides students with an overall orientation as well as in-depth study of contemporary theorizing on security issues in global politics. Furthermore the module lets the student practice his/her ability to relate IR theorizing with methodological approaches utilized by researchers in the field.

The second module, International Political Theory, considers the emergence of ethical issues in international affairs and the development of normative theory in international relations. Of particular interest are issues concerning: human rights; sustainable development; religion and international politics, and the academic debates about these topics.

The third module, Development, Diplomacy and Foreign Policy, analyses contemporary issues and questions in foreign policy, diplomacy and development, including related issues in the areas of global governance, multilateral negotiations, trade, finance, climate change, international aid, and geopolitcs.

Learning outcomes

After completing module 1 (International Security) the student shall be able to:
(1) Demonstrate an advanced understanding of key terms and debates in international security studies.
(2) Demonstrate how to apply various theoretical approaches and concepts to empirical cases of security challenges.
(3) Evaluate the methodological and historiographical problems inherent in the study of security and international relations.

After completing module 2 (International Political Theory) the student shall be able to:
(4) Define , analyse, and critically discuss theories and central issues in international political theory.

After completing module 3 (Development, Diplomacy and Foreign Policy) the student shall be able to:
(5) Analyse central problems and theories of diplomacy, foreign policy, and development.
(6) Identify, describe and critically analyse a key problem, area or process in foreign policy, diplomacy and development.

Learning activities

Teaching takes place in lectures and seminars. In addition to their attendance students are also expected to spend substantial time studying the course literature and in preparation of work for assessment.

Assessment

The student’s performance in module 1 (International Security) is assessed as follows:

Intended learning outcomes 1-3 are assessed through an oral and written assignment.

The student’s performance in module 2 (International Political Theory) is assessed as follows:

Intended learning outcome 4 is assessed through an oral and written assignment.

The student’s performance in module 3 (Development, Diplomacy and Foreign Policy) is assessed as follows:

Intended learning outcomes 5 and 6 are assessed through an oral and a written assignment.

Course literature

International Security (7,5 hp)

• Gueldry, Michel, Gigi Gokcek and Lui Hebron (Eds.). 2019. Understanding New Security Threats, London: Routledge.
• Peoples, Columba and Nick Vaughan-Williams. 2020. Critical Security Studies. (3rd edition) London: Routledge.
• Additional articles and case material c. 200-300 pages

International Political Theory (7,5 hp)

• Blackburn, Simon. 2003. Ethics: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Lang, Anthony. 2015.International Political Theory: An Introduction. London: Palgrave.
• Additional articles, c. 200-300 pages

Development, Diplomacy and Foreign Policy (15 hp)

• Beach, Derek. 2012. Analyzing Foreign Policy. Houndmills: Palgrave.
• Bjola, Corneliu and Markus Kornprobst. 2013. Understanding International Diplomacy: Theory, Practice and Ethics. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.
• Kingsbury, Damien et al. (eds.). 2016. International Development; Issues and Challenges. (latest edition.) Basingstoke: Palgrave
• Starkey, Brigid et al. 2015. International Negotiation in a Complex World, 4th edition. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield.
• Additional articles, c. 200-300 pages.

Course evaluation

Malmö University provides students who participate in, or who have completed a course, with the opportunity to express their opinions and describe their experiences of the course by completing a course evaluation administered by the University. The University will compile and summarise the results of course evaluations. The University will also inform participants of the results and any decisions relating to measures taken in response to the course evaluations. The results will be made available to the students (HF 1:14).

Interim rules

If a course is no longer offered, or has undergone significant changes, the students must be offered two opportunities for re-examination based on the syllabus that applied at the time of registration, for a period of one year after the changes have been implemented.

Additional information

The syllabus is a translation of a Swedish source text.

If a student has a Learning support decision, the examiner has the right to provide the student with an adapted test, or to allow the student to take the exam in a different format.