Year 1 (credit level 4)
Students take the following compulsory modules:
Module title |
Credits |
World Politics
World Politics
30 credits
This module introduces you to the study of world politics, emphasising that there are different and competing perspectives on how to approach the subject. In the first term, it introduces you to the three dominant paradigms (Realism, Pluralism and Structuralism) that defined the discipline of International Relations (IR) throughout the 20th Century. It situates those paradigms in the historical context in which they were developed and critically examines both their contribution to our understanding of world politics and their theoretical and empirical shortcomings. The first term ends by highlighting the challenges posed to these traditional ways of studying international relations by the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War order.
In the second term, the module identifies the contours of the post-Cold War international environment. In particular, it explores claims that contemporary world politics are defined by processes of globalisation. Specific topics addressed include: the nature of American power and the challenge of the BRICs; the prevalence of 'New Wars'; global poverty and inequality; nationalist and ethnic conflict; human rights; intervention and humanitarian crises; refugees and migration; and terrorism and the war on terror.
These themes are explored in order to evaluate i. how the contemporary globalised world differs from previous world orders and ii. whether traditional ways of thinking about world politics, such as the three paradigms, can still account for and explain global processes and outcomes.
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30 credits |
Colonialism, Power, Resistance
Colonialism, Power, Resistance
30 credits
This module aims to provide you with an understanding of the importance of colonialism and imperialism, and resistance to these, in the shaping of our world. It treats ‘culture’, including forms of ‘art’, as central to politics. It begins by considering non-Western forms of politics, civilization and culture prior to colonial domination. The rest of the module explores the forms of political, cultural, aesthetic and ideological interaction, and change, engendered in the module of the colonial encounter. A related aim of the module is to introduce students to a range of types of reading material and sources, beyond the conventional first year text book.
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30 credits |
Identity, Agency & Environment 1
Identity, Agency & Environment 1
15 credits
In this module, subtitled ‘Everything is a Text’, you will consider the value of different types of texts and ways of imparting knowledge and ideas. You will reflect upon your identities as learners and future professionals in the world, considering a range of contexts: the academic/educational context, personal settings and the eco-systems that you live and work in. These reflections will be used to inform your practices as academic learners.
You will explore academic literacies, different ways of knowing and consider what counts as ‘legitimate’ knowledge. You will engage with critical thinking, making arguments and establishing criteria to defend intellectual positions and these skills will be acknowledged as social practices that produce and reinforce meaning and frameworks of understanding and knowledge.
Furthermore, you will engage with a wide range of academic and non-academic material, individuals and environments in order to contribute to discussions regarding attitudes and assumptions about ideas and experience, including within labour markets, cultural hegemonies, distributions of power and the relationship between the individual and society. In this way, the social interactions, relationships and contexts that underpin academic literacies in higher education will be made explicit.
You will discuss these ideas with students and tutors from the different subjects at Goldsmiths, and learn to be part of the wider university community. You will also be able to submit an assignment which could be a written, graphically designed, audio, video, or negotiated project. You will get to choose the assessment that best shows what you can do.
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15 credits |
Identity, Agency & Environment 2
Identity, Agency & Environment 2
15 credits
This module, subtitled ‘Researching Our World & Lives’, builds on the conceptual and contextual foundations of Identity, Agency and Environment 1.
You will learn how to conduct academic research and will be offered the opportunity to broaden and deepen your understanding of the relationship between your own interests, skills, values, career and non-career aspirations, the concepts, theories and contexts of your discipline, and the world.
You will reflect upon your identities as researchers, and learn how the research skills you’ve acquired both within your studies and the world more generally can be related to problem-solving in a wide range of contexts. You will consider your agency as researchers, what you can and cannot research, the ethical issues involved, and think reflexively about your position as a researcher in a range of environments and eco-systems.
Formal conventions of academic research and writing will be integrated into your individualised contexts and goals, enabling the expression of ideas and perspectives that may challenge the status quo. The module will encourage creativity, activism, decision-making and the formation of judgements leading to action-planning in relation to research topics and types of evidence, and professional planning.
You will learn to critique your own subject disciplines. Interdisciplinary sharing of knowledge will ensure that assessment and learning practices provide you with the opportunity to develop new lines of thinking and knowing, within formative collaborative learning and research communities.
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15 credits |
You then choose from the following optional modules:
Module title |
Credits |
Political Theory and Ideologies
Political Theory and Ideologies
30 credits
This module is designed to introduce you to some of the fundamental concepts, theories and ideologies that influence our understanding and evaluation of the political world. The module explores key political concepts such as legitimacy, democracy, liberty, equality and justice by introducing some of the ideas of major political thinkers such as Hobbes, Bentham, Locke, Kant, Marx, J.S. Mill, Rawls and Nozick. The module also introduces students to major political ideologies including liberalism, socialism, conservatism and anarchism.
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30 credits |
or |
Issues in Political and Cultural Economy
Issues in Political and Cultural Economy
30 credits
This module gives you an introduction to some of the key questions of contemporary political economy, and offers some critical and cultural approaches to the major policy problems of today.
You'll explore the failure of elites to respond to recent crises, such as the financial crisis and environmental crises, and offers some ways of analyzing where power lies, the role of experts in contemporary economic policy, and how the notion of ‘neoliberalism’ helps us to understand the current state of political economy.
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30 credits |
or |
UK and European Comparative Governance and Politics
UK and European Comparative Governance and Politics
30 credits
This module introduces you to the comparative approach to politics and government, in addition to building a foundation understanding of the politics and governance of four key members of the European Union: the UK, Germany, Italy and France. The first half of the module is focused on the UK and also considers the EU as an institution, while the second half concentrates on the other three countries at the module’s core. You will not only build an essential foundation for studying the politics of the UK/EU polity in which we live but will also develop their skills in comparative methods.
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30 credits |
Year 2 (credit level 5)
You will study the following compulsory modules:
Module title |
Credits |
Contemporary International Relations Theories
Contemporary International Relations Theories
15 credits
This module focuses on the principal debates and issues that have been shaping world politics since the end of the Cold War. The module provides a detailed review of the main theoretical perspectives contributing to contemporary IR Theory, critically assesses what IR theory is about, identifies the abstractions and logic it deploys, and interrogates its relation to the outside world.
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15 credits |
Global Governance and World Order
Global Governance and World Order
15 credits
This module explores debates surrounding the concept of global governance and evaluates the power of international organisations in world politics. Global governance is generally framed as a response to the increased prevalence of transnational concerns and problems that cannot be resolved by individual sovereign states. We will look at theoretical frameworks to explain and evaluate global governance, including realist, constructivist, feminist and critical theory approaches. We will also examine the definition of global problems, identify the organisations responsible for intervening in these and critically assess their role and impacts.
The module traces the emergence and evolution of key organisations historically as well as their contemporary political significance. We critically reflect on the nature and impacts of United Nations agencies such as the World Health Organisation or the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA); the International Criminal Court; the World Bank and International Monetary Fund; and regional organisations. The module considers not only the role of states and intergovernmental organisations, but also the power of civil society, including social movements, NGOs and the media, and various forms of contestation and resistance. You will engage in both theoretical critique and the analysis of responses to particular global problems. The module will include formative group work on a presentation, linked to individual policy reports.
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15 credits |
Security Studies
Security Studies
15 credits
Since the end of the Cold War, both the theory and practice of international security have undergone radical changes. In the era of globalisation, security is no longer confined to questions of interstate conflict and cooperation but embraces a plethora of new concerns.
Most significant among these is the prevalence of new wars fought within rather than between states and the range of phenomena such as environmental destruction, transnational criminal activity, development and insecurity, and migration and disease, that these conflicts generate.
Furthermore, the terms by which the institutions of international society engage with these security threats has been rearticulated within a discourse of liberal humanitarianism in which human rather than state security has become the main referent.
This module explores this transformation of the ‘new security agenda’ by means of:
- an exploration of the theoretical and conceptual reframing of security
- analysis of a selection of important challenges framed as security threats.
The module is in two parts. The first part examines and debates a range of competing theories and concepts of security. It considers different meanings of the term ‘security’ and whose security we can talk about. The second part examines some contemporary security threats with implications for international politics.
These will include, among other subjects: inter and intra-state conflict; the role and future of international and regional security institutions; the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction; international terrorism and the war on terror; cyber-warfare and transnational crime; and development, resources and conflict.
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15 credits |
You will then choose optional modules up to the value of 75 credits from an approved list produced annually by the Department of Politics and International Relations.
As part of this, you have the option of taking up to 15 credits from another department or from another University of London Institution (if deemed suitable by the department) AND/OR.
Some examples of available modules are listed below:
Module title |
Credits |
The Goldsmiths Elective
The Goldsmiths Elective
15 credits
Our academic departments are developing exciting elective ideas to allow you to broaden your education, either to develop vocationally orientated experiences or to learn more about contemporary society, culture and politics. You’ll be able to choose safe in the knowledge that these modules have been designed for non-subject specialists and to bring students from different disciplines together. For example, you may want to take introductions to areas such as Law, Education, the digital industries, the creative industries, think like a designer or understand the history and politics behind our current affairs.
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15 credits |
Political Economy
Political Economy
30 credits
This module introduces you to various attempts to clarify and understand the links between economic and political processes which come under the banner of ‘political economy’. As a whole, the module is intended to draw out the links between the broad “school”-level approaches (such as Marxism, economic sociology, methodological individualism and institutional economics) and contemporary issues and analyses (concerning questions of resource scarcity, predation, coordination failures and trust).
To this end, the module is split into two broad parts. The first part guides you through the main thematic approaches to political economy in order to examine the principle concepts theorists have used to understand and explain economic processes. The second part seeks to apply these concepts to contemporary economic issues and questions.
It seeks to both clarify and examine the various understandings of the market and the state which have shaped the direction of economic research, so that you can finish the module with a clear understanding of the various ideas, concerns and beliefs which motivate real-world political economic arguments.
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30 credits |
Chinese Politics: The Revolutionary Era
Chinese Politics: The Revolutionary Era
15 credits
This is a broad, historically-based survey module of Chinese politics that takes the student from the early days of communist partisanship through to the end of the Cultural Revolution (from 1921 to 1976 or thereabouts). This module is designed to offer both an overview of and background to, contemporary Mainland Chinese political culture and an insight into a form of politics that is very different from that of liberal democracy.
This module is a lot more historically oriented than many of the other survey modules offered in the Department, but to understand this country requires an understanding of this history which is still lived very much as an on-going set of norms and values. It is difficult to understand China today without an understanding of this history and what this module offers is a survey account of this period.
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15 credits |
Rough Politics
Rough Politics
15 credits
To gain a more sophisticated (and less prejudiced) knowledge of “rough politics” is particularly vital today, as the age of globalisation seems to be framed by the conflict between the rule of law represented by western democracies, and the violent disorder embodied by the Global South.
In studying this shadowy territory we will touch upon fundamental issues for today's social sciences: the afterlives of Twentieth Century revolutionary politics, the connections between political violence and religion, the nature of informal and illegal economies, the current debates on globalisation from below, the prospects for social rebellion, the construction of new political subjectivities and novel ways of representing the “other”.
We will do all of this by studying the political significance of guerrilla warfare in shaping global politics; the language of martyrdom in religious based terrorism; Al Qaeda´s dependence on mass-murder to advance a populist theology, Somali pirates in the Arabian Sea reinventing the fascination and fear caused by pirates from a bygone age, Colombian paramilitaries enforcing order and disregarding at the very same time the Rule of Law, The Mara Salvatrucha street gang dominating neighbourhoods in El Salvador and Los Angeles, and hackers disturbing the otherwise unalterable profitmaking arrangements of the Internet.
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15 credits |
US Politics and Foreign Policy
US Politics and Foreign Policy
15 credits
This module explores the interaction between US domestic and foreign politics. It seeks to understand the way that domestic political dynamics influence foreign policy and the role of the US in the broader international arena. It introduces students to the structure of US government and the main interest groups involved in the foreign policy-making process, examining the broader ideological and political trends that have shaped the way the US acts on the global stage as the world’s only remaining superpower.
Part of the module will take a historical overview, looking at how US foreign policy has developed post-Second War, throughout the Cold War, and into today’s War on Terror, showing how different administrations have responded to perceived international threats, opportunities and challenges, as well as domestic political pressures and concerns.
The module will also examine a number of contemporary issues currently faced by the US, which are likely to shape US foreign policy and security strategy for the foreseeable future: conflict in the Middle East; the threat of Islamist terrorism; the economic rise of China; global nuclear proliferation; the challenges posed by Russia; and the broader issue of global climate change. It will look at how the US responds to these dilemmas, and how these issues figure in domestic political debates and the US’ perception of itself.
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15 credits |
The Politics of Climate Change
The Politics of Climate Change
15 Credits
This module provides an introduction to the main issues, approaches, and controversies concerning the international politics of climate change including political economy, climate justice/ decolonisation.
It will explore the natural and social forces contributing to climate change. It will examine how varied agents including social movements such as Extinction Rebellion, trade unions and political parties attempt to shape responses to climate change. It will critically evaluate the implications of international, national, regional and local policies to mitigate climate change and to adapt to the effects of climate change.
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15 Credits |
Year 3 (credit level 6)
Students write a dissertation (30 credits) and will then choose a total of 90 credits of optional modules from the Politics and International Relations department. Credits total 120 credits.
Teaching style
This programme is mainly taught through scheduled learning - a mixture of lectures, seminars and workshops. You’ll also be expected to undertake a significant amount of independent study. This includes carrying out required and additional reading, preparing topics for discussion, and producing essays or project work.
The following information gives an indication of the typical proportions of learning and teaching for each year of this programme*:
- Year 1 - 13% scheduled learning, 87% independent learning
- Year 2 - 13% scheduled learning, 87% independent learning
- Year 3 - 13% scheduled learning, 87% independent learning
How you’ll be assessed
You’ll be assessed by a variety of methods, depending on your module choices. These include coursework, examinations, group work and projects.
The following information gives an indication of how you can typically expect to be assessed on each year of this programme*:
- Year 1 - 63% coursework, 38% written exam
- Year 2 - 76% coursework, 21% written exam, 3% practical
- Year 3 - 99% coursework, 1% practical
*Please note that these are averages are based on enrolments for 2022/23. Each student’s time in teaching, learning and assessment activities will differ based on individual module choices.
Your remaining 30 credits are then chosen from a general list provided annually by the Department or from the above. Current examples include:
Module title |
Credits |
Colonialism and Non-Western Political Thought
Colonialism and Non-Western Political Thought
15 credits
Colonialism and imperialism were among the most important and defining processes of the last few centuries. Western imperialism remade both ‘East’ and ‘West’, and it served to create the ‘modernity’ which we now all inhabit.
This module begins by looking at the colonising process before going on to introduce students to some of the ways in which the non-Western world confronted the violence and inequality of colonialism.
Focusing on specific thinkers and themes, it engages with the political thought of significant intellectuals and political leaders (including MK Gandhi, Nehru, and Fanon), and examines different forms of anti-colonial politics, including nationalism, socialism and ‘third-worldism’.
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15 credits |
Migration, Technology, and Humanitarianism
Migration, Technology, and Humanitarianism
15 credits
This research-led module explores the entanglements between migration, humanitarianism and technology in Europe and at its external frontiers. The module focuses on how migrants are controlled through technologies and managed by humanitarian actors and measures; simultaneously, it analyses how migrants and refugees use technology and how human rights organizations and activists strategically appropriate technological tools to support migrants. The module engages with debates and literature in Politics & International Relations which deal with humanitarianism, security and technologies as well as their mutual articulations as strategic terrains of governance, activism and resistance. It explores how to rethink both collective and individual subjects in light of digital technologies and their contestations.
The course is divided into three main sections. The first section will illustrate how migrants are governed by humanitarian measures, and how these latter are entangled with processes of securitization of migration. It will explore the recent transformation of the European asylum politics, drawing attention to humanitarian-security mechanisms and to the centrality of border cooperation with African countries in the European migration agenda. The second section will focus on how technologies are used for purposes of surveillance and control, with a specific focus on forced migration. The module will look at how digital technologies function to identify migrants (biometrics) and to govern them at a distance (monitoring tools, data exchange activities) in the Mediterranean Sea as well as along land borders. It will analyse the crucial role played by digital frontiers in border cooperation between the EU and third-countries. In the third part, the module will centre on the different political uses and appropriations of digital technologies by migrants, activists and as part of citizen mobilisations. It will take into account critical migration scholarship on border controls and migrant subjectivities (autonomy of migration theory).
The module will touch upon the following topics:
- Humanitarian and security policies to manage migration
- The asylum system in Europe
- Techno-humanitarianism and refugees
- The digital frontiers of Europe
- Governing migration at a distance
- The EU politics of border exernalisation in Africa
- Migrants, technology and resistance
- Digital activism and criminalization of solidarity
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15 credits |
Sustainable Development
Sustainable Development
15 Credits
One of the most famous definitions of sustainable development is that it ‘seeks to meet the needs of the present world without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’ (Brundtland Commission). This module will introduce students to the concept of sustainable development, which combines concern for economic development and the elimination of poverty with awareness of environmental limits. Starting with an overview of the three dimensions of sustainable development – economic, social, and environmental – the module will explore how societies' choices about the sustainable use of economic, environmental, and social resources have influenced their chances of survival throughout history. To that purpose, we look at a series of case studies ranging from the fate of ancient civilizations to the environmental and social choices of contemporary societies. Some of our key case studies will include the Anasazi and the Easter Islands, the Maya Collapse, the Vikings and Norse Greenland as well as the modern-day cases of Rwanda, China, and Australia.
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15 Credits |
The Politics of Memory
The Politics of Memory
15 Credits
This course focuses on how societies emerging from different types of conflict (such as war, genocide, ethnic violence and grave human rights abuses) engage in the process of coming to terms with their past. It examines official mechanisms of ‘transitional justice’ such as trials and truth commissions, as well as cultural forms of remembrance and local community practices. By exploring the complex relationship between conflict, memory and justice in various cross-cultural settings, it seeks to provide an understanding of the ways in which such processes can promote or hinder reconciliation and the rebuilding of social and inter-communal ties. The course will also assess the role of external factors (notably the creation of international war crimes tribunals) and how they have affected such internal processes of facing the past.
Various case studies, including post-Second World War Germany and Japan, post-conflict former Yugoslavia, post-Apartheid South Africa, and post-genocide Rwanda, will inform the theoretical discussions and provide a comparative perspective.
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15 Credits |
Ethics and Economics of Environmental Protection
Ethics and Economics of Environmental Protection
15 credits
This module seeks to equip students with the capacity to think critically about ethical and economic approaches to environmental protection issues and the relationship between the two.
It will examine human rights, eco-centric, utilitarian and economic perspectives both at the theoretical level and in the practical context of policy arguments over the appropriate role of regulatory, community-centred, and market-based forms of environmental decision-making.
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15 credits |
Work placement (Politics)
Work placement (Politics)
15 credits
This optional module will involve spending two days each week from week 2 to week 9 (16 days in total) on a work placement. Placement providers will include a range of organisations in the NGO sector such as charities, think-tanks and pressure groups, bodies connected with international organisations, appropriate businesses, and political parties.
There will be a pool of guaranteed places which will be allocated on the basis appropriateness of the placement to the student's interests. However, we also encourage students to take the opportunity to find their own placements and will support them in that process. We would hope that all students will be able to take up the opportunity should an appropriate placement be found. In fairness to hosts, we will also have to be confident that students' levels of attendance and achievement while at Goldsmiths suggest that they can benefit from the placement.
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15 credits |
Fascisms, Old and New
Fascisms, Old and New
15 credits
Fascism was the twentieth century’s most destructive political force. Yet its aggressive, antidemocratic nationalism found mass appeal in many countries around the world, notoriously Italy and Germany. Still today, fascist movements and ideologies retain considerable allure. Yet the defining features, causes, and effects of fascism remain in dispute. This module explores the character of fascism as both a historical and contemporary phenomenon. It asks what features make it distinctive, what conditions make it possible, and how it manages to attract supporters. We consider fascist ideas, strategies and techniques, as well as ‘transnational’ variations, and ask what makes its promise of national ‘rebirth’ appealing today.
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15 credits |
The Politics of Popular Music
The Politics of Popular Music
15 credits
This course explores the intersection between popular music and politics. It starts from the premise that ‘the political’ is a site of contestation whose parameters are constantly being rearticulated by multiple cultural practices, including music.
Three limitations provide the course with a coherent focus. First, while the historical relationship of music and politics extends back to (at least) ancient Greek tragedy, the subject matter is limited to contemporary, i.e. post-World War Two music. Second, while many late 20th century classical, avant-garde and jazz artists have engaged with politics, the course focuses on ‘popular’ music, broadly defined. Third, while music has often been deployed in the service of state power, the onus is on music associated with political movements that have sought to challenge established orders.
The course, then, explores popular music as a conduit for, expression by which, and manifestation of political struggle, protest and contestation.
Whereas it is standard to focus on the popular music/politics nexus exclusively with respect to US and UK experiences this course has a broader purview, exploring this dynamic within and between societies and cultures across the world.
The course also explores the music/politics relationship beyond the obvious messaging of political lyrics. It assumes that the politics of music are communicated through (and limited by) a complex of cultural systems – song structures, album artwork, music videos, fanzines, fashion, concert rituals, the music press, the recording industry, social media etc. which can reinforce, rearticulate and importantly distort or undermine intended political gestures or meanings.
In terms of material to be studied, while academic literature is important, students will be encouraged to listen to and think critically about songs, albums and videos as texts which either implicitly or explicitly engage or challenge the political.
Some of the substantive themes the course will address include: the contribution of folk and soul music to the US Civil Rights Movement; the struggles of Tropicália and Afrobeat with military dictatorships in Brazil and Nigeria; black consciousness in US Hip-Hop and Rap; class and race in Punk and post-punk in the UK and Europe; the feminist politics of the Riot Grrrl movement; transnational anti-globalisation music activism in Latin America and the US; the spatial politics of Electronic Dance Music; the postcolonial iterations of European Rap and Heavy Metal in the Middle East; xi K-Pop and the political economy of hybridity.
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15 credits |
Teaching style
This programme is mainly taught through scheduled learning - a mixture of lectures, seminars and workshops. You’ll also be expected to undertake a significant amount of independent study. This includes carrying out required and additional reading, preparing topics for discussion, and producing essays or project work.
The following information gives an indication of the typical proportions of learning and teaching for each year of this programme*:
- Year 1 - 13% scheduled learning, 87% independent learning
- Year 2 - 13% scheduled learning, 87% independent learning
- Year 3 - 13% scheduled learning, 87% independent learning
How you’ll be assessed
You’ll be assessed by a variety of methods, depending on your module choices. These include coursework, examinations, group work and projects.
The following information gives an indication of how you can typically expect to be assessed on each year of this programme*:
- Year 1 - 63% coursework, 38% written exam
- Year 2 - 76% coursework, 21% written exam, 3% practical
- Year 3 - 99% coursework, 1% practical
*Please note that these are averages are based on enrolments for 2020/21. Each student’s time in teaching, learning and assessment activities will differ based on individual module choices.
Download the programme specification.
Please note that due to staff research commitments not all of these modules may be available every year.