Course information

Length

1 year full-time or 2 years part-time

Course overview

See the story behind what's right in front of you. The MA Global Political Economy explores the power dynamics of our changing world. You will work in small groups with world-class experts at the Political Economy Research Centre (PERC), and learn how to hold the world up to scrutiny.

Study the economy through a political lens

  • The MA Global Political Economy will allow you to examine the political, sociological, and cultural underpinning of the global economy. You will gain an in-depth understanding of how the global economy is changing, what is driving ecological breakdown, global inequality, and the challenge of building a sustainable world.
  • This programme takes a uniquely interdisciplinary and critical perspective. With modules that cut across academic disciplines – from heterodox economics to cultural studies – you will explore different perspectives about the relationship between global capitalism, global finance, the power of economic ideas, ecological breakdown, and the possibilities for a different future.
  • You will be guided through the main scholarly conceptual debates in global political economy as well as the urgent issues of our age. This is the only political economy programme in the country with a core module on the Anthropocene –this is combined with another core module on the theory and history of global capitalism.
  • In addition, you will choose from a wide variety of options from across different Goldsmiths' departments to build the bespoke degree programme that best suits your interests and ambitions.

Join a community of experts in London

  • You will work closely with world-renowned academic experts in small-group workshops and seminars, and join the community of academics, policy experts, journalists, and activists who regularly speak at Goldsmiths’ Political Economy Research Centre (PERC) events.

You’ll be taught by staff with international reputations for research in their disciplines and areas of specialisation, including among others:

  • environmental political economy
  • economic sociology
  • Marxist and heterodox political economy
  • financialisation
  • the politics of technology
  • post-colonialism
  • imperialism

Goldsmiths is based in New Cross, a vibrant area in one of the most culturally diverse cities in the world, just 10 minutes from London Bridge. This programme will also allow you to benefit from its location in a global city, home to major cultural, scientific, artistic, and political institutions, movements and NGOs that play world-leading roles in furthering political and economic knowledge, thought, and practice. You will join a series of job talks and masterclass workshops from insiders at policy Think Tanks, NGOs, and the private sector.

Make a learning community

  • We know that teaching is not a top-down process that only takes place in the seminar room. Instead, we strive to cultivate a community of learners and help you link up with programme alums, organise reading groups and film screenings, and put on student-run workshops and events on the topics that interest you.

Contact the department

If you have specific questions about the degree, contact Professor Will Davies.

What you'll study

Structure

The MA in Global Political Economy is built up of modules that must count up to 180 credits. The programme comprises:

  • Two compulsory modules (60 Credits total)
  • A compulsory dissertation (60 Credits)
  • A combination  of optional 15 and 30 credit modules from the Politics and International Relations department, or other departments upon request (60 credits).

Compulsory modules

Module title Credits
Global Capitalism: Theory and History 30 credits
The Political Economy of the Anthropocene 30 credits
Dissertation 60

Option modules

A list of optional modules will be produced annually by the Department of Politics and International Relations. Recent modules have included:

Module title Credits
Experts and Economies 15 credits
Development for the 21st Century 30 credits
Finance and Power 15 credits
Politics of Human Rights 15 credits
Memory and Justice in Post-Conflict Societies 30 credits
Decolonising Knowledge: Debates in Human Science 30 credits
Psychopolitics 15 credits
Islam, Revolution, and Empire 15 credits
Decolonising Politics: Actions and Ideas from the Global South 30 credits
Gender and Politics 15 credits
Armed Politics and Political Violence 30 credits
Race, Empire and Nation 30 credits
Technology, Mobility, and Justice 15 credits
Re-Envisioning Gender: Body, Sexuality, Power 30 credits
Counter-Mapping: The Politics of Space 30 credits
Rethinking (In)security 15 credits

In addition to these modules, you will be able to choose from a range of modules available through other Goldsmiths departments, including Sociology, Anthropology, and Media, Communications, and Cultural studies.

Download the programme specification.

Please note that due to staff research commitments not all of these modules may be available every year.

What our students say

Liam O'Reilly

I have found studying the MA Global Political Economy equal parts challenging and rewarding.

I have found studying the MA Global Political Economy equal parts challenging and rewarding. As would be expected of a course at Goldsmiths, critical thinking is at the forefront of all modules, while the pedagogical approach of the lecturers has encouraged us as students to be a part of the knowledge production process. As a course, it is well designed, with the core modules giving us a grounding in the discipline as a whole as well as taking an innovative approach to thinking about the global economy in ecological terms. The optional modules also enable us to expand our knowledge of the global political economy. The teaching has been first rate, including when it had to be taken online at very short notice, while assessments have allowed us to deepen our engagement with various topics and the feedback that I have received has been extremely detailed and fruitful for my continuing academic development.

Alex Scott

The reason Goldsmiths caught my eye in the first place was its reputation for producing genuinely innovative and transdisciplinary thinkers.

The reason Goldsmiths caught my eye in the first place was its reputation for producing genuinely innovative and transdisciplinary thinkers, who can shine a critical lens on and destabilize the groupthink status quo. Goldsmiths contains a real diversity of opinions, in terms of class, race, gender, and so on. At the postgraduate level, there’s a real sense of intersubjective development, and learning from one another’s individual backgrounds – both in terms of academic expertise, and identities and experiences.

After completing my MA at Goldsmiths, I spent a year living in Istanbul, before moving back to the UK to start a job as a Business Development Manager for a company that aggregates data and provides software for global trade. We are also creating a global Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) monitoring tool, which will provide comprehensive insights into the sustainability of individual supply chains, companies, and countries. It’s rewarding to be able to utilise my critical analytical skills for an organisation that works to make trade and finance more sustainable. In this role, I have had the chance to work on consultancy research projects for the UNDP Africa and The Commonwealth. I look forward to growing my expertise on issues in sustainable global trade.

As a Goldsmiths MA student, I cannot speak to the undergraduate experience. I can, however, say that I learned much more during my one year at Goldsmiths than I did in my prior three years at [a different London University]. Goldsmiths has an aura of dynamism, particularly in the Department of Politics and International Relations.

Entry requirements

You should have (or expect to be awarded) an undergraduate degree of at least upper second class standard in a relevant/related subject.

International qualifications

We accept a wide range of international qualifications. Find out more about the qualifications we accept from around the world.

If English isn’t your first language, you will need an IELTS score (or equivalent English language qualification) of 6.5 with a 6.5 in writing and no element lower than 6.0 to study this programme. If you need assistance with your English language, we offer a range of courses that can help prepare you for postgraduate-level study.

Fees, funding & scholarships

Annual tuition fees

These are the fees for students starting their programme in the 2024/2025 academic year.

  • Home - full-time: £9630
  • Home - part-time: £4815
  • International - full-time: £18560

If your fees are not listed here, please check our postgraduate fees guidance or contact the Fees Office, who can also advise you about how to pay your fees.

It’s not currently possible for international students to study part-time under a student visa. If you think you might be eligible to study part-time while being on another visa type, please contact our Admissions Team for more information.

If you are looking to pay your fees please see our guide to making a payment.

Additional costs

In addition to your tuition fees, you'll be responsible for any additional costs associated with your course, such as buying stationery and paying for photocopying. You can find out more about what you need to budget for on our study costs page.

There may also be specific additional costs associated with your programme. This can include things like paying for field trips or specialist materials for your assignments. Please check the programme specification for more information.

Funding opportunities

Find out more about postgraduate fees and explore funding opportunities. If you're applying for funding, you may be subject to an application deadline.

How to apply

You apply directly to Goldsmiths using our online application system. 

Before submitting your application you’ll need to have:

  • Details of your academic qualifications
  • The email address of your referee who we can request a reference from, or alternatively a copy of your academic reference
  • Copies of your educational transcripts or certificates
  • personal statement – this can either be uploaded as a Word Document or PDF, or completed online. Please see our guidance on writing a postgraduate statement

You'll be able to save your progress at any point and return to your application by logging in using your username/email and password.

When to apply

We accept applications from 1 October for students wanting to start the following September. 

We encourage you to complete your application as early as possible, even if you haven't finished your current programme of study. It's very common to be offered a place that is conditional on you achieving a particular qualification. 

Late applications will only be considered if there are spaces available.

If you're applying for funding, you may be subject to an earlier application deadline.

Selection process

Final admission to many programmes is by interview, unless you live outside the UK. Occasionally, we'll make candidates an offer of a place on the basis of their application and qualifications alone.

Find out more about applying.

Careers

Political organisations relish free-thinking graduates. It's why we focus on delivering a programme rooted in a critical perspective. By the time you leave, we want you to feel transformed so that you can go forward and bring that transformation out into the world. 

This MA is ideal for anyone pursuing a career in policy research, NGOs, advocacy, charities, international organisations, cultural and political activism, global media, as well as for further academic work. In the two years since the first MA Global Political Economy cohort graduated, our students have gone on to work in political risk insurance, sustainable finance, environmental and trade justice advocacy, and have won scholarships for PhD research.

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