THE UNIVERSITY of EDINBURGH

DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2024/2025

Timetable information in the Course Catalogue may be subject to change.

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DRPS : DPTs :  School of Social and Political Science DPTs
Jump to: Year 1, Year 2, Year 3, Year 4

Year 1 Academic year: 2024/25, Starting in: September

Compulsory courses

You must take these courses

Course options

Sustainable Development Pathway courses

Select exactly 40 credits of the following courses
Notes:
Geography pathway students must select Human Geography and Physical Geography.

Politics and International Relations pathway students must select exactly 40 credits - this must be PIR1A, and either PIR1B or Political Thinkers.

Science, Technology and Innovation Studies pathway students must select 40 credits - this must be Investigating Science in Society and either Technology in Society or History of Science 1.

Social Anthropology pathway students must select Social Anthropology 1A: The Life Course and Social Anthropology 1B: Anthropology Matters.

Sociology pathway students must select Sociology 1A: The Sociological Imagination Individuals and Society and Sociology 1B: The Sociological Imagination Private Troubles Public Problems

Courses selected as above will serve as your MAIN SUBJECT PATHWAY.
AND

Level 8 courses in Schedules A-Q, T, W and Y

Select exactly 40 credits from Level 8 courses in Schedules A-Q, T, W and Y

Year 2 Academic year: 2024/25, Starting in: August

Notes:
Entry to third year normally requires successful completion of the first two years of the curriculum. Students must also normally achieve 50% or more in their first attempt in their second year sustainable development courses and in all required second year courses for their main subject area.

Students who are planning on spending their third year studying abroad must successfully progress to honours before they can proceed on their Junior Year Abroad (JYA).

Compulsory courses

You must take these courses

Course options

Group A

Select exactly 80 credits in this group.

Courses from School(s) J - 2ND YEAR Sustainable Development MA (Hons) - Level(s) 8

Select between 40 and 60 credits of the following courses
Notes:
Please choose 40 credits from the MAIN SUBJECT PATHWAY that you focused your studies on during year 1, unless you are on the GEOGRAPHY PATHWAY in which case you will choose 60 Geography credits, or unless you are on the STIS PATHWAY in which case you will have one pathway course.

Geography pathway students choose 1 per semester from: Critical Approaches to Landscapes, Power and Society (Sem 1) OR Global Change (Sem 1) AND Geographies of Economies, Environment and Politics (Sem 2) OR Geomorphology (Sem 2). You must also select Fundamental Methods in Geography.

Politics and International Relations pathway students must choose two of: Comparative Politics in a Globalized World (Sem 1), Theories of IR (Sem 1), and Introduction to Political Data Analysis (Sem 2), although you can take all three if you wish. Students who wish to focus on Politics courses and do a more Politics-focused dissertation should take Comparative Politics in a Globalized World, and those who wish to focus on IR should take Theories of IR.

Science, Technology and Innovation Studies pathway students must select Environmentalism: Past and Present, and will choose 60 elective credits.

Social Anthropology pathway students must select Social Anthropology 2: Key Concepts AND Ethnography: Theory and Practice.

Sociology pathway students must select Sociology 2a: Thinking Sociologically AND Sociology 2b: Researching Social Life.
AND

Level 7 and 8 courses in Schedules A-Q, T, W and Y

Select between 20 and 40 credits from Level 7 and 8 courses in Schedules A-Q, T, W and Y

Year 3 Academic year: 2024/25, Starting in: August

Notes:
Entry to third year normally requires successful completion of the first two years of the curriculum. Students must also normally achieve 50% or more in their first attempt in their second year sustainable development courses and in all required second year courses for their main subject area.

Students who are planning on spending their third year studying abroad must successfully progress to honours before they can proceed on their Junior Year Abroad (JYA).

For Year 3, students take 40 compulsory credits, plus 40 credits from your Pathway courses (shown in Group A below), plus 40 elective Honours credits (shown in Group B below).

Compulsory courses

You must take these courses

Course options

Group A

Select exactly 40 credits in this group.

3rd Year Sustainable Development - Geography Pathway

Select exactly 40 credits of the following courses
Notes:
Geography pathway students wishing to do a dissertation related to Human Geography should choose Key Methods in Human Geography (GEGR09020, Sem 2) and Fundamentals of Research Design (GEGR10133, Sem 2).

If you want to do a physical geography orientated dissertation then choose Key Methods in Physical Geography (Sem 1) and Research Design in Physical Geography (Sem 2) instead.
OR

Politics and International Relations Years 3 and 4 Honours Electives

Select exactly 40 credits of the following courses
Notes:
For students on the POLITICS AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS pathway, the following course is compulsory: Research Design in Politics and International Relations (PLIT10106).
OR

Social Anthropology Level 10 courses

Select exactly 40 credits from Social Anthropology Level 10 courses
Notes:
For students on the SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY pathway, the following non-credit bearing course is compulsory: Imagining Anthropological Research (SCAN10037).

Please note the course SCAN10036 Dissertation (MA Social Anthropology) is only available in Year 4, and should not be selected in Year 3.
OR

Sociology Year 3 - Sustainable Development

Select exactly 40 credits of the following courses
Notes:
In year 3 you must take at least two of the following courses: Social Theory; Designing and Doing Social Research; Doing Survey Research.

For students on the SOCIOLOGY pathway, the following non-credit bearing course is compulsory: Sociology Project Preparation Course (SCIL10091).
OR

Sustainable Development Pathway - Science, Technology and Innovation

Select exactly 40 credits of the following courses
Notes:
For students on the Science, Technology and Innovation (STIS) pathway, the course STIS10014 'Research Design for Science, Technology and Innovation Studies' is compulsory.
AND

Group B

Select exactly 40 credits in this group.

Level 9 and 10 courses in Schedules A to Q, T and W

Notes:
Courses must be relevant for Sustainable Development. It is the student's responsibility to ensure that they have met the pre-requisites for any courses they wish to take.

For students on the Geography pathway, we advise students to take a further 20 credits of Level 10 options from Geography (Schedule N).

Year 4 Academic year: 2024/25, Starting in: August

Notes:
For Year 4, students take the 40-credit Dissertation relevant to your Sustainable Development Pathway (shown in Group A below), plus 40 credits from your Pathway Honours elective courses (shown in Group B below), plus 40 elective Honours credits (shown in Group C below).

There are no compulsory courses in this year of this programme.

Course options

Group A

Select exactly 40 credits in this group.

Sustainable Development Pathway Dissertations

Select exactly 40 credits of the following courses
Notes:
Please select the Dissertation below relevant to your Sustainable Development Pathway.
AND

Group B

Select exactly 40 credits in this group.

Politics and International Relations Years 3 and 4 Honours Electives

Select exactly 40 credits of the following courses
Notes:
For students on the POLITICS AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS pathway should select exactly 40 credits of the following courses.
OR

Sociology Level 10 courses

Select exactly 40 credits from Sociology Level 10 courses
Notes:
Select exactly 40 credits of Sociology and/or Science, Technology and Innovation Studies honours level courses.

Please note SCIL10091 Sociology Project Preparation Course must be taken in Year 3 (please do not select in Year 4).
OR

Social Anthropology Level 10 courses

Select exactly 40 credits from Social Anthropology Level 10 courses
OR

Geography Level 10 courses

Select exactly 40 credits from Geography Level 10 courses
AND

Group C

Select exactly 40 credits in this group.

Level 9 and 10 courses in Schedules A to Q, T and W

Notes:
Courses must be relevant for Sustainable Development. See Appendix 2 of the Sustainable Development handbook for a list of suggested courses.

Students can choose an additional Sustainable Development course in fourth year, in place of a Pathway course, if relevant for their dissertation or for other special reason. To do so, they need to contact the Degree Programme Director for permission.

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