THE UNIVERSITY of EDINBURGH

DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2025/2026

Timetable information in the Course Catalogue may be subject to change.
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Degree Programme Table: Sustainable Development (Politics and International Relations) MA (Hons) - 4 Years (Full-Time) (UTMAHSDPIR1F)

Jump to: Year 3, Year 4

Year 3 Academic year: 2025/26, Starting in: August

Notes:
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
Research Design in Politics and International Relations
PLIT10106 20 credits
Cases in Sustainable Development
SSPS10014 20 credits
Sustainability Challenges: Critical Debates
SCIL10099 20 credits

Course options

Group A

Select exactly 20 credits in this group.

Politics and International Relations Years 3 and 4 Honours Electives

Select exactly 20 credits of the following courses
Notes:
Students on the Politics and International Relations pathway must take Research Design in Politics and International Relations (PLIT10106) and then select 20 credits from Politics Level 10 courses
Advanced Issues in the Making of Contemporary Africa
AFRI10003 20 credits
Contemporary Issues in International Development
AFRI10004 20 credits
Children's Rights: Policy and Practice
EDUA10204 20 credits
Muslim Societies in Southeast Asia
IMES10106 20 credits
Regional Perspectives in a Globalised Muslim World
IMES10107 20 credits
International, Transnational and Globalised Dynamics of the Muslim World
IMES10108 20 credits
Muslim Africa in Global Perspective
IMES10109 20 credits
Gulf Histories, Cultures, and Societies
IMES10112 20 credits
Africa in World Politics
PLIT10003 20 credits
War and Justice
PLIT10021 20 credits
Politics of the Middle East
PLIT10036 20 credits
Contemporary Russian Politics
PLIT10048 20 credits
Global Justice and Citizenship
PLIT10054 20 credits
Europe and International Migration
PLIT10068 20 credits
Comparing Scottish Devolution
PLIT10080 20 credits
Parliamentary Studies
PLIT10091 20 credits
Political Work
PLIT10093 20 credits
Public Policy: Agenda-Setting
PLIT10100 20 credits
British Government
PLIT10103 20 credits
Contemporary Issues in International Relations
PLIT10105 20 credits
Research Design in Politics and International Relations
PLIT10106 20 credits
Critical Theory and Cinema
PLIT10108 20 credits
International Relations of the Asia Pacific
PLIT10109 20 credits
Gender, Power and Representation
PLIT10113 20 credits
Populism: Pathology or Panacea?
PLIT10114 20 credits
The Politics of the End of Empire
PLIT10117 20 credits
The Politics of the UK Constitution
PLIT10119 20 credits
The Middle Eastern State: Histories and Theories
PLIT10124 20 credits
Law, Violence, and Humanity
PLIT10125 20 credits
Social Movements and Collective Action in the Middle East
PLIT10128 20 credits
Gender, Peace and Security
PLIT10130 20 credits
Political Behaviour: Opinions, Choices and Movements
PLIT10132 20 credits
Technology, Politics and Government
PLIT10133 20 credits
Russia's Foreign and Security Policy
PLIT10135 20 credits
Environmental Politics
PLIT10136 20 credits
Chinese Politics
PLIT10140 20 credits
The Persian Gulf in International Relations
PLIT10142 20 credits
Terrorism and Counterterrorism
PLIT10147 20 credits
War and the Politics of Victory
PLIT10149 20 credits
Politics and Public Policy
PLIT10150 20 credits
Advanced Topics in Global Security
PLIT10151 20 credits
Foundations in Global Security
PLIT10154 20 credits
Model United Nations
PLIT10155 20 credits
Eastminster: Decolonisation and State-Building in Asia
PLIT10157 20 credits
Education and Social Justice
PLIT10158 20 credits
Global and Transnational Feminisms
PLIT10159 20 credits
Utopia
PLIT10161 20 credits
Freedom and Slavery in Political Thought
PLIT10162 20 credits
Geopolitics
PLIT10163 20 credits
Anticolonial Political Thought
PLIT10164 20 credits
Corporate Lobbying and Policymaking in the Global Economy
PLIT10166 20 credits
Elite and Mass Political Behaviour
PLIT10167 20 credits
Causal Inference for Social Sciences
PLIT10168 20 credits
Designing and Implementing Experiments in Political Science
PLIT10169 20 credits
Majoritarian Nationalism, Populism and Ethnic Conflict in South Asia
PLIT10170 20 credits
South Asia: Culture, Politics and the Economy
SAST10001 20 credits
Social & Political Movements: Theory and Practice
SCIL10047 20 credits
Designing and Doing Social Research
SCIL10062 20 credits
Doing Survey Research
SCIL10063 20 credits
Globalization
SCIL10067 20 credits
Screening Social Policy
SCPL10042 20 credits
Analysing and communicating Social Policy
SCPL10045 20 credits
Contemporary Feminist Debates
SSPS10001 20 credits
Multi-Level Modelling in Social Science
SSPS10024 20 credits
Statistical Modelling
SSPS10027 20 credits
The Internet and Society
STIS10001 20 credits
Energy Policy and Sustainability
STIS10008 20 credits
Controversies in Medicine, Technology and the Environment
STIS10009 20 credits
Gender and Environment
STIS10012 20 credits
Topics in the History of Modern Science and Medicine
STIS10015 20 credits
AND

Group B

Select exactly 40 credits in this group.

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

Select exactly 40 credits from Level 9 and 10 courses in Schedules A to Q, T and W
Notes:
Choose courses from any subject area, provided that:
(a) pre-requisites for that course have been met and
(b) the course is linked to a sustainable development theme (see recommended list, Appendix 2)

Year 4 Academic year: 2025/26, Starting in: August

Notes:
Students intending to write the Dissertation in Politics and International Relations and who have not taken Research Design in Politics and International Relations (PLIT10106) in Year 3 must take it in Year 4.

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

Course options

Sustainable Development - PIR Dissertation

Select exactly 40 credits of the following courses
Dissertation in Politics and International Relations
PLIT10182 40 credits
AND

Politics and International Relations Years 3 and 4 Honours Electives

Select exactly 40 credits of the following courses
Advanced Issues in the Making of Contemporary Africa
AFRI10003 20 credits
Contemporary Issues in International Development
AFRI10004 20 credits
The Arab-Israeli Conflict: Nations in Collision
IMES10072 20 credits
Gendering the Middle East
IMES10100 20 credits
The Ottoman World: the Society, Culture and Legacy of Islam's Last Empire
IMES10101 20 credits
Muslim Societies in Southeast Asia
IMES10106 20 credits
International, Transnational and Globalised Dynamics of the Muslim World
IMES10108 20 credits
Unfolding Afghanistan in a Globalised Context
IMES10110 20 credits
Africa in World Politics
PLIT10003 20 credits
Politics of the Middle East
PLIT10036 20 credits
Contemporary Russian Politics
PLIT10048 20 credits
Global Justice and Citizenship
PLIT10054 20 credits
Europe and International Migration
PLIT10068 20 credits
Comparing Scottish Devolution
PLIT10080 20 credits
Understanding Indian Politics
PLIT10088 20 credits
Parliamentary Studies
PLIT10091 20 credits
Political Work
PLIT10093 20 credits
International Politics of Money
PLIT10095 20 credits
Democracy and its Discontents
PLIT10096 20 credits
Public participation in democracy and governance
PLIT10098 20 credits
Public Policy: Agenda-Setting
PLIT10100 20 credits
Neuropolitics
PLIT10101 20 credits
Contemporary Issues in Political Science
PLIT10104 20 credits
Contemporary Issues in International Relations
PLIT10105 20 credits
Research Design in Politics and International Relations
PLIT10106 20 credits
International Relations of the Asia Pacific
PLIT10109 20 credits
Gender, Power and Representation
PLIT10113 20 credits
Populism: Pathology or Panacea?
PLIT10114 20 credits
Climate Justice
PLIT10118 20 credits
The Politics of the UK Constitution
PLIT10119 20 credits
Strategic Studies and its Critics
PLIT10120 20 credits
Law, Violence, and Humanity
PLIT10125 20 credits
Social Movements and Collective Action in the Middle East
PLIT10128 20 credits
Gender, Peace and Security
PLIT10130 20 credits
Technology, Politics and Government
PLIT10133 20 credits
Russia's Foreign and Security Policy
PLIT10135 20 credits
Environmental Politics
PLIT10136 20 credits
Democracy and contemporary capitalism
PLIT10139 20 credits
Chinese Politics
PLIT10140 20 credits
The Persian Gulf in International Relations
PLIT10142 20 credits
Media and Protest
PLIT10143 20 credits
Europe in the World
PLIT10146 20 credits
Terrorism and Counterterrorism
PLIT10147 20 credits
Advanced Topics in Global Security
PLIT10151 20 credits
Foundations in Global Security
PLIT10154 20 credits
Model United Nations
PLIT10155 20 credits
Eastminster: Decolonisation and State-Building in Asia
PLIT10157 20 credits
Education and Social Justice
PLIT10158 20 credits
Global and Transnational Feminisms
PLIT10159 20 credits
Political Emotions
PLIT10160 20 credits
Utopia
PLIT10161 20 credits
Freedom and Slavery in Political Thought
PLIT10162 20 credits
Geopolitics
PLIT10163 20 credits
Anticolonial Political Thought
PLIT10164 20 credits
Conservatism and the Right
PLIT10165 20 credits
Corporate Lobbying and Policymaking in the Global Economy
PLIT10166 20 credits
Elite and Mass Political Behaviour
PLIT10167 20 credits
Majoritarian Nationalism, Populism and Ethnic Conflict in South Asia
PLIT10170 20 credits
Sport and Politics
PLIT10171 20 credits
The Far Right
PLIT10172 20 credits
Digital Media and Democracy
PLIT10173 20 credits
Politics and communication of environmental risks
PLIT10175 20 credits
Latin American Foreign Policies
PLIT10176 20 credits
Propaganda and Censorship in Democracies
PLIT10177 20 credits
Stability, Instability and Renewal in Democratic Systems
PLIT10178 20 credits
The Politics of Economic Expertise
PLIT10179 20 credits
The Political Psychology of Global Affairs
PLIT10180 20 credits
The Political Economy of Digital Capitalism
PLIT10183 20 credits
Migration, Borders, and Resistance
PLIT10184 20 credits
Kant and International Relations
PLIT10185 20 credits
Economic Nationalism and Business Power
PLIT10187 20 credits
Designing and Doing Social Research
SCIL10062 20 credits
Globalization
SCIL10067 20 credits
Health Systems: Strengthening and Reform
SCPL10030 20 credits
Race, Power, and Social Policy
SCPL10043 20 credits
Statistical Modelling
SSPS10027 20 credits
The Internet and Society
STIS10001 20 credits
Energy Policy and Sustainability
STIS10008 20 credits
Controversies in Medicine, Technology and the Environment
STIS10009 20 credits
Knowledge, Expertise and Policy
STIS10010 20 credits
AND

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

Select exactly 40 credits from 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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