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Politics - BA (Hons)

UCAS code L242

This is an archived page and for reference purposes only

2017

Politics and international relations is an exciting, fast-changing, broad-based discipline covering a wide range of topics, including conflict resolution, comparative politics, European integration, ethnic conflict, terrorism, the theory of international relations, political theory, and the politics of countries such as China, Japan, Russia and the USA.

2017

Overview

This is our most flexible BA degree programme. It gives you a solid foundation in the subject and allows you to tailor your own pathway according to your interests and needs. 

The programme enables you to understand and use the concepts, approaches and methods of politics to develop an understanding of their contested nature and the problematic character of inquiry in the discipline. We seek to develop your capacities to think critically about political events, ideas and institutions, while ensuring that you acquire knowledge and understanding of political analysis in a supportive and responsive learning environment.

At the end of the programme you are able to gather, organise and expand upon evidence, data and information from a variety of primary and secondary sources. You are able to identify, investigate and analyse solutions to problems, as well as developing reasoned arguments and exercising critical judgement.

Independent rankings

Politics at Kent was ranked 5th in The Guardian University Guide 2017. In the National Student Survey 2016, Politics at Kent was 8th for overall satisfaction.

For graduate prospects, Politics at Kent was ranked 6th in The Guardian University Guide 2017 and 9th in The Times Good University Guide 2017. Of Politics students who graduated in 2015, 96% were in work or further study within six months (DLHE).

Course structure

The following modules are indicative of those offered on this programme. This listing is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation.  

On most programmes, you study a combination of compulsory and optional modules. You may also be able to take ‘wild’ modules from other programmes so you can customise your programme and explore other subjects that interest you.

Teaching and assessment

Our main teaching methods are lectures, seminars, working groups, PC laboratory sessions and individual discussions with your personal tutor or module teachers. Assessment is through continuous feedback, written examinations, assessed essays and oral presentations.

Politics Open Forum

We hold a weekly extra-curricular Open Forum organised by our School research groups, where students and staff have the opportunity to discuss and debate key issues of the day that affect higher education and politics in the world today.

Programme aims

The programme aims to:

  • meet the needs of those who are seeking a career in a variety of fields (for example, the service sector) through the learning of generic intellectual, transferable and subject-specific skills
  • respond to your intellectual interest in politics and enhance your competence as a citizen in a rapidly changing political environment
  • place questions of political order and decision making at the centre of social-scientific analysis
  • ensure that you gain a knowledge and understanding of political analysis in a supportive and responsive learning environment
  • enable you to grasp political concepts and methods and understand their contested nature
  • develop your capacity to think critically about political events, ideas and institutions
  • encourage you to relate the academic study of politics to questions of public concern
  • provide a curriculum supported by scholarship and a research culture that promotes wide-ranging intellectual enquiry and debate
  • enable you to develop skills relevant to your vocational and personal development.

Learning outcomes

Knowledge and understanding

You gain knowledge and understanding of:

  • key concepts, theories and methods and how they are used to analyse political ideas, institutions and practices
  • the structure, institutions and operation of different political systems
  • the social, economic, historical and cultural contexts of political institutions and behaviour
  • the political dynamics of interaction between people, events, ideas and institutions
  • factors accounting for political change
  • the contestable nature of many concepts and different approaches to the study of politics
  • the normative and positive foundations of political ideas
  • the intersection of politics with related disciplines.

Intellectual skills

You gain intellectual skills in how to:

  • gather, organise and deploy information from a variety of primary and secondary sources
  • identify, investigate, analyse, formulate and advocate solutions to problems
  • develop reasoned arguments, synthesise relevant information and exercise critical judgement
  • reflect on and manage your own learning and seek to make use of constructive feedback to enhance your own performance and personal skills.

Subject-specific skills

You gain subject-specific skills in:

  • understanding the nature and significance of politics as a human activity
  • the application of concepts, theories and methods in the analysis of political ideas, institutions and practices
  • how to evaluate different interpretations of political issues and events
  • the ability to describe, evaluate and apply different approaches to collecting, analysing and presenting political information.

Transferable skills

You develop transferable skills in the following areas:

  • communication – how to communicate effectively in speech and writing and with the aid of IT; how to organise information clearly; how to use communication and IT for the retrieval and presentation of information, including statistical or numerical data
  • numeracy – how to make sense of statistical materials; integrate numerical and non-numerical information, and understand the limits and potentialities of arguments based on quantitative information
  • information technology – how to produce written documents; undertake online research; communicate using email; process information using databases
  • working with others – how to define and review the work of others; work co-operatively on group tasks; understand how groups function; collaborate with others and contribute to the achievement of common goals
  • improving own learning – how to explore personal strengths and weaknesses; review your working environment; develop specialist learning skills (for example in foreign languages); develop autonomy in learning; demonstrate initiative and manage your own time
  • problem solving – how to identify and define problems; explore alternative solutions and discriminate between them.

Careers

Through your study, you acquire many of the key qualities that graduate employers expect, including: the ability to plan and organise projects; to analyse and summarise complex material, and to express your opinions coherently and with sensitivity. Those students who choose to take advantage of our study abroad options find it gives them a definite advantage in the employment market.

Recent graduates have gone into areas such as teaching, publishing, practical politics, local and central government, the diplomatic service, EU administration, financial services, non-governmental organisations, journalism, international business or international organisations. Many have also gone on to postgraduate study.

Entry requirements

Home/EU students

The University will consider applications from students offering a wide range of qualifications. Students offering alternative qualifications should contact us for further advice. 

It is not possible to offer places to all students who meet this typical offer/minimum requirement.

New GCSE grades

If you’ve taken exams under the new GCSE grading system, please see our conversion table to convert your GCSE grades.

Qualification Typical offer/minimum requirement
A level

BBB

Access to HE Diploma

The University will not necessarily make conditional offers to all Access candidates but will continue to assess them on an individual basis. 

If we make you an offer, you will need to obtain/pass the overall Access to Higher Education Diploma and may also be required to obtain a proportion of the total level 3 credits and/or credits in particular subjects at merit grade or above

BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma (formerly BTEC National Diploma)

The University will consider applicants holding BTEC National Diploma and Extended National Diploma Qualifications (QCF; NQF; OCR) on a case-by-case basis. Please contact us for further advice on your individual circumstances.

International Baccalaureate

34 points overall or 15 at HL

International students

The University welcomes applications from international students. Our international recruitment team can guide you on entry requirements. See our International Student website for further information about entry requirements for your country.

If you need to increase your level of qualification ready for undergraduate study, we offer a number of International Foundation Programmes.

Meet our staff in your country

For more advise about applying to Kent, you can meet our staff at a range of international events. 

English Language Requirements

Please see our English language entry requirements web page.

Please note that if you are required to meet an English language condition, we offer a number of 'pre-sessional' courses in English for Academic Purposes. You attend these courses before starting your degree programme. 

General entry requirements

Please also see our general entry requirements.

Fees

The 2017/18 tuition fees for this programme are:

UK/EU Overseas
Full-time
Part-time

For details of when and how to pay fees and charges, please see our Student Finance Guide.

UK/EU fee paying students

The Government has announced changes to allow undergraduate tuition fees to rise in line with inflation from 2017/18.

In accordance with changes announced by the UK Government, we are increasing our 2017/18 regulated full-time tuition fees for new and returning UK/EU fee paying undergraduates from £9,000 to £9,250. The equivalent part-time fees for these courses will also rise from £4,500 to £4,625. This was subject to us satisfying the Government's Teaching Excellence Framework and the access regulator's requirements. This fee will ensure the continued provision of high-quality education.

For students continuing on this programme, fees will increase year on year by no more than RPI + 3% in each academic year of study except where regulated.* 

The University will assess your fee status as part of the application process. If you are uncertain about your fee status you may wish to seek advice from UKCISA before applying.

General additional costs

Find out more about accommodation and living costs, plus general additional costs that you may pay when studying at Kent.

Funding

University funding

Kent offers generous financial support schemes to assist eligible undergraduate students during their studies. See our funding page for more details. 

Government funding

You may be eligible for government finance to help pay for the costs of studying. See the Government's student finance website.

The Government has confirmed that EU students applying for university places in the 2017 to 2018 academic year will still have access to student funding support for the duration of their course.

Scholarships

General scholarships

Scholarships are available for excellence in academic performance, sport and music and are awarded on merit. For further information on the range of awards available and to make an application see our scholarships website.

The Kent Scholarship for Academic Excellence

At Kent we recognise, encourage and reward excellence. We have created the Kent Scholarship for Academic Excellence. The scholarship will be awarded to any applicant who achieves a minimum of AAA over three A levels, or the equivalent qualifications (including BTEC and IB) as specified on our scholarships pages.

The scholarship is also extended to those who achieve AAB at A level (or specified equivalents) where one of the subjects is either Mathematics or a Modern Foreign Language. Please review the eligibility criteria.

Full-time

Part-time

The Key Information Set (KIS) data is compiled by UNISTATS and draws from a variety of sources which includes the National Student Survey and the Higher Education Statistical Agency. The data for assessment and contact hours is compiled from the most populous modules (to the total of 120 credits for an academic session) for this particular degree programme. Depending on module selection, there may be some variation between the KIS data and an individual's experience. For further information on how the KIS data is compiled please see the UNISTATS website.

If you have any queries about a particular programme, please contact information@kent.ac.uk.