History and Politics

History and politics is a pairing that goes to the heart of how the modern world was made. Politics without history risks becoming ahistorical, treating current institutional arrangements and ideologies as inevitable rather than as contingent outcomes of past struggles and choices. History without political analysis risks missing the structures of power, the mechanisms of decision-making, and the dynamics of conflict and cooperation that drive so much of what happens in the human record.

Together they produce a graduate who can understand both the roots of contemporary issues and the political processes through which societies respond to them.

At Loughborough University, this three-year full-time degree gives you equal exposure to both disciplines, making it well suited to students who genuinely want depth in each rather than treating one as a supplement to the other. You will study historical and modern political roots of contemporary issues, developing the ability to trace how today's challenges in areas such as democracy, inequality, international relations, and climate change emerged from and are shaped by the past. Loughborough's reputation for strong graduate outcomes and its engagement with real-world issues makes it a stimulating context for this kind of integrated study.

A typical entry tariff of 136 points applies.

You will develop skills in historical research, political analysis, argumentation, the interpretation of primary and secondary sources, and clear written and verbal communication. Both disciplines develop the ability to engage seriously with complexity, to evaluate competing perspectives, and to construct well-reasoned positions, and these are capacities valued across many professional fields.

Graduates go on to careers in the civil service, journalism, teaching, public affairs, think tanks, international organisations, law, politics, policy research, and the voluntary sector. Postgraduate study in history, politics, public policy, or international relations is a natural route for those who wish to specialise or pursue research.