History and Politics
History and politics is a combination that makes intuitive sense: politics without historical context is blind, and history without an understanding of power and institutions is incomplete. Together the two disciplines teach you to understand how societies have changed over time, why political systems take the forms they do, and what the past can tell us about the problems and possibilities of the present. You develop skills in reading and evaluating complex sources of evidence, constructing sustained arguments, and communicating clearly about difficult ideas.
The Open University offers this programme part-time by distance learning, which means you can study without attending a campus, working through course materials and engaging with tutors and fellow students online. This flexibility makes the degree accessible to people who are working, have caring responsibilities, or simply live somewhere without easy access to a university. The Open University's long experience in distance education means the materials are designed for independent learners, and the support structures are built to help you succeed without a traditional campus environment.
In history you will engage with a range of periods, themes, and approaches, while in politics you will cover political theory, comparative politics, and international relations, with the two disciplines regularly intersecting.
Graduates of history and politics programmes bring a combination of analytical rigour, contextual awareness, and communication skill that transfers well into many careers. Common destinations include the civil service, local government, policy research, journalism, teaching, the charitable sector, legal work, and international organisations. The part-time, distance-learning format of this programme means that many students are already working in careers they want to develop further or redirect, and the degree provides the intellectual foundation to do that.
Postgraduate study in history, politics, international relations, or public policy is also available for those who want to go further.