International Relations / History

International relations and history is a combination that provides both the analytical tools to understand the present structure of global politics and the historical depth to appreciate how that structure came to be. International relations offers theories and frameworks for examining how states, institutions, and non-state actors interact, why conflicts arise and how cooperation is achieved, and what the dynamics of power, interdependence, and norms look like at the global level. History grounds that analysis in specific events, processes, and turning points, showing how the world could have developed differently and how the legacies of the past continue to shape the present.

At Aberystwyth University, this three-year full-time degree blends the expertise of the Department of International Politics, one of the oldest and most distinguished in the world, with the Department of History and Welsh History, giving you access to a broad range of modules and areas of study. You will develop skills in political analysis, historical research, and written argumentation alongside a substantive knowledge of both contemporary international affairs and their historical antecedents. The entry tariff is 104 points.

This combination produces graduates who are equipped for careers in diplomacy, the foreign service, international organisations, journalism, political research, think tanks, and the civil service. The depth of historical understanding combined with political analysis is particularly valued in roles that require grasping how present situations have been shaped by past decisions and conflicts. Education, publishing, and the charity sector are further common destinations, as are postgraduate programmes in international relations, history, security studies, or international law for those who wish to develop specialist expertise or pursue an academic career.