Undergraduate Module Descriptor

POC1021: Key Concepts in Politics and International Relations

This module descriptor refers to the 2019/0 academic year.

Please note that this module is only delivered on the Penryn Campus.

Module Content

Syllabus Plan

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover the following: 

  • States and Development: What are these? Why do we need them?
  • Classical and Neorealist approaches to state interaction (order and development as hegemony)
  • The English School and The Anarchical Society (statehood as civilisation)
  • Institutionalism and Liberal World Order (inc. ‘(Post-)Washington’ approaches to development)
  • The Social Construction of Anarchy and Transnational Advocacy
  • Marxism, Structuralism and Dependency
  • Poststructuralism: Inside/Outside
  • Feminism, Gender and the State
  • Postcolonialism and Development
  • Global Governance, Human Rights and Democratisation
  • Simulation Exercise 

Learning and Teaching

This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:

Scheduled Learning and Teaching ActivitiesGuided independent studyPlacement / study abroad
221280

...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:

CategoryHours of study timeDescription
Scheduled Learning & Teaching activities22The module will be taught in one term over 12 weeks through a combination of lectures (11 hours) and seminars (11 hours) through one lecture-seminar session a week of 2 hours starting week 1
Guided independent study81Reading and preparing for seminars
Guided independent study47 Private study (around 6 hours of reading and note-taking per seminar); researching and writing essay (researching, planning and writing each essay).

Online Resources

This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).

The electronic resources of the University’s library and the Internet are invaluable to students on this module. Other information portals that may prove useful include:

  • ReliefWeb
  • Human Security Gateway
  • Research4Development