Postgraduate Module Descriptor

POLM082: International Relations of the Middle East

This module descriptor refers to the 2016/7 academic year.

Overview

NQF Level	7
Credits	30	ECTS Value	15
Term(s) and duration	This module ran during term 1 (11 weeks), term 2 (0 weeks) and term 3 (0 weeks)
Academic staff	Dr Irene Fernandez-Molina ()
Pre-requisites	None
Co-requisites	None
Available via distance learning	No

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is a region of stark contrasts. From some perspectives it appears to have a strong cohesiveness, with numerous religious, cultural and economic relations which bind it together into a unitary whole. From other perspectives, divisive forces, internal and external, historical and contemporary, are ever-present and seem to combine to fragment the region into several areas of conflict and competition. More recently, rebellion and the re-alignment of old alliances point to a new era of both division and the need for intensive reform or conflict management. These are issues you will explore in this module.

As an MA module, it assumes that students have both a general grounding in the historical developments of the region and a general familiarity with current events of the region. It is not an introduction to International Relations theory, but an attempt to use and apply that theory to key events of the past and contemporary case studies in the region.

Module created	01/10/2007	Last revised	13/06/2016