BA (Hons)
International History
Degree Programme

Core courses

• LANG 3100 Fundamentals of English for Academic Writing and Oracy

  This course is designed to enable students to communicate effectively at university level. Students will be provided with input from a range of texts and audio from cross-cultural materials and practice fundamental research and writing and oracy skills. Students will become more familiar with the academic environment and its conventions through spoken and written production. With exposure to a range of academic texts, talks and digital skills, students will appreciate the role of academic integrity. The course gives students the opportunity to think, listen, talk and write with confidence and clarity, which will help them succeed in other courses.

• LIBA 3101 Tools for Change

  In this course, students will be introduced to a range of foundational skills to aid in their progression and success at the University and allow them to begin the process of becoming collaborative and independent learners. These skills will be introduced through investigations of social and/or environmental issues in the local area, using group work and report writing. Students will be introduced to, and use, a range of digital platforms as aids to effective communication through professional academic oral presentations and written reports using secondary sources. In addition,students will be presented with reflective writing tools through a personal development portfolio that can aid in self-improvement, particularly in an academic setting.

• LIBA 3102 Fundamentals of Research and Writing

  This course concentrates on developing the students’ ability to read and think critically, and to read, understand and analyse texts from a range of genres. How do you successfully negotiate a path through a sea of information and then write it up? Using essential information literacy skills to help with guided research, this course develops the ability to produce effective and appropriate academic writing across the curriculum.

• SOCL 3101 Fundamentals of Sociology

  This course provides the foundations of studying societies in a global context. It explores a range of sociological approaches from the micro-level of social identities and interactions to the macro-level of structures and processes. It introduces key theoretical frameworks to consider ways in which societies are maintained and changed, and how central social institutions like family, school, work, and media reinforce and challenge the status quo. Students will learn elements of social research and how sociologists investigate pressing issues, such as stigma and deviance, gender socialisation and racialisation, growing up online, and impacts of globalisation, technology, and climate change.

• HIST 3101 London Cultures

  This survey of London’s history from the 17th century to the present foregrounds social and cultural history to help students engage with the metropolis as a catalyst for creativity, highlighting its evolving communities and global interconnectedness. Focusing on the lived experience of Londoners, students will examine how they shaped their city and forged new forms of expression related to identities of gender, race, social class and sexuality. Key areas of focus may include popular entertainment, from street theatre and public executions to the West End; Londoners’ responses to plague, fire and war; the formation of cultural institutions and social movements, as well as popular protests and changing social attitudes. Through personal testimonies and cultural products, such as literature, film, fashion, art, architecture, music and material culture, students will explore how we can understand both contemporary and historical London cultures.

• ARTS 3101 Fundamentals of Visual Thinking

  This course provides a grounding in the practice and theory of visual thinking. Through theoretical frameworks such as semiotics, the course explores the changing role of images in society from a range of cultures and contexts: the arts, politics, science, sport, design and technology. Students will consider digital forms of observation and image making through visual analysis and will build on this understanding through photographic practice. The course examines questions concerning curating, circulating and making public the images we all produce. It asks: What are the values and truths hidden in images? How can the practice of image production advance our thinking around images? How, in the context of a range of disciplines, can we learn to read and communicate ideas visually?

Core courses

• HIST 4101 Atlantic Slavery and the Spectre of Capitalism

  This course examines the expansionist nature of Atlantic colonial societies and their economic impact, from early contact with African societies to the abolition of slavery in Brazil. Emphasis is placed on the Atlantic slave trade’s role in consolidating slave labour systems and shaping industrialisation. The course further explores how colonial economies drove the rise of modern capitalism through racial and economic exploitation. Beginning with the expropriation of Indigenous land and resources, it traces the development of plantation slavery and later industrial labour systems. Key topics include: resource extraction, debt, colonial economies, trade in goods and globalisation. These topics are analysed not only in economic terms, but also in their social and racial dimensions. Resistance movements and the evolving discourse on reparations will also be examined to understand their influence on economic structures today. Students will investigate the economic mechanisms behind colonisation and slavery, as well as the resistance to these systems, engaging in debates on the memory and legacy of these processes.

• HIST 4102 The Global Cold War

  This course introduces students to the major events and themes of the Cold War, demonstrating how it shaped the modern world system. In addition to providing students with a foundational understanding of the major themes and events of the Cold War, this course explores the interpretive controversies surrounding them. Students are encouraged to engage with the changing historiography of the multifaceted, multi-polar Cold War from a variety of challenging perspectives, with particular emphasis given to its global context. Students will examine the period in the light of changing historiographical interpretations and with reference to its economic, cultural, ideological, military, political and social dimensions.

• HIST 4103 World Cultural History

  This course surveys ancient cultures from the Bronze and Iron Ages, introducing students to the rich diversity of early civilisations and the parallels in their development. Students will explore how politics, religion, art, trade and beliefs influenced these civilisations, shaping their societies and cultures. Through analysis of both material and textual evidence, students will learn to engage critically with primary and secondary sources, enhancing their understanding of key historical processes, including the rise of states, the formation of empires and constructions of identity in the ancient world. The course will emphasise the study of early state formation, trade networks, and cross-cultural interactions, while fostering critical thinking and skills of historical analysis.

Academic Literacies

• LIBA 4301 Academic Research and Writing

  This course is designed to develop students’ critical research and writing skills to be effective in the academic and professional world. It focuses on principles of good scholarship and academic practice that will be required throughout university study and in a future professional work environment. Upon completion of this course, successful students will become confident in using available resources to produce well-researched writing that demonstrates critical engagement with a self-selected research topic.

Choose one Arts/Humanities course:

• ARTS 4101 History of Arts and Visual Cultures

  Throughout history and across cultures, humans have always translated and projected their own natural, social and religious environment into images and artefacts. This course aims to explore the making, display, meaning and impact of images and artefacts within specific cultural and societal settings until the end of the 19th century. This course intends to focus on the analysis of objects, artefacts, images, photography, film, advertising and fashion that still shape our knowledge of the past and, therefore, the present. Students will also explore the differing nature and characteristics of art history and visual culture, learn basic principles of visual analysis and semiotics, and discuss fundamental ideas such as those of Canon, Tradition, Perceptions and Representations. Learning in the classroom will be integrated through ad-hoc specialist guest lectures and visits to the extensive international collections of London museums, galleries and archives.

• COMM 4101 Introduction to Communications and Media

  The course provides a comprehensive introduction to the evolution of mass media and communication in a constantly changing global landscape. Starting by looking at how this has evolved from physical forms such as print and broadcast to digital forms such as different iterations of the internet, social media and the use of AI. This will incorporate both production and consumption of media within industries such as advertising, public relations, journalism, television, film, music and gaming. Important contemporary issues will be addressed alongside recent events and tools and theories to understand these issues will be applied in order to develop students’ media literacy. This will also be applied to complex topics that circumvent the media and communication world such as media ownership.

• FILM 4101 Introduction to Film Studies

  This course explores film as a medium across cultural and historical contexts. It covers film in its varied form, from the first projections in the late 19th century to online distribution today. Using examples of noteworthy films, it takes an introductory examination of the most important film theories and concepts, in the process examining how ideologies and meanings are embedded in this vibrant medium.

• LANG 4101 Korean Language and Culture 1

  This is an introductory course to Korean language and culture with an emphasis on oral communication in everyday situations and contemporary South Korean culture and society. This course introduces fundamental communication skills including the Korean alphabet and character construction, pronunciation, vocabulary and essential speech patterns. It also explores contemporary South Korean popular culture with the aim to develop a keen awareness and broad understanding of how the Korean culture relates to the language.

Social/Behavioural Sciences (Required):

• POLS 4102 Modern Political Thought

  This course provides students with an introduction to modern political thought as it developed in the Western World. It critically examines concepts at the core of political life, including freedom, equality, power, difference, and the state. The origins of political ideologies are discovered and explored through the study of major authoritarian, liberal, radical and conservative political thinkers from the 15th century onwards, such as Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Burke, Wollstonecraft, Marx, J. S. Mill, and Nietzsche.

Data/Numeracy (Required):

• DATA 4301 Data Literacy

  This course introduces the concept of data analytic cycles and their role in data analysis. Users will learn why data is important and explore how data is quantified to understand trends and patterns of data structure. They will understand types of data and include relevant statistical metrics and parameters used to describe data patterns and help to explain societal patterns and measure behaviour. Students will use primary tools for analysing and exploring data, learn about the statistical processes underpinning this analysis, and engage in wide-ranging debates about the ethical, sustainability and social implications of data analysis.

Choose one Science course:

• ENVR 4101 Earth System Science

  This course introduces the major concepts studied in Earth System Science, addressing the Earth’s origins and evolution as an active planet within the solar system. The fundamental processes and interrelationships between the atmosphere, oceans, biosphere and lithosphere are investigated to serve as a basis for understanding natural systems, particularly near or at the Earth’s surface, and the ways in which human activities impact those systems. There is mounting concern about global warming, biodiversity, energy and sustainable development, all of which, if not governed, pose a threat to the delicate balance of the Earth system. Thus the need to understand the Earth as an interrelated system is more so than ever before.

• ENVR 4102 Ecology and Conservation

  This course provides an examination of the principles of ecology and their application to conservation. Students will explore the complex relationships between organisms and their environments, including population dynamics, species interactions, ecosystems, biodiversity, and natural/anthropogenic causes of species’ decline and extinction. The course covers key topics such as habitat destruction, climate change, invasive species, and conservation strategies at local, regional, and global scales. Special emphasis is placed on understanding and addressing the threats to biodiversity and developing practical solutions for conservation. Through case studies students will gain the skills necessary to critically evaluate conservation challenges and design effective conservation strategies.

• ENVR 4103 Introduction to Environmental Science

  This course covers environmental science topics such as global warming/climate change, ozone depletion, acid rain, pollution, population issues, energy issues, land and water issues, and an introduction to environmental ethics. All topics are addressed from scientific, economic, politico-sociological and ethical standpoints. An awareness and appreciation of global, local, and personal environmental problems are developed, together with the implications of possible solutions. The concept of interrelatedness is a unifying theme throughout the course. Students are encouraged to become aware of and develop an understanding of their own environmental identity.

Core courses

• HIST 5101 History of London

  This course surveys the history of London from its Roman origins to the modern metropolis of today. Through a combination of thematic lectures and corresponding field excursions, students will examine the social, political and demographic developments that have shaped London over two millennia. In reading historical texts and visiting significant sites, students will analyse how London’s past informs the present urban landscape of this great global city. Note: Most visits require travel.

• HIST 5102 Nationalism, Communism and Fascism

  This course addresses nationalism and related conflicts in the 20th century, with particular emphasis on the roles of communism and fascism in this period. Key events are covered, particularly the World Wars and the Cold War, while engaging with the ideological currents that influenced nationalist movements. Different historical interpretations of this material are addressed, while the concepts ‘nation’ and ‘nationalism’ are explored in detail. A range of 20th-century historical contexts are used to develop related themes such as imperialism, independence, revolutions, democracy, and dissent. The course explores the historical origins of both communism and fascism in social movements, the characteristics of various regimes both within and beyond the West, and the contemporary significance of these ideas.

• HIST 5103 Visualising Enlightenment

  This course considers the European Enlightenment through the cultural, visual and material transformations of the period. It enables students to reflect on how transformations in art, design and architecture were contemporaneous with changing conceptions of the public sphere, of the global as a space, of class, gender and race. The era saw a revolution in new consumer goods, critical debates about taste, and the corrupting influence of luxury. Students will engage with key works by Diderot, Mandeville, Rousseau, Shaftesbury, Voltaire and Wollstonecraft. Further, the course addresses engagements between Europe and the wider world. The course is designed to be interactive, with class visits to London museums and galleries and relevant exhibitions. It is international in focus, whilst taking advantage of London as a location.

• POLS 5103 Capitalism and Its Critics

  This course examines the historical development of thought about capitalism. Liberal, mercantilist and radical political economy in the 18th and 19th centuries is covered, along with a range of 20th-century scholars, such as Adam Smith, Karl Marx, J. M. Keynes and Joseph Schumpeter. The object of study in the course is theories of capitalism, and addressed themes include the nature of market society, the relationship between state and market, economic growth and economic crises, market failure and government failure. These themes enable the course to engage with the relations between capitalism and other systems such as democracy, fascism, communism, racism, anti-Semitism, slavery and patriarchy.

Research Methods (Required)

• HIST 5301 Research Methods in International History

  This course introduces students to research methodology, key research methods, and research practices used in the discipline of International History, with an emphasis on historiography and on qualitative methods. Students will learn research skills that translate directly into the workplace, including in NGOs, charities, the corporate sector, and intergovernmental and development agency contexts. This course also trains students for practically undertaking academic research such as that required to complete a dissertation. Students are prepared to carry out a range of methods (i.e. textual and visual analysis, interviews, focus groups, and ethnography) and learn principles of data collection and analysis. Writing research proposals and literature reviews, and pitching research are both taught and assessed, and students are introduced to widely used and newer creative and participatory modes of research.

Service-Learning (Required)

• LIBA 5301 Service Learning: Global Citizenship and Migration

  This course helps students make a real difference in the world. Service Learning as experiential learning combines community service with academic study. This course will apply service-learning to the theoretical, political and sociological conceptions of citizenship and their limitations. Students will work on live projects and challenges to address real-world issues and critically reflect on their role as agents in communities and as legal and social citizens. Skills will be gained from working on a project with charities, NGOs, or non-profit organisations on citizenship concepts which will enable the student to critically reflect through service-learning. This course builds professional, entrepreneurial and personal skills to engage with a variety of stakeholders. This course is underpinned by JEDI approaches to justice, equality, diversity and inclusion across the global community.

Plus two Level 5 electives from across the curriculum. These can be selected to support a minor in an area outside of your subject discipline.

Core courses

• HIST 6101 Cultures of Empire

  This course examines the causes and consequences of empires from a broad range of comparative and international perspectives, including the economic, political, social, and (by way of postcolonial theory) the cultural. It investigates why empires are significant, who are the empire-makers, how and why empires rise and fall, whether they are good or bad, how they are defined, and how they can be resisted. Where possible the course will make use of some of the excellent museums and collections within London.

• HIST 6102 Warfare, Gender and Society

  Narratives about war have traditionally been centred on men’s roles, while women have often been cast as passive bystanders or victims. This course will challenge that view by exploring the active participation of women in wars, decolonisation, civil conflicts, and terrorist campaigns, both as combatants and civilian supporters. This course explores the changing nature and history of warfare from the Modern period to the beginning of the twenty-first century, focusing on the social, cultural, and gendered dimensions of conflict. A key premise of the course is that warfare reflects the societies and cultures that wage it. This idea will be tested through diverse examples of warfare across different historical periods, geographic regions, and social contexts, investigating how war has shaped—and been shaped by—societal structures, technology, gender relations, and political developments.

• INTR 6101 Diplomatic Studies

  This course offers an overview of the history and practice of contemporary diplomacy. It begins with analysis of what a modern diplomat currently does, both at home and abroad, set within the context of diplomatic history and theory. The normal practice of diplomacy and the various techniques of international negotiation will be addressed by using both historical and contemporary examples. It will familiarise students with the activities of a modern diplomat within a wider historical and theoretical context.

• HIST 6110 Senior Dissertation in International History

  Senior Dissertation in International History is the capstone course of the major. Students produce a dissertation of between 6,000 to 8,000 words in length, on a topic relevant to the discipline. Students are guided through the various stages of the dissertation by a supervisor. Students orally present their research according to conference standards.

Choose ONE of the following:

• HIST 6401 Internship in International History

  The Internship in International History is a student work placement that aims to provide students with the experience of working in a discipline-related industry. It provides students with an experiential learning opportunity in which to develop intellectual, professional, and personal skills and prepares students to function effectively in culturally diverse working environments across a range of career paths and employment sectors. Internships are supervised by faculty and each student will also complete a series of learning activities throughout the internship. These activities are designed to help students reflect on personal development and key skills attained, the benefits gained from the internship experience, and to shape and determine goals for future career pathways.

OR any TWO Major Options below:

Major Options

• ARTS 6101 Contemporary Debates in Arts and Visual Cultures

  This course charts the developments, contexts, practices and enactments of global arts and visual cultures in the 21st century. Students will be encouraged to discuss, analyse and interpret visual forms and objects from around the world within their rightful geo-political and socio-economic contexts. With the aid of an array of established and emerging methodologies, they will also explore the ways in which contemporary artistic and visual cultural practices intersect with wider theoretical frameworks such as those of the politics of representation, indigenous rights, environmental activism and regimes of surveillance. The course will entail regular visits to a range of local large and smaller cultural venues and commercial art-related organisations.

• COMM 6101 Contemporary Issues in Global Media

  This course examines current media issues in relation to cultural, social, economic, and political aspects of global society. It views media as a key player in public culture and democracy, exploring how its role as vital source of entertainment and information is impacted by an evolving technological landscape, and by new challenges posed, such as sustainability and promotion of equality, inclusivity, and diversity, within the global village. It looks at media practices and professionals, considering the impact of celebrity politics and influencers on the media environment, while also addressing the relationship between the public, government, and media institutions, as it discusses ethics, law, and regulation. Ultimately, it seeks to consider the place of media in achieving a sustainable and just world.

• FILM 6103 International Cinema

  This course examines global cinema while considering the extent to which cultural, political, and historical contexts have influenced the form and grammar of film during the last century. The overall focus of the course is broad, ranging across more than eight decades and many different countries; it aims to study a variety of approaches to and theories of narrative cinema. During the semester, many international film “movements” are covered, which can include the French New Wave, the Chinese Sixth Generation, and Italian Neo-Realism. In addition, the representations of non-Western cultures from an “insider” and a “Hollywood” perspective are compared.

• INTR 6102 Rethinking International Relations

  This course provides students with a set of conceptual and analytical tools in order to acquire a deep and nuanced understanding of the discipline of International Relations (IR) and global politics. It does so by examining IR theories and approaches to international politics, scrutinising and problematising their historic foundations, and exploring contemporary challenges and critiques. The course begins by introducing philosophical debates regarding the purpose of theorising and the importance of understanding ontological and epistemological assumptions and examines the difference between and implications of ‘understanding’ and ‘explaining’ in international relations theory. The course then critically evaluates grand and middle-range theories of IR as well as approaches focused on everyday global politics. Throughout, the course scrutinises challenges presented by a multitude of multidisciplinary interventions into IR including post-positivist critiques and approaches centralising gender and colonialism as key variables in global politics.

• POLS 6101 Policy-Making in a Globalised World

  This course investigates the process of policymaking in modern states. It explores the role of ideas and institutions in policymaking, how in the new globalised world governments “import” and “borrow” policy ideas from each other, while analysing how the different actors (i.e. states, bureaucrats, think-tanks, policy-networks, lobby groups, global civil society, and citizens) participate and influence the policy-making process. Through active learning activities (such as mapping the agenda-setting of ideas, identifying policy networks, advising a President) students will understand the complexities of policy-making and the challenges that the modern state faces in the era of globalisation.

• POLS 6102 Sustainable Development

  This course introduces students to the process of development project evaluation, in the context of the theory and practice of sustainable development. The course enables students to focus on the political, social and economic complexity of managing a specific sustainable development in the developing world. Methods of evaluation are explored, decided upon and utilised in the production of a Project Evaluation Document (PED) for a sustainable development project of choice. Issues such as livelihoods, gender, environmental impact, measurement, participation and consultation processes are raised, though the context varies across urban/rural and blue-green-brown issues depending on the specific project chosen for evaluation.

Plus one elective of your choice, which may support a minor.