Programme objectives:

International Relations at the University of Cape Town tries to strike a balance between International Relations as a field of study that evolved over centuries and International Relations as it is currently studied. International Relations as traditionally studied usually meant a focus on three concerns: war, diplomacy and trade. Now described respectively as conflict or security, diplomacy and negotiation and the international political economy, these remain the central subjects we want to study. Our approach also values, however, the contributions of other sub-fields of Political Studies, especially Comparative Politics, and contributions from other disciplines. In International Relations scholarly debates, African cases and issues are crucial and, for this reason, graduates of our programme are often called upon to show their expertise in African and/or Southern African material.

Admission requirements:

Specific additional entry requirements for this specialisation are a past academic history in International Relations, Political Studies/Science or a strong academic background in a related discipline.

Courses are offered as "F" or "S" courses - depending on whether they are being held in the first or second semester.  Check the course listings for the coming year to confirm which courses are on offer and when.

List A

List B

Students may select electives from list B or other electives appropriate to their programme and research interests, subject to approval by the Convener. List B options may not replace list A options.

For descriptions of courses refer to the listings at the end of departmental entries, as well as the course listings in other, relevant faculty handbooks.