The different strands of a politics degree

University courses Politics
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A politics degree often includes various strands or subfields, allowing students to specialize or gain broad knowledge in political science. The exact strands may vary by university, but here are some common ones:

Political Theory

  • Key Focus: Philosophical underpinnings of politics.
  • Topics: Theories of democracy, justice, liberty, rights, and the role of the state.
  • Thinkers: Plato, Aristotle, Hobbes, Rousseau, Marx, Rawls.

Comparative Politics

  • Key Focus: Comparison of political systems, institutions, and processes across countries.
  • Topics: Electoral systems, governance, party systems, political cultures, revolutions.

International Relations (IR)

  • Key Focus: Relationships between countries and international organisations.
  • Topics: Diplomacy, war, international law, global governance, international trade, and security.

Public Policy

  • Key Focus: How governments develop and implement policies.
  • Topics: Health policy, education policy, welfare, environmental policies, public administration.

Political Economy

  • Key Focus: Interaction between politics and economics.
  • Topics: Role of government in the economy, global markets, trade policies, inequality, capitalism vs. socialism.

Political Institutions

  • Key Focus: The structure and functioning of government bodies.
  • Topics: Legislatures, executives, courts, political parties, and bureaucracies.

International Political Economy (IPE)

  • Key Focus: Global economic relations and the influence of politics on the economy.
  • Topics: Globalization, trade agreements, international financial institutions (e.g., IMF, World Bank), development.

Security Studies

  • Key Focus: Issues related to national and international security.
  • Topics: Military conflicts, terrorism, cyber threats, defence policy, and security alliances (e.g., NATO).

Environmental Politics

  • Key Focus: Political issues related to the environment and sustainability.
  • Topics: Climate change policy, environmental movements, international environmental agreements.

Political Psychology

  • Key Focus: How psychological factors affect political behaviour and decision-making.
  • Topics: Voter behaviour, political leadership, identity politics, political ideologies.

Research Methods

  • Key Focus: Methodological approaches to studying politics.
  • Topics: Qualitative and quantitative research methods, data analysis, case studies, statistical modelling.

Many politics programs will allow students to focus on one or more of these strands based on their interests, combining both theoretical and practical approaches to understanding political systems and dynamics.

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Thank you for all these detailed instructions. I am quite interested in political psychology as this it actually not something psychology students would learn about. I am really curious does psychology play an important role in voting behaviors? Do you think is either psychology or propaganda (media) actually leave a deeper impact on voters?

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I think its fair to say Psychology has a big impact, peoples’ moral views and how they view the big issues in Politics has a big impact. We saw this in the 2024 UK General Election with many voters ditching the mainstream parties for smaller parties and independent candidates. Media continues to have a large impact with how they portray and emphasise key issues.

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Wow, that breakdown of the different strands in a politics degree is really interesting! I love how there’s such a variety of topics, from political theory to environmental politics. It seems like there’s so much to explore and specialise in! If you had to pick just one of these strands to focus on, which one do you think would be the most impactful in today’s world, and why?

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Personally, I like security studies as it encompasses some of the world’s biggest issues from energy security to food security to security from conflict. It is also one of those subjective terms which means different things to different people based on their backgrounds

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I like how you’ve included topics and key thinkers in each area—it really shows how interconnected politics is with other disciplines like economics, psychology, and even environmental science. It’s also useful to know that students can tailor their degree based on their interests and career goals. Politics seems like such a versatile field!

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