The ‘New Programme Spotlight Series’ will be looking at all of our exciting new programmes, launching in October 2021. This blog will focus on the new MSc Diplomacy, Politics and Trade programme.

The MSc Diplomacy, Politics and Trade programme is part of our Institute for Diplomacy and International Governance and will welcome its first ever cohort in October 2021.

We have had the opportunity to speak with Director of the Institute for Diplomacy and International Governance, Professor Helen Drake, who has shared her thoughts on this new programme launch. Here what Helen had to say below.

Why was this programme developed?

Diplomacy, Politics and Trade are matters never far from the world’s headlines, and we developed this new programme to invite students to join the dots.  We will explore the consequences of political choices for all kinds of trade; scrutinise the balance between politics, diplomacy and trade in response to crisis; examine the impact of scandal and sleaze in sports and many other areas of public life; and critique the political trade in truth and lies. We want students to develop the skills, knowledge and understanding needed to operate professionally across cultures as well as time zones.  

Who is this programme designed for?

This programme is for students from many academic and professional backgrounds.  Graduates of degrees in politics, business, management, law, economics, history, anthropology and international relations, amongst others, can come and discover how their specialist knowledge fits into the bigger context of world affairs, and develop the tools to further their knowledge and understanding. Students with professional experience will bring their expertise to the classroom while learning new codes for developing (or changing ) their careers. 

What are the graduate career destinations for this programme?

This programme prepares its graduates for the many professional roles and careers where they will need a grasp of the complexity of their operating environment: in government service; international government and non-governmental organisations and institutions; public and private enterprise from multinational to local levels; policy-making and research consultancies and think-tanks; grass-roots movements and social enterprises.  

What are you most looking forward to in teaching this programme?

This is a chance for me and my colleagues to take students with us behind the headlines, to really get a grip on how politics and diplomacy shape  operating environments of all kinds.  I feel passionately about the need to understand what makes the world go round, and politics and diplomacy are absolutely part and parcel of this.  Once we join the dots between politics, diplomacy and trade we can, together with the students, begin to understand the news, and decide how we want to participate in the world we work and live in. 

We would like to say a big thank you to Professor Helen Drake for providing more useful information about this new programme. If you would like to find out more about the Diplomacy, Politics and Trade programme, please visit this web page.

To find out more about how to apply for a masters programme, please visit this web page.

You can find out more about the Institute for Diplomacy and International Governance here.