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Bachelor of International Relations and Political Science - prior to 31 December 2020

The Bachelor of International Relations and Political Science requires three years of full-time study (or the equivalent part-time) and the honours program an additional year (or the equivalent part-time).

The course is offered by the College of Business, Government and Law.

Enrolment in the honours program may be offered to a student who meets certain academic criteria and subject to the College being able to provide appropriate resources and staff to supervise the program of study.

Admission requirements

The minimum requirements for consideration for entry to all undergraduate courses are specified in detail in the University Entry Requirements.

Course aims

This course has been designed to provide graduates with:

  • a comprehensive grounding in the core political science disciplines of international relations, politics and public policy
  • an understanding of Australia’s political system and its place within the regional and global context
  • the capacity to utilize analytical frameworks in international relations
  • the development of academic and professional competencies related to international relations, politics and public policy
  • an understanding of and commitment to professional and ethical responsibilities
  • transferable workplace-related skills and experiences

The course also aims to give students appropriate opportunities to develop the generic attributes relevant to university-level education. These generic attributes are articulated in the Flinders Graduate Qualities.

Learning outcomes

Graduates will have the capacity to:

  • demonstrate a sound understanding of the central analytical concepts within the disciplines of politics, public policy and international relations
  • employ specialist theoretical knowledge to analyze issues in international and domestic political contexts
  • engage international relations approaches to study global issues
  • communicate their analyses effectively and efficiently to different audiences using different media
  • apply their professional knowledge to the formulation of policies, the provision of policy and political advice and analysis, and the undertaking of research
  • apply their professional knowledge in relation to the changing regulatory role of government, and its interactions with business and non-government sectors in domestic or international contexts
  • interact effectively as a member of a team in order to work towards agreed shared outcomes as well as take individual responsibility and adapt confidently to changes and challenges in different work environments
  • reason critically and logically and make independent, informed, evidence-based judgments
  • demonstrate research, analytical and communication skills that are appropriate to both further study and employment in a variety of professional settings
  • communicate using various forms of professionally and culturally aware writing and oral presentation
  • perform well within graduate-entry employment positions

Program of study

To qualify for the Bachelor of International Relations and Political Science,  a student must complete 108 units with a grade of P or NGP or better in each topic, according to the program of study below. Not all topics are necessarily available in a given year.

Core - Year 1 topics

27 units comprising:

COMS1001 Academic and Professional Communication (4.5 units)1
GOVT1001 Fundamentals of Public Policy (4.5 units)
GOVT1003 Revolutionary Ideas: Political & Economic (4.5 units)
INNO1001 Innovative and Creative Thinking: Recognising Opportunities (4.5 units)
INTR1006 International Relations: An Introduction (4.5 units)
POLI1003 An Introduction to Democracy and Government (4.5 units)

Option - Year 1 topics

Plus 9 units chosen from the following:

AMST1002  America and the World: The United States in a Global Context  (4.5 units)
GOVT1002 Political Change in Australia (4.5 units)
INTR1102 Modern Asia since 1945  (4.5 units)
4.5 units of elective topics3

Core - Year 2 topics

18 units comprising:

GOVT2001 Nationalism, Populism & Democracy (4.5 units)
GOVT2002 Policy Design (4.5 units)
GOVT2003 The International Political System (4.5 units)
GOVT2004 Visions of Global Order (4.5 units)

Option - Year 2 topics

Plus 18 units chosen from the following2:

AMST2002  American Politics  (4.5 units)4
INTR2005  The Next Superpower? The Rise of China in the 21st Century  (4.5 units)
INTR2006  Debating Human Rights  (4.5 units)
INTR2100  Reimagining the Global South (4.5 units)
POLI2002  Government Business and Society  (4.5 units)
POLI2005 Politics of the European Union  (4.5 units)
POLI2011 Australian Public Policy: Applications, Issues and Dilemmas  (4.5 units)
POLI2019  Parties, Voting Behaviour and Elections in Australia  (4.5 units)
POLI2020  Australian Indigenous Politics  (4.5 units)
POLI2026  Research Methods in Political Science  (4.5 units)5
4.5 units of elective topics3

Core - Year 3 topics

18 units comprising:

GOVT3001 Critical Approaches to International Relations (4.5 units)
GOVT3002 Digital Governance, Cyber Security & the Future of Democracy (4.5 units)
GOVT3004 Capstone: Global Challenges and Political Change (4.5 units)
INTR3001  Australian Foreign Policy  (4.5 units)

Option - Year 3 topics

Plus 18 units chosen from the following:

AMST3013 The Alliance and the Re-Emergence of China  (4.5 units)
AMST3015 Internship: United States Consulate (Melbourne) (4.5 units)
AMST3016  Internship Program: Washington DC  (9 units)
GOVT3003 Debates in Public Policy
INST3003A International Studies Practicum (9 units)
INTR3006 The Rise of the Indo-Pacific  (4.5 units)
INTR3101 Global Inequality (4.5 units)
INTR3103 International Practicum (4.5 units)
INTR3103A International Practicum 2 (4.5 units)
INTR3104 Global Workplace (4.5 units)
POLI3007  South Australian Parliamentary Internship  (9 units)
POLI3068  Environmental Politics  (4.5 units)
POLI3069  The Politics of the Australian Welfare State  (4.5 units)
WORK3200  Social & Policy Studies Workplace Research Project  (4.5 units)
4.5 units of elective topics3

Honours

A student who has completed all the requirements of the Bachelor of International Relations and Political Science, or another qualification which the Dean (Education) agrees is equivalent, may be accepted as a candidate for the honours degree providing a sufficiently high standard has been achieved in fulfilling the requirements for the Bachelor level degree.

Refer to the course rule for Honours - Government and International Relations

Combined degrees

The Bachelor of International Relations and Political Science may also be studied in a combined degrees program with a:

Course Rule notes

1.     Under certain conditions the core topic COMS1001 may be replaced with an alternative topic. See COMS1001 for further details.

2.     Students opting to study a language may substitute language topics for up to 9 units of option topics at each year level. To take up this option, students should refer to the Language minors and majors listed within the Course Rule for the Bachelor of Arts

Additionally, students may substitute out the required number of option topics at each year level to complete a recognised minor or major sequence in a cognate discipline (for example, History, Sociology, Criminology, Geography, Women’s Studies, etc). To take up this option, students should refer to the minors and majors listed within the Course Rule for the Bachelor of Arts

3.     Electives may be selected from any topic offered by the University that is aligned with a student’s year of study (e.g. a level 3 topic for a student in the third year of the degree), provided entry and course requirements are met.

4.     Note that students who wish to qualify and apply for the Washington Internship and undertake either AMST3015 or AMST3016 must select AMST2002

5.     Required for students undertaking an honours entry course

Every effort has been made to ensure the information published on the Course Rule pages is accurate at the time of publication. Flinders University reserves the right to amend its curriculum without prior notice, and will update the Course Rules to reflect any amendments at the earliest opportunity.

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