International Security Studies - MA

More about this course

Security studies is no longer solely related to war, weapons of mass destruction and the role of international institutions in maintaining peace and security. Legitimate concerns now include environmental problems, mass migration, terrorism, transnational organised crime, human trafficking, cyberconflict and climate change. These issues dominate the international, regional and state agendas.

This International Security Studies MA is a platform to learn and discuss the many military and non-military problems that face us. It will provide you with a firm foundation to not only understand the structures that enhance or obstruct security, but it will open up career opportunities in a variety of fields.

Assessment

You’ll be assessed through coursework, reports, essays, presentations, plus a 12,000-word dissertation (if you complete the full master’s degree).

The full master’s degree is 180 credits, 120 credits from core and option modules and 60 credits from the dissertation.

You can gain a postgraduate diploma (PG Dip) by obtaining 120 credits from core and option modules. If you obtain 60 credits from three modules, you’ll gain a postgraduate certificate (PG Cert).

Full-time students take six taught modules, three in each semester. Part-time students take two modules per semester during the first year of study and one per semester, plus the dissertation, in the second year.

Entry requirements

You will be required to have:

• a second class degree (2:2) from a UK university or international equivalent.

All applicants must be able to demonstrate proficiency in the English language and hold a relevant qualification such as an Academic IELTS with a 6.0 overall and a 5.5 minimum in all bands. For more information about English qualifications please see our English language requirements.

Accreditation of Prior Learning

Any university-level qualifications or relevant experience you gain prior to starting university could count towards your course at London Met. Find out more about applying for Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL).

English language requirements

To study a degree at London Met, you must be able to demonstrate proficiency in the English language. If you require a Student visa you may need to provide the results of a Secure English Language Test (SELT) such as Academic IELTS. This course requires you to meet our standard requirements

If you need (or wish) to improve your English before starting your degree, the University offers a Pre-sessional Academic English course to help you build your confidence and reach the level of English you require.

Modular structure

Where this course can take you

On successful completion of this course, you could go into a range of roles within government, internationally-focused non-governmental organisations (NGOs), not-for-profit and private sectors as well as institutions such as the European Union, NATO or the United Nations.

Some example roles include political risk analysts, civil service roles, intelligence analysts, public service roles, a career within law enforcement, the armed forces and a number of private security and military companies. You could also choose to continue into a research role or further education such as a PhD.

Additional costs

Please note, in addition to the tuition fee there may be additional costs for things like equipment, materials, printing, textbooks, trips or professional body fees.

Additionally, there may be other activities that are not formally part of your course and not required to complete your course, but which you may find helpful (for example, optional field trips). The costs of these are additional to your tuition fee and the fees set out above and will be notified when the activity is being arranged.

When to apply

You are advised to apply as early as possible as applications will only be considered if there are places available on the course.