Full Time option suitable for:

Domestic(EEA) applicants: Yes
International (Non EEA) applicants currently residing outside of the EEA Region. Yes

Part Time option suitable for:

Domestic(EEA) applicants: Yes
International (Non EEA) applicants currently residing outside of the EEA Region. No

• develop oral presentation skills
• develop student's research and professional development skills
• develop students ability to understand power in an anarchic world
• enhance group work skills
• enhance students' understanding of international organisations
• equip students with the skills necessary to understand and critically assess issues in international politics and security

View All Modules Here

The MA International Relations is a 90-credit programme. Full-time students must take a total of 60 credits between core and optional taught modules. Full time students must take three 10-credit modules in the first trimester, and three 10-credit modules in the second trimester. Students must also submit a thesis worth 30-credits or pursue an Internship instead during the summer trimester.

SPIRe part time programmes run for 2 years and students normally do 1 -2 modules per semester. The final 30-credit module is completed during the second year of the programme. PT students should complete the research design module in year 2.

Please note that our part-time programmes run during the day and are not timetabled in the evenings or at weekends.

Core and Option Modules for MA International Relations

These are the current modules for 2023/24 but are subject to change. Each of the following modules carries 10 credits unless otherwise specified. 

Core Modules

• POL40050 Theories of International Relations (Autumn) 
• POL42330 Research Design (Autumn)

Core Options Choose minimum of 1

• POL42440 Political Economy of Security (Spring)
• POL42060 International Security (Spring)

Option Modules

Autumn

• POL40140 Theories of Global Justice
• ​POL40160 Comparative Public Policy
• POL40540 Comparative European Politics
• POL40950 Introduction to Statistics
• POL41020 Politics of Human Rights
• POL41510 Politics and Change in the Middle East and North Africa
• POL41650 The Global Political Economy of Europe
• POL41870 Political Economy of Institutions and Comparative Development
• POL41980 Peace & Conflict Studies
• POL42040 Gender & the Political System
• POL42070 Politics of (mis-)information

Spring

• POL40100 Politics of Development
• ​POL40370 International Political Economy
• POL40610 EU Foreign, Security, and Defence Policy
• POL40970 Politics of European Governance
• POL41030 Theory of Human Rights
• POL41640 Qualitative Research Methods for Political Science
• POL41720 Gender, Peace, and Security
• POL41780 The Politics of Inequality
• POL41860 Governance, Politics and Development
• POL42050 Quantitative Text Analysis
• POL42060 International Security
• POL42340 Programming for Social Scientists
• POL42440 Political Economy of Security
• POL42510 Party Organisation in the 21st Century

Summer Trimester Core Module

• POL42300 SPIRe Internship (30 credits) or
• POL42310 Thesis (30 credits)

MA International Relations (W235) Full Time
EU          fee per year - € 10100
nonEU    fee per year - € 22600

MA International Relations (W236) Part Time
EU          fee per year - € 6420
nonEU    fee per year - € 11300

***Fees are subject to change

Tuition fee information is available on the UCD Fees website. Please note that UCD offers a number of graduate scholarships for full-time, self-funding international students, holding an offer of a place on a UCD graduate degree programme. For further information please see International Scholarships.

SPIRe operates a Graduate Scholarship programme, which opens on May 1st. To access details, see SPIRe Graduate Scholarship Scheme. Please note that not all programmes are eligible for this Scholarship, please check the T&C's carefully when they become available.

The UCD School of Politics and International Relations (SPIRe) has established an internship programme for graduate students undertaking MA programmes in Politics, International Relations, International Political Economy, International Development, Peace and Conflict, MEconSc European Public Affairs and Law, MSc Human Rights and MSc Politics and Data Science. You can either opt for a Masters thesis, or an internship of at least 480 hours, typically undertaken from June to August. 

See this page for more information 

• A primary degree with at least Second Class Honours Grade 1 (2H1) in a relevant subject such as political science, international relations, social science, sociology, history, geography, economics, global studies, public policy, development studies, EU studies, law. 2H1 is equivalent to 60 per cent, B minus or 3.08 GPA - in American system: B or 3.00 GPA.

• Your application will be considered on its individual merits and relevant professional experience will also be taken into account.
• English language requirements: applicants whose first language is not English should have met TOEFL, IELTs, or computer-based TOEFL requirements (600, 6.5, or 250 respectively), or the Cambridge English Test (Certificate in Advanced English at a minimum of Grade B, or Certificate of Proficiency in English at Grade C). Applicants who obtained a previous degree from an English-speaking university may be exempted from this requirement. Click here for further info. 
• Students meeting the programme’s academic entry requirements but not the  English language requirements, may enter the programme upon  successful completion of UCD’s Pre-Sessional or International Pre-Master’s Pathway programmes. Please see the following link for further information http://www.ucd.ie/alc/programmes/pathways/ 
• These are the minimum entry requirements – additional criteria may be requested for some programmes

Graduate Profile
Sandra Perron, Canada,
President of Imagine Foundation

Completing the MSc in International Relations at UCD was one of the best decisions of my life. Interacting with high calibre students from around the world, I quickly realised how little I knew about international politics and relations, and how my cultural paradigms, mostly based on limited knowledge, have influenced my decision making in the past. Now, whether it is in my role as a Global Purchasing Director, President of a non-profit organisation or a simple citizen of my country, my studies at UCD have enabled me to better understand the world I live in, and consider more profoundly such elements as human rights, global climate change, or international security in my decision making.

• MSc International Relations FT
• MA Politics and International Relations (PT)

The following entry routes are available:

* Courses will remain open until such time as all places have been filled, therefore early application is advised

A comphrensive FAQ can be found here