Programme Overview:
- Duration:
- 1 Years / 2 Years
- Attendance:
- Full Time / Part Time
- Mode of Delivery:
- Face-to-Face
- Next Intake:
- 2024/2025 September
- Contact Name:
- Spire Graduate
- Contact Number:
- Please click 'Ask a Question'
- Fees:
- Fee Information
Graduates work with a wide variety of international private-sector employers, government agencies and Non-Governmental Organisations in roles such as: academics, policy analysts, diplomats, lawyers, journalists.
Recent graduates of UCD School of Politics & International Relations now work in: UK Foreign Office, US State Department, Irish Civil Service, University College London, and University of Melbourne.
Curricular information is subject to change
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
This programme aspires to allow students become specialists in critical thought and reflection on key issues in political theory, capable of engaging with cutting edge philosophical debates and practical applications thereof in the realm of practical politcs
The MA Political Theory is a 90-credit programme. Full time students must take three 10-credit modules in the autumn trimester, and three 10-credit modules in the spring trimester. Students must also submit a thesis worth 30-credits in the summer trimester.
Core and Option Modules for MA Political Theory
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
Core Options – Select 3:
Option Modules - Select 2:
Autumn
Spring
MA Political Theory (W277) Full Time
EU fee per year - € 7990
nonEU fee per year - € 21520
MA Political Theory (W278) Part Time
EU fee per year - € 5200
nonEU fee per year - € 10760
***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.
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.
These are the minimum entry requirements – additional criteria may be requested for some programmes
Luke Ecock
I enrolled on the MA in Political Theory to learn more about how our political institutions worked, where they failed, and what could, and should, be done better. Political theory is a study of a potential tomorrow: what should our political institutions look like? Who should they serve? I wanted to study on a programme that would point me towards the critical tools that could answer these questions, help me discover new ones, and confront today’s political challenges head on, which was precisely what the MA in Political Theory offered.
One of the reasons I chose SPIRE’s programme was its open and accessible curriculum. I do not have an educational background in politics, but the variety of modules available and the encouragement of students of all backgrounds meant that the MA in Political Theory was a hotbed of innovative ideas and diverse thinkers from all over the world. With this open-ended curriculum, I was able to put together a roster of modules that was unique to me and my interests. This meant that while my Tuesdays could be concentrated on questions concerning what constituted a just transition to renewable energy, my Thursdays might be spent investigating the probable causes behind wealth inequality.
The MA in Political Theory challenged me to leave my comfort zone and to think of how we live together and organise ourselves in new and exciting ways. The programme recognises that there is no one set of answers to the questions we have about our political institutions. Fresh ideas are always welcome, and with as academically adventurous as this cohort of peers and mentors, they were never in short supply.
The following entry routes are available:
* Courses will remain open until such time as all places have been filled, therefore early application is advised