The BA in Politics seeks to give students an excellent grounding in the discipline of Politics with a particular focus on Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Students will be introduced to the core subjects of political theory, comparative politics, political economy, and international relations, which are then applied to the analysis of real world political situations. Through a mix of disciplinary and regional training, students will develop a critical understanding of contemporary geopolitics, transnational social movements, as well as political developments and governance structures in particular countries.

While anchored in the academic field of political science, the programme employs interdisciplinary perspectives on pressing issues of the modern world and offers a wide variety of thematic modules on the politics of culture, nationalism, race, gender, migration, institutions, environmental justice, conflict and war. This range of options helps students to gain a critical understanding of political dynamics in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, while acquiring practical analytical and communications skills.

Venue: Russell Square: College Buildings

Start of programme: September

Mode of Attendance: Full-time

May be combined with:

• Arabic+, LT26 BA/PLOA
• Chinese+, LT21 BA/POLCH
• Development Studies, LL92 BA/POLDVS
• Economics, LL12 BA/POLEC
• East Asian Studies
• History, LV21 BA/POLH
• International Relations
• Japanese, LT22 BA/POLJ
• Korean+, LTFL BA/POLKO
• Languages and Cultures
• Law, LM21 BA/POLLW
• Linguistics
• Social Anthropology, LL62 BA/SAPOL

Key Information Set data

Click on a combined programme to load KIS data

Year 1

Core Modules

Students will take the following core module (30 credits total):

Compulsory Module

Students will take ONE of the following compulsory modules:

Second Subject

Students will take modules to the value of 60 credits from their second subject.

Year 2

Credits must be taken in the following combination; 

• 30 credits from Disciplinary options 
• 30 credits from Regional options 
• 60 credits from second subject 

Disciplinary Modules

Regional Modules

Second Subject

Students will take modules to the value of 60 credits from the second subject.

Year 3

Credits must be taken in the following combination;

• A minimum of 30 credits from List A
• Remaining 60 credits can be taken from List A, B, OR open options (maximum of 30 credits from the Open Options list) Language Open Options | Non-language Open Options Non-language Open Options).

List A

List B

Second Subject

Students will take a minimum of 30 credits from the second subject.

Programme Specification

• BA Politics and... Programme Specification 2021/22 (pdf; 856kb)

Important notice

Year abroad

Teaching & Learning

Most of our modules are taught through a combination of lectures and tutorials. Lectures (50 minutes) provide broad overviews of the topic. They are accompanied by tutorials (50 minutes) that give students the opportunity to discuss readings and key issues in small groups. In the final year, modules may also take the form of two-hour seminars allowing for deeper engagement with more specialised topics. The programme provides methodological and skills training throughout and allows final year students to undertake an independent research project, such as a dissertation, supervised by an academic member of staff.

By the end of the programme students will have acquired a range of transferable skills. This includes the ability to collect and synthesise information, read and evaluate complex materials, assess the evidence for a range of different positions, construct arguments, exercise independence of judgement and communicate effectively both orally and in writing.

Students also benefit from the vibrant learning environment SOAS provides more broadly. The SOAS Library is one of the world's most important academic libraries for the study of Africa, Asia and the Middle East, attracting scholars from all over the world. Moreover, every year there is a lively events programme that attracts renowned speakers from around the world, allowing students to engage with cutting edge debates on contemporary politics.