Programme Specifications: Bsc International Relations and History

Programme Specifications: BSc International Relations and History

1. Awarding Body / LSE
2. Details of accreditation by a professional/statutory body
(e.g. ESRC; BPS etc) / N/A
3. Name of final award / BSc
4. Programme Title / International Relations and History
5. Duration of the Course / Three years full-time
6. Based in the Department/Institute: / Department of International History & the
Department of International Relations
7. Relevant QAA subject benchmark statements / Politics and International Relations (2007) and History (2007)
8. UCAS Code / VL12 BSc/IRHis
9. First written/Last amended / October 2012
10. The programme aims to:

• provide high quality education in History and International Relations in the wider context of the social sciences;
• enable students who go directly into non-academic careers (e.g. government, the voluntary sector, international organisations, business and media) to become articulate, clear-thinking individuals, possessing a broad international perspective on the past and able to critically analyse complex bodies of material within contemporary international relations;
• prepare students for professional and managerial careers, in areas such as politics, journalism, public administration, the Foreign Service, industry, commerce and the legal profession, as well as in research, teaching, libraries and archives;
• to provide intellectual challenge to academically able students by engaging with difficult and demanding material concerning the nature of contemporary international relations;
• to provide an international relations framework to assist concerned citizens to think about issues which will be of increasing importance in the 21st century.

11. Programme outcomes: knowledge and understanding; skills and other attributes
Skills:-

• learn how to analyse complex evidence from a variety of sources;

Outcomes:-

• the development of analytical powers and the ability to present findings effectively;
• knowledge and understanding of the fundamental aspects of historical analysis;
• the ability to integrate arguments and evidence from different domains in a logical manner in order to evaluate an argument critically and to argue cogently and effectively for and against a position;
• the ability to work independently, planning and producing lucid, coherent, analytical written papers and oral presentations.
  Information relating to careers

12. Teaching, learning and assessment strategies to enable outcomes to be achieved and demonstrated
Students are required to attend a combination of weekly lectures and small classes in the first and second years, and two hour seminars for third year (history) courses, amounting to about eight contact hours per week. In addition, they are expected to read extensively and for each course to complete three or pieces of formative coursework including essays, class papers,oral presentations and mock exams. Sessions in study skills are provided at undergraduate level by the departments and the School.
Each course is assessed by a written three-hour examination. A 10,000 word history dissertation is an option in the final year of this degree.
13. Programme structures and requirements, levels modules and awards.
See BSc International Relations and History programme regulations

Additional Information

14.Criteria for admission to the programme
Course requirement: GCSE pass at grade C or better in Mathematics and English is expected. A level History is not a requirement.
Usual standard offer: GCE A level: grades A A A
International Baccalaureate: Diploma with 38 points including 7 6 6 at Higher level.
15. Indicators of quality
The department was graded 5* for the excellence of its research in the Research Assessment Exercise in 2001 (this was the top category and one of eight institutions in the UK to score highest). In 2008, we had 35% 4* (the new top category), notably with the second-highest staff submission rate in the UK, behind Cambridge.

• On the History subject tables, the Complete University Guide ranks us No. 1 (2011), the Guardian University Guide ranks us No. 9 (2011), the Times Good University Guide ranks us 4th (2010);
• National Student Survey results for overall satisfaction with the degree: 97% in 2012 (source: Unistats);
• The LSE Careers Centre website provides data on career destinations of LSE graduates.

16. Methods for evaluating and improving the quality and standard of teaching and learning
Departmental Mechanisms:
The Department of International History holds a designated staff meeting at least once a year which is given over to matters concerning teaching and examining. In addition every course is reviewed when it has run for five years. The external examiners’ comments are discussed at the examination meetings.
The Department of International Relations has a Teaching Sub-Committee which meets once or twice a term; terms of reference are ‘General and strategic issues concerning the nature and organisation of teaching’ and its remit is mainly to review course offerings and to ensure proper monitoring of Occasional Teachers’ reports to the Departmental Meeting as required.
School-wide mechanisms:

• regular staff appraisal and review;
• improvements in teaching technique by the Teaching and Learning Centre through observations, advice and further training;
• induction programme and mentoring scheme for new members of staff;
• support of Graduate Teaching Assistants by the teacher responsible for each particular module plus (in the Department of International History) the Deputy Head. Support is provided via an induction meeting, a departmental GTA forum to share good practice and a mentoring scheme;
• centrally administered course teaching surveys by the Teaching Quality Assurance and

Review Office;

• an improved system for ensuring that External Examiners’ comments/recommendations are fed through to Departments and acted upon;
• the School’s Teaching Learning and Assessment Committee which regulates all aspects of teaching quality;
• the School’s Undergraduate Studies Sub-Committee which oversees all undergraduate programmes and ensures that significant changes to programmes and courses pass through a sequence of formal stages so that curricular changes are appropriate and compatible with other developments;
• TLAC Departmental Review once every five years.