COURSE CURRICULUM

The BA International Relations and Economics at the University of Reading is a three-year interdisciplinary degree designed to help students understand major political and economic issues shaping the modern world. In international relations, students explore core theories of global politics, international order, war and warfare, and contemporary challenges such as climate change, terrorism, global justice, and regional politics including the Middle East and Global South. In economics, students develop a strong foundation in microeconomics, macroeconomics, and quantitative methods, alongside applied areas such as international economics, development economics, behavioural economics, public economics, financial economics, and environmental economics. The course also includes training in research skills and core academic competencies, helping students build analytical, writing, and problem-solving abilities. As students progress, they move from foundational modules like Principles of Economics and The Study of Politics to more advanced topics such as intermediate micro and macroeconomics, global order, and international political economy. In the final year, students complete a dissertation and can choose from specialist optional modules including global justice, British and American foreign policy, international terrorism, money and banking, and game theory. The programme blends political analysis with economic reasoning, enabling students to evaluate real-world problems such as inequality, conflict, trade, climate policy, and global development using both disciplines together.