Global Conflict in the Modern Era (MA)

About the programme

In the Global Conflict in the Modern Era specialisation of International Relations you will explore the security measures that have been instituted locally, regionally and globally in the modern world.

Programme structure

All specialisations (except European Union Studies) follow the same format:

Semester 1	Semester 2
Core course for your specialisation (10 EC)	Regionalism in World Politics (5 EC)
Preparatory course for your thesis (5 EC)	Elective (10 EC)
Humanities-based International Relations (5 EC)	Thesis (15 EC)
Elective (10 EC)

MA Thesis

When it comes to picking a topic for your thesis, you have great freedom in what you want to write about. We have many thesis supervisors who have different expertise.

MA Thesis preparatory course

The preparatory course introduces you to core conceptual, methodological and theoretical issues you meet when you initiate, research, and write your MA thesis. In addition, a series of seminars will enable you to discuss specific issues related to International Relations.

Internship

You have the opportunity to replace one elective with an internship or to pursue an internship as an extracurricular activity. Both options usually imply a study extension because you would delay graduation by one semester. Yet this possibility is valued and used by many of our students.

This experience is highly valued within international organisations. In the past years International Relations students have done internships at a huge variety of organisations, including:

Security Policy Department (DVB) of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Dutch Ministry of Defense
NGOs, for example Gender Concerns International or NGO’s focused on humanitarian aid
Think tanks, such as the Netherlands Institute for International Relations ‘Clingendael’, the International Centre for Counterterrorism and the Hague Centre for Strategic Studies
Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and embassies around the world
European institutions - examples include Estonian presidency of the European Union, internships for members of the European Parliament
Media outlets such as Een Vandaag in Hilversum
Netherlands Permanent Mission to the United Nations

Electives

You may choose electives (20 EC total) from a wide range of specialist courses. Please see the examples below or in the online study guide.

Detailed programme

Programme
Course	EC
Core Course Global Conflict in the Modern Era	10
Ideas in World Politics	5
Thesis and Methods in International Relations Research (GC)	5
Regionalism in World Politics	5
MA Thesis Global Conflict in the Modern Era	15
Core Course Global Conflict in the Modern Era	10
Ideas in World Politics	5
Thesis and Methods in International Relations Research (GC)	5

Electives
Course	EC
International Intervention	10
International Relations of the Middle East	10
Modern United States Foreign Policy	10
Security Governance	10
Strategy and Grand Strategy in Theory and Practice	10
War by Contract? The Drivers and Implications of Security Privatization	10
War, Peace, and Mass Media: The Arab-Israeli Conflict in the Public Sphere	10
A History of the United Nations	10
Brazil in the Portuguese Speaking World: Political and Cultural Dynamics	10
Corruption in Russia and Eurasia	10
Decentering International Relations: Views from the Global South	10
Economic Development and Social Change in Southeast Asia	10
Histories of Southeast Asia (10 EC)	10
Human Rights and Global Governance: History, Theory, and Politics	10
International Relations in the Slavic Triangle: Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	10
Rethinking Secularism in International Relations	10
Internship MA International Relations	10
Gender and Race in Historical International Relations	10
Issues in Latin American Foreign Policies	10
International Relations of the Middle East: Everyday Matters	10
Non-state Actors in International Peace and Conflict	10
Power and Resistance in the Modern Middle East	10
Researching Authoritarianism: the Politics of Conflict, Violence and Genocide	10
Strategy and Grand Strategy in Theory and Practice	10
Violent Rebels in International Affairs	10
China-Africa Relations in a Changing Global Order	10
China and Global Cyberspace	10
Contemporary Brazil	10
Contemporary Indian Politics	10
Politics of Culture in Southeast Asia (10 EC)	10
U.S. Culture and Identity in an Age of Globalization	10
Internship MA International Relations	10

Online Study Guide

For a more detailed programme and an overview of the electives, please check the Prospectus.

Please note that this guide applies to the current academic year, which means that the curriculum for next year may slightly differ.

Eugenios Cusumano

University Lecturer

"Security, threat, terrorism, and war are essentially contested concepts that need to be studied from different theoretical perspectives and disciplinary angles in order to be fully understood. By combining political science, history, and area studies, the programme in Global Conflict in the Modern Era at Leiden University offers unique insights into the study of today’s security crises and humanitarian emergencies."

Challenging state-centric understandings

"As a multidisciplinary programme, the Master's in International Relations offers an ideal environment to study phenomena that challenge traditional, state-centric understandings of international relations such as the increasing role of non-state actors in international security."

Debating controversial questions

"By joining the programme students will have the opportunity to engage in debates on controversial questions such as the balance between security and individual rights including privacy and freedom of movement, the appropriateness of humanitarian intervention, the extent to which migration should be considered a security issue, and the role of commercial actors in the conduct of military operations."