Programme Specification
A statement of the knowledge, understanding and skills that underpin a
taught programme of study leading to an award from
The University of Sheffield
1
Programme Title
Global Security
2
Programme Code
POLT68 (full time) POLT69 (part-time)
3
JACS Code
L250
4
Level of Study
Postgraduate
5a
Final Qualification
Master of Arts (MA)
5b
Position in the QAA Framework for
Higher Education Qualifications
Masters (M)
6a
Intermediate Qualification(s)
Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) and Postgraduate Certificate
(PGCert)
6b
Position in the QAA Framework for
Higher Education Qualifications
Masters (M)
7
Teaching Institution (if not Sheffield)
Not applicable
8
Faculty
Social Sciences
9
Department
Politics
10
Other Department(s) involved in
teaching the programme
None
11
Mode(s) of Attendance
Full-time or Part-time
12
Duration of the Programme
1 year Full-time; 2 Part-time
13
Accrediting Professional or Statutory
Body
Not applicable
14
Date of production/revision
February 2009 (Revised April 2014)
15. Background to the programme and subject area
The MA programme is designed for graduates who already possess knowledge of politics, international relations
or security studies and wish to deepen their understanding of selected issues linked global security, or who wish
to transfer to this area from related disciplines (for example Economics, Geography, History, Sociology, Area
Studies). The degree is consciously designed to take advantage of Sheffield’s international reputation for
excellence in research in the area of international studies and draw on the experience of a well-established
team of specialists. There are already well-developed research activities on the subject of the programme
(involving seminars on International Relations, International Political Economy and Global Security broadly
defined). These activities are embedded in the Politics Department’s research culture and encompass
postgraduate students as well as staff. Six Politics academics work in the Centre for International Policy
Research (CIPol), a major focal point in the research strategy of Politics. The Department of Politics was rated
5* in the 2001 Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) and had the equal top profile in politics and international
studies in the 2008 RAE.
The programme centres on the concept of global security in the post-9/11 era, exploring what are the new global
security challenges, strategies for terrorism and counter-terrorism, the political response in the form of
international peacekeeping and the resultant impact on patterns in international relations. The programme is
based on a 30 credit core module and students are encouraged to explore their own interests by taking
advantage of the various option modules. Teaching is organised to provide a challenging learning environment
that reflects the research interests and expertise of staff, assuring that students engage with insights and
problems at the frontiers of the discipline.
Knowledge of Global Security is important to careers in Government, the Security Service, the public sector and
in non-governmental organisations, whether at international, national, regional or local level. The degree is
therefore designed to offer an advanced education in Global Security in order to enhance graduates’
employability.
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16. Programme aims
The MA in Global Security aims to provide students with an in-depth understanding of the contemporary issues
surrounding global security, terrorism and international relations, from both a theoretical and empirical
perspective. The degree further aims to equip students with the skills required for further academic and
professional careers. Specifically the programme aims to :
1. develop and enhance a student's understanding of the theory and practice of global security, in particular
offering students the opportunity of further studies in a wider range of subject areas and in greater depth;
2. develop and enhance a student's understanding of a variety of fundamental questions concerning global
security and terror including: what does global security mean and whose security are we talking about?;
what are the key features of global terror and counter-terrorism; which issues should be considered global
security issues?; what role does global security play in contemporary political life?; and how - in both
practical and philosophical terms- can global security be achieved?
3. inculcate the highest standards in matters of precision, clarity, integrity, and imagination;
4. develop a range of generic abilities, particularly: the acquisition, use and evaluation of primary and
secondary source material; communication and presentation skills; problem-solving; and teamwork;
5. encourage the enhanced skills associated with political science research and writing, argument and
reasoning, and analysis and critique. In particular, enable students to pursue a course of directed
independent research;
6. enable students to maximise their potential in all aspects of their course;
7. assess students over a range of knowledge, understanding and skills, and to identify and support academic
excellence.
17. Programme learning outcomes
Knowledge and understanding:
K1
Advanced knowledge of the ideas, institutions and practices related to global security, terror, counterterrorism and international peacekeeping.
K2
Critical appreciation of the concepts, theories and methods deployed to analyse global security.
K3
Critical appreciation of the global security literature.
K4
Advanced knowledge of differing interpretations of processes, events and debates with respect to the
relationships between terror and global security.
K5
Sound knowledge of current research and advanced scholarship in the analysis of global security.
K6
Practical and critical understanding of the methodologies used to analyse global security.
K7
Expert knowledge of issues relating to the impact of global security at international, national and devolved
levels of governance and on different states.
Skills and other attributes:
S1
A high level of competence in the productive skills of essay writing and problem solving and the ability to
critically analyse global security within its wider political context.
S2
Skills in acquiring, using, and critically evaluating information about politics.
S3
Enhanced skills in essential primary and secondary source material appropriate to the programme of
study, alongside a regard for the impartial analysis of values expressed therein.
S4
Enhanced skills appropriate to the programme of study in carrying out individual study and research, and
to participate in group activities such as seminars.
S5
Enhanced bibliographic and research skills appropriate to the programme of study.
S6
Further transferable skills, valuable for employment, including information gathering, the development of
individual resourcefulness, analytical thinking, the ability to identify problems and ways of resolving them,
the critical appreciation of source material, the ability to construct and sustain logical argument on the
basis of such material, and the ability to present such argument clearly in both oral and written forms.
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In addition, those successfully completing the dissertation and receiving the Masters will have:
S7
The ability to plan, conduct and write-up an independent piece of research.
Students achieving the award of PG Certificate or PG Diploma will have developed to a high degree the
‘knowledge and understanding’ and ‘skills and attributes’ defined by that combination of K1 – K7 and S1 – S6
above matching their selection of modules to the value of 60 or 120 credits respectively.
18. Teaching, learning and assessment
Development of the learning outcomes is promoted through the following teaching and learning
methods:

Lectures are used infrequently but are considered useful in Semester 1 in order to impart essential
knowledge relating to K1 and K2 above. Special sessions are held on generic skills such as essay
writing.

Seminars, which may be either staff-led or student-led, are used throughout the programme. They are
an important means of developing students’ critical understanding of core issues in global security. They
are designed to provide an effective environment for students to work through, analyse, understand and
respond to information and discuss issues. In all cases the aim is to expose students to as much original
political material as possible. Seminars thus contribute both to the achievement of knowledge and
understanding (K1 – K7) and to the development of key skills (S1 – S6).

Independent study is essential to the successful completion of the programme. New students are
introduced to study skills through information in the Student Handbook. The amount of independent
study broadly expected for each module is clearly set out in the course information, although it is
recognised that this will vary from student to student depending on their previous knowledge of politics.
Independent study is generally geared towards the assimilation and further clarification of material
gleaned from lectures, preparation for seminars, preparation for written assessments, and the broader
development of knowledge of the field of study. The students are required to complete a dissertation of
between 12,000 words, which, although supervised by a member of staff specialising in that area,
requires a great deal of independent study and research from the students. Individual meetings will be
held with supervisors, and these will be important for the students’ ability to identify a research topic, to
develop appropriate research questions and a strategy for completing the dissertation. Independent
study thus contributes to the development of all the programme learning outcomes, but is especially
important in refining skills S1, S2, S4 and S5 and is essential to S7.

Individual feedback is offered to students on essays so as to assist with the development of writing
skills as the programme proceeds (S1).
Opportunities to demonstrate achievement of the learning outcomes are provided through the following
assessment methods:

Regular formative assessment, particularly during Semester 1, to monitor carefully the student’s
progression through the programme and to pick up and rectify areas of potential weakness. Oral
presentations designed to test organisational and communicative skills (S1 - S6);

Summative assessment via essay writing and problem solving designed to test subject knowledge,
increasing autonomy in student learning, and the development of transferable skills (K1 - K7; S1 - S6);

Summative assessment requiring the completion of a dissertation designed to test both research and
writing skills and the students’ ability to critically analyse and challenge political orthodoxies (K1 - K7;
S1 - S7).
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19. Reference points
The learning outcomes have been developed to reflect the following points of reference:

the research interests of departmental staff and the research strategy of the Department of Politics;

Mission statements and strategic plans of the University of Sheffield;

the Learning, Teaching and Assessment Strategy of the Department of Politics and the University of
Sheffield;

the appropriate qualification descriptors contained in the QAA Framework for Higher Education
Qualifications in England Wales and Northern Ireland – January 2001; and,

the QAA Subject Benchmark Statement – Politics and international relations (2007).
The learning outcomes have also taken into account the advice of the external examiner at MA level for the
Department of Politics. The programme builds upon and will develop the Department’s existing research
profile in Global Security.
20. Programme structure and regulations
The MA in Global Security provides a coherent programme with an increasing emphasis on individual learning.
The use of compulsory modules in Semester 1 provides a coherent introduction to the subject area. Optional
modules in Semester 2 along with the dissertation allow the students to focus on specific areas of interest.
Semester 1: Core module: Contemporary Global Security (30 credits) and an optional module from a closed list.
Semester 2: Optional modules from a closed list and a 12,000-word dissertation.
Coherence is achieved through the core module. Students are then given choices from a closed list. The
optional subjects and the dissertation element of the degree will allow the student to build upon their substantive
knowledge and improve their research and writing skills.
Student choice is served both through the selection of a range of optional modules in politics and international
relations. Selection is made by the student acting on advice from an experienced academic. Students also
undertake a dissertation in an area of individual interest. The entire degree is designed to encourage students to
construct a degree programme in accordance with their developing interests and skills.
Students are not routinely admitted except onto the MA. Students can choose to exit after completion of 60
credits, at which point they would be awarded a PG Certificate or on completion of 120 credits, at which point
they would be awarded a PG Diploma.
Detailed information about the structure of programmes, regulations concerning assessment and progression
and descriptions of individual modules are published in the University Calendar available on-line at
www.shef.ac.uk/calendar
21. Student development over the course of study
The first semester will provide a foundation of knowledge and understanding through the core module. The
second semester will provide a foundation of knowledge and understanding from a variety of optional modules.
Further precision and depth of research will be achieved in the dissertation, which also permits the students a
greater degree of independent research and writing. The core course is offered in the first Semester
(Contemporary Global Security, S1 and S2). Overall the teaching and learning provision is developmental.
Learning outcomes K1-7 and S1-6 are acquired incrementally over Semesters 1 and 2. Skill S7 is acquired as
part of the dissertation component, which commences in depth after submission of the final batch of coursework
in May of each session.
22. Criteria for admission to the programme
A good second class honours degree in Politics, or in a related social sciences or humanities subject with a
significant political component. A high level of spoken and written English – (IELTS level 6.5).
Detailed information regarding admission is available at http://www.shef.ac.uk/politics
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23. Additional information
For further information students
http://www.shef.ac.uk/politics
are
directed
to
the
Department
of
Politics’
web
pages
at
These contain full information on courses.
This specification represents a concise statement about the main features of the programme and should be
considered alongside other sources of information provided by the teaching department(s) and the University. In
addition to programme specific information, further information about studying at The University of Sheffield can
be accessed via our Student Services web site at www.shef.ac.uk/ssid.
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