International Relations

Master in International Relations (MAIN) is a two-year English-language Master's degree programme, which provides students with the knowledge and analytical skills to understand and explain the international context of politics, economy, and security. The world is growing ever more interdependent and major political decisions, influencing our everyday lives, are made not only by individual nation states but increasingly also by regional as well as global institutions.

Our programme helps students understand how international and European politics work, and what are the challenges faced by states as well as business and societal actors in the globalized world. Students learn in depth about the functioning of the European Union and of the key global institutions which states have developed to address these challenges. They study how, if at all, international conflicts can be productively transformed into cooperation. In addition to providing students with a robust background in international and European politics, the programme puts an emphasis on the development of students’ analytical capabilities, abstract and critical thinking, and communication as well as language skills. Thanks to the broad scope of competences students acquire and deepen during their studies, our graduates become highly valued experts in national administration and diplomacy, European and international institutions, transnational corporation and NGOs, media, think-tanks, political parties, and academia.

The study curriculum of the programme International Relations is centred on the first year’s set of common compulsory modules and the second year’s individual specialization, stay abroad, and master’s thesis research. The curriculum is summarized in the table below. In the first semester students attend modules concerning the nature of the international system in general – modules on the theories of international relations, the introduction to international economic relations, and the introduction to international security. In the second semester, we build on this basis a new block of courses dealing with the problems of governance beyond the nation states. Specifically, students attend courses that cover, in considerable depth, the evolution of the European integration process and contemporary European politics, as well as international law and the major global institutions. Over the course of the first study year, they also obtain systematic training in the methods and techniques of empirical political analysis, both quantitative (on an introductory level) and qualitative.

In the second year, students choose from a broad range of elective courses that deepen their understanding of the individual areas of international and European politics. These courses come from the selection offered by the department of international relations and from other departments and institutes of the Faculty. In addition, or alternatively, during the second year students are encouraged to spend one or two semesters of their study abroad, at one of our numerous partner universities across Europe and over the world.

Throughout the second year, students work on their master’s theses, under the individual supervision of one of our faculty. The state exam at the end of the studies is composed of compulsory exams in International relations and in European studies, and of a choice from specializations in International Organizations, International Law, or International Economic Relations.

Credit structure of the programme

• 9 required courses (59 ECTS credits)
• 5 elective seminars accompanying the required courses (20 ECTS credits)
• Elective courses – individual specialization within the programme International Relations (minimum 29 ECTS credits)
• Elective courses from other institutes of the Faculty (up to 12 ECTS credits)
• Master’s thesis defence and the final state examination
• Total credits: 120

Applicants for the programme Master in International Relations will need to have obtained their BA certificates by the time of the start of the first semester of their studies (end of September every year). Having some background in international relations, political science, European studies or other related disciplines will prove advantageous for the students during the course of the programme, but it is not essential. On the other hand, what is essential for the applicants’ success during the selection procedure is a demonstrated active interest in international and European politics and their ability and willingness to work hard on developing their competences in the field during the course of their studies.

On the formal level, the application file will include:

• a diploma certificate of BA level education, or an up-to-date certificate of attendance of a study programme, indicating that the applicant will obtain the BA level diploma by the time of the start of our programme
• a transcript of grades from the previous study programme(s)
• a short academic CV
• a motivation letter