European Politics

Background

The MSc in European Politics was founded in 2007. Our programme is unique in Scotland for combining EU studies with comparative political analysis. It draws on established expertise in European politics, comparative politics and international politics at the University of Glasgow.

Glasgow is home to the Scottish Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence and Politics boasts a Jean Monnet Chair. It is traditionally strong in the field of the external policies of the European Union, particularly trade and foreign aid and more recently has been developing expertise in the field of European Union democracy and constitutional affairs. Comparative European politics is also core strength, with special regard to western and southern Europe. The School of Social and Political Sciences in Glasgow is also traditionally very well resourced in Russian as well as in Central and East European Area Studies. 

The programme is small, and we actively promote student-centred teaching and guarantee individual dissertation supervision. Our students benefit from intensive teaching by political scientists with strong publishing profiles and international reputations in their areas of expertise.

The student body is very cosmopolitan with a mix of students from Europe including the UK, Germany, Italy, Greece, Norway, Finland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Luxembourg, and beyond (US, China, Korea). You will also share classes with students from other programmes. This adds to the liveliness and breadth of experience in classes and it enriches the student experience for all.

Graduates have found the MSc in European Politics an excellent preparation for a range of careers, including in the European Union’s European Commission and European Parliament Offices in Scotland and Copenhagen, the European Commission in Brussels, the UK civil service, the Scottish Executive and Scottish Enterprise, diplomatic services around Europe, journalism and lobbying.

A number of our graduates have subsequently obtained fully funded PhD positions in leading Universities, including Edinburgh and Cologne.