What does a good Politics/IR degree look like?
26 February 2024 · Online
UCL’s Centre for the Pedagogy of Politics (CPP) hosted this online panel on the question: What does a good Politics/IR degree look like?
The event followed Stephen Thornton’s reflections on the “ideal” Politics and International Relations degree, published on the Active Learning in Political Science (ALPS) blog as he prepared to lead the revalidation of undergraduate Politics and International Relations programmes at Cardiff University.
Following considerable interest in his questions, the panel provided an opportunity for a more detailed discussion of the issues involved in designing and reviewing a Politics or International Relations degree. Speakers with a wide range of experience, including senior university leaders within the discipline, were invited to consider questions around skills, employability, pedagogy, curriculum content and assessment in changing times.
Thornton’s original article raised a number of questions about programme design, including the balance between broad disciplinary coverage and specialist study, core and optional modules, the place of study skills and employability within the curriculum, and different approaches to teaching and the use of technology.
It also considered the appropriate mix of assessment methods, particularly in the context of developments such as generative AI, whether an independent research or capstone project should be compulsory, and the wider challenges of designing a degree within the practical constraints of university education.
The event was intended to encourage contributions from attendees as well as panellists, allowing for a wider discussion of these questions.
Panellists
Dr Stephen Thornton, Cardiff University
Dr Shuk Ying Chan, UCL
Professor Simon Lightfoot, University of Leeds
Dr Victoria Honeyman, University of Leeds
Professor Adam Fagan, King’s College London
Professor Lisa Harrison, University of the West of Scotland
Related reflection
In September 2026, Stephen Thornton returned to the questions that prompted his original article and the CPP panel in a follow up guest post on ALPS titled “Revalidation, the sequel”. He reflects on the subsequent revalidation of Cardiff’s Politics and International Relations curriculum, the changes introduced and the lessons learned from the process.