Shape the future of the Politics and International Relations Degree

Last week, the QAA launched the consultation on the 5th edition of the Politics and International Relations Subject Benchmark Statement. Benchmark statements have been part of the higher education landscape for more than 30 years. They aim to set out a clear summary of the content of the undergraduate degree, how it is taught and assessed, and the standards of achievement that should be reached by students gaining an award. They are written by academics, students, and industry experts, and while they are not designed to be a ’national curriculum’, they constitute a shared authoritative point of reference for everyone involved in higher education.

The new edition contains new sections on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Sustainability and Enterprise and Entrepreneurship, and aims to update others to take account of factors such as developments in the use of online and hybrid learning and changes in sub-fields. Other sections, primarily the section outlining the scope of Politics and International Relations, remain relatively unchanged. 

So - have we got this right? We welcome your thoughts, comments, and feedback on our work. 

The consultation documents are published on the QAA website, and responses should be submitted via the online survey.

A Microsoft Word version of the consultation questions has also been provided for those who would like to prepare their answers before submitting the online survey.

The closing date for responses is Wednesday 2 November at 6pm and the final Statement will be published in spring 2023.

The full membership of both the current and past advisory panels is included on pages 18 and 19 of the benchmark.