Conference Ambassador to Specialist Group Convenor: My Political Studies Journey
In early 2022, I was a keen Politics undergraduate in the third year of my degree. I was busy writing my dissertation on how the UK Parliament represents refugees; immersed in parliamentary literature, reading about select committees, institutionalism, and representation. The University of York’s Politics department reached out to the undergraduates about a volunteer role to assist with the PSA’s Annual Conference. They made it clear that, not only was I allowed to watch the conference presentations; they encouraged us to engage with them as well. I knew I had to apply. As the conference took place in the wake […]
Turkey’s Venezuela Test: Solidarity Talk and Power Politics
By Dr Begum Zorlu, City St George’s, University of London and Co-convener and chair of the PSA Turkish Politics Specialist Group The capture of Nicolás Maduro has exposed the limits of Ankara’s performative alliances and the constraints facing middle powers in an increasingly volatile international order. On January 3, 2026, US special forces carried out a dramatic military operation in Caracas, capturing Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, and transporting them to the United States, where they now face federal charges. Dubbed “Operation Absolute Resolve,” the raid represented a US intervention in Latin America on a scale […]
Why study politics? An international student’s perspective
Yelyzaveta Yeroshkina 25 September 2025 Why does anyone study politics? Why does someone decide to get a degree in political science? What motivates students to dedicate 3 or 4 years of their life to this? No doubt a degree in politics can lead to a range of interesting careers. And what about those who can’t escape politics? During my first year studying International Relations at Edinburgh University I was exposed to a new world I didn’t know existed. I learned that there are theories of international relations, where realism and liberalism appear as the two most favoured. The other thing I was exposed to was […]
UK Parliament doesn’t look or sound like the rest of the country: should this change and, if so, how?
For the duration of its instatement, all those 807 years ago, the role of Parliament has gained more and more prominence. Admittedly, to begin with, it worked more in favour of MPs, – particularly the Lords such as landed gentry – using their power to manipulate the system: from Rotten Boroughs to patronage. However, within the last 150 years, or so, this purpose has changed from one of monarchical focus to one of social focus. Today’s Parliament, in particular, is more focused on representing the UK’s wider population and their interests. Firstly, what is the disparity between society and Parliament? […]
A-Level Results Day – Thinking About Doing a Politics Degree?
Congratulations if you have now received your exam results. We hope you have achieved the grades you need to continue your studies at university! If you didn’t get the grades you hoped for (or indeed did better than expected), we encourage you to both contact your chosen universities to discuss your options, and to check out the wide range of courses available to you through the UCAS clearing system. And it won’t surprise you to learn that we hope you will consider opting to study Politics and International Relations at university, this year or in the future! Did you know… […]
Politics & IR from A-level to MA: a Student’s Journey
Recent graduate and PSA Membership and Programmes Officer, Theo, responds to questions about studying Politics at A-Level, undergraduate, and Master’s level. What prompted you to pursue a degree in Politics & IR? I pursued my first degree in politics and IR because I enjoyed the course so much at A-Level. It was well-structured to give you an overview of UK, US, comparative and theoretical political foundations, and sets you up well to study the content at undergraduate level. What prompted me to study A-Level politics, however, was the political uncertainty in the UK during the 2016-18 period (2016 Brexit Referendum, […]
Considering doing a degree? Why not choose Politics & IR?
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Michelle Doyle Wildman, PSA Chief Executive 11 August 2025 UCAS is now open for 2026 applications so I’ve set out some (hopefully helpful) pointers below on why choosing to do a Politics or International Relations degree may be right for you! What can you do with a Politics & IR Degree? Politics Degrees are relevant, enjoyable, and useful. Recent analysis by the British Academy – New report uncovers popularity of Politics and International Relations degrees, with graduates outearning national averages – found that this is a popular subject among prospective students, on its own or combined with other subjects. Politics & IR […]
PSA25 Conference Highlights
This blog was written by the PSA25 Convening Team. With a theme of What Next? our 75th anniversary annual conference in Birmingham was our biggest and best yet! Taking place from 14 – 16 April and featuring over 200 sessions and nearly 900 delegates, conference highlights included; timely keynote talks given by Prof. Rosie Campbell (Kings College London) on political representation and shifting identities, culture wars and the quality of democracy, Prof. Nicole Curato (University of Birmingham) asking if democracy can survive the broligarchy, and Prof. Anand Menon (Kings College London) and the BBC’s Political Correspondent Ben Wright in-conversation […]