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Cardiff Metropolitan University

UCAS Code: N5LF | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)

Entry requirements

Grade combinations totalling 48 points considered from at least 2 A-level or equivalent

Successful completion of the Access to HE Diploma with 45 credits at level 3

GCSE/National 4/National 5

Five GCSEs (Grades A-C) including English Language and Mathematics or Mathematics - Numeracy at grade C / grade 4 or above

A minimum tariff of 24 points

48 points from Higher Level, minimum H4 considered

OCR Cambridge Technical Diploma

MP

OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Diploma

PPP

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

MP

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

PPP

Grade combinations totalling 48 points considered to include a combination of Highers and Advanced Highers.

T Level

Pass (D or E)

48 UCAS tariff points from at least 2 A level or equivalent, to include a minimum C grade

Grade combinations totalling 48 points considered with at least 1 A-level. Welsh Baccalaureate - Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate considered as second subject

About this course

Course option

4years

Full-time including foundation year | 2026

Subject

Social sciences

This is a four-year programme that includes a year of foundational study and leads directly into the degree course. Our foundation year offers the chance to strengthen your skills, knowledge and confidence, before you advance to stage one of your honours degree.

**Are our political systems and institutions fit for purpose? Has democracy failed? Why do states go to war? Why aren’t we working together to combat climate change? Why isn’t poverty a thing of the past? Why isn’t world peace achievable? Is it time for a new world order?**

If these questions excite and entice you, this BA (Hons) Politics and International Relations degree is for you. These are just some of the topics and issues you will engage with. At Cardiff Met, you will explore politics and international relations on a local, national and global level. Engaging with some of the most pressing challenges of our time. The degree has a strong global outlook whilst also demonstrating the significance of local politics and policy. An exciting feature of our degree is a focus on, and engagement with, Welsh Parliament throughout, utilising our close proximity to the Senedd and policymakers in Wales.

You will have the opportunity to apply your learning to real-life political issues and develop your own research interests and skills that will allow you to understand and explain a vast range of complex topics including conflict, justice, freedom, power, and equality.

The degree is designed to encourage innovation and creativity in interrogating contemporary challenges and processes in politics and international relations, whilst also preparing you for employment in an ever-changing world. There are opportunities to develop employability and sector links embedded throughout the degree. Via our authentic assessment methods, you’ll develop a portfolio of skills that are highly sought after by employers, such as writing press releases, policy reports and working to ‘live briefs’ set by industry.

On completion, you will have a questioning mindset, a global perspective, and a research-informed approach to the field of politics and international relations and be fully equipped to contribute and make a difference in the community, workplace, society and beyond.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

England
£9,535
per year
EU
£16,000
per year
International
£16,000
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,535
per year
Scotland
£9,535
per year
Wales
£9,535
per year

The Uni

Course location:

Cardiff Met - Llandaff

Department:

Cardiff School of Education and Social Policy

Read full university profile

What students say

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Social sciences

Sorry, no information to show

This is usually because there were too few respondents in the data we receive to be able to provide results about the subject at this university.


Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

98%
UK students
2%
International students
22%
Male students
78%
Female students
73%
2:1 or above
18%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

C
C
C

After graduation

The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Social sciences

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

Top job areas of graduates

57%
Welfare professionals
11%
Welfare and housing associate professionals
6%
Caring personal services

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Lower entry requirements
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This is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.

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Course location and department:

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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.

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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

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Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

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Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

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