MA International Relations
FT W235 | PT W236
Prospective Masters Students
Watch the Information Webinar for Prospective Students & Offer Holders, April 2025
Why Choose SPIRe?
The graduate programme in the UCD School of Politics and International Relations (SPIRe) encompasses master’s degrees and graduate diplomas in a wide range of areas, including development studies, European affairs, human rights, international relations, Irish and European politics, peace and conflict, and political theory. In particular, we offer both MSc and MA programmes in four subject areas, three interdisciplinary master’s degrees, and two graduate diplomas.
We are ranked in (opens in a new window)the Top 100 Universities in the world for Politics and International Studies by Subject in 2024.
- Diverse: SPIRe currently has nearly 150 postgraduate students from over 30 countries.
- Global: Our international faculty cover a wide range of research areas and methodological approaches
- Flexible: Choose an MA or MSc programme, depending on whether you want to focus more on practice or research. The vast array of optional modules on offer allows you to tailor the programme to meet your specific requirements.
- Innovative: Continuous improvements in Teaching and Learning to reflect best practice
- Practical: Opportunities to engage with real research projects
- Reputation: UCD ranked within top 1% of higher education institutions worldwide
Our graduates work at leading universities and in governments, EU institutions, intergovernmental and non-governmental organisations, the media, business and the voluntary sector. They are known for their ability to communicate clearly and effectively about complex issues, their ability to analyse and resolve difficult problems and their contribution to cutting-edge scholarship.
How to Apply
Required Documents
- Academic transcripts of your current/previous degree(s)
- English proficiency certificate (if relevant). Please refer to the UCD English language requirements.
- The name and contact details of one academic referee (Uploading an actual reference letter is NOT required.)
- The application fee - €60.
You are also encouraged to submit a CV or any other documentation that may help your application e.g. volunteer or work experience in a relevant field.
Please refer to the application FAQs and UCD Admission's Information page.
Entry Requirements
- A primary degree (Honours Bachelor Degree, (opens in a new window)NFQ Level 8 or equivalent) with at least Second Class Honours Grade 1 (2H1) in any discipline.(2H1 is equivalent to 60 per cent, B minus or 3.08 GPA - in American system: B or 3.00 GPA)
- Your application will be considered on its individual merits and relevant professional experience will also be taken into account.
- English language requirements. (Applicants who obtained a previous degree from an English-speaking university may be exempted from this requirement. Refer to the UCD Global site.)
- Students meeting the programme’s academic entry requirements but not the English language requirements, may enter the programme upon successful completion of UCD’s Pre-Sessional or International Pre-Master’s Pathway programmes.
Our Programmes | Link to the Application Portal
Please see the list of our programmes below. 'Apply' buttons are available at the bottom of each page.
MA & MSc Programmes:
- MA International Relations FT W235 | PT W236
- MSc International Relations FT W036 | PT W109
- MSc Sustainable Development (ONLINE) FT W485 | PT W486 | PT January Start W490
- MSc Politics & Data Science FT W473 | PT W474
- MA Gender, Politics and International Relations FT W458 | PT W459
- MSc Gender, Politics & International Relations FT W525 | PT W526
- MSc Human Rights FT W035 | PT W110
- MA International Development FT W301 | PT W302
- MSc International Development FT W303 | PT W304
- MA International Political Economy FT W290 | PT W291
- MSc International Political Economy FT W293 | PT W294
- MA Politics FT W023 | PT W111
- MSc Politics FT W233 | PT W234
- MA Political Theory FT W277 | PT W278
- MEconSc European Public Affairs & Law FT W216 | PT W264
- MA European Politics & Policy FT W346 | PT W347
- MSc European Politics & Policy FT W344 | PT W345
- MA Middle East Politics FT W393 | PT W394
- MA Peace and Conflict FT W410 | PT W411
- MSc Peace and Conflict FT W408 | PT W409
- MA Politics & International Relations PT W292
MA or MSc? Refer to the FAQ page.
Graduate Diplomas and Professional Certificates:
- Grad Dip Politics & International Relations FT W231 | PT W232
- Grad Dip International Development FT W299 | PT W300
- Grad Dip Politics & Data Science FT W475 | PT W476
- Prof Cert Programming for Social Scientists PT January Start W607
- Prof Cert Quantitative Text Analysis Jan PT January Start W568
Graduate Diploma to a MA/MSc Transfer Information
Thematic Graduate Taught Programmes
In addition to the programmes above, SPIRe collaborates within the college to offer a collaborative and interdisciplinary graduate programme, MPP Master of Public Policy.
View All Programmes
Further Queries | Contact
If you have queries related to administrative processes, such as applications, please contact the School Office at (opens in a new window)graduatespire@ucd.ie. For academic-related queries, please reach out to the Graduate Director, Professor Ben Tonra, or the Programme Director of the course you are interested in.