Politics and Africa and Black Diaspora
Politics and Africa and Black Diaspora is an interdisciplinary combination that brings together the analytical tools of political science with the specialist knowledge of African societies, cultures and politics, and the experiences and intellectual traditions of the Black diaspora globally. Politics asks how power is organised, contested and legitimised, how states and international institutions function, and how political change happens. Africa and Black Diaspora studies engages with the history, culture, politics and contemporary experience of African peoples and their descendants around the world, drawing on history, sociology, cultural studies and postcolonial theory.
At the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, which has unparalleled expertise in Africa and the Global South, you will study this three-year full-time programme with a foundation year available for those who need additional academic preparation. SOAS's location in London, the diversity of its student body and the depth of its area knowledge make it one of the most distinctive places in the UK to study this combination. You will engage with African political systems, liberation movements, diaspora communities and the global history of colonialism and resistance, alongside the formal analytical frameworks of political science.
The typical entry tariff for this programme is around 136 UCAS points.
You will develop strong skills in research, critical analysis and argument, engaging with a body of knowledge that challenges Eurocentric assumptions about politics and society and demands genuine intellectual breadth and openness. The combination of political analysis and African and diaspora studies is rare and highly distinctive.
Graduates are well placed for careers in international development, diplomacy, the civil service, NGOs, journalism, human rights and advocacy organisations, community and cultural development, and academic research. Postgraduate study in African studies, politics, international development, human rights or postcolonial studies is a natural progression.