This course is designed for people who want the expertise to understand, analyse and critically assess the increasingly complex problems of international relations and national security.

You will gain the knowledge and skills to understand contemporary international relations, global trends, diplomacy, security challenges and strategic affairs from an interdisciplinary perspective.

You’ll explore the key characteristics of the international system, nation-states, balance of power, security and the domestic influences on foreign policy.

You’ll also study optional units that support your career goals, analysing topics such as the geopolitics of the Indo-Pacific region through to intelligence, terrorism, strategic geography and energy security.

You can choose to study this course at the graduate certificate, graduate diploma or master degree level. The master degree is divided into dissertation and coursework streams.

Students who complete the master degree via the dissertation stream to a high standard can apply for doctoral-level studies.

Why study

• This course has an interdisciplinary approach with perspectives from political science, history, geography and anthropology.
• Our academics are also practitioners in their field of study, with many years of real-world experience.
• Our international staff provide expert teaching and learning from all over the world, including Japan, Indonesia, Russia and the UK.
• Curtin is the only university in Western Australia to offer such a course at a postgraduate level.

The future of international relations and national security

From climate change to terrorism, cyber threats to the plight of refugees and mass human displacement, the international system is growing evermore complex. To address contemporary challenges, international relations and national security professionals require diverse theoretical and practical training that responds to real-world situations. This course provides such theoretical underpinnings and practical skills which gives you much sought after employment capabilities.  

Industries:

• Foreign affairs 
• Defence
• Security
• Intelligence 
• National security
• Law enforcement 
• State and federal public service
• Media and journalism
• International trade
• Global NGOs