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The People's ChoiceIs there any point in studying politics if you don’t plan to become a politician? The answer’s simple – yes!
If you’re puzzled by such votes, then BB Winner John Loughton is certainly the guy to ask – and not just because he won! He’s studying politics and sociology at Stirling, is chairman of the Scottish Youth Parliament, and has said he wants to stand for political office. Could he follow in the footsteps of another politics student called Charles Kennedy who first became an MP when he was 23 and went on to lead his party? Before you start thinking that politics is only for ginger Scots with an eye on high office, we should point out that roughly nine out of 10 politics students in Scotland study politics simply because they find it interesting and useful – not because they want to live in Number 10. ARE YOU A POLITICAL STUDENT? Modern studies at school includes lessons on how the UK and Scottish parliaments work and how elections are run. If that appealed to you, then you could have the most important qualification for a politics degree – an interest in the subject. “The perfect student for us is engaged in the subject in some way,” says Peter Stirling. “They’re not necessarily linked to a political party, but they can be passionate about the subject.” Professor Trevor Salmon from the University of Aberdeen agrees: “It’s about being interested,” he says. “If you don’t read a newspaper, if you don’t take an interest in TV news, then you shouldn’t do politics at university. It’s not just about knowing what’s going on. It’s about having an interest in the power the Prime Minister has in comparison with a cabinet colleague, or the powers held by the EU commission.” SO WHY STUDY POLITICS? Only one in 10 politics students in Scotland go on to work as parliamentary assistants or political researchers for the Scottish, UK or European parliaments. Most politics graduates move into a wide range of careers, since they’re recognised as having lots of “transferable skills” that today’s employers just love. “Whatever our students do career-wise,” says Peter Lynch, “it’s likely to involve making decisions, communicating those choices, listening to people and understanding what their issues are, and then deciding how to deal with them. The research and analytical skills developed during a politics degree – and getting people to understand the different sides of the big political arguments – are quite a plus.” Alan McLachlan is a former politics graduate who now works to widen the range of people coming to study at the University of Edinburgh. “Politics graduates go into a wide range of careers – such as chartered accountancy, occupational therapy, social work, recruitment consultancy and the media,” he explains. “Politics develops a way of thinking and analysing that will stand you in good stead, regardless of what career you go into.” POLITICS COURSES Most politics degree courses are similar across Scotland. In the first year you’ll compare political systems in different countries, and learn how common labels – such as president or prime minister – can mean different things depending on where you are. In the second year, you’ll focus on the meanings of the main political “-isms” of the last 100 or so years – like socialism, liberalism and fascism. From your third year, you’ll have a far greater choice in the topics you study, which is why it’s important to choose the right course from the start – different politics departments are influenced by the specialist interests of their teaching staff, so it’s worth checking with several universities to see which matches your interests most closely. Stirling and Aberdeen, for example, have strong reputations for their expertise in international relations. Another consideration is that you’re also likely to study politics alongside another subject; economics, history and foreign languages are the most popular joint degrees, although universities also offer subjects ranging from geography to sociology. AN INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVE Edinburgh-born Karen Wilbie is nearing the end of her four years at the University of Aberdeen, an institution she chose because of the reputation and scope of its degree in politics and international relations. Much of the course matched her own interest in European politics, which she’d first discovered while working on school projects, but she was also aware that the Aberdeen department’s expertise would later allow her to focus on the subject of international security – an issue that has risen significantly in the public agenda in recent years. “I wasn’t always keen on the more theoretical stuff,” Karen admits, but on the whole she found the course matched most of her expectations. On the whole, though, she has enjoyed the whole experience – and in particular the international diversity of both students and teaching staff. “With lots of people from different backgrounds, it helped ensure there were a lot of different perspectives to discuss and debate,” she explains. Though currently focused on completing her dissertation, Karen has already decided on her next move – in the autumn she’ll start working on an LLM in European Law. “My degree in international relations will be a good background for the LLM,” she insists. |
| Last Updated on Thursday, 17 December 2009 10:43 |
