Overview

About the programme

Foreign Policy, Defence and Security Studies research outputs include work on leadership, decision-making, defence capabilities, security governance, threat perception, counter-terrorism, conflict resolution, disinformation and security competition. Notably, they have expertise in a range of national, regional and international contexts, including, the UK, EU, Russia, Iran, China, South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.

POLIS staff at The Open University UK are keen to undertake supervision that has theoretical and practical importance. They have received funding for practical research on intelligence accountability and the PREVENT programme and adopt a range of approaches to the subject, from conventional historical analysis to critical and gendered perspectives.

Programme Structure

Potential research projects:

British and EU foreign, defence and security policy
Rising powers, Chinese foreign policy, Indian foreign policy, the Belt and Road Initiative
Counter-terrorism and counter-radicalisation, national security politics, foreign policy, terrorism studies and critical security studies
Russian foreign and security policy, (Russian) national identity and nation building, memory politics/history politics/ historical narratives including commemoration
Populism and (social) media disinformation/propaganda/fake news/influence ops, public diplomacy/international broadcasting
(Critical) discourse analysis and narrative analysis, Iran’s domestic politics and foreign policy, Middle East politics
Gender, conflict resolution and peacekeeping
African international relations

Key information

Duration

Full-time
- 24 months
Part-time
- 36 months

Start dates & application deadlines

Starting 2027-10-01 00:00:00
- Apply before 2027-03-01 00:00:00

Language

English

TOEFL^® IBT

87

Schedule TOEFL®

Delivered

On Campus

Campus Location

Milton Keynes, United Kingdom

Disciplines

International Relations Political Science Terrorism & Security View 101 other PhDs in Political Science in United Kingdom

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Academic requirements

GPA

Upper Second Class

English requirements

TOEFL^® IBT

87

Schedule TOEFL®

Other requirements

General requirements

Entry requirements

Minimum 2:1 undergraduate degree (or equivalent). If you are not a UK citizen, you may need to prove your knowledge of English.

Tuition Fees

Tuition fees are shown in and the most likely applicable fee is shown based on your nationality.

International Applies to you

Applies to you

Non-residents

12705 GBP / year

≈ 12705 GBP / year
Domestic Applies to you

Applies to you

Citizens or residents

5006 GBP / year

≈ 5006 GBP / year

Living costs

Milton Keynes

United Kingdom

848 - 1345 GBP / month

The living costs include the total expenses per month, covering accommodation, public transportation, utilities (electricity, internet), books and groceries.

Funding

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Scholarships Information

Below you will find PhD's scholarship opportunities for Foreign Policy, Defence and Security Studies.

Available Scholarships

You are eligible to apply for these scholarships but a selection process will still be applied by the provider.

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