Geography and International Relations

Geography and international relations together offer one of the most compelling frameworks for understanding the challenges that define the twenty-first century. Geography examines the relationships between people and place, exploring how physical environments, human settlements, economic systems, and political boundaries interact and change over time. International relations analyses how states, institutions, and non-state actors navigate a world of competing interests, power, and norms.

Together they illuminate questions of climate change, migration, resource conflict, development, and geopolitics with both spatial and analytical depth.

At the University of Sussex, you will explore how questions of people, place, politics, and the planet are deeply connected, building the interdisciplinary understanding needed to work towards more sustainable and equitable futures. You will study physical and human geography alongside the theoretical frameworks of international relations, developing both fieldwork skills and the analytical capacity to interpret international events and institutions. The programme includes a foundation year and runs with a sandwich placement year, a year abroad, and a work placement, providing a rich combination of academic, professional, and international experience.

It is studied full-time.

Graduates of geography and international relations programmes pursue careers in the civil service, international development, environmental policy, NGOs, think tanks, journalism, diplomacy, consultancy, and the voluntary sector. The combination of spatial thinking and international awareness is valued in organisations working on climate change, human rights, migration, and global governance. Many graduates go on to postgraduate study in geography, international relations, environmental policy, or development studies.