Music/Politics

Music and politics are disciplines that might initially seem to occupy very different realms of human experience, but their connections run deep. Music has always been entangled with political life: from the anthems and protest songs that mobilise movements to the role of state institutions in patronising, suppressing, or promoting particular musical traditions, from the political economies of the music industry to the ways in which music carries and contests cultural identity. Studying both disciplines allows you to understand those connections rigorously, developing both technical musical knowledge and the conceptual tools of political analysis.

At the University of Glasgow, this part-time programme gives you the flexibility to combine serious study in both disciplines with other commitments. You will engage with the technical, cultural, historical, and philosophical dimensions of music, exploring how musical works are constructed, how they relate to their social and historical contexts, and how they have been heard and interpreted across different times and places. The politics strand develops your understanding of political theory, institutions, and systems, giving you the analytical tools to examine how power works and how societies are governed.

Each year offers a range of options in both music and politics, allowing you to design a degree pathway that reflects your own interests and strengths. The programme includes a year abroad to broaden your academic perspective.

Graduates with this unusual combination are well positioned for careers in arts administration, music journalism, cultural policy, broadcasting, political communications, education, and academic research. The combination of musical knowledge and political understanding is genuinely distinctive in the graduate market, and it is particularly relevant to careers at the intersection of culture and public life. Many graduates continue to postgraduate study in music, politics, cultural studies, or related fields, building on the dual perspective the degree provides.