Politics with a Foundation Year

Politics asks who holds power, how it is exercised, and what it means for the way we all live. It is a discipline that takes seriously the big questions: who makes decisions, how societies organise themselves, what principles should govern public life, and how change happens. Studying politics develops your capacity to engage with these questions rigorously, moving beyond instinct and opinion to careful analysis grounded in evidence and argument.

At Swansea University, this four-year full-time degree includes a foundation year, giving you a carefully supported introduction to the skills and concepts that underpin degree-level study in the social sciences before you move into the main programme. The foundation year is designed for students who have the potential to succeed at university but who may not have followed the most direct route into higher education, and it provides a structured and genuinely useful preparation for the three years that follow. Once on the degree proper, you will explore the core areas of political science: political theory, comparative politics, international relations, and British and Welsh politics.

You will engage with the ideas that have shaped political thought, examining how different traditions have understood justice, freedom, democracy, and the proper limits of state power. You will also study how political systems work in practice, comparing institutions and outcomes across different countries and contexts.

You will develop strong analytical and research skills, the ability to construct and communicate clear arguments, and a grounded understanding of how political life is conducted. These capabilities have wide application across many careers.

Graduates from politics degrees go on to work in government, the civil service, journalism, law, NGOs, think tanks, public relations, international organisations, and business. The analytical skills the subject builds are valued across the private and public sectors. Postgraduate study in political science, international relations, public policy, or law is a natural next step for those who wish to specialise or pursue careers in research, policy, or academia.