What is global politics? As a field of political science, it looks at issues and institutions at the international level. It forms part of the Edexcel A Level Politics course, and can contribute to studies of international relations at university level. This article will outline important features of the topic and aim to answer: what is global politics?
What is Global Politics for A Level?
Global Politics is the study of political issues at the international level. It is one of the options of Paper 3 for the Edexcel A Level Politics course. It provides a good comparison to the study of UK politics and political ideas from the rest of the course. As the world moves to a more connected and globalised structure, the study of global politics is important for 21st-century politicians.
When asking what is global politics, it is important to understand what you study at A Level. You will begin by studying the comparative theories of realism and liberalism. These are two schools of thought that help to explain why and how certain occurrences have emerged in global politics. You will then study globalisation and the impact is has had on the the world over the past century.
The next sections of global politics look at global governance, and you will study this from four perspectives: economic, political, human rights and environmental. When considering what global politics is, global governance provides a strong explanation as it looks at the institutions and effects that ‘globalising’ politics has had on contemporary issues, such as human rights, conflict and poverty.
The final parts of the A Level Global Politics course look at the nature of power and who has it, and the topic of regionalism. Regionalism is the theory that different geographical parts of the world are forming alliances to tackle global problems, such as the EU and African Union.
Where can global politics take me?
The first place that studying global politics at A-level can take you is an international relations course at university. These courses build upon the knowledge you gain at A-level and go deeper into the theory and real-world application of global politics. You may look beyond the theories of realism and liberalism, and explore the theories of constructivism, marxism and post-positivism for international relations. You’ll also study trends in global politics, such as efforts to tackle the climate crisis, or studies of terrorism and strategies to prevent them.
International relations university courses are usually paired with other courses too, such as Politics and Intenational Relations. They can also be taken alongside economics, business and modern languages. Global politics is a fantastic stepping stone to helping understand the world of international relations at university level.
Global Politics can also give you a greater appreciation of other areas of work. Business and economics are now worldwide efforts thanks to globalisation, and many companies operate across borders. An appreciation of the challenges in the 21st-century world is respected by employers who seek workers with a knowledge of geopolitical issues to solve problems. From border tariffs to potential conflicts, these are all considerations made by companies in this day and age.
Conclusion: what is global politics?
This article has outlined what global politics is, and the different aspects of it that are studied within the A Level Politics course. Study Politics can help you gain a greater understanding with our global politics course. We break down the topic into manageable lessons with multimedia learning resources.
This article has also shown how the study of global politics at A-level can help to propel your skills into university or the job market. Many of the skills you learn studying global politics will help you with your future career prospects.
