Bachelor of Arts and Sciences in Life Sciences and Global Sustainable Development

at University of Warwick United Kingdom

This exciting new course is built on the strength of existing research connections between the four departments that will contribute to it: the departments of Economics, Psychology, and Philosophy, and Warwick Business School (specifically the Behavioural Science Group).

The current attention that this interdisciplinary field of research, particularly the area of Behavioural Science and Behavioural Economics, receives across academia, government and the private sector also makes this course an excellent preparation for a wide range of careers within local government, public health, media, charities and NGOs, marketing and finance.

You will have a choice of interesting potential specialisms and pathways through your course so that you can explore the issues that interest you the most, to graduate with either a BA or a BSc.

Students on all pathways take a course-specific co-taught core capstone module in the final year, which is designed to set the disciplines in interdisciplinary dialogue with each other.

Study abroad

You have the opportunity to apply for an intercalated study abroad year at one of our many partner institutions, extending your degree to four years.

As well as offering an opportunity to experience an alternative university system, studying abroad can also provide the chance to improve language skills and to gain an understanding of a country that can only be gained by living and working in it.

This course examines the political and social dimensions of history and international relations. We examine how historical events, actors and institutional legacies have influenced the world we live in today. And we discover complementary insights that can be gained from combining historical and political research. Together we will explore the theory and the reality of why people and states interact in the ways they do.

The two subjects complement each other - one exploring historical events and trends, and the other understanding how those legacies shape politics today. The two Departments in which you will learn (History and PAIS) approach shared research areas such as globalisation, conflict, democracy and human rights from different perspectives. You will explore themes in political, religious, cultural or social history, and will be able to select optional modules in both Departments to explore specialist themes and geographic areas in more detail.

Students will be offered the opportunity at the start of their second year to apply for an optional intercalated year of study abroad or year's work placement, or a combined year of study and work placements.

Following the application process, those students who are offered and take up a study and/or work placement place transfer to the four-year History and Politics (with a Year Abroad) course, with the Year Abroad or work placement as the third of the four years.

Study abroad

History and Politics students have the opportunity to join history students for a term in Venice at the start of year three. You can also apply for an intercalated year at one of the partner universities offered by either the History Department or the Department of Politics and International Studies (PAIS).

The Student Mobility Team based in the Office for Student Opportunity offers support for these activities, and the History Department's dedicated Study Abroad Co-ordinator and the PAIS Director of External Affairs can provide more specific information and assistance.

Taking a cross-discipline approach, you will consider the relationships between a functioning society, and how political and legal systems are structured and operate. The course will also develop your understanding of the philosophical origins and basis for law and politics.

You may explore concepts such as justice, freedom, morals and democracy, as well as the formulation and implementation of law and policy across the world. In addition to core modules in each discipline, there is significant flexibility as the course progresses to choose optional modules from within the three departments as well as across the University.

You will have the opportunity to apply to spend a year abroad with one of our international partners and you may also apply to take a work placement.

Study abroad

We support student mobility through year abroad programs. PPL students have the opportunity to apply for an intercalated year of study abroad at one of our prestigious partner universities.

Why do people think, behave, and understand themselves in certain ways? Why does this vary between individuals and across cultures? How might a more complete understanding of human behavior help to achieve a more sustainable future for all? A BASc in Psychology and GSD challenges you to ask these questions across both sides of your degree program.

You will study biological, developmental, and social aspects of human psychology with Warwick's Psychology Department. Meanwhile, you will balance your studies with the GSD Department, by delving into the Big Questions of today, including food and water security, gender equality, and climate change. Throughout, you will be researching the relationship between individual behavior and the global challenges we all face.

Our students are aspiring global citizens with social consciences. They’re flexible, adaptable and broad-minded.

By studying GSD, you’ll take a transdisciplinary approach and confront issues from a diverse array of perspectives. You will need to be ready to think creatively and embrace new opinions from your peers from across the world. We will challenge you to become an active participant in your own learning.

You can enhance your skills and studies through optional work placements, study abroad, and certificates.

Study abroad
We encourage you to take the opportunity to study abroad during your course at Warwick.

• Enjoy the freedom to take chances with your module choices.
• Push yourself outside of your comfort zone with your learning.
• You may have the opportunity to learn a new language and immerse yourself in a new learning context.
• You may choose to apply for an intercalated year spent either studying abroad or on a work placement (subject to you meeting departmental academic requirements). This will mean extending your course to four years.

If you want to extend your learning and broaden your perspective by studying abroad for a year, Warwick has partnerships with universities across the world. You will spend your first and second years at Warwick, studying abroad in your third year. You will then return to Warwick for your final year.

The MA in Literary Translation Studies is aimed at students whose language combination includes English and any other language. This might be a language that you have studied formally in an academic setting, a language that is part of your cultural heritage, a 'big' language or a 'small' language, a modern language or a classical language; it can be a language from anywhere in the world.

You do not have to be a native speaker of English but you should feel confident about translating into English from your other language(s).

The MA in Literary Translation Studies will teach you to think critically and theoretically about translation, but it will also hone your practical translation skills. Our practising literary translators will introduce you to the 'real world' of literary translation should you wish to work in the field after completing your degree.

You may pursue your studies full-time or part-time and we endeavour to support and take into consideration the needs and existing commitments of part-time and commuting students.

Skills from this degree

• Training in literary translation
• Expertise in intercultural difference and understanding
• Advanced editing skills

International economic law broadly refers to the legal and regulatory architecture that governs our global economy.

The rules and institutions of international economic law constitute the framework within which cross-border economic transactions, for example, trade, finance and investment, take place.

On this programme, you will study the legal and other regulatory foundations of the global economy. You will be introduced to the operations of the main global institutions and frameworks governing international economic relations, including trade and investment treaties, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

You will examine both the wider issues of governance and regulation, and specific legal issues arising from various types of international economic transactions ranging from trade, foreign direct investment, competition law, international taxation, intellectual property and international arbitration.

The course also develops your understanding of, and asks you to consider, legal implications of the changing roles of international economic institutions in both global and regional contexts.

Skills from this degree

• Understanding of the economic principles and legal institutions that govern the negotiation of regional and international trade agreements, foreign direct investment, international financial transactions, project finance and technology transfer
• Drafting of international investment transactions and project finance instruments
• Transferrable skills for careers in a government agency or private practise

Today, economic growth and business expansion must answer to critical concerns about environmental sustainability, biodiversity loss, and human exploitation. You’ll grapple with these debates, and reconcile them with your Business Studies modules.

Throughout your degree, we will challenge you to consider current problems of sustainability from many perspectives, understand their complexity and use a variety of approaches to think creatively about potential solutions.

The holistic approach taken with GSD will complement and challenge your studies with Warwick Business School (WBS), which has a worldwide reputation for its expertise in Business and Management.

You can enhance your skills and studies through optional work placements, study abroad, and certificates.

The MSc in Mental Health and Wellbeing is designed for those who are interested in mental health and wellbeing in non-clinical populations. Learning will be enriched by an interdisciplinary approach and teaching will be delivered by world-leading experts across the fields of psychology, business, economics, medicine, health and behavioural sciences. This course offers basic and advanced training in the science and application of mental health research.

The taught components of the course include modules on research methods, basic and advanced issues in mental health research and practice, and real-world interventions. Teaching is delivered by experts in the field from the Departments of Psychology, Warwick Business School, Warwick Medical School, and Warwick Manufacturing Group to combine academic and practical experience.

The practical component of the course is a three-month research placement in a business environment. The focus of the project will be agreed between the student, academic supervisor, and organisational supervisor.
Skills from this degree

Students will leave the course with a variety of research and transferable skills, including research design, quantitative and qualitative data analysis, oral and written communication skills, critical thinking, and the ability to apply theoretical frameworks to novel, real-world problems. These skills will be relevant across a range of contexts to succeed in a global workforce.

By the end of the course, you should be able to:

• Demonstrate in-depth specialist knowledge of mental health and wellbeing theory, research and practice
• Exhibit competence in working effectively and independently in a workplace setting
• Demonstrate an advanced understanding of research methods and analysis relevant to mental health and wellbeing
• Take a proactive and self-reflective role in working and to develop professional relationships with others
• Critically formulate ideas and hypotheses
• Evaluate current issues and research in the discipline

Join experts at Warwick's Politics and International Studies Department and Warwick Interdisciplinary Research Centre for International Development (WICID) and develop your critical thinking and research skills as well as how to translate these into practical solutions.

Develop your analytical and practical skills to understand the most pressing global challenges in our world today, including inequality, sustainability and security.

This programme will introduce you to the intellectual and political foundations of International Development, to the key events and themes which have shaped its evolution, and to the major issues that have been (and not) addressed in the scholarship and practice of international development. You will examine the institutions of International Development put in place through the Bretton Woods System, the various United Nations institutions, governmental and non-governmental policies and practices in the historical context of Empire and of contemporary globalisation.

We believe that theoretical work and empirical work are not separate exercises. Practical problems stimulate theory construction, and theories inform the ways in which we handle substantive issues. Students will learn to write policy papers and develop skills to translate critical thinking into problem solving.

We offer an exciting package of core and optional modules which include both theoretical and applied learning. This classroom-based work is reinforced and deepened by bringing our MA students into contact with the work of the Warwick Interdisciplinary Research Centre for International Development (WICID) which is housed in PAIS. MA students can join WICID events and learn about the work of its academic, policy and practitioner collaborators.

Students can lead and participate in the Warwick Global Development Society and a student-led end of the year Development Conference, which offers additional opportunities to learn valuable professional skills and to apply learning throughout the year in shaping the content of the conference.

Are you interested in becoming an adept and successful communicator between different nations or cultures? This exciting course draws on cutting-edge academic research by a team of experts in translation, transnational and transcultural studies.

You will develop a rigorous theoretical understanding of translation, with the opportunity to produce your own translations and/or analyse and compare existing translations. The interdisciplinary programme examines translation between English and at least one of Chinese (standard Mandarin), French, German, Italian and Spanish in a cultural context. The research component is significant in this academic degree, which offers integrated research skills training and the possibility to do a final Dissertation on a research topic. If you prefer to get more translation practice, you can also opt for a final Dissertation comprising an original translation from a variety of genres or an analytical commentary.

After graduating, you will be well qualified to seek out work within linguistic and intercultural mediation, in the growing sector of language industry, or to apply for further study or applied research, including our Warwick’s own PhD programme in Translation and Transcultural Studies.