Programmes and Papers
Papers and Programme Structure
The programme of MIntSt study consists of four taught papers and a supervised 20,000 word research project. This is a truly multidisciplinary programme, and involves teaching from four academic disciplines: politics, law, economics and history. Each of these disciplines is responsible for determining the content and internal assessment requirements of each course. Students have six contact hours in class per week and there is a 60-40 split between the exam and internal assessment for each taught component of the course. That is to say, 40 per cent of a student's mark is determined by internal assessment (coursework normally consisting of essays, seminar presentations and assignments) in each of the four courses that are taken as part of the MIntSt programme.
The four taught courses account for two thirds of the overall degree while the 20,000 dissertation accounts for one third. The MIntSt programme is unique, in the New Zealand context, in that all of its teaching is conducted exclusively at the 500-post Honours Masters level. Moreover, every participating student is required to master the core curriculum of four courses before completing the dissertation component.
Semester 1
INTS 502 International Politics examines contending international theories, actors in the international system, security dimensions of international society and some key issues in contemporary global politics, including morality and human rights, the threat of international terrorism and the North-South divide.
INTS 504 International Legal Issues gives a foundation in the basic principles of international law (no previous legal training required), then proceeds to examine the role of legal principles in world affairs on topics such as the use of force, law of the sea, self-determination, and human rights.
Semester 2
INTS 503 The Global Economy covers the microeconomics of international trade and the macroeconomics of the world economy. The focus is on recent trends in, and likely prospects for, the global economy.
INTS 509 Global Peace and Conflict covers theoretical explanations for peace and armed conflict, alternatives to violence, conflict resolution theory and practice, post conflict development and peace-building, reconciliation and transitional justice.
Research Project (Full Year)
The research project should be started at the beginning of the programme and submitted no later than twelve months following first enrolment. A student can join the MIntSt in late February (Semester 1) or early July (Semester 2) during the academic year. The limit is 20,000 words of text, exclusive of appendices, footnotes, tabular material, bibliography or equivalent.
All of the MIntSt teaching staff are available to provide academic supervision either on an individual basis or on a joint basis, and the research project may encompass more than one discipline. Furthermore, academic staff in the Departments of History, Politics and Economics that are not involved in the teaching of the core courses are also available to provide academic supervision for MIntSt students.
Recent Research Project titles include:
- Political Autonomy in Spain and the Challenge of Basque Separatism
- The Response of the EU to the US-led Invasion of Iraq
- A Normative Comparison of the Impact of Environmental NGOs and other Lobby Groups on Environmental Policy
- The Trans-Tasman Security Relationship: Integration or Divergence?
- The Securitisation of Migration Policies in Germany after 9/11
- Democracy, Free Trade and National Security: The Helms-Burton Act Dispute between the United States and the European Union
- Norway and Russia: From Cold War to Measured Friendship
- The United Nations and Post-Conflict Democratisation: A Case of Kosovo
- Cuba and the End of the Cold War: The Politics of Survival, 1989-1996
- Neo-Functionalism and EC Social Policy: The Social Protocol and the Case of Germany
- The US-UN Peace Operation in Somalia and the Development of US Foreign Policy
- New Zealand and the 1951 Convention on Refugees
- The United States and the International Criminal Court: the Politics Behind the US Opposition to the Rome Treaty
- WTO and China's FDI Legal Regime
- The Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative: An Evaluation
- Assessing the Decision by the Bush Administration to Deploy a National Missile Defence System
- Redefining Security? An Analysis of the Origins and Effects of the Labour/Alliance Government's Defence Policy
- Renewable Energy: International Obstacles and Opportunities
- US Policy Towards Antarctica: Continuity and Change
- Ethics, Human Rights and New Zealand Foreign Policy
- UN Economic Sanctions against Iraq: Legitimate Diplomatic Tool or Blunt Instrument?
- The WTO, the 1998 EU-US Beef Hormone Dispute and State Sovereignty
- New Zealand's Trade Policy in the Age of Globalisation and Regionalism
- Former Head of State Immunity: The Pinochet Decisions and Beyond
Degree Regulations
http://www.otago.ac.nz/courses/qualifications/MIntSt.html#regulations
