We recently caught up with Dr John F. Morrison from the School of Law to find out more about MSc in Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism.

 

Q1. What subject areas can students expect to study in MSc Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism?

While this degree is delivered primarily by the criminology team within the School of Law it is very much an interdisciplinary programme. Students will learn about terrorism and counter-terrorism from a variety of perspectives. This will include an appreciation for the role that disciplines such as psychology, history, criminology, sociology, international relations, and information security can play in developing our understanding of terrorism and counter-terrorism.  Within this students will have two core courses on 'Debates in Terrorism Studies' and 'Debates in Counterterrorism Studies.' They will also complete three elective courses from the options of 'Psychology of Terrorism', 'History of Terrorism', 'Contemporary Forms of Terrorism', 'Terrorism, Media and Communication,' 'Transnational Organised Crime', 'Cyber Crime', 'Transnational Security Studies', 'Media, War and Conflict', 'Understanding Defence' and 'The Israel Palestinian Conflict: A Global Perspective.' You will also complete a dissertation which will allow you to complete a piece of independent research on a topic of your choice. 

 

Q2. What do you think makes this course different from similarly titled courses on offer across the UK? 

The programme has been designed to give students a range of opportunities both inside and outside of lectures and seminars. You will learn from internationally recognised  researchers from within Royal Holloway, as well as a range of guest speakers including expert academics, policy-makers and practitioners. students taking the programme will also have the opportunity to work on the internationally acclaimed 'Talking Terror' podcast. Students can work as researchers for episodes where world leading experts from a range of fields are interviewed about their areas of expertise. this will allow students to develop their research skills at the same time as developing their network

 

Q3. What are the entry requirements for this degree? 

2:1

Criminology, Psychology, Politics, or another subject from the social sciences.

Normally we require a UK 2:1 (Honours) or equivalent in relevant subjects but we will consider high 2:2 or relevant work experience. Candidates with professional qualifications in an associated area may be considered. Where a ‘good 2:2’ is considered, we would normally define this as reflecting a profile of 57% or above.

 

Q4. What prospects would students studying this course benefit from? 

The programme has been designed so as to give students a range of different skills, to prepare them for multiple career paths. Students will be tasked to write 'policy papers,' present risk analyses, develop audio recordings, as well as completing a range of other traditional and non-traditional assessments. This will develop students for a range of difference career paths. This includes, but not exclusively, careers in academia, security services, NGOs, civil service, intelligence agencies, journalism, charities, Countering Violent Extremism Organisations, and the private sector.

 

Discover more about MSc in Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism.