The life of a master's student is very autonomous and very busy. I only have about six contact hours a week, which is a big change from undergrad at the UofR. Mostly that just means I have a lot of work outside of class requiring all my time management skills to be put to work.
The Interpol department here is IR from a whole new angle than what I had previously been exposed to. The department is very theory based, which is giving me more normative and well rounded views of IR. My professors and my master's cohort are very international, which shows the prestige and reach of the department.
I'm taking classes completely outside of subjects I've looked at before: security studies, non-western studies, and Welsh Studies.
Security Studies: In this class we're exploring the many types of international events that could lead to violence, and thus security problems. From the the privitization of security (think Blackwater) and Warlords, to Environmental and Food Security. We have explored whether or not these problems should lead to national security or if these issues need a more cooperative, internatonal approach. Understanding what types of international events can lead to increased securitisation, usually in the form of military, is giving me a new perspective on peacekeeping.
Non-western IR: My friends, colleagues, and I often discuss the implications of globalisation in the western image. This can be elimination of languages, democratisation in places without an interest in democracy, and above all else the hegemony of western interests abroad. This class encapsulates all of those ideas and more. We don't real international relations texts, instead we read historical, anthropological, philosophical, and geographical texts, which provide new perspectives and ideas about how the world has become so westernised, which began with colonialism. This week we are reading, Silencing the Past: Power and the Production of History by Michel-Rolph Trouillot, which explores the hegemonic nature of history production. This is a major theme of the course: how does our narrative of history shield us from the bigger historical picture.
Devolution and the National Assembly For Wales: this class is the main module for my course, I'm the only student in the course who isn't Welsh speaking. Learning about Welsh politics from Welsh politics students is a very unique experience and is giving me great information for my dissertation. This week we are going to the National Assembly for Wales in Cardiff to meet with Assembly members and gain perspectives about what it's like to make policy in a devolved government from the individuals who are making the policy.
Onto the fun stuff!
I've been out and about exploring (when it isn't raining, which it is mostly). I walked up one of the lookout hills with one of my flatmates a few weeks ago and the view was gorgeous.
This is the view from the top of the lookout point. You could see most of the coast that day, all the way down to Pembrokeshire.
This week is the real ale festival and I've gone to my favourite pub, The Ship and Castle, to sample the craft brews, which were excellent.
