Only students who have either completed the B.A. program as an intensive study program at the Bundeswehr University Munich or can prove an external Bachelor's degree that is eligible for recognition can move from the Bachelor's program at the UniBwM to the Master's program. For more details and information on the admission requirements, please contact Prof. Daniel Khan or Dr. Nora Knötig.
About the Program
The M.A. program starts in the winter trimester (January) and lasts a total of 21 months. The program ends with the writing of a Master's thesis during the 5th trimester and the final summer quarter (July to September). During the lecture-free period (3rd quarter), students are obliged to complete a summer module in the form of an internship, a summer school or – in exceptional cases – a foreign language course. There is also the possibility of studying abroad.
The Master's program in Social Sciences and Public Affairs builds on the knowledge students acquired in the Bachelor's program and enlarges upon their specialization in either "State Structures and Social Change" or "International Law and Politics". Students are largely free to further develop their study interests within the scope of supplementary modules and in accordance with their elective subjects from the B.A. (necessary prerequisites for the M.A. courses can be found in the respective module/event description).
The program is to enable students to develop scientific questions in political science, history, law, economics, sociology and ethics in an interdisciplinary way and to work on them in a practice-oriented, methodologically sound and solution-oriented manner. At the same time, students familiarize themselves with the development and debate of theory of the different disciplines as well as with the latest research results. In addition to imparting in-depth specialist knowledge, analytical competence is further promoted, methodological knowledge is applied to real research questions, and subject-specific techniques and skills are deepened.
Specializations
Within the scope of the specialization field "State Structures and Social Change", students engage with the political and social characteristics of different state and social systems of the past and present. In addition to investigating these systems’ foundations in terms of their intellectual history, students examine social lines of conflict, globalization strategies as well as the various patterns and modes of the emergence of collective identities.
In the specialization field "International Law and Politics", students deal, among other things, with the transformation of international law from interstate law to a legal order that entitles and binds the individual, they recognize globalization and regionalization as complementary processes and are enabled to apply the results of political and socio-scientific conflict research to current and historic cases.
Goals
At the end of their Master’s program, students
- will be able to grasp socio-political problems in their complexity and structural conditionality
- can assess the effects of globalization on their own and foreign societies and will be able to identify possible conflict potentials
- will have a set of tools at their disposal to independently test possible approaches to solving these conflict potentials for their suitability
- are able to understand and analyze historical, political and social structures of democracies (StuG)
- will have acquired knowledge of international and European law, international politics, security policy, causes of war and conflict and conflict resolution strategies (IRuP).
- will have in-depth knowledge of methods as a basis for independent scientific work
Need help?
Your Contact Persons at the dean's office of the Department of Social Sciences and Public Affairs for questions regarding the B.A. and M.A. program Social Sciences and Public Affairs:
You will find us in building 33.
Legend
- 1: Dean of Studies