MA South Asia & Global Security
The MA South Asia and Global Security provides a focused understanding of the interrelationships between the history, theory, and contemporary practice of security-led issues in South Asia and Afghanistan. The core module incorporates historical approaches, thematic analysis, and case studies taught by academics from War Studies and the King’s India Institute.
The methodological approach developed by the module directors (see below) is highly inter-disciplinary, where students are introduced to Strategy and Security Studies, History, Politics, and Journalism with an eye on individual South Asian states and Afghanistan. Apart from the academic staff, the core module draws on policy leaders, military professionals, and experts in the private sector involved in security management with considerable experience in one or more South Asian states.
The programme equips students to reflect on ‘local’ and regional contexts to query commonly held assumptions in both disciplinary fields and popular commentary. Students are regularly exposed to a variety of perspectives outside of established fields. For instance, the story of Afghanistan and the current conflict is told by historians/academics, journalists, and those living within the country. The intricacies of Pakistani politics is argued from both a conceptual point of view (questioning popular hypotheses around religion, ideology, democracy, civil-military relations) as well as one that unpicks current western policy imperatives. India too is taught keeping in mind themes central to the emergence of what is often called, but seldom defined, as a ‘rising power’. These include questions around security, democracy, politics, and society.
MA students participate in the vibrant life of both the Dept. of War Studies and the King's India Institute - including regular seminars, lectures and debates that bring together a range of academics and leaders from various fields such as Government, Military, Business, Media and Cultural Industries. The Dept. of War Studies has an excellent reputation as a graduate training institution and is recognised by the British Academy, the Arts and Humanities Research Council and the Economic and Social Research council. It places great emphasis on recruiting leading experts who bring with them not only a wealth of knowledge and ideas but an extensive and continually growing network of links with other departments, think-tanks, organisations, policy-making bodies and institutions.
The unrivalled location in the heart of London beside the River Thames brings outstanding advantages. Students enjoy excellent academic, social and cultural opportunities. The department is close to the seat of Government, the City, the Imperial War Museum, the National Maritime Museum, the Royal Courts of Justice and the Inns of Court.
Programme Structure
The programme is built around one core course, which aims to develop key questions around the importance of power, strategy, history, and politics of South Asian states. The forty credit (two-semester) core module is called:
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South Asia and Global Security: History, Politics, and Society
Students are required to take two additional optional modules from nearly sixty courses offered at both the Dept. of War Studies and the King’s India Institute. The basket of options include courses on East Asian Security, Insurgency and Counterinsurgency, Radicalisation, Terrorism, International Relations, International History, The Afghan Conflict, Intelligence, Non-proliferation, and Strategy.
Students are also requirwed to author a dissertation of 15,000 words.
Apart from these course requirements, students may choose to take-up language training in Hindi, Urdu, Punjabi, Farsi, Dari or other languages offered by the Modern Language Centre. They also have access to a range of external modules offered by departments across the Schools of Arts & Humanities and Social Science & Public Policy.
Further details of the programme structure are available in the King's Graduate Prospectus.
Course Directors
Prof. Anatol Lieven, Chair, International Relations and Terrorism Studies, Department of War Studies, King’s College London,
and author of Pakistan: A Hard Country.
Prof. Sunil Khilnani, Avantha Professor & Director,
King’s India Institute, King’s College London,
and author of The Idea of India.
Dr. Srinath Raghavan, Lecturer, Defence Studies, King’s College London,
and author of War and Peace in Modern India.
Dr. Rudra Chaudhuri, Lecturer, South Asia and Strategic Studies,
Department of War Studies and King's India Institute, King’s College London.
Further information
If you have specific enquiries relating to the programme, please contact
Dr. Rudra Chaudhuri.
The programme is now open for applications, and a link to the online application form can be found in the Graduate Prospectus.