Study options
- Starting in
- September 2025
- Location
- Mile End
- Fees
- Home: £15,250
Overseas: £29,950
EU/EEA/Swiss students
What you'll study
This International Business and Politics MRes is in an approved pathway for ESRC funding. You will be able to apply for ESRC 1+3 funding to cover both this MRes and a PhD.
This engaging programme provides an advanced theoretical grounding in the history, politics and core aspects of business. You will choose from a broad range of modules to supplement your own research, offered in conjunction with the School's International Business and Politics MSc. You could focus on social and political marketing, environmental change, international relations in the Middle East, and other varied aspects of business and politics. This array of subjects will prepare you for a career in multinational business, or for a PhD.
You will also cover core modules in research design, qualitative and quantitative methods. You will expand your professional network, as you share these modules with students from King’s College London and Imperial College London, as part of the training offered by the London Interdisciplinary Social Science Doctoral Training Partnership (LISS-DTP).
Structure
- Two compulsory modules
- Four elective modules
- 15,000-word dissertation
Compulsory/Core modules
The dissertation forms one third of the entire Programme and requires the ability to carry out an original investigation into an area of interest. It should reflect skills of formulating research questions, synthesising and analysing data, drawing insights and conclusions through written communication. Students will be guided through the dissertation process by a supervisor. Students are required to take the DTC modules in the first and second semesters. Information about the Dissertation will be provided on the dedicated module area on QM+.
The module provides you with advanced research skills, including the ability to select and use relevant resources effectively and to devise research questions appropriate for postgraduate research. You will develop the capacity to undertake independent guided research at postgraduate level.
This module teaches you to use advanced quantitative skills appropriate for postgraduate research. Further, you will be able to analyse, interpret, critique and replicate published research using quantitative research methods and will acquire sufficient technical competence using SPSS to perform a range of quantitative techniques in your own research.
Elective modules
This course introduces contemporary theories and the empirical literature of the economics of developing countries with specific reference to public policy delivery. The course will address the problems with public policy delivery in developing countries and what solutions and strategies have been identified in the literature. The course will deal with debates such as centralised and decentralised delivery methods, political economy issues of corruption and state capture, and the role of incentives among politicians and bureaucrats in service delivery.
This module explores how the management of global supply chains involves negotiating a multifaceted process of value creation and capture cutting across firms' and states' borders and from the environment. It maps the relations between firms and between firms and other actors and explores how supply chains are embedded in different environmental and social contexts. The module explores these issues by focusing on some of the largest corporate-controlled global supply chains in history, e.g. food and supermarkets, fashion retailers and mobile phone producers.
The module provides students with a detailed examination - and critique - of theories of globalisation and assessment of contemporary globalising processes, and how these particularly influence the developing world. It examines these influences through detailed analysis of contemporary manifestations of globalisation, including neo-liberalism, US hegemony and contemporary imperialism, capital flows, global commodity chains, state-market relations, patterns of global inequality, international institutions, and questions of cultural homogenisation/imperialism. The module also examines the ways in which globalisation is resisted, focusing on the rise of transnational social movements and NGOs, and the politics of anti-globalisation, and how this relates to an ostensibly post-development era. In addressing these issues, the module concludes by asking the most important question: how do we think of development in an era of globalisation, US hegemony, neo-liberalism and imperialism?
Innovation is an essential drive of a firm's competitiveness. The module New Product Development and Business Ecosystems enables students to analyse innovation processes within complex ecosystems, from the definition of a new product concept to the involvement of suppliers, partners and end-users in developing new product/process architectures. Students will analyse the organisational implications and challenges deriving from the involvement of partners, supplier and end-users in new product development, through a blend of theoretical and case study based approaches.
This is a core course which is compulsory for students in the MSc in International Business ; it is an optional course to other Masters programmes in SBM. It aims to introduce students to central debates about the relationship between global economic integration (globalisation) and economic development, highlighting the role played by multinational enterprises. Students are introduced to central themes and theories of international integration and its impacts, and to core ideas of why there are multinationals, and what their economic impacts are. Location and distance, and the costs therein are strong themes throughout the module, as they play central role in structuring both the actions of multinationals and larger patterns of economic activity.
Assessment
- 67% Modules
- 33% Dissertation
- Modules are assessed through a combination of coursework and written examinations
- You will also be assessed through an individual dissertation
Dissertation
The final dissertation is your chance to conduct in-depth and independent research. This can be a practice-oriented project of your choice, on a company or an industry you choose.
Teaching
Teaching is by research-oriented staff, who will combine professional knowledge of their subject with a critical attitude to its delivery. Staff teaching will be complemented, where appropriate, by visiting lecturers with professional expertise.
You will take an active role in your own learning by reading designated material, producing written assignments and completing projects.
We invest in both your educational and personal development, and you will be assigned an Academic Advisor who will be there to support you throughout your time at Queen Mary.
Where you'll learn
Facilities
- State-of-the-art media suite with editing software (QUBE)
- Brand new Graduate Centre, offering purpose-built study spaces and an exclusive rooftop common room
- Think Pod - an interactive collaboration space with presentation, recording and video conferencing facilities
- Access to some of London’s outstanding facilities including The British Library, Senate House Library and Copac
About the School
School of Business and Management
The School of Business and Management has a reputation as a socially engaged management school, with an innovative, multidisciplinary, mindful and responsible approach. We invite our students to ask incisive questions, to challenge their assumptions, and to search for solutions to real-world challenges.
We ensure students experience innovative and engaging educational pathways, alongside supportive staff and excellent research facilities.
The School is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), which ensures that the highest standards of excellence in teaching, research, curriculum, and learner success are met.
In the most recent Research Excellence Framework (REF 2021), the School of Business and Management dramatically moved up the Times Higher Education rankings. Among 108 UK business schools, the School now ranks:
- 22nd for overall research quality (up from 39th in REF2014)
- 28th for research outputs (up from 34th)
- 12th for research impact (up from 24th)
- 21st for research environment (up from 59th)
Queen Mary is also part of the Russell Group - a body of leading UK universities dedicated to research and teaching excellence.
Career paths
This course is ideal if you want to go on to further doctoral research training through the LISS DTP Programme. You can also use it as a springboard for progression into management positions.
Fees and funding
Full-time study
September 2025 | 1 year
- Home: £15,250
- Overseas: £29,950
EU/EEA/Swiss students
Conditional deposit
Home: Not applicable
Overseas: £2000
Information about deposits
Queen Mary alumni can get a £1000, 10% or 20% discount on their fees depending on the programme of study. Find out more about the Alumni Loyalty Award
Funding
There are a number of ways you can fund your postgraduate degree.
- Scholarships and bursaries
- Postgraduate loans (UK students)
- Country-specific scholarships for international students
Our Advice and Counselling service offers specialist support on financial issues, which you can access as soon as you apply for a place at Queen Mary. Before you apply, you can access our funding guides and advice on managing your money:
Entry requirements
UK
Degree requirements
A 1st class degree at undergraduate level in any subject. A satisfactory research proposal that fits with research interests of staff in the School of Business and Management is also required.
Find out more about how to apply for our postgraduate taught courses.
International
English language requirements
The English language requirements for our programmes are indicated by English bands, and therefore the specific test and score acceptable is based on the band assigned to the academic department within which your chosen course of study is administered. Note that for some academic departments there are programmes with non-standard English language requirements.
The English Language requirements for entry to postgraduate taught in the School of Business and Management falls within the following English band:
Band 4: IELTS (Academic) minimum score 6.5 overall with 6.0 in each of Writing, Listening, Reading and Speaking
We accept a range of English tests and qualifications categorised in our English bands for you to demonstrate your level of English Language proficiency. See all accepted English tests that we deem equivalent to these IELTS scores.
Visas and immigration
Find out how to apply for a student visa.