School of Social and Political Science

Politics and International Relations (PIR)

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About

We’re one of the largest and most exciting subject areas in the University, home to over 600 top undergraduates and 100 international postgraduate students every year.

Programmes

Our teaching and supervision is research-led, which means that courses at all levels are delivered by scholars active in research in their respective fields.

Research

Our aim is to produce research at the highest international standards, consolidating our position as one of the leading international locations for research on subjects such as multilevel governance, European integration and global politics.

People

Find out more about our team of academic colleagues, PhD students and professional services staff who keep our department running smoothly.

News

See the latest news updates from Politics and International Relations.

Contact

You can find us in the Chrystal Macmillan Building in George Square - right at the heart of the central campus. Busy all year round, George Square is also home to performers and artists during the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in August.
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Edited from PIR: Comparative European Politics

Comparative European Politics (CEP) arises out of a unique editorial partnership linking political scientists in Europe and North America. The journal explores challenging questions about the limitations of existing disciplinary perspectives and theoretical conventions.
image of regional and federal studies journal

Edited from PIR: Regional and Federal Studies

Regional and Federal Studies publishes research on federalism and territorial politics covering a wide variety of topics related to divided political authority and levels of government.
review of international studies journal image

Edited from PIR: Review of International Studies

Review of International Studies (RIS) publishes high-quality research that makes significant contributions to conversations about global politics, broadly defined.

poster: global-constitutionalism

Edited from PIR in partnership with Edinburgh Law School: Global Constitutionalism

Global Constitutionalism (GlobCon) offers an interdisciplinary space for addressing the foundations, limitations and contestations of the principles and norms of political order and their dynamics over time on a global scale.

Latest news

News content

Photo of a man putting a vote in a ballot box
23/04/2025
Politics and International Relations (PIR)

English politics are marked with ‘Anger, Frustration and Fear’, according to new research from SPS academic

The majority of voters in England describe themselves as ‘angry’ or ‘fearful’ about British politics, according to new research from School of Social and Political Science (SPS) academic Professor Ailsa Henderson.

Two students walking in a building, beside a sign for the 'School of Social and Political Science'
20/03/2025
Politics and International Relations (PIR)

SPS subject areas among world’s top 50 and UK’s top 10 in 2025 QS rankings 

Four School of Social and Political Science (SPS) subject areas are in the top 50 in the world and top 10 in the UK, according to the latest QS World University Rankings. 
Photo of inside the Scottish Parliament building
19/02/2025
Politics and International Relations (PIR)

SPS academics develop Scottish Parliament guide for gender sensitising parliaments

School of Social and Political Science (SPS) academics Professor Meryl Kenny and Professor Sarah Childs have worked with the Scottish Parliament on a guide that aims to improve equal participation and representation of women in parliaments around the world.

Text reads: Global Constitutionalism: Human Rights, Democracy, Rule of Law.
27/01/2025
Politics and International Relations (PIR)

SPS academics join editorial team of the Global Constitutionalism journal

School of Social and Political Science (SPS) academics Dr Andrea Birdsall and Dr Jared Holley will become editors of the Global Constitutionalism (GlobCon) journal, as it moves to the University of Edinburgh.

Upcoming events

Events content

event poster
01 May 2025
15:30 - 17:00
Politics and International Relations (PIR)

Book Launch: Experimental Times: Startup Capitalism and Feminist Futures in India

Please join us for a discussion of Experimental Times by Hemangini Gupta, Lecturer in Gender and Global Politics.
CeSeR Conference 2025: Futures of International Security
06 May 2025
09:00 - 18:00
Politics and International Relations (PIR)

CeSeR Conference 2025: Futures of International Security

What futures are in store for international security? Join us for cutting-edge research on the shifting terrain of international order.
12 May 2025
11:00 - 13:00
Politics and International Relations (PIR)

Gender Politics Research Group Book Panel – reflections on writing as a feminist practice


Several members of our GPRG community have recently published books in PIR, including edited volumes, and we want to come together to celebrate their achievements. Rather than a traditional book launch, our gender politics panellists will discuss the feminist process of writing and editing, focusing in particular on the joy, love, pitfalls, and challenges. Since many of these books were co-authored, the panellists will also share their experiences with collaboration and explore the ethical and practical dimensions of feminist co-authorship.
poster
12 May 2025
15:00 - 17:00
Politics and International Relations (PIR)

The Unruly Public Sphere: Public Art and the Political Imagination in Bangladesh

This paper looks at two examples of public art happenings in Chattogram, Bangladesh, exploring how they create space for the political imagination; and can be used to stretch how audiences understand the political community – temporally, across lines of gender and class, and beyond wilful ignorance of heavily securitised boundaries.