MA in Corruption and Governance University of Sussex

Develop your understanding of what corruption is, where and why it proliferates, and what we can do to counteract it.

This course is the only full-time Masters in the UK addressing issues of corruption. You’ll explore:

• how different disciplines define corruption and how this can lead to different anti-corruption approaches
• specific examples – from systematic abuses of power by parties, politicians and civil servants to small-scale, petty misdemeanours
• the role of business, unpacking the problems surrounding corruption and exploring potential solutions.

Peer-to-peer interaction and collaboration are key elements of the course and create a rich learning experience. Sharing knowledge and opinions allows us to look at issues from different perspectives. On graduation, you’ll have an understanding of corruption in many different contexts. You’ll also have the practical tools to design and put in place anti-corruption responses.

You’ll learn from academics and practitioners dedicated to interdisciplinary research and policy impact in our world-leading Centre for the Study of Corruption

Core modules

Core modules are taken by all students on the course. They give you a solid grounding in your chosen subject and prepare you to explore the topics that interest you most.

Autumn teaching

• Anti-Corruption
• Research Methods and Approaches
• Understanding Corruption

Spring and summer teaching

• Corruption and Governance Dissertation

Options

Alongside your core modules, you can choose options to broaden your horizons and tailor your course to your interests. This list gives you a flavour of our options, which are kept under review and may change, for example in response to student feedback or the latest research.

While it’s our aim for students to take their preferred combinations of options, this can’t be guaranteed and will be subject to timetabling. Options may be grouped and if so, students will be able to choose a set number of options from the selection available in any particular group.

Spring teaching

• Corruption and Public Power
• Corruption and the Law
• Corruption Case Studies
• Corruption Governance and Natural Resources Management
• Corruption in Business and International Development
• Economic Crime
• Integrity, Anti-Corruption and Ethics: Policies, Practices, Politics
• Internship
• New Technologies and Corruption

Internship

In the spring term, you have the opportunity to take up a three-month internship. Here, you put the theory learned in the seminar room in to practice.

• 7th in the UK for Social Sciences (The Times Higher Education World University Rankings by Subject 2022)
• =16th in the UK for Politics (QS World University Rankings by Subject 2022)

Our MA equips you with the skills for a career in a wide variety of fields. You are particularly well placed to work:

• at the interface between the private and public sectors
• in the area of public policy-making
• the Civil Service and business
• in areas of corporate social responsibility – an area of growing importance for many national and international companies.

Development and a wide variety of NGOs and charities are also options. The skills you develop are highly valued in journalism, including a fine eye for what is and is not acceptable government and business practice.