Australian Foreign and Security Policy
UndergraduateMUR-POL2002025
- Study method
- 100% online
- Assessments
- Subject may require attendance
- Enrol by
- 20 July 2025
- Entry requirements
- Prior study needed
- Duration
- 13 weeks
- Start dates
- 28 July 2025
- Price from
- $2,125
- Upfront cost
- $0
- Loan available
- HECS-HELP and FEE-HELP available
Australian Foreign and Security Policy
About this subject
At the completion of this subject students will be able to:
- Demonstrate an understanding of different theoretical perspectives that have been used to analyse Australian Foreign and security policies.
- Analyse how and why Australian Foreign and Security is shaped by changing global economic and security orders.
- Critically analyse evidence and identify the ethical implications of data and how it is used.
- Demonstrate articulate communication skills by constructing evidence-based arguments in audio, digital, oral and/or written form.
- Demonstrate technical proficiency in the conventions of the discipline.
- Evaluate contemporary challenges to Australian Foreign Policy including issues of gender, environment, geoeconomics and race.
- A week-by-week guide to the topics you will explore in this subject will be provided in your study materials.
This unit introduces students to Australian foreign and security policy, exploring the regional and international contexts in which Australia pursues its national interests. It traces how and why Australian foreign and security policy has changed over time, and the degree to which it is shaped by participation in international organisations, alliances and regional partnerships. The unit examines Australia’s relationship with such great powers as the United States, Britain and China, as well as other players in the Indo-Pacific region. Students consider the rising impact of non-state actors and such issues as terrorism, environmental crisis, refugees and migration, international political economy, and globalisation in order to form an understanding of Australia’s major policy challenges, past achievements and how it understands its place in the world.
Please Note: All students studying at Murdoch University will need to complete the compulsory unit, Murdoch Academic Passport (MAP100), which only takes 2-3 hours to complete online. Find out more: http://goto.murdoch.edu.au/MurdochAcademicPassport.
- Problem-solving task and Report (20%)
- Invigilated Exam (40%)
- Foreign and Security Influence Research Paper (40%)
For textbook details check your university's handbook, website or learning management system (LMS).
This research-based university in Perth has a strong interdisciplinary focus and a reputation for outstanding teaching and ground-breaking research. With more than 25,000 students and 2,400 staff from over 90 countries, and campuses in Dubai and Singapore, Murdoch embraces free thinking, shared ideas and knowledge to make a difference, and Open Universities Australia is certainly part of that.
Learn more about Murdoch University.
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- QS World University Ranking 2025, within Australia:
- 26
- Times Higher Education World University Ranking 2025, within Australia:
- 31
Entry requirements
Others
Please note that 12 credit points must be completed prior to enrolling in 200-level units. Speak with your Academic Chair for more information.
Additional requirements
No additional requirements
Study load
- 0.125 EFTSL
- This is in the range of 10 to 12 hours of study each week.
Equivalent full time study load (EFTSL) is one way to calculate your study load. One (1.0) EFTSL is equivalent to a full-time study load for one year.
Find out more information on Commonwealth Loans to understand what this means to your eligibility for financial support.
What to study next?
Once you’ve completed this subject it can be credited towards one of the following courses
Bachelor of Global Security (Terrorism and Counterterrorism Studies)
UndergraduateMUR-BGS-DEG
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