Diplomatic studies and law
Short courses
Our short courses and events in diplomatic studies and law include day schools, lecture series and weekly classes.
Graduate programmes
The Department offers the following full-time programmes in diplomatic studies:
- Foundations of Diplomacy Pre-Masters is a six month course open to applicants with no previous knowledge of the field of diplomacy/international relations.
- Master of Studies in Diplomatic Studies is a full time programme aimed at diplomats in early-to-mid career.
Please note: the Master's in International Human Rights Law, along with the summer school in Oxford, is now offered by the Faculty of Law.
Upcoming courses
Online - live • Short courses • Lecture series • Hybrid - in person or online
The Cold War posed difficult challenges for European countries both East and West. This lecture series analyses how six European leaders navigated their way through this period.
- Fri 18 Oct 2024 – 22 Nov 2024
- 2:00 – 3:15pm
Online - live • Short courses • Lecture series • Hybrid - in person or online
Acknowledged to be a relative liberal in domestic policy, Nikita Khrushchev’s foreign policy was a complicated mixture of hard-line repression and conciliatory diplomacy with the US and NATO. This lecture examines the contradictions of ‘co-existence’.
- Fri 18 Oct 2024
- 2:00 – 3:15pm
Online - live • Short courses • Lecture series • Hybrid - in person or online
This talk focuses on the maverick foreign policy of Charles de Gaulle, which infuriated both superpowers. While showing military independence from the USA, he was no Soviet apologist, gratuitously insulting communism on a visit to Moscow.
- Fri 25 Oct 2024
- 2:00 – 3:15pm
Online - live • Short courses • Lecture series • Hybrid - in person or online
Willy Brandt enjoyed electoral success at home and was hailed as a statesman abroad, but his more recent critics have argued that his diplomacy strengthened the repressive East German regime. This talk assesses Brandt’s contested legacy.
- Fri 01 Nov 2024
- 2:00 – 3:15pm
Online - live • Short courses • Lecture series • Hybrid - in person or online
Tito was a skilful political operator who purged his rivals at home and pursued a non-aligned foreign policy abroad. This lecture explores how, by navigating diplomatically between the Soviets and Americans, he did enough to please both sides.
- Fri 08 Nov 2024
- 2:00 – 3:15pm
Research, student spotlights and related subjects:
Human Rights Law Research
Human rights law research in the Department for Continuing Education at the University of Oxford.Jarosław Bajaczyk
Jarosław applied for the Diplomatic Studies Programme as he wanted to devote time to research and study in a multicultural and multidisciplinary environment.Student spotlights
View all student spotlights for this subject area