Bradford University has a reputation for being the university for peace studies in the UK.  They also claim to be the first and largest university Peace Studies Department in the world.  Hence I visited their Bradford University’s open day on Saturday 4th July 2015 to investigate them as a possibility for doing my master’s degree in a peace-related subject.

The Peace Studies department was formed 40 years ago.

There is no cap on the number of entries; they currently get around 100 MA students per year.  One does not have to choose a specific MA in advance—admission is to the department.  I was told “the Peace Studies MA is for people who do not know what to do with themselves”.  I know exactly what I want to do and a Peace Studies MA is core to that.

Part of their claim to fame is that Margaret Thatcher tried to get the peace studies department closed down because of their links with the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) organisation.  (I checked this out and, according to The Struggle Against the Bomb Volume 3):

As early as 1981, the British Secretary of State had publicly attacked peace studies as “appeasement” education and, thereafter, public officials issued dire warnings about peace and antinuclear bias in the nation’s schools . Thatcher herself, convinced of pro-CND bias at the nation’s only university level peace studies department, located at the University of Bradford, sought to have it shut down, and repeatedly asked officials: “Has that department been dealt with yet?”

I was also told about an organisation one of their staff is involved in (the Oxford Research Group) but that organisation is independent so it is a bit glory-by-association.  Ditto for SaferWorld and OpenDemocracy.  We were also told one of their professors is always jetting round the world and contacting him results in “I’m in such-and-such airport” responses.  Not much use as a campus lecturer, then.  They also said they are influential in government, but not how.  Lots of words, little evidence.

I was taken around the library by their Head of Library Services.  It is a fantastic university library; I was very impressed.

For some of my questions the PostGraduate stand sent me to the Peace Studies stand who sent me to the PostGraduate stand.

It seems very pro-gender-divisive which came across in the old, tired, “you’re male so you’re wrong and need educating” mantra.

Intake is in September.  Class sizes are 30-40 and no less than 15.I asked why they are relatively inexpensive (£5,400) and told “Just be glad  it is so cheap“.  Contact hours about 10 per week with attendance being on up to 3 days per week.

I managed to have a chat with one Peace Studies undergraduate student.  She is enjoying the course but not intending to use it in her career.

Conclusion.  It felt too big; I felt I would be more raw material for their sausage machine.  I was not inspired by the modules they do: too region-specific and contemporary and not theoretical or practical enough ni my areas of interest.  They seem to be geared up for training people to do grounds-roots work in the field overseas as opposed to changing the policies of governments to prevent war, which is my area of interest.