§-Politics syllabus

Politics syllabus, dot point by dot point

Every dot point in the VIC Politics study design, in syllabus order, with a focused answer for each. Open any dot point for the answer, exam-style questions and links to related points.

Unit 3: Global cooperation and conflict

Unit overview →

Area of Study 1: What makes an issue global?

the features that make an issue global in scale, and why global issues are significant for global actors

5 min read →

Area of Study 1: What are the causes of global issues?

the short-term causes of a global issue and the impact of global interconnectedness on it

5 min read →

Area of Study 1: How can global issues be resolved?

the responses of states, institutions of global governance and non-state actors to a global issue, including cooperation, disengagement and conflict

6 min read →

the effectiveness of international laws in addressing a global issue and the extent to which global actors respond effectively to those laws

6 min read →

Area of Study 1: What makes an issue global, and which global actors respond to global issues?

the types of global actors (states, regional groupings, institutions of global governance and non-state actors) and the perspectives and interests they bring to global issues and crises

6 min read →

Area of Study 1: How do institutions of global governance, including the United Nations, respond to global issues?

the role of the United Nations as an institution of global governance in responding to global issues and crises, and the limits on its effectiveness

6 min read →

Area of Study 1: What are the key challenges to the resolution of global issues?

the challenges to the resolution of a global issue, including different perspectives, competing interests, interconnectedness and the consequences for stability and change

5 min read →

Area of Study 1: How do non-state actors such as non-government organisations respond to global issues?

the responses of non-government organisations as non-state actors to global issues and crises, and how effective they are

6 min read →

Area of Study 1: How do non-state actors such as transnational corporations contribute to and respond to global issues?

the role of transnational corporations as non-state actors in causing and responding to global issues, and their influence relative to states

6 min read →

Area of Study 1: Climate change as a global issue

climate change as one of the four permitted global issues: short-term causes, responses of global actors, the effectiveness of international law and challenges to resolution

6 min read →

Area of Study 1: Global economic instability as a global issue

global economic instability as one of the four permitted global issues: recent causes, interconnectedness, responses of states and institutions, and challenges to resolution

6 min read →

Area of Study 1: Development as a global issue

development as one of the four permitted global issues: causes of slow progress, the Sustainable Development Goals, responses of global actors and challenges to resolution

6 min read →

Area of Study 1: Weapons of mass destruction as a global issue

weapons of mass destruction as one of the four permitted global issues: recent causes, arms control treaties, responses of states and institutions, and challenges to resolution

6 min read →

Area of Study 2: How does state sovereignty shape contemporary crises and the responses to them?

the state and its sovereignty as the starting point for understanding why crises that begin inside one state draw in other actors, and how sovereignty limits or enables responses

6 min read →

Area of Study 2: How can we understand the nature of contemporary humanitarian crises?

the nature of a contemporary humanitarian crisis, its short-term causes, the perspectives and interests of actors, and a framework for analysing responses

5 min read →

Area of Study 2: To what extent is it possible to identify and address the causes of humanitarian crises?

a human rights crisis as one of the three permitted crises, the causes of violations, the perspectives of actors and the effectiveness of responses

6 min read →

Area of Study 2: To what extent can global actors cooperate to manage conflicts?

armed conflict as one of the three permitted crises: causes in sovereignty, territory and identity, the interests of actors, diplomacy, law and the effectiveness of responses

6 min read →

the role of regional groupings such as the European Union, ASEAN, the African Union and the Pacific Islands Forum in resolving crises, and the drivers of conflict and cooperation

5 min read →

Area of Study 2: What are the key challenges to resolving these crises and what might be the drivers for change?

the mass movement of people as one of the three permitted crises: causes, the perspectives of states, institutions and NGOs, international law and the balance of national interests with humanitarian obligations

6 min read →

Area of Study 2: Skills: constructing an evaluative argument from sources

the skill of constructing an argument to evaluate the effectiveness of global actors' responses, using evidence from sources, for global issues and contemporary crises

6 min read →

How has China risen as a power in the Asia-Pacific, what national interests drive it, and how effectively does it use its instruments of power?

China as a rising power in the Asia-Pacific, its national interests and the instruments of power it uses, and an evaluation of its growing regional influence

6 min read →

What instruments of foreign policy do states use to pursue their national interests, and how do they choose between diplomacy, economic tools and force?

the instruments of foreign policy used by states to pursue national interests, including diplomacy, trade and economic measures, and military force, and how states select between them

6 min read →

What national interests drive the United States in the Asia-Pacific, what instruments of power does it use, and how effectively does it sustain its regional position against a rising China?

the United States as an established power in the Asia-Pacific, its national interests and instruments of power, and an evaluation of its ability to maintain its regional position

6 min read →

What are the different types of power that global actors use, and how effective is each as an instrument for pursuing national interests?

the forms of power used by states and other global actors, including political, economic, military, diplomatic and cultural power, and their effectiveness (hard, soft and smart power is optional vocabulary)

6 min read →

What are national interests, how are they categorised, and how do states pursue them in contemporary global politics?

the meaning of national interests, including security, economic prosperity, regional relationships and regional standing, and how states define and pursue them

6 min read →

Who are the major actors in the Asia-Pacific, what national interests drive them, and how do their pursuits of power create cooperation and conflict?

the national interests of major Asia-Pacific actors and the ways their pursuit of power leads to cooperation, competition and conflict in the region

6 min read →

Unit 4: Power in the Indo-Pacific

Unit overview →

Area of Study 1: How is power exercised in the Indo-Pacific region?

the Indo-Pacific as a region, the actors within it, and how power is exercised through strategic competition, alliances, groupings and institutions

6 min read →

the political, economic, military, diplomatic and cultural forms of power used by an Indo-Pacific state, and its use of diplomacy, trade and foreign aid

6 min read →

Area of Study 1: How has one selected state defined its national interests?

the four national interests shared by Indo-Pacific states (security, economic prosperity, regional relationships and regional standing) and how a selected state defines them

6 min read →

Area of Study 1: What are the challenges that inhibit the achievement of a state's national interests?

the challenges to an Indo-Pacific state in achieving its national interests and a method for judging the effectiveness of the state in achieving them

6 min read →

Area of Study 1: How effective is the state in using power to achieve its national interests?

the consequences of at least two of a state's national interests for other regional actors and the extent to which the state's actions bring about stability and change in the Indo-Pacific

6 min read →

Area of Study 1: State option: Japan

Japan as one of the five selectable states: its sources and forms of power, national interests, use of foreign policy instruments, challenges and effectiveness

6 min read →

Area of Study 1: State option: India

India as one of the five selectable states: its sources and forms of power, national interests, strategic autonomy, use of foreign policy instruments, challenges and effectiveness

6 min read →

Area of Study 1: State option: Indonesia

Indonesia as one of the five selectable states: its sources and forms of power, national interests, free and active foreign policy, use of foreign policy instruments, challenges and effectiveness

6 min read →

Area of Study 2: How does Australia perceive its strategic and national interests in the region?

Australia's national interests in the Indo-Pacific: security, economic prosperity, regional relationships and regional standing

6 min read →

Area of Study 2: What are the different perspectives on Australia's role in the region?

different perspectives, inside and outside Australia, on Australia's national interests and role in the Indo-Pacific

6 min read →

Area of Study 2: How does Australia go about achieving those interests?

the forms of power and foreign policy instruments (diplomacy, trade and foreign aid) Australia uses in the Indo-Pacific, and their effectiveness

6 min read →

Area of Study 2: What are the key challenges to Australia's regional relationships?

Australia's relationships with Pacific Islands Forum members, including cooperation and challenges, as one of the three states studied

6 min read →

Australia's relationship with Indonesia as an example of a wider Indo-Pacific state: interests, cooperation, challenges and the 2026 Treaty on Common Security

6 min read →

Australia's relationship with China as an example of a wider Indo-Pacific state: economic interdependence, security concerns, trade restrictions, and cooperation and conflict since 2020

6 min read →

Area of Study 2: How has Australia responded to regional issues and crises and what are the impacts of those responses on regional relations?

Australia's responses to a regional issue or crisis, how they contributed to cooperation or conflict with a selected state, and the extent to which Australia's actions contribute to stability and change

6 min read →

Area of Study 2: Skills: constructing an evaluative argument from sources

the skill of constructing an argument that evaluates the significance and effectiveness of a state's pursuit of its national interests in the Indo-Pacific, using evidence from sources

6 min read →

Why are global crises so difficult to resolve, what obstacles block effective responses, and how do these challenges shape any judgement of effectiveness?

the challenges to achieving effective resolution of global crises, including state sovereignty, great-power rivalry, the limits of international law and collective action problems

6 min read →

What causes armed conflict and terrorism as global crises, and how do global actors respond to them?

the global crisis of armed conflict and terrorism, its causes and consequences, and the responses of global actors to managing and resolving it

6 min read →

What makes terrorism a distinct global crisis, why is it so hard to resolve, and how effective are counter-terrorism responses?

the global crisis of terrorism, its causes and consequences, the challenges of asymmetric warfare, and an evaluation of the effectiveness of counter-terrorism responses

6 min read →

Why is arms control a global ethical issue, what principled positions do actors take on it, and how effective are the responses?

the global ethical issue of arms control, the competing principles at stake, and an evaluation of the effectiveness of responses to controlling weapons

6 min read →

What is development, why is the best path to it contested, and how effective are global responses to the challenge of underdevelopment?

the global ethical issue of development, the debate over how it should be measured and pursued, and the effectiveness of responses by global actors

6 min read →

What are human rights, why is their universality debated, and how effectively does the international community protect them?

the global ethical issue of human rights, the debate over universality versus cultural relativism and state sovereignty, and the effectiveness of responses

6 min read →

How can a single global crisis case study be analysed for its causes, consequences and the effectiveness of global actors' responses?

a case study of one contemporary global crisis, analysing its causes and consequences and evaluating the effectiveness of responses by global actors

6 min read →

Why is the mass movement of people a global ethical issue, and how do obligations to refugees collide with state sovereignty and border control?

the global ethical issue of the movement of people, the debate between humanitarian obligation and state sovereignty, and the effectiveness of responses

6 min read →

What are the realist and cosmopolitan perspectives, how do they shape positions on global ethical issues, and why does the contrast matter for evaluating responses?

the realist and cosmopolitan perspectives that underpin debates over global ethical issues, and how they shape the positions actors take and the responses they support

6 min read →