| Unit name | Global Illicit Drug Markets |
|---|---|
| Unit code | SPOL30080 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Klantschnig |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
SPOL30011 Drugs and Society |
| School/department | School for Policy Studies |
| Faculty | Faculty of Social Sciences and Law |
The trade in illicit drugs is estimated to be among the oldest and most valuable global trades. However, drugs, illicit markets and their main actors are little understood. This is in large part due to their criminalised and hidden nature and their sensationalised representation in popular culture and in the media.
This unit explores the criminology of drug markets and how it can further our understanding of global illicit drugs. We will also draw on expertise beyond criminology, such as anthropology, history, sociology and social harms studies, to engage with state-of-the-art research on drug markets and their political economy.
After setting out its conceptual framework, the unit will explore trades in specific drugs, such as cocaine, cannabis and illicit pharmaceuticals, in different global contexts and especially in the ‘global South.’ This in-depth study of specific drug trades and their control will help to question some key assumptions about drugs, such as the legal/illegal distinction. The focus on social and structural harms will also help to examine the role that states and regulation, violence, marginalisation and (under)development play in illicit markets.
Key aims:
By exploring these aims/questions from a theoretical and empirical perspective, we will stimulate debate and try to challenge some of our own thinking about drugs, illicit markets and their control in a global context.
Students who successfully complete this unit will be able to:
This unit will draw on a blended learning approach. Students will engage with asynchronous taught content (including, for example, narrated slides and other teaching and research materials) and will be tasked to complete activities in preparation for synchronous sessions to present and discuss ideas and clarify learning. Students will undertake formative assessments in preparation for their assessed work.
3000-word essay (100%) – assessing all ILOs
Final year students are not usually given the opportunity to retake assessments, if they do need to submit in a reassessment period due to ECs, the reassessment would be the same as the original assessment.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. SPOL30080).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the Faculty workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. If you have self-certificated your absence from an
assessment, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (this is usually in the next assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any extenuating circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
