This programme enables students to understand the history of communism and why it collapsed; students gain knowledge of the process of economic and political transformation in the former communist states; our aim is to develop world class researchers specialising in 1 or more of the following critical geopolitical areas: central Asia; the Caucasus & Caspian Sea Basin; Russia; central and eastern Europe, including the Baltic Sea Region; this should support bodies like the European Union to address the myriad of socio-economic, political and security challenges of the 21st century; students on this course also get international experience in at least 2 countries, develop their skills in area research and acquire a range of key employability skills through our placements with associate partners from the business; public policy; and third sector communities; and also participate in conferences; workshops; and other socio-cultural events, making the experience truly rewarding; students study at the University of Glasgow in the 1st year; the 2nd year is spent at another Erasmus Mundus double degree partner university or single degree exchange university (listed previously) where students follow 1 or more distinct study tracks (e.g. central Asia studies; the Caucasus/Caspian Sea Basin studies; Baltic Sea Region studies; soviet and post-soviet studies; and central European Studies) in semester 1, followed by a dissertation of 20,000-25,000 words.