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International Relations at LSE, Cambridge or Oxford 2024

HPAW1999

First off, I recognise that I am hugely fortunate to be in this position. From January to early March, I was offered a place in the MSc International Relations at LSE, MPhil IR at Oxford and the MPhil Politics and International Studies at Cambridge.

I am an Australian student (25yo) and will be travelling back to the UK (I was born there) to study one of these three degrees. I am, however, still pretty unsure about where I want to go. Funding will of course play a huge role if I'm offered any, but I've been operating under the assumption that I won't (I figured that was a safe bet and would force me to save pretty aggressively). I don't come from money, so this will all be coming from my pocket. I've had the goal of being a diplomat for quite a long time, but I'm equally happy to have a career in academia.

I guess I want an opinion from students who have studied these degrees, or similar ones, at these universities. Which degree is best suited to diplomacy/similar roles versus academia? How important is the location (I assume London living has serious advantages except for the cost)? How big really is the difference between these unis/degrees (i.e., are the higher costs at Cambridge or Oxford worth it)? And perhaps most importantly, how enjoyable are the degrees? For reference, I'm a pretty academically inclined person. I enjoy researching, writing and reading and don't find it too arduous.