Professor Alasdair Blair

I am currently Associate Pro Vice-Chancellor Academic at De Montfort University, appointed on 1 September 2018.

As Associate Pro Vice-Chancellor Academic, I work with colleagues across the University to ensure that we deliver excellent teaching and a first class student experience.  Although my responsibilities are primarily at a University level, I teach on the second year Politics of the European Union module and supervise undergraduate and postgraduate dissertations as well as Ph.D students.

I am a National Teaching Fellow and a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. I hold a Jean Monnet Chair in International Relations and established the Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence at DMU in 2013. Outside the University I am editor of European Political Science and served as Honorary Treasurer of the Political Studies Association from 2015 to 2018.

I previously served as Associate Dean Academic in the Faculty of Business and Law from 1 April 2017 until 31 August 2018.  In this role, I led on the academic development of the Faculty.  Previously I served as head of the Department of Politics and Public Policy from 2011 until 2017 and as Head of the Department of Historical and Social Studies from 2008 until 2011.

Prior to my appointment at DMU I was Jean Monnet Professor of International Relations at Coventry University.  Between July 2007 and August 2008 I was seconded for 40% of my time as Director of the Higher Education Academy Subject Centre for Sociology, Anthropology and Politics (C-SAP) which was based at Birmingham University. I have also held academic posts at the University of North London (now London Metropolitan University), Nottingham Trent University, and Loughborough University.

My main area of research and teaching is in the area of European Union Politics, British Foreign Policy, International Negotiation, Diplomacy, Qualitative Research Methods, and Teaching and Learning. My latest book is Britain and the World since 1945 (Routledge, 2015).  I am presently working on a 3^rd edition of the European Union since 1945 (Routledge, 2019) 

I completed his PhD on Britain and European integration at Leicester University, where I also completed a MA in Diplomatic Studies.  My undergraduate studies were taken at Aberdeen University, during which time I spent a year studying at Earlham College in the USA on a Great Lakes College Association scholarship. I also possess an MA in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education from Coventry University.

View a full listing of Alasdair Blair's publications and outputs.

Books

Blair, A., Britain and the World Since 1945 (Routledge, 2015), 208pp, ISBN: 978-1-408-24829-4.

Blair, A., The European Union: A Beginner's Guide (Oneworld, 2012), 211pp, ISBN: 1851688986.

Blair, A., The European Union since 1945 (Longman Seminar Studies in History Series, 2010), 2nd edition, 232pp, ISBN: 978-1408234525.

Curtis, S. and Blair, A., The Scholarship of Engagement for Politics: Placement Learning, Citizenship and Employability (C-SAP, 2010), 247pp, ISBN: 1-902191-42-0.

Blair, A. and Curtis, S., International Politics: An Introductory Guide (Edinburgh University Press, 2009), 344pp, ISBN: 978-0-7486-2415-7.

Blair, A., Companion to the European Union (Routledge, 2006), 371pp, ISBN: 0-415-35896-5.

Blair, A., European Union since 1945 (Longman, 2005), 166pp, ISBN: 0-582-42393-7.

Blair, A., Saving the Pound? Britain's Road to Monetary Union (Prentice Hall, 2002), 266pp, ISBN: 0-582-47290-3.

Forster, A., and Blair, A., The Making of Britain's European Foreign Policy (Longman, 2002), 223pp, ISBN: 0-582-418356-6.

Blair, A. Dealing with Europe: Britain and the Negotiation of the Maastricht Treaty (Ashgate, 1999), 285pp, ISBN: 1-84014-762-8.

Blair, A. The Longman Companion to the European Union since 1945 (Longman, 1999), 400pp, ISBN: 0-582-36885-5.

My current programme of research being conducted falls into three main areas:

1.    Foreign Policy, Diplomacy and International Relations

Projects in this area are focussed on:

Global Politics book for Edinburgh University Press (co-authored with Steven Curtis and to be completed by May 2015).
Co-editing Routledge Companion to International Relations (with Steven Curtis and to be completed by September 2015).
Contributing Editor to Encyclopedia of Diplomacy (edited by Gordon Marten, Wiley-Blackwell, to be completed by January 2016).

2.     British Foreign Policy and European Integration

Projects in this area are focussed on:

Undertaking a study of British Foreign Policy since the end of the Cold War.
Discourse analysis of British Foreign Policy towards the EU.

3.     Scholarship of Engagement of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education

Projects in this area are focussed on:

Comparative analysis of research on teaching and learning published by Political Science and International Relations academics.
The student as a producer in Higher Education.
Universities and the public voice.

International Relations

British Foreign Policy

European Integration

Diplomacy

M.A. (Hons) in Economic History and Politics, University of Aberdeen (1992)

M.A. Diplomatic Studies, Department of Politics, University of Leicester (1993)

Postgraduate Certificate in Information Technology, University of Leicester (1994)

Ph.D. on Britain and the Negotiation of the Maastricht Treaty, Department of Politics, University of Leicester (1998)

MA Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, Coventry University (2005) 

Politics of the European Union (2nd year undergraduate)

Diplomacy and World Order (MA)

Jean Monnet module

Shortlist for best student experience, Guardian Awards (2015)

Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (2015)

Best article on learning and teaching published in the journal Politics (2012-13)

European Commission Jean Monnet Chair Holder, De Montfort University (2010-)

Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA) (2007)

Fellow of the Royal Society for the Arts (FRSA) (2006)

National Teaching Fellowship (2006)

SEDA Accreditation as a Teacher in Higher Education (2002)

Fellow of the Royal Historical Society (F.R.Hist.S) (2001)

European Commission Jean Monnet Chair Holder, Coventry University (2001-2008)

Executive Committee of the Political Studies Association of the UK

Member of British International History Group Executive (2011-)

Political Studies Association (1995-)

University Association for Contemporary European Studies (2001-)

British International Studies Association (1998-)

2014 Blair, A. 'Where have we got to in UK Higher Education Research in Politics and International Relations', paper presented at the American Political Science Association Teaching and Learning Conference, Philadelphia, February 2014.

2013 Blair, A. 'Where have we got to in UK Higher Education Research in Politics and International Relations', paper presented at the Political Studies Association Annual Conference, Cardiff, March 2013.

2013 Blair, A. 'Learning from Below: a comparative investigation into first-year students transition to University', paper presented at the Political Studies Association Annual Conference, Cardiff, March 2013.

2013 Blair, A. 'The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: Using Twitter for teaching Politics and International Relations', paper presented at the American Political Science Association Teaching and Learning Conference, Long Beach, California, February 2013.

2013 Blair, A. 'Similar or Different? A comparative analysis of Higher Education Research in Political Science and International Relations between North America and the United Kingdom', paper presented at the American Political Science Association Teaching and Learning Conference, Long Beach, California, February 2013.

2012 Blair, A 'Improving Feedback to students of Politics and International Relations through Dialogue', paper presented at the British International Studies Association-International Studies Association joint conference, Edinburgh, 20-22 June 2012.

2012  Blair, A. ‘Can dialogue help to improve feedback on examinations’, paper presented at the Higher Education Academy Social Sciences Conference, Liverpool, 28-29 May, 2012.

2012  Blair, A. ‘Britain and Monetary Union’,  paper presented to the Sixth Annual European Union Centre of Excellence conference, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada, 12-14 April 2012.

2012  Blair, A. ‘A World at war, a world at peace? The future of International Relations in the 21^st century’, keynote paper presented at Online Learning Futures Festival ‘Follow the Sun’, 29 March 2012, http://www2.le.ac.uk/departments/beyond-distance-research-alliance/festival/programme/europe-day-2

2012  S. Curtis, A. Blair, J. Craig, J. Parker and M. Wyman, ‘Preparing Graduates for the Changing World of Work: British Perspectives on Addressing the “Employability” Agenda in Political Science’, workshop at the American Political Studies Association Teaching and Learning Conference, Washington DC, 17^th-19^th February, 2012.

2012  Blair, A. ‘What feedback do Political Science Students Want? Lessons from a British perspective’, paper to presented to the American Political Science Association Teaching and Learning Conference, Washington, DC. 17-19 February 2012.

2011  Blair, A., ‘Exam feedback: Supporting students and improving teaching?’, paper presented to the Political Studies Association (PSA) and British International Studies Association (BISA) 4^th  Teaching and Learning Conference, Cardiff, 13-14 September 2011.

2011  Blair, A. ‘Bridging the Gap: Britain, the EU and the US’, paper presented at the British International History Group conference, University of Glasgow, 7-10 September 2011.

2011  Blair, A., ‘It’s the discipline, stupid: why feedback and assessment is problematic for Politics’, paper presented to the 3^rd Assessment in Higher Education Conference, University of Cumbria, 6 July 2011.

2011  Blair, A. ‘Exam feedback: Supporting students and improving teaching?’, paper presented at Higher Education Academy Subject Centre for History conference, What do History Students Want, Loughborough University, 3 June 2011.

2011  Blair, A. and McGinty, S. ‘Strategies for making exam feedback dialogic’, paper presented to Higher Education Academy Assessment and Feedback Seminar, Empowering Students through Effective Feedback, De Montfort University, Leicester, 10 May 2011.

2011  Blair, A. ‘Negotiating the Atlantic: Britain, the European Union and the United States’, paper presented to the Fifth Annual European Union Centre of Excellence conference, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada, 10-12 April 2011.

2011  Blair, A. and McGinty, S. ‘Student’s experiences of feedback: unpicking the NSS scores to support new teaching methodologies’, paper presented to the 13^th Annual History Subject Centre Teaching and Learning in History Conference, Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, 4-5 April 2011.

2011  Blair, A. and Curtis, S. ‘It’s Good to Talk: Improving Feedback to Political Science Students Through Dialogue – A British Perspective’, paper to presented to the American Political Science Association Teaching and Learning Conference, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, February 11-13 2011.

2011  Blair, A., Craig, J., Curtis, J. Parker ‘Programme Assessment: Leasons from Literature and Practical Experience’, paper to presented to the American Political Science Association Teaching and Learning Conference, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, February 11-13 2011.

2010  Blair, A. and McGinty, S. ‘Why dialogue matters in the student experience’, paper presented at the 3^rd Political Studies Association Teaching and Learning Conference, De Montfort University, Leicester, 14-15 September 2010.

2010  Blair, A. ‘Britain and the Working Time Directive’, paper to presented at the Industrial Relations in the European Community Conference (IREC), Oslo, 8-10 September 2010.

2010  Blair, A. ‘Peer Feedback: Engaging Students through Dialogue’, paper presented at the Higher Education Academy Annual Conference, University of Bedfordshire, 23 June 2010.

2010  Blair, A. ‘Changing times. Changing minds: Britain and the negotiation of the Lisbon Treaty’, paper presented to the Fourth Annual European Union Centre of Excellence conference, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada, 6-8 June 2010.

2010  Blair, A., Curtis, S. and McGinty, S. “It’s Good to Talk: Feedback, Dialogue and Learning’, paper presented at the PSA Annual Conference, Edinburgh, 31 March 2010.

2009  Blair, A. and Curtis, S. ‘‘The Scholarship of Engagement for Politics: A Research-Based Approach to Placement Learning’ at the FDTL Final Conference, Nottingham, 3^-4 November 2009.

2008  Blair, A. and Curtis, S. ‘Experiencing Politics in Action: Democratizing Placement Learning and Politics as a Vocation’, presented at the PSA Specialist Group Teaching and Learning conference, Teaching Democracy: Youth, Citizenship and Political Science Education, Royal Holloway, University of London , 3-4 September 2008.

2015: Consultancy to Higher Education Academy on Innovative Pedagogic Practices in the Discipline, £8,100.

2012: Consultancy to Higher Education Academy on assessment and feedback in Social Sciences, £5,000.

2012 Consultancy to Higher Education Academy for review of 1^st year experience in HE, £10,000.

2008 Consultancy to University of Warwick, £4,716.

2008 Consultancy to University of Warwick, £10,000.

I am interested in supervising research degree students who wish to explore research on British Foreign Policy, European Integration and Diplomatic Relations.  I am also interested in PhD applications on aspects relating to governance in international relations, and higher education research in the area of Politics and International Relations, as well as the scholarship of teaching and learning relating to reconsidering the role of Universities and students (broadly defined).

I have supervised 12 research students to completion.

I am presently supervising:

• Adeniyo Oso, US Foreign Policy towards Nigeria since 1960 (PT) 2018-2022 (2^nd supervisor)
• Scott Leatham, Chinese Business and Governance (FT) 2015-2019 (1^st supervisor)
• Mark Charlton, DMU Square Mile, Ph.D (PT), 2014-2019 (1^st supervisor)
• Catherine Saltis, European Local Politics, Ph.D (PT), 2010-2019 (1^st supervisor)

Completed research supervisions:

Haila Atlwaian, Intercultural Communication Challenges for Multinational Teams in Saudi Arabian Companies – Perceptions and Roles on Beliefs of Trust, Ph.D (FT), 2012-2018 (1^st supervisor)

Abdulbaset Ghnedi, British Foreign Policy Towards Libya’, Ph.D (FT), 2009-2017 (1^st supervisor)

Lei Dai, Translation Strategies for the Chinese Culture-specific Expressions in the Chinese Premier’s Press Conferences, Ph.D (FT), De Montfort University, 2015 (1^st supervisor)

Jing Pan, Multi-Level Governance and the Council of Europe, Ph.D (FT) De Montfort University, 2015 (1^st supervisor)

Mark Poynter, The End of Civilzations and the Remaking of the Last Man: Managing the  problems of conflict and stability within the ideas of Francis Fukuyama and Samuel P. Huntington, MPhil (FT), De Montfort University, 2013 (1^st supervisor)

David Capel, The future of Defence in the newly enlarged European Union, MA Research (PT), De Montfort University, 2011 (1^st supervisor)

Vaughan Waller, A world in disorder?: a critical review of the politics of world order from the end of the Cold War to the present day’, MA Research (PT), De Montfort University, 2011 (1^st supervisor)

Andrew Thomas, Kul’tura Kosmosa: the Russian Popular Culture of Space Travel, MA Research (PT), De Montfort University, 2010 (1^st supervisor)

Mark Rice, Escalation: A New Framework Applied to Military Conflict’, Ph.D (FT), Coventry University, 2009 (1^st supervisor)

Thomas Weaver, American foreign policy under George W. Bush, MA Research (FT), Coventry University, 2008 (1^st supervisor)

George Nyabuga, Impact of the Internet on politics in Kenya, Ph.D (FT), Coventry University, 2007 (2^nd supervisor)

Jeanne Kaczka, Reconciliation mission of Coventry since the Second World War, Ph.D (FT),  Coventry University, 2006 (2^nd supervisor)

2017: Jean Monnet European Module Funding, €30,000. 2016-2019.  Project Reference: 574790-EPP-1-2016-1-UK-EPPJMO-MODULE

2016: Innovative Pedagogic Practices in the Discipline, Higher Education Academy, £8,100

2015: Political Studies Association Overseas Travel Grant to present a paper at American Political Science Association Teaching and Learning Conference, Washington DC, January 2015, £500.

2013:  Leicester De Montfort University Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence, European Commission €75,000. This was one of only 3 awards made in the UK in 2013. Principal investigator.

2012:  Higher Education Academy UK Travel Fund award, £300.

2011:  Political Studies Association Overseas Conference Grant to present paper at American Political Science Association Teaching and Learning Conference, Albuquerque, New Mexico, February, £500.

2010:  European Commission Jean Monnet Chair, €45,000. This was the first Jean Monnet chair award that the University had achieved and was the only European Commission funded chair in the University.

2009:  Higher Education Academy National Teaching Fellowship Scheme (NTFS) project strand (2009-12): ‘It’s Good to Talk: Feedback, Dialogue and Learning’, £199,975. This was a multi-University project (De Montfort University, University of Warwick and London Metropolitan University) that developed innovative approaches to the use of feedback practices that have informed the strategy of each University. Principal investigator.

2006:  Higher Education Academy, National Teaching Fellowship, £10,000.  This was the first NTF award for Politics and International Relations

2005:  George Bush Presidential Library Foundation Scholarship, $2,000, College Station, Texas, USA.

2002:  European Commission, Jean Monnet Chair.

2005:  European Commission Jean Monnet European Module (undergraduate level): ‘The New European Union’, €13,900.

2005:  Higher Education Academy Subject Network for History, Classics and Archaeology: ‘The Scholarship of Engagement of History’, £2,910.

2004:  HEFCE FDTL Phase 5 (2004-7): ‘The Scholarship of Engagement of Politics’, £249,089.40 (plus £25,000 transferability funding). This was a multi-University partnership that involved Coventry University, University of Warwick, and Oxford Brookes University. Co-investigator 2004-6, principal investigator 2006-7

2002:  European Commission Jean Monnet European Module (postgraduate level): ‘European Integration – Nationalism and Supranationality’, €9,100.

2002:  Higher Education Subject Network for Sociology, Anthropology and Politics: ‘the Internet as a teaching tool in UK Departments of Politics and International Relations’, £1,000.

2002:  European Parliament sponsored Question Time Workshop, October, £500.

2001:  Awarded a study tour of Japan by the Japanese Government. This was a competitive award to approximately 20 European citizens under the age of 35. 

I am presently an external examiner:

- MA in History at the University of Nottingham; and
- BA Politics and MA Politics and Research Methods at the University of Leicester.

Honorary Treasurer UK Political Studies Association

Editor European Political Science

Review Editor of European Foreign Affairs Review