University of St Andrews, MA (Hons) International Relations, First Class

Sophie graduated from the University of St Andrews, Scotland, with a First Class degree in International Relations in 2019. In her final year, Sophie conducted extensive primary research and utilised a feminist IR approach in order to complete her honours dissertation titled “ISIS, Twitter, and the Recruitment of Western Women: The Role of Ideological and Political Devotion, Religion, and ‘Warped Feminism’ in Online Radicalisation of Women from the West”, for which she also received a First. While at St Andrews, Sophie gained a place to study abroad at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill during her third year. Sophie found the experience of studying International Relations from an American perspective particularly rewarding, and is looking forward to having the opportunity to do so again while at UGA. During her undergraduate degree, Sophie enjoyed volunteering with the community foodbank, Habitat for Humanity, and Food Recovery Network in her spare time.

Sophie has a broad interest in international security issues, including political violence, terrorism, non-state armed groups, and nuclear proliferation. She also has a regional interest in the Middle East, and is particularly interested in the role of ideology and social movements, such as Zionism, Arab nationalism, and Islamism, in shaping Middle Eastern foreign policy and regional conflicts. Furthermore, Sophie is interested in studying these issues critically using both feminist and post-colonial approaches.