Terrorism and Counterterrorism in the 21st Century
UndergraduateMAQ-PICX20152025
Previously MAQ-PICX113
Course information for 2025 intake View information for 2024 course intake
Explore the range of law enforcement and societal response options available to governments. Understand terrorism as a strategy and as a tactic, recruitment and group dynamics, narratives and the role of global media, and cyber terrorism.
- Study method
- 100% online
- Assessments
- 100% online
- Enrol by
- 20 July 2025
- Entry requirements
- Prior study needed
- Duration
- 13 weeks
- Price from
- $2,160
- Upfront cost
- $0
- Loan available
- HECS-HELP and FEE-HELP available
Terrorism and Counterterrorism in the 21st Century
About this subject
On successful completion of this subject, you will be able to:
- Identify the relationship between violence, extremism and terrorism in the 21st century
- Identify the differences between political, religious, and ideological forms of terrorism and violent extremism, and how they have emerged over the past century.
- Critically evaluate how the concept of terrorism is used in security discourse in the 21st century.
- Explain and evaluate the range of hard and soft responses to terrorism and violent extremism available to liberal societies.
- Evaluate how states and societies can respond to terrorism and violent extremism in an effective, balanced and ethical manner.
- Demonstrate a critical understanding of processes of radicalisation to violent extremism and how these relate to new media technologies and the internet.
- Demonstrate critical analysis skills through the completion of assessable research tasks.
- A week-by-week guide to the topics you will explore in this subject will be provided in your study materials.
This subject provides a critical introduction to the causes, strategies, and tactics of terrorists and violent extremists in the twenty-first century, and some possible solutions to these problems. It explores the global origins and history of terrorism as a means of political coercion, evaluates the effectiveness of terrorism as a strategy, and examines how terrorism and violent extremism are changing in the twenty-first century. Attention will be given to case studies looking at various religious, political, and far-right and far-left ideological terrorist and violent extremist organisations. By the end of this unit, students will gain an understanding of the dynamics that underpin twenty-first century terrorism and violent extremism, as well as evaluate both hard and soft approaches to countering these. Special attention will be focused on the sources of successful and ethical countering strategies; understanding mechanisms of radicalisation to and from violent extremism; evaluating proportionate state response to terror and violent extremist threats; and assessing the role of new technologies such as social media on how terrorist groups operate.
- Critical Review (30%)
- Online test (20%)
- Research Essay (50%)
For textbook details check your university's handbook, website or learning management system (LMS).
This research-intensive university in north-western Sydney offers a range of undergraduate and postgraduate degrees. With over 44,000 current students, Macquarie has a strong reputation for welcoming international students and embracing flexible and convenient study options, including its partnership with Open Universities Australia.
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- QS Ranking 2024:
- 10
- Times Higher Education Ranking 2024:
- 10
Entry requirements
Prior study
You must have successfully completed the following subject(s) before starting this subject:
one of
Equivalent subjects
You should not enrol in this subject if you have successfully completed any of the following subject(s) because they are considered academically equivalent:
MAQ-PICX113 (Not currently available)
Others
Pre-requisite
50cp at 1000 level or above
NCCW (pre-2020 units)
PICT113, PICX113
Additional requirements
- Other requirements -
Students who have an Academic Standing of Suspension or Exclusion under Macquarie University's Academic Progression Policy are not permitted to enrol in OUA units offered by Macquarie University. Students with an Academic Standing of Suspension or Exclusion who have enrolled in units through OUA will be withdrawn.
Study load
- 0.125 EFTSL
- This is in the range of 10 to 12 hours of study each week.
Equivalent full time study load (EFTSL) is one way to calculate your study load. One (1.0) EFTSL is equivalent to a full-time study load for one year.
Find out more information on Commonwealth Loans to understand what this means to your eligibility for financial support.
What to study next?
Once you’ve completed this subject it can be credited towards one of the following courses
UndergraduateMAQ-BSS-DEG
UndergraduateMAQ-ART-DEG
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