Lee Marsden

2007 to date University of East Anglia

2006-7 Oxford Brookes University 

2005-2006 ESRC Postdoctoral Fellow University of East Anglia

2004 PhD Open University (no corrections)  International Relations (US democracy promotion in Russia)

2000 MA International Relations (distinction) University of East Anglia 

1999 BA Politics (First class honours, Thomas Paine Prize for Politics and first in year) UEA

• Head of School of Politics, Philosophy, Language and Communication Studies 2014-2021
• Member of the Executive Committee of the faculty of Arts and Humanities 2012-2021

Professor Lee Marsden

Head of School of Politics, Philosophy, Language and Communication Studies 2014 - 2021

Lee Marsden is Professor of Faith and Global Politics in the School of Politics, Philosophy, Language and Communication Studies. In August 2013 he was appointed head of the school of Political, Social and International Studies, the first UEA alumnus to be appointed to the position, before leading the merger of this school with those of Philosophy and Language and Communication Studies a year later to form Politics, Philosophy, Language and Communication Studies. He is a specialist in faith, politics and international relations; international relations theory and US foreign policy.

A lively and engaging communicator Professor Marsden is a regular speaker at national and international academic conferences, at schools and third sector organisations, and appears regularly in national and local media. From 2009-2012 Lee was a trustee and member of the executive of the British International Studies Association. From 2010 to 2013 he served as co-convenor of the BISA US foreign policy working group. Lee is organiser of the Keswick Hall lecture series, Charles Clarke in Conversation series. He is author of seven books, including three edited volumes and is series editor for the Routledge Series on Religion and International Security. His latest monograph Religion and International Security was published by Polity Press in 2019.

Lee entered higher education as a mature student in 1996 after a background in management. In 1999 he achieved a first class honours degree in Politics from the University of East Anglia, winning the Thomas Paine Prize for Politics. This was followed by achieving a distinction in MA International Relations from the same institution in 2000. Lee then spent four years at the Open University as the first full time, fully funded PhD student in Politics and Government successfully passing his viva on US Democracy Promotion in Russia without corrections in 2004. In 2005-6 Lee returned to UEA and PSI to become an ESRC postdoctoral research fellow on US democracy promotion before his first appointment as Lecturer in International Relations at Oxford Brookes University in 2006.

A year later he returned to PSI taking up a full time position as Lecturer in International Relations and has remained with the school ever since, winning a UEA Prize for Excellence in Teaching . He served as Associate Dean for Admissions in 2012-13 taking a key leadership role in strategic thinking on admissions across the faculty. In August 2013, six years after joing UEA as a junior lecturer Lee was appointed to a Chair in International Relations and has served since as Head of The School of Politics, Philosophy, Language and Communication Studies. The School was one of the first non STEM subjects in the counry to be awarded an Athena Swan Bronze Award and is currently working towards a silver award. 

• August 2013 to 2021   Professor of International Relations and Head of School PSI, PPL UEA
• September 2012 – 2013  Associate Dean Admissions Faculty of Arts and Humanities, UEA
• August 2009 – July 2013 Senior Lecturer in International Relations PSI, UEA 
• September 2007 – July 2010  Lecturer in International Relations PSI, UEA
• September 2006 – August 2007 Lecturer in International Relations Oxford Brooke University
• September 2006 – August 2006  ESRC Postdoctoral Fellowship, PSI, UEA
• November 2003 – September 2005 Lead Research Fellow, City College Norwich

Professor Marsden’s key research interests lie in the area of religion and security, religion and international relations, religion and politics and religion and US foreign policy.  He has successfully supervised twelve PhD students to completion and would be interested in receiving PhD applications from anyone interested in working on Christianity and politics.

religion and politics; fundamentalism; security

Professor Marsden’s teaching interests tend to be research-led and focus around international relations, international security and domestic and international aspects of religion and politics. He is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. He is the holder of a UEA Teaching Excellence award. He is interested in  enhancing student experience of learning and teaching through decolonising the curriculm.

Teaching Activities

American Foreign Policy and Politics in the USA