Taught Masters Modules: POL6560 - The Governance and Politics of the European Union

Level: MA
Credits: 30

Module Leaders: Professor Simon Bulmer and Dr Ingi Iusmen

Description

This module focuses on the European Union (EU) as a system of public policy-making and aims to introduce students who are new to the discipline to its main institutions, decision-making processes and common policies. Students who have encountered the EU before are encouraged to refresh and deepen their knowledge and understanding. The module explores various theoretical and analytical approaches used in order to evaluate European integration and its decision-making. It examines different policy domains, such as the Single Market and Monetary Union, which are central to understanding the political economy of European integration, and other policy areas, such as the EU's foreign and defence policies and its growing activity in justice and home affairs. Towards the end of the module, students will have the opportunity to discuss some of the key current issues confronting the EU's future direction: its democratic legitimacy; its enlargement and current challenges.

Objectives

This module aims to provide an advanced level of understanding of the major traditions of analysis of the European Union.

By the end of the module students will be able to:

• Demonstrate knowledge of the institutions and the main common policies of the European Union.
• Apply conceptual tools to analyse the prospects for success and failure of EU policy initiatives.
• Demonstrate appropriate cognitive, communicative and transferable skills, including ability to evaluate advanced concepts and theories, to employ primary and secondary sources, to present reasoned and effective arguments in written and oral form, to pursue independent learning and to show critical judgement.

Assessment

• Essay 1: 40%
• Essay 2: 60%