Fall semester coursework provides students with a foundation in the historical, political, economic, and social aspects of the European Union (EU). These core courses acquaint students with key features of EU politics, policy, and society. All students complete the following courses:

POSC 603: The Political Institutions of the European Union

This course is a comprehensive consideration of the EU’s institutions and the relationships among them. It analyzes the roles of the EU’s institutions and advisory bodies and considers the ways that executive, legislative, judicial, and advisory institutions interact. The course also engages debates about the nature and limits of democracy in Europe and considers whether changes in the Union’s institutional architecture might increase the quality of European democracy.

POSC 604: Policy-Making Processes

This course examines policy cycles and illuminates the range of general and sector-specific policy processes that take place in the EU and other complex decision-making environments. The course analyzes the structures of policy regimes and the ways that those structures affect the behaviors of diverse policy actors.

POSC 605: Comparative European Politics

This course examines the functioning of Europe's national political systems. It focuses on state formation, nation building, models of democracy, territorial governance, electoral systems, party systems, legislative-executive relations, state-society dynamics, and other core elements of national governance. The course involves analysis of similarities and differences among national political models and consideration of Europeanization's effects on national governance.

POSC 644 Research in Policy Dynamics

This course involves scrutiny of policy proposals from their conception through their ultimate fate. Students gain familiarity with specialized databases in multiple policy-making systems. The course promotes familiarity with alternative ways of conceptualizing, organizing, publicizing, and tracking the evolution of policy proposals and policy-relevant data.

 

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