Content, progress and pedagogy of the module

Objectives:  

• To provide students with knowledge of EU institutions and decision-making procedures 

• To enable students to understand the fundamental logics and elements of EU law 

• To enable students to analyze and discuss the democratic dimensions of European integration  

Content: 

The module gives in-depth knowledge of the European Union (EU), what it is, how it works and how it relates to Member States and society. The module will focus on four aspects: 1) approaches to understanding the nature of the EU; 2) the development as well as the central content of EU law including the decision-making procedures; 3) the institutions of the EU, their tasks, organization, and the relations between the institutions, as well as between the institutions and the Member States; and 4) the democratic dimension of EU politics. The module also introduces digital platforms and tools providing knowledge about EU institutions and decision-making processes. 

Learning objectives

Knowledge

• theories and practices within the fields of EU law, institutions and decision-making procedures 

• democracy, legitimacy and Europeanization, as well as various approaches to the study of these.  

Skills

• can identify and understand fundamental logics of EU law and EU institutions 

• can reflect upon democratic dimensions of the European integration process  

• can apply knowledge within the module’s subject areas to select theories that serve the analytical purpose and at the same time remain critical to these theories.   

Competences

• can reflect and argue on the basis of scientific knowledge 

• are able to apply theory to empirical data and analyze problem issues within the field of EU studies 

• can communicate succinctly and precisely about key elements of EU law and EU institutions to a targeted audience 

• can use digital tools to identify and analyze key elements of EU institutions and decision-making processes. 

Type of instruction

The module consists of lectures, seminars and exercises. 

Exam

Exams