APPLIES TO ACADEMIC YEAR 2014/2015

GRA 5912 European Union Politics: EU Institutions and the Single Market - RE-SIT EXAMINATION

Responsible for the course
Nick Sitter

Department
Department of Accounting - Auditing and Law

Term
According to study plan

ECTS Credits
6

Language of instruction
English

Introduction
This is the School’s introductory European Union MSc course. It requires no previous knowledge. It has been designed for the MSc in Political Economy. The focus is on the EU’s political and economic institutions, and the Single European Market in particular.
The central themes include development of the EU and its institutions, and core policy areas associated with the Single Market.

Learning outcome
This course provides an introduction to the political and economic system of the European Union. It is designed to provide students with tools and frameworks for analysing the impact of the current process of closer economic integration and the political and institutional development of the European Union. Central questions cover the forces that drive European integration, and its limits; key actors, preferences and institutions in the EU policy making processes; central features of the Single Market; and EU policy regimes. The EU is analysed from a comparative politics and political economy perspective.

The course covers the evolution of European integration up to and including the recent institutional revisions. It provides an introduction to the institutions of the EU the decision-making processes, including a ‘firms-eye’ perspective on European integration. The core theme is the development of the internal market. Students will gain thorough knowledge of the EU institutions and decision making processes and policy outcomes, as well as practical experience in obtaining information about and analysing EU policy developments. Given the interdependence between the national and supranational levels, the course provides an essential basis for the further specialisation courses in the MSc in Political Economy degree

Prerequisites
Bachelor degree qualifying for admission to the MSc Programme

Compulsory reading
Books:
El-Agraa, Ali M., ed. 2011. The European Union : economics and policies. 9th ed. Cambridge University Press
Hix, Simon. 2011. The political system of the European Union. 3rd ed. Palgrave Macmillan
Majone, Giandomenico. 2009. Dilemmas of European integration : the ambiguities and pitfalls of integration by stealth. Oxford University Press
Peterson, John and Michael Shackleton, eds. 2006. The Institutions of the European Union. 2nd ed. Oxford University Press

Other:
During the course there may be hand-outs and other material on additional topics relevant for the course and the examination.


Recommended reading
Books:
Andersen, Svein S. and Kjell A. Eliassen, eds. 2001. Making policy in Europe. 2nd ed. Sage Publications
Arnull, Anthony and Daniel Wincott, eds. 2002. Accountability and legitimacy in the European Union. Oxford University Press
Bache, Ian, Stephen George and Simon Bulmer. 2011. Politics in the European Union. 3rd ed. Oxford University Press
From, Johan and Nick Sitter, eds. 2006. Europe's nascent state? : public policy in the European Union. Gyldendal akademisk
Hitiris, Theo. 2002. European Union economics. 5th ed. Prentice Hall, Financial Times
Levitt, Malcolm and Christopher Lord. 2000. The political economy of monetary union. Macmillan
Nugent, Neill. 2010. The government and politics of the European Union. 7th ed. Palgrave Macmillan
Wallace, Helen, Mark A. Pollack and Alasdair R. Young, eds. 2010. Policy-making in the European Union. 6th ed. Oxford University Press

Other:
Individual journal articles and book chapters available in the library and/or electronically will be recommended as further reading.


Course outline
1. The EU political and economic system. The history of the EU. Theories of European integration. The course also introduces the relationship between the EU and EFTA countries and the operation of the European Economic Area.2. The European institutions: the Council of Ministers, the Commission, the Court of Justice, the European Parliament; and decision making procedures.
3. The Single European Market and related policies: competition policy, company rules, and social and environment policies
4. Developments in justice and home affairs, including police cooperation, counter-terrorism; and security, defence and foreign policy, including the EU-NATO and EU-US relationships.
5. Enlargement of the EU and relationship with neighbouring states.

Computer-based tools
It's learning

Learning process and workload
A course of 6 ECTS credits corresponds to a workload of 160-180 hours.
Please note that while attendance is not compulsory in all courses, it is the student’s own responsibility to obtain any information provided in class that is not included on the course homepage/It's learning or text book.


Examination
A final written term paper( individual) accounts for 100% of the grade.

Specific information regarding student evaluation beyond the information given in the course description will be provided in class. This information may be relevant for requirements for term papers or other hand-ins, and/or where class participation can be one of several elements of the overall evaluation.


Examination code(s)
GRA 59123 term paper accounts for 100 % of the final grade in the course GRA 5912.

Examination support materials
N/A.
Examination support materials at written examinations are explained under examination information in our web-based Student handbook. Please note use of calculator and dictionary.

Re-sit examination
The assessment in some courses is based on more than one exam code.
Where this is the case, you may retake only the assessed components of one of these exam codes.
Where this is not the case, all of the assessed components of the course must be retaken.
All retaken examinations will incur an additional fee.

Additional information
Honor Code
Academic honesty and trust are important to all of us as individuals, and represent values that are encouraged and promoted by the honor code system. This is a most significant university tradition. Students are responsible for familiarizing themselves with the ideals of the honor code system, to which the faculty are also deeply committed.

Any violation of the honor code will be dealt with in accordance with BI’s procedures for cheating. These issues are a serious matter to everyone associated with the programs at BI and are at the heart of the honor code and academic integrity. If you have any questions about your responsibilities under the honor code, please ask.