APPLIES TO ACADEMIC YEAR 2014/2015

GRA 5913 The EU Policy Process - 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 one of the School’s courses dedicated to advanced selected topics in political economy. It focuses on the role of organised interests in the policy process. The course is primarily designed for students taking the MSc in Political Economy and therefore assumes some knowledge of political processes and policy making in the EU (an equivalent of GRA 5912).

The central themes is the policy processes and public policy in the EU (and the EEA) and its member states.

Learning outcome
This course provides in-depth analysis of the policy process in the European Union and its member states. It covers agenda-setting and policy input, legislative decision making an implementation in national and supranational politics. The course focuses on the range of actors and organised interests involved in the policy process; from firms and industry interests, trade unions, NGOs and pressure groups, to local and national governments in EU and non-member states. A substantial part of the course focuses on EU legislative processes and the actors that shape EU directives. Because a growing number of policy areas involve shared competence between the EU and the member states, and a combination of formal legislation and other instruments (funding, recommendations, guidelines, interpretation of primary and secondary legislation), the course explores policy outcomes in a range of sectors. Case studies are extensively used.

Prerequisites
GRA 5912 or an equivalent EU course

Compulsory reading
Books:
Coen, David and Jeremy Richardson, eds. 2009. Lobbying the European Union : institutions, actors, and issues. Oxford University Press
Greenwood, Justin. 2011. Interest representation in the European Union. 3rd 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

Collection of articles:
Compendium of Recent Journal Articles, including articles/chapters.

Other:
A list of compulsory readings will be provided on It's learning or in class.
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
Bomberg, Elizabeth, John Peterson and Alexander Stubb, eds. 2008. The European Union : how does it work?. 2nd ed. Oxford University Press
Pedler, Robin, ed. 2002. European Union lobbying : changes in the arena. Palgravein association with the European Centre for Public Affiars
Richardson, Jeremy, ed. 2006. European Union : power and policy-making. 3rd ed. Routledge
Schendelen, Rinus van. 2005. Machiavelli in Brussels : the art of lobbying the EU. 2nd ed. Amsterdam University Press
Weidenbaum, Murrary L. 2004. Business and government in the global marketplace. 7th ed. Pearson/Prentice Hall

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


Course outline
1. Comparative analysis of policy making in the EU and the member states.
2. Comparative analysis of the role of organised interests in public policy and the relative strength of various actors (e.g. business, NGOs, trade unions, local government, non-member states).
3. Agenda setting and policy formulation, with a particular focus on the role of the Commission, committees and working groups, national civil servants and organised interests.
4. Advanced analysis of the EU legislative process: the role of the European Parliament and the Council. Implementation, supervision and adjudication. How EU-level decisions are implemented in the member states and by the European Commission in its executive capacity; supervision and comitology; the role of the courts.
5. Non-legislative decision making in the EU: policy coordination, expansion of legal principles and interpretation of primary law, the Open Method of Coordination; the role of Agencies in policy formulation, coordination and delivery.

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
Termpaper 100%

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 59132 term paper accounts for 100% of the final grade in GRA 5913

Examination support materials
N/A. BI approved calculator, bilingual dictionary. Examination support materials at written examiniations are explained under examination information in the student portal @bi. Please note use of calculator and dictionary in the section on support materials.

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.