The programme aims to provide students with those multidisciplinary tools and competences indispensable for a broad-based understanding of economic, legal, political and social transformations in the European and international contexts.
Particular emphasis is given to teaching the tools and skills necessary for the analysis of:
- the interaction of individual and collective actors both within European and international institutions;
- the functioning of European and international economic, legal, political and social systems;
- European and international systems of governance.
The MEIS programme attaches great importance to foreign languages which are an essential prerequisite for the development of effective communication skills. Taught courses, language workshops and tutoring activities contribute to developing advanced English language communication skills and develop a working knowledge of at least one additional foreign language (in addition to a basic knowledge of Italian).
Alongside the taught courses the School runs a rich series of guest lectures, seminars and talks held by visiting professors of international standing and by professional practitioners working in distinguished international organizations. MEIS students are encouraged to participate in these and the many events organised at the School, including conferences, debates, careers talks and fairs and workshops held by practitioners.
For course content please see:
- Course structure (MEIS Programme)
- Programme for each Academic Year
- the Syllabus of each course for the current Academic Year
First year
Course | Credits (ECTS) |
---|---|
Contemporary History General knowledge of the dynamics of the history of international relations of the twentieth century; ability to analyse and discuss historical documents (speeches, treatises, scientific essays); ability to argue clearly the historiographical questions posed by international history of the twentieth century, in particular those of the global cold war. In further detail:
|
8 |
Principles of International Economics The course aims to provide students with the basic tools to understand the workings of the international economy. At the end of the semester, students should: i) be familiar with the main concepts related to theories of international trade and open macroeconomics; ii) be able to respond to current international economic issues such as "what are the reasons for international trade?", "what are the costs and benefits associated with fixed/flexible exchange rates?" |
8 |
Elements of International and European Union Law The course aims to provide students with a theoretical and practical understanding of the legal framework and operation of international law institutions and the European Union. Students will be taught how to evaluate the significance of legal arguments in relation to a series of cases taken from international and European jurisprudence. |
8 |
English Language The course intends to develop each student's general and specialised linguistic skills and competence to at least level C1 + (CEFR) in all four areas: reading comprehension, listening, written and oral (monologue and interaction) in addition to the development of an autonomous approach to language study (Ref. C1 + - Common European Framework of Reference http://www.coe.int/t/dg4/education/elp/elp-reg/Source/Key_reference/Over...). Students will therefore advance their knowledge of English so that they can easily work in the language in any context, whether academic or professional (NGOs, international institutions, etc.). At the end of the course the student will have acquired:
At the end of the course the student should be able to:
Applied knowledge, skills and competences Besides the general competences included in the CEFR for C1 +, at the end of the course the student should be able to:
|
10 |
Language Workshop 1 language Workshop to be chosen from:
|
6 |
Course | Credits (ECTS) |
---|---|
Quantitative Methods in Social Sciences (Basic) |
6 |
Quantitative Methods in Social Sciences (Advanced) |
6 |
Course | Credits (ECTS) |
---|---|
European and International Politics (Basic) |
8 |
European and International Politics (Advanced) |
8 |
Second year
Course | Credits (ECTS) |
---|---|
Political Philosophy The course aims to address the major issues of international politics (peace and war, national interest and the role of international institutions, Europeanism and cosmopolitanism, human rights and justice) through the analysis of some classic texts of international political philosophy and their historical contextualisation. |
6 |
Political Theory Through lectures, seminars and presentations, the course offers an overview of the main contemporary political theories, considering the international experiences and the historical cases that contributed to their development. Reading and discussion of theoretical essays will be complemented by regular study of documents and analysis of political speeches, with particular attention to their dissemination in the media. |
6 |
Course | Credits (ECTS) |
---|---|
The Economics of European Integration The course aims to ensure that students learn the economic and institutional aspects relating to the process of European economic integration. By introducing a theoretical foundation as reference for the analysis of European policies, students will be able to:
|
6 |
Global Economic Policy The course aims to analyse a number of economic policies in an open economy framework. At the end of the course students should be able to understand the causes, effects and implications of some of the events which characterise topical international economic issues. |
6 |
Course | Credits (ECTS) |
---|---|
The Legal Framework of EU Policies The course aims to provide students with the theoretical knowledge and analytical skills required to work with the applicable law in the various policies of the European Union. This objective will be achieved through work on different types of legal materials, such as manuals, articles, legislative texts (primary and secondary EU law), jurisprudence, official documents, soft law and other materials. After completing the planned work, students will have the skills to search for the applicable law on issues linked to EU policies, analyse its content, highlight its main features and critical points, and suggest solutions to important legal issues. This requires the skill to research applicable legal sources, then analyse and apply them, using analytical judicial methodologies and critical reasoning, and present results both orally and in written form. |
6 |
Human Rights and Natural Resources under International Law The learning objectives of the course are twofold. Firstly, the course aims to provide students with a general understanding of the workings of the legal framework and main institutions concerned with the international protection of human rights. Secondly and in parallel, it intends to illustrate the relationship between human rights and natural resources, with special reference to the scale of conflicts over resources. Students will learn to assess the importance of legal arguments in defining the relationship between human activities and the environment including in terms of the systems for allocating natural resources to individuals and groups. More specifically, the learning objectives of the course can be summarised as follows:
At the end of the course the students will know how to:
|
6 |
Course | Credits (ECTS) |
---|---|
Strategic Studies The goal of this module is to equip students with the theoretical and methodological tools necessary for understanding the military behaviour of States. At the end of the course students must understand and know how to use the main analytical models and approaches devised to explain and describe international political-military processes. The students must also understand the most important events related to international military security. Finally, they must be capable of applying the theoretical tools to empirical cases, and be able to draw general conclusions from studying individual case studies. |
6 |
Advanced European Studies At the end of the course the students will be able to
|
6 |
Party Politics and Democracy in Europe The general objective of the course is to provide students with the means to gain a deep understanding of the role of political parties in contemporary European politics and their contribution to the quality of democratic processes. Pursuit of this goal is also a stimulus to critical reflection on a number of fundamental issues that are at the centre of academic and political debate, such as political representation, institutional reforms, populism and multilevel governance within the EU. At the end of the course, students must have acquired the following skills:
|
6 |
Free choice courses
Course | Crediti (CFU) |
---|---|
Labour Rights in the Global Economy |
6 |
Peace and Conflict Studies: Theory and Methods |
6 |
Science, Technology and Global Affairs Given its very special nature, students are expected to follow at least 75% of the classes. |
6 |
People, Politics and the Planet |
6 |
Democratizing Security |
6 |
International History |
6 |
Minorities, Regionalism and Borders in Europe |
6 |
Minoritiy Rights |
6 |
The Use of Force in International Politics |
6 |
International Cooperation, Development and Security |
6 |
Global Migration and Security |
6 |
Natural Resources and Energy Security |
6 |
Global Markets and Security Issues |
6 |
China and the World from the Cold War Years to the Global Era (1949-2020) |
6 |
Research Design |
3 |
Statistics Laboratory |
3 |
Laboratory - Law |
3 |
Laboratory - Politics |
3 |
Activity | Credits (ECTS) |
---|---|
In addition to the above, all international students have to achieve a minimum level of fluency in Italian (A2) in order to graduate. |
|
Final Exam To be awarded the degree, the student must have gained the 120 credits required by these Regulations. The final exam consists of the public discussion of a paper, normally written in English, prepared by the candidate with supervision from a lecturer, the thesis supervisor. The paper can address issues of a theoretical and practical nature and it must demonstrate the candidate's ability to deal with a topic relevant to the chosen course of study, in an autonomous and substantial way. The final exam is assessed by a Master's Degree Committee composed of five members. In addition to the quality of the paper, the final assessment takes into account the student's whole track record. The procedures for awarding the final mark are set out in the degree regulations. |
24 |