International immersion course: Current topics in European politics, economics, society and culture

Dates

5-30 August 2013 (4 weeks).

Place

Faculty of Law, Campus de Elviña. [Location]

Aims and scope

This is an immersion course for students wishing to prepare themselves for university study or work placements abroad. The course is aimed at two types of students:

1. Foreign students wishing to study at the University of A Coruña or any other Spanish university. The course is specially indicated for Erasmus students accepted to study at the University of A Coruña for the 2013-14 academic year.
2. Spanish students wishing to prepare themselves for study or work placements abroad, as well as university graduates who have not had the opportunity to study abroad in the course of their studies.

The course consists of two modules:

1. An intensive Spanish language course for foreign students.
2. A series of lectures on current topics on European politics, economics, society and culture, followed by seminar discussions on the topics of those lectures.

Foreign students are expected to attend modules 1 and 2, whereas Spanish students should attend module 2 only. This is a participatory course in which Spanish and foreign students are expected to benefit from the interaction among them.

Lecturers include

• Dr Bülent Anil, Bahcesehir University, Turkey. Bulent Anil has a BSc in sociology from Middle East Technical University in Ankara, Turkey, and both an MA and a PhD in economics from Georgia State University, USA. Before joining Bahcesehir, he taught at the University of Minnesota Duluth, USA. He has published in the Southern Economic Journal. His current research interests include urban economics, labour economics, sports economics, and economic inequality.
• Dr Michael W. Bauer, German University of Administrative Sciences Speyer. Michael Bauer is professor of administrative science and policy analysis and holder of a Jean Monnet chair. He has a degree in social science from Humboldt University of Berlin (Germany), an MA from the College of Europe in Bruges (Belgium), a PhD from the European University Institute in Florence (Italy), and his Habilitation from the University of Konstanz (Germany). He has published in journals such as the Journal of European Social Policy, West European Politics, the Journal of European Integration, the Journal of Common Market Studies, the Journal of European Public Policy, Regional and Federal Studies, Public Administration, the International Review of Administrative Sciences, and European Integration online Papers. He has also authored and edited books published by Oxford University Press, Palgrave-Macmillan, Nomos, Kluwer and Routledge. He will present some aspects from his latest co-authored book on The European Commission of the 21st Century (Oxford University Press, 2013).
• Dr Giacomo Benedetto, Royal Holloway, University of London, UK. Giacomo Benedetto has a BA from the University of Sussex, an both an MSc (Econ) and a PhD from the London School of Economics. Before joining RHUL, he taught at the University of Manchester. He has published research on the European Parliament, the British House of Commons, the constitutional and budgetary politics of the EU and on euroscepticism in the Journal of European Public Policy, Comparative Political Studies, the Journal of Common Market Studies and in Party Politics. In 2012, Palgrave-Macmillan published his co-edited volume on European Union Budget Reform.
• Dr Annina Bürgin, University of A Coruña. Annina Bürgin has a degree from the University of Bern, Switzerland, and a PhD from the University of Basel, Switzerland. She will teach a module on Foreign, Security and Development Policy. This will include a lecture on private military and security companies.
• Dr Gabriela Covatariu, Technical University of Iasi, Romania.
• Margarete Dabrowski, University of Osnabrück, Germany. Margarete Dabrowski will teach a module on Intercultural Competence.
• Dr Danielle Dahan-Feucht, University of Konstanz, Germany. Danielle Dachan-Feucht has a BA from the University of Paris-Sorbonne, France, and both a Magister and a PhD in literature from the University of Tübingen, Germany. Before joining the University of Konstanz, she taught at the University of Tübingen. She’s teaching French and Francophone Literature and Civilization. Her current research interests include Cultural Transfers between France and Germany in the 18th Century, French, Arabic and Jewish Literature from Algeria. Her teaching will include a lecture on Laicism in France in the 21st Century.
• Dr Flávio Ferreira, ESEIG, Instituto Politécnico do Porto, Portugal. Flavio Ferreira is the President of ESEIG. He has a BSc, an MSc and a PhD in mathematics from the University of Porto, Portugal. He is he author of several books and dozens of articles in journals such as Dynamical Systems, Ergodic Theory and Dynamical Systems, Communications in Nonlinear Science and Nummeric Simulation, AIP Conference Proceedings and Differential Equations. He will teach an introduction to game theory with applications to economics and industrial organisation.
• Dr Tetiana Havlin, Technische Universität Kaiserslautern, Germany. Tetiana Havlin has a BA, an MA and a PhD in Sociology from Mechnikov National University in Odessa, Ukraine. Her scientific interests are the sociology of city, the sociology of migration, and gender studies. She will teach a module entitled 'Society on the Move: International Migration in the Global and European Contexts'.
• Dr Dusan Kostrub, Comenius University in Bratislava, Slovakia. Dusan Kostrub teaches general didactics and qualitative methodology at the Faculty of Education of Comenius University.
• Artak Mkrtichyan, University of A Coruña. Artak Mkrtichyan has degrees in history and law from the Armenian State Pedagogical University, Yerevan, Armenia. He is about to complete his PhD at the University of A Coruña. He will teach on European identity, the EU funding system, and the OSCE and Pan-European security architecture.
• Dr Anna Potyrala, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poland. Anna Potyrala is professor at the Faculty of Political Science and Journalism. She has degrees in political science and law and a PhD in political science from Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poland. She will teach a module on the immigration and asylum policies of the EU, with special reference to the problems arising after the Arab Spring.
• Dr Francisco Seoane-Pérez, University of Castilla la Mancha, Spain. Francisco Seoane Pérez holds a PhD in Communications Studies from the University of Leeds, an MA in Communication from the University of Illinois at Chicago, USA, and a BA in Journalism from the University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain. His scholarly interests include the role of journalism in liberal democracies, the idea of a European public sphere, and the impact of the Internet on political participation. He is an associate editor for the International Journal of Media & Cultural Politics. He is the author of a book on Political Communication in Europe published by Palgrave Macmillan.
• Dr Tomasz Rafael Szymczyński, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poland. Tomasz holds an MA in European Studies and a PhD from Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poland. His main areas of scientific interest are identity and intercultural communication, the European integration process, the external relations of the EU, questions about democracy and the relations between theory and practice from an interdisciplinary methodological perspective. He will teach a module on the democratic deficit of the EU.
• Dr Alberto Veira-Ramos, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain. Alberto Veira Ramos has an MA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA, and a PhD from Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia, Madrid, Spain. He has published research on the labour market in journals such as Migration Letters, Revista Internacional de Sociología and Sociological Research Online.

Typical schedule

• 9.00 – 11.30:  Module 1. Spanish for foreigners.
• 11.30 – 12.30: Module 2a. Lecture on current topics in Spanish and European Politics, Economics and Society.
• 12.30 – 14.00: Module 2b. Seminar discussion.

Assessment

Assessment for module 1 is by means of class participation (25%) and an examination at the end of the course (75%).
Assessment for module 2 is by means of lecture attendance (40%) and seminar participation (60%).

Academic recognition

Participants will receive a diploma from the University of A Coruña.
The University of A Coruña recognises a total of 3 ECTS credits for module 1, and 3 ECTS credits for module 2.

Tuition fees

• Modules 1 and 2 (foreign students): 400 euros.
• Module 2 only (local students): 100 euros.

Scholarships

There are 20 scholarships available covering 50% of the tuition fees (10 for foreign students and 10 for local students), which will be awarded on a first-come-first-served basis.

Accommodation

Accommodation is the responsibility of individual students, but there are a number of student halls of residence offering special conditions for the course participants, such as:

• Residencia Siglo XXI (412.50 euros per month for a single room, including full board (breakfast, lunch and dinner), but excluding cleaning and bed linen).
• Residencia Rialta (from 21.01 euros per night, accommodation only, including cleaning twice a week).

Many students prefer to share appartments with other students in the city centre.

Leisure activities

The whole month of August is full of concerts and other leisure activities in the city of A Coruña and the surrounding region. There will be around 300 events taking place this month, many of which will have free access. The programme is not yet closed but it includes:

• 1 August: Ariel Rot, Loquillo and Leiva at Plaza de Maria Pita.
• 8 August: Auryn at Plaza de Maria Pita.
• 9-10 August: Noroeste Pop Rock festival on Riazor Beach, featuring Suede, Kiko Veneno and Los Enemigos.
• 11 August: Malú at Plaza de Maria Pita.
• 14 August: Batalla Naval on Riazor Beach, featuring Despistaos, Melocos and Dover.
• 16 August: Luar na Lubre at Plaza de maria Pita.
• 17 August: Macaco at Plaza de Maria Pita.
• 22 August: Carlos Nuñez at Plaza de Maria Pita.
• 23 August: Ainhoa Arteta at Plaza de Maria Pita.

You can get more information about the city from www.turismocoruna.com.

Registration

Please contact ori1@udc.es to book your place and receive registration instructions.