Course Descriptions
Trimester 1
Credits
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ECO 607 – Global Economics This course examines the major principles of economics, economic policymaking and the role of the firm in the economy. It discusses the role of the financial system, (un)employement and international economic flows between the domestic economy and its international environment and provides the theoretical basis for understanding the economic importance of firms, international trade and international capital flows.3
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LAW 660 – The Laws of War This graduate course will cover the concept of war in law, the thresholds for the applications of the law of armed conflict, the rules on resort to war (jus ad bellum), the laws of war themselves (understood in the wider sense as including applicable human rights law, refugee law, etc), and the emerging rules concerning the post conflict period, in particular the law relating to war crimes. There will also be an emphasis on future forms of warfare, including the issue of robots, the use of drones, and the new thinking about cyberwarfare.3
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POL 610 – Geoeconomics This course explores the impact of geoeconomics strategies of state and non-state actors in international relations. It examines European, US and East-Asian competitive intelligence, trade and economic interests at stake. The course addresses the issue of information operations and disinformation strategies, enforcement or destabilization of the nation state and state support to strategic industrial sectors through economic diplomacy. The relations between the state, corporate sector and civil society are examined in the form of case studies.3
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POL 625 – Regional Cooperation and Diplomacy The course will examine the political and economic concepts of regionalism, particularly from the perspective of using diplomacy and economic cooperation and integration to deal with traditionally complex regional structures of international relations. Students will examine the dynamics of the growing trend towards regionalism in a comparative perspective, analyzing regional groupings in Europe, East Asia, North America, Latin America, Asia and Africa. The course introduces the concept of regional cooperation and integration in the age of globalization, from the perspective of world economic geography, cultural interaction, and functional collaboration that leads to political cooperation.3
Trimester 2
Credits
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NEG 615 – International Negotiations Negotiation skills are among the most valuable and sought-after skills both in management and diplomacy. This course covers cross-disciplinary theoretical underpinnings and, through interactive methods and simulations, the practical aspects of skillful negotiation in a global environment.3
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POL 621 – Global Environmental Politics The graduate course aims to develop the skills required to engage with international environmental politics and policy. It will provide an in-depth understanding of the design and effectiveness of international environmental regimes. The course will take into account the larger political economic context of environmental policies.3
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POL 632 – Politics of the United Nations: Peace and Security This course on the Politics of the United Nations provide students with historical, theoretical and practical background to better understand the workings of the UN system. Students will develop an insight into the UN peace and security activities through analysis of case studies from various regions of the world.3
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POL 640 – Democracy and Globalization This course draws from comparative politics, international relations and political thought to analyze the past, present and future of democracy. It seeks to answer questions like: 'Is democracy in decline? What is the impact of globalization on the democratic national state?' This course will put into perpective current discussions about democracy by examining theories and history of the emergence and breakdown of democracies.3
Trimester 3
Credits
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POL 630 – Foreign Policy and Diplomacy The focus of this course will be on the decisional dynamics underpinning foreign policy and diplomacy. This course provides both the theoretical framework and practical skills necessary to analyze international events using foreign policy concepts.3
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TRA 660 – International Trade Law and Policy The course covers trade related law and policy issues with respect to economic development, growth and regional cooperation. It addresses current challenges to the multilateral trading system, including the ongoing Doha round negotiations as well as the future of the WTO.3
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POL 650 – International Relations in the Middle East This course focuses on the regional politics of the Middle East and its interaction with the rest of the world. It will apply international relations theory to the study of the Middle East politics. The course aims to provide students with a contextual understanding of contemporary Middle East politics and research skills in comparative politics.3
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MGT 610 – Leadership and Organizational Behaviour Students study a range of important variables that affect the behaviour of people inside an organization including leadership styles, the process of effective management, interpersonal communication skills, motivation, effective presentations and organization design, as well as the dynamics of conflicts in organizations. This course involves a high degree of participation and project work with adult learning techniques such as action learning and learning contracts.3
Trimester 4
Credits
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POL 660 – Digital Diplomacy New digital technologies affect all aspects of social life, business life and also relations between states. After an introduction to the purpose and methods of diplomacy and in particular public diplomacy, the course examines how new digital tools are, or may be, used in diplomacy. This covers the internal functioning of a diplomatic service, and also the external action and work between states. Students will delve in the main international issues related to the digital change where cooperation or rule-shaping diplomatic processes exist, such as cybersecurity, cyber defence, internet rights and online freedom, data privacy, ICTs, information society, electronic commerce or copyrights.3
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POL 698 – Future Issues in International Relations (Capstone Course) International relations have changed since the end of the Cold War in 1989 and September 11, 2001. This course identifies the crucial political issues today on the national, regional and transnational levels. It examines current dynamics and assesses their possible future trends. Topics under consideration include security, the environment, the economy, migration, religion and the information society on a global scale.3
