Admission requirements
Only students of the Advanced MSc International Relations and Diplomacy programme can take this course.
Description
This course is designed to teach students the essentials of qualitative research methods to prepare them for researching a thesis using qualitative methods. Each session builds on the one preceding it. The main topics covered are:
Research Design: qualitative research design, causal inference, and the logic of case selection for single and comparative case studies.
Data collection: Interviews and document research.
Data analysis: Students will learn the basics about some of the most commonly used methods of analysis: process tracing, discourse analysis, and content analysis.
In addition, the issues of validity, generalizability and reliability are addressed.
Course objectives
Be able to set design qualitative research project using appropriate techniques;
Understand the inherent benefits of qualitative research and what type of questions it can answer;
Understand and acknowledge the limits of qualitative designs;
Understand how to collect and analyse qualitative data;
Understand the most commonly used approaches to qualitative research in international relations.
Timetable
On the right-hand side of the programme front page of the studyguide you will find a link to the online timetables.
Mode of instruction
The seminars for this course consist of two-hour sessions which include discussions of the readings in the form of lectures and group activities. Students are expected to have completed the set readings prior to the seminar and are responsible for locating the assigned journal articles in the library catalogue.
Study load : 140 hours
Attendance Policy
Attendance is mandatory, subject to course structure (see syllabus for details).
Assessment method
Assignment 1: Online test (35%)
Assignment 2: Written assignment (35%)
Take home assignment (30%)
Failed partial grades or components should be compensated by passed partial grades or components. The calculated grade must be at least 5.50 to pass the course. It is not possible to re-sit a partial grade or component once you have passed the course.
Passed partial grades obtained in the academic year 2023-2024 remain valid during the academic year 2024-2025.
Passed partial grades obtained in the academic year 2024-2025 remain valid during the academic year 2025-2026.
Should a student fail the overall course, the student can complete the course in the second year of the programme.
Reading list
Books and academic peer-reviewed journal articles.
Registration
Register yourself via uSis for each course, workgroup and exam (not all courses have workgroups and/or exams). Do so on time, before the start of the course; some courses and workgroups have limited spaces. You can view your personal schedule in MyTimetable after logging in.
Registration for this course is possible from 11 July, 2024
Leiden University uses Brightspace as its online learning management system. After enrolment for the course in uSis you will be automatically enrolled in the Brightspace environment of this course.
Contact
Dr. V. F. Newby v.f.newby@fgga.leidenuniv.nl
Dr Leila Demarest l.demarest@fsw.leidenuniv.nl