Prospectus

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Political Science and Public Administration (Research)

Master

The Leiden Research Master’s Programme in Political Science and Public Administration aims at providing students with a thorough grounding in the literature on political institutions and a rigorous training in the methodological skills that are necessary to conduct research in this field. Students acquire this knowledge and these skills not only by being taught, but also by gaining hands-on experience. This way they learn how a broad research interest is transformed into a theoretically informed puzzle with concrete hypotheses, how a research method is chosen that is appropriate for the hypotheses that are to be tested, what problems can be encountered in data collection and analysis, how the data can be interpreted to test the hypotheses, and how the results can be presented effectively.

Preliminary Info

Welcome Meeting

The welcome meeting for all research master students is Tuesday 2 September, 11.30-12.30 in the Bestuurskamer (on the first floor next to the servicedesk).

Public Administration Specialisation

Students attend five mandatory courses in the first semester. Please check the e-prospectus page of each course for information about the registration procedure.

Political Science Specialisation

Students attend two mandatory core courses and two elective seminars in the first semester.

Registration for mandatory courses
Students need to register in uSis for the workgroups of the two core courses: ‘The Classics’ and ‘Advanced Skills’. Workgroup registration for The Classics takes place after the first collective class meeting in which the procedure will be explained to you. Workgroup registration for Advanced Skills takes place in October.

Registration for elective seminars
Research Master students in principle follow the seminars which are ear marked for the Research Master. Choosing a different seminar is subject to approval by the Program Director. For advice you can consult the study adviser Ms. Alma Caubo.

Registration is possible from Tuesday 19 August 10.00 a.m. until Sunday 24 August. Please send an e-mail with your full name, student number and your preference for 2 seminars in the first semester to instituutsbureaupolwet@fsw.leidenuniv.nl. You will receive an auto-reply with a confirmation that we have received your e-mail. You will be informed about the seminars for which you have been registered before September 1.

If Research Master students follow the registration procedure correctly they are guaranteed placement in the seminars recommended for the Research Master. Please note that all seminars have a maximum number of participants and we cannot guarantee placement in the seminars of your choice. Assignment to the other seminars is on a first come first served basis. The time at which your e-mail is received by the secretariat is crucial. In case you cannot be assigned to your preference(s) due to capacity considerations, we will contact you.

Year 1

Welcome Meeting

The welcome meeting for all first year research master students is Tuesday 2 September, 11.30-12.30 in the Bestuurskamer (on the first floor next to the servicedesk) of the Faculty of Social Sciences.

Registration

Please check the preliminary info and the course descriptions below for details about course registration.

The program information in the e-prospectus is subject to change. We advise students to check the e-prospectus pages regularly throughout the academic year.

Course EC Semester 1 Semester 2

Semester 1: Political Science Specialisation

Mandatory Courses for the Political Science Specialisation
Conflict and Cooperation: Classics - Fall 2014 5
Advanced Academic & Professional Skills - Fall 2014 5

Electives for the Political Science Specialisation (please select two from the list below)

Research Master students in principle follow the seminars which are ear marked for the Research Master. If you would like to choose a different seminar please consult the study advisor Ms. Alma Caubo for advice.
Transnational Politics of Human Rights (recommended for the Research Master) 10
Political Parties and Democracy: Conflict and Cooperation (recommended for the Research Master) 10
Conflict and Intervention 10
Consensus and Conflict in the Netherlands 10
Crisis Management 10
Distributive Justice: from local to global issues 10
Multiculturalism and Democracy 10
Foreign Policy Analysis 10

Semester 1: Public Administration Specialisation
Public Institutions 5
States, Markets and Politics 5
Democracy, Bureaucracy, Public Choice 5
Report and Presentation-bl2* 5
Politics and the Policy Process* 10

Semester 2: Political Science & Public Administration Specialisation
Institutions and Institutionalism I: Organizational Perspectives 5
Methods: Qualitative Data Collection and Analysis 5
Institutions and Institutionalism II: Political Perspectives 5
Quantitative Data Collection and Analysis 5
Cabinet Government 10

Year 2

The program information in the e-prospectus is subject to change. We advise students to check the e-prospectus pages regularly throughout the academic year.

Course EC Semester 1 Semester 2

Semester 1
European Institutions and Governance 5
Proposal Lab 5
Advanced Methodology 5
International Institutions and Cooperation 5
Federalism in Post-conflict Societies (Political Science Specialisation) 10
Decision Making and Policy Implementation in the EU (Public Administration Specialisation) 10

Semester 2
Philosophy of Science 5
Replication Workshop 5
Political Science and Public Administration RM Thesis Lab 5
Political Science and Public Administration RM Thesis 15

More info

The Research Master programme totals 120 ECTS (European Credit Transfer System) credits. Students are expected to earn approximately 30 ECTS credits per semester. One credit equals 28 hours of study, including lectures, reading, writing papers, and preparing for tests and examinations.

Examiners:
The teachers that are mentioned in each course are appointed by the Board of Examiners to conduct examinations.

The Department expects the highest scholarly effort and achievement from students. Students’ academic work will be evaluated per assignment and per course. This includes both oral and written assignments. Timely completion of degree requirements is expected.

More information on grading, graduation and other information can be found on the website of Political Science .

More information on the entry requirements of the programme can be found on Masters in Leiden .