Prospectus

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Political Science and Public Administration: Research Master (Leiden)

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.

As of the academic year 2018-2019, registration for this program is not longer possible.

Preliminary Info

Registration for courses

Semester I:
In the first block you follow the mandatory courses 'Replication Workshop'(5 EC) and 'Structure and Management of Public Organizations'(5 EC).
In the second block you choose an external project (15 EC).
On top of that you choose an elective seminar up to 10 EC in the first semester, upon the approval of the programme director (either a seminar à 5 EC from the regular 1 year MSc Public Administration or a seminar à 10 EC from the regular 1 year MSc Political Science).

You will be registered in uSis by the Students Service Centre (OSC). You submit your choice for the elective(s) via e-mail to OnderwijsServicecentrum@leiden.edu after you have received approval of the programme director.

For Public Administration: prof. dr. S. Groeneveld; s.m.groeneveld@cdh.leidenuniv.nl
For Political Science: prof. dr. P. Kopecky; kopecky@fsw.leidenuniv.nl

Sending an email with your choice is possible from Monday 20 August 2018, 10.00 a.m. until Monday 27 August 2018, 10.00 am.

Elective seminars have a maximum number of participants. Registration is on a first-come-first-served basis. (If fewer than 8 students register for a seminar, we cannot guarantee that it will take place.)
Students from the MSc Political Science specialisations have priority for the political science seminars in block I, because for them these seminars form part of their core curriculum.

Please note that official course registration in Usis does not lead to automatic Blackboard enrollment. You must enroll yourself on Blackboard for your courses. For more information about Blackboard please see the website.

Semester II:
Throughout block III and IV you work on your Research Master thesis (30 EC).

Year 2

The courses below are the 2nd year courses for the student cohort that started in 2017-2018.

Course EC Semester 1 Semester 2

Semester 1 - students also choose 1 elective of the regular MSc programme of PS or PA
Replication Workshop 5
Structure and Management of Public Organisations 5
External Project 15

Semester 2
Political Science and Public Administration Research Master Thesis Lab 5
Political Science and Public Administration Research Master Thesis 25

Transitory Regulations

Transitional regulations for research master students who have started the programme before September 2017 and have not completed all of their 2nd year courses in academic year 2017-2018:

  1. Advanced Methodology (5 EC) is replaced by an individual reading course (5 EC)
  2. Proposal Lab (5 EC) is replaced by an individual reading course (5 EC)
  3. Seminar Public Opinion and Political Decision Making (10 EC) is replaced by an elective seminar of the MSc Political Science (10 EC), upon approval of the programme director
  4. International Cooperation and Institutions (10 EC) is replaced by an elective seminar of the MSc Political Science (10 EC), upon approval of the programme director
  5. Philosophy of Science (5 EC) is replaced by an individual reading course (5 EC)
  6. Replication Workshop is offered in academic year 2018-2019, in the 1st block
  7. Political Science and Public Administration RM Thesis (20 EC) remains the writing of a Thesis for 20 EC under the individual supervision of one of the staff members of the Institute of Political Science or the Institute of Public Administration (plus a 2nd reader) upon approval of the Director of Studies

Students who need to do an individual reading course according to these transitional regulations need to contact the Director of Studies, Dr. Maria Spirova.

Transitional regulations for students from earlier academic years who have not successfully completed all components of the first year of the research master:

  1. Classics in Political Science and Public Administration (5 EC) is replaced by Great Debates (5 EC)
  2. Research Design (5 EC) is replaced by an individual reading course
  3. International Cooperation and Institutions (5 EC) is replaced by an elective seminar from the MSc Political Science or the MSc Public Administration (5 EC), upon approval of the programme director
  4. Comparative State and Policy Formation (5 EC) is replaced by an elective seminar from the MSc Political Science or the MSc Public Administration (5 EC), upon approval of the programme director
  5. Qualitative Methods I (5 EC) is replaced by an individual reading course (5 EC)
  6. Quantitative Methods I (5 EC) is replaced by an individual reading course (5 EC)
  7. The Politics of Public Policy (5 EC)is replaced by an elective seminar of the MSc Political Science or the MSc Public Administration (5 EC), upon approval of the programme director
  8. Qualitative Methods II or Quantitative Methods II (5 EC) is replaced by an individual reading course (5 EC)
  9. The 20 EC of elective seminars of the MSc Political Science or the MSc Public Administration remains 20 EC of elective seminars of the MSc Political Science or the MSc Public Administration, upon approval of the programme director

Students who need to do an individual reading course according to these transitional regulations need to contact the Director of Studies, Dr. Maria Spirova.