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International Studies

Bachelor

International Studies is a three year bachelor programme that has started in September 2012 in The Hague. Its study programme is designed around three elements: core courses that introduce disciplinary concepts and that analyze the international setting, area courses that analyze the situation in a selected region from a disciplinary, and increasingly interdisciplinary, perspective and language courses that prepare students for access to the cultural context in the relevant language.

The core concepts, ideas and methods are taken from four broad disciplinary approaches:

  • History (mostly modern history)

  • Cultural Studies (modern cultural phenomena in their societal settings)

  • Economics (and the concepts from International Political Economy)

  • Political Science (and Sociology and Anthropology)

The areas offered in the degree, and their corresponding languages are:

Area Foreign Language
East Asia Mandarin, Japanese, Korean
Latin America Spanish, Portuguese
Middle East Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Modern Hebrew
North America French, Spanish
Russia and Eurasia Russian
South Asia and Southeast Asia Hindi, Indonesian
Africa Swahili, French, Portuguese
Europe French, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, German

First Year

Vak EC Semester 1 Semester 2

First semester
Communicating Power 5
Configuring the World 10
Reading & Writing in International Studies 5
Global History 5
Introduction to Area Studies 5

Second semester
Cultural Studies 5
Economics 5
Philosophy of Science 5

History area

Choose one of the following courses:
History: Africa 5
History: East Asia 5
History: Europe 5
History: Latin America 5
History: Middle East 5
History: North America 5
History: Russia and Eurasia 5
History: South and South-East Asia 5

Foreign Language

Choose one of the following courses:
Arabic 1 Beginners 10
Dutch 1 Beginners 10
French 1 Beginners 10
French 1 Pre-Intermediate 10
German 1 Beginners 10
German 1 Pre-Intermediate 10
Hebrew 1 Beginners 10
Hindi 1 Beginners 10
Indonesian 1: Beginners 10
Japanese 1 Beginners 10
Korean 1 Beginners 10
Mandarin 1 Beginners 10
Persian 1 Beginners 10
Portuguese 1 Beginners 10
Russian 1 Beginners 10
Spanish 1 Beginners 10
Spanish 1 Pre-Intermediate 10
Swahili 1 Beginners 10
Turkish: Beginners 1 10

Second Year

Vak EC Semester 1 Semester 2

First semester
Cultural interaction: a global perspective 5
Politics 5

Culture

Choose one of the following courses.
Culture: Africa 5
Culture: East Asia 5
Culture: Europe 5
Culture: Latin America 5
Culture: Middle East 5
Culture: North America 5
Culture: Russia and Eurasia 5
Culture: South and South-East Asia 5

Economics

Choose one of the following courses.
Economics Africa 5
Economics East Asia 5
Economics: Europe 5
Economics Latin America 5
Economics: Middle East 5
Economics: North America 5
Economics: Russia and Eurasia 5
Economics South & South-East Asia 5

Foreign language

Choose one of the following courses.
Arabic 2 Pre-Intermediate 10
Dutch 2 Pre-Intermediate 10
French 2 Pre-Intermediate 10
French 2 (Upper-) Intermediate 10
German 2 Pre-intermediate 10
Hebrew 2 Pre-Intermediate 10
Hindi 2 Pre-Intermediate 10
Indonesian 2: Pre-Intermediate 10
Japanese 2 Pre-Intermediate 10
Korean 2 Pre-Intermediate 10
Mandarin 2 Pre-intermediate 10
Persian 2 Pre-Intermediate 10
Portuguese 2 Pre-Intermediate 10
Russian 2 Pre-Intermediate 10
Spanish 2 Pre-Intermediate 10
Spanish 2 (Upper-)Intermediate 10
Swahili 2 Pre-Intermediate 10
Turkish 2 Pre-Intermediate 10

Second semester
International Economics 5
International Politics 5

Politics

Choose one of the following courses.
Politics Africa 5
Politics East Asia 5
Politics Europe 5
Politics: Latin America 5
Politics Middle East 5
Politics North America 5
Politics Russia and Eurasia 5
Politics South and South-East Asia 5

Foreign language

Choose one of the following courses.
Arabic 3 (Upper-)Intermediate 5
Dutch 3 (Upper-)Intermediate 5
French 3 (Upper-) Intermediate 5
French 3 Advanced 5
German 3 (Upper-)intermediate 5
Hebrew 3 (Upper-)Intermediate 5
Hindi 3 (Upper-) Intermediate 5
Indonesian 3 (Upper-) Intermediate 5
Japanese 3 (Upper-) Intermediate 5
Korean 3 (Upper-) Intermediate 5
Mandarin 3 (Upper-)Intermediate 5
Persian 3 (Upper-)Intermediate 5
Portuguese 3 (Upper-) Intermediate 5
Russian 3 (Upper-) Intermediate 5
Spanish 3 (Upper-)Intermediate 5
Spanish 3 Advanced 5
Swahili 3 (Upper-) Intermediate 5
Turkish 3 (Upper-)Intermediate 5

Elective

Choose one of the following courses:
Elective: Argumentation and The Power of Words 10
Elective: Art, Literature, and Law - The Question of the Human Nature of Right(s) 10
Elective: Censorship and Social Transformation 10
Elective: Comparative Accounts of Human Flourishing 10
Elective: Comparative Philosophy: Death, Rebirth and Eternal Life 10
Elective: Critical Heritage Studies 10
Elective: Cultures of Conflict in the Modern Middle East 10
Elective: Enemies, undesirables, and others: Migration, regulation and the making of the modern world 10
Elective: Film Journeys. the World on Screen 10
Elective: The Global Cold War 10
Elective: Holocaust Icons in Monuments, Arts, Films and Literature 10
Elective: Information Societies 10
Elective: Languages and Cultures in Contact 10
Elective: Languages of the World 10
Elective: Legacies of War in Latin America 10
Elective: Messianism, Zionism, Jewish Religious Radicalism 10
Elective: Nations and Nationalism 10
Elective: Political Justice: Local and Global 10
Elective: Religions in the Modern World 10
Elective: Religious, Linguistic and Sexual Minorities in the Contemporary World 10
Elective: Social struggles: global histories of capital, labour and society 10
Elective: Terrorism: Philosophical Perspectives 10
Elective: Waging War – Cultural Approaches 10
Elective: Why America Fights: Justifying War on the U.S. Home Front 10

Optional Internship program

This course is mandatory for students who intend to take up an internship.
Organizational Theory, Culture and Behavior 5

Third Year

Vak EC Semester 1 Semester 2

First semester
Discretionary space International Studies 30

Optional for students taking a two semester minor:

Thesis seminar

Choose one of the following courses:
Thesis and thesis seminar Africa A, sem 1 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Africa B, sem 1 15
Thesis and thesis seminar East Asia A, sem 1 15
Thesis and thesis seminar East Asia B, sem 1 15
Thesis and thesis seminar East Asia C, sem 1 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Europe A, sem 1 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Europe B, sem 1 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Latin America A, sem 1 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Latin America B, sem 1 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Middle East A, sem 1 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Middle East B, sem 1 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Middle East C, sem 1 15
Thesis and thesis seminar North America A, sem 1 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Russia and Eurasia A, sem 1 15
Thesis and thesis seminar South and South-East Asia A, sem 1 15
Thesis and thesis seminar South and South-East Asia B, sem 1 15

Second semester
Practising International Studies 5

Thesis seminar

Choose one of the following courses:
Thesis and thesis seminar Africa A, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Africa B, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Africa C, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar East Asia A, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar East Asia (Korea) B, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar East Asia C, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar East Asia D, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar East Asia E, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar East Asia F, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar East Asia G, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar East Asia H, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar East Asia I, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Europe A, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Europe B, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Europe C, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Europe D, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Latin America A, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Latin America B, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Latin America C, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Latin America D, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Latin America E, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Middle East A, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Middle East B, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Middle East C, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Middle East D, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Middle East E, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar North America A, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar North America B, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar North America C, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Russia and Eurasia A, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar Russia and Eurasia B, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar South and South-East Asia A, sem 2 15
Thesis and thesis seminar South and South-East Asia B, sem 2 15

Elective

Choose one of the following courses
Elective: Authoritarian Politics: the Politics of Conflict, Violence, and Genocide 10
Elective: Buddhism and Violence 10
Elective: Close-Reading Comics: Hybrid Storytelling in Graphic Memoirs 10
Elective: Cosmopolitics: Ethics and International Politics, Theory and Practice 10
Elective: Dictatorship and Revolution: Non-Democratic Regimes in the Contemporary World 1 10
Elective: Dictatorship and Revolution: Non-Democratic Regimes in the Contemporary World 2 10
Elective: Emerging Economies 1 10
Elective: Emerging Economies 2 10
Elective: Foreign Direct Investment, Multinational Companies and the Political Economy of Emerging Market Counries 10
Elective: The Future of Religion in the West 10
Elective: How We Are Human: Cultural Reflections on Human Identity in Contexts of Technology, Digitalization, and Gender 10
Elective: Intercultural Communication 1 10
Elective: Intercultural Communication 2 10
Elective: International Security 10
Elective: Public Security and the Latin American State 10
Elective: Religions ‘On the Move’: the Case of Global Buddhism. 10
Elective: Science and Religion: the West and the Rest? 10
Elective: Science, Media, and Society 1 10
Elective: Science, Media, and Society 2 10
Elective: Terrorism in Modern History 10
Elective: What is this War About Anyway?: Armed Conflicts in the Twentienth Century 10