Degree Requirements and Course Contents

GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS

SAMPLE CURRICULUM

Compulsory Courses

IR 501 Global Governance - 7,5 ECTS

In this course, various theoretical approaches to international relations and global governance and their interactions with the concepts of sovereignty, regionalism, justice, terrorism and international conflict and cooperation conflict related to global politics will be examined. In addition, a range of policy issues will be discussed, including international economic policy coordination, development aid, finance, climate change and human rights. The United Nations, the World Bank, the World Health Organization, Médecins Sans Frontiėres, and the Red Cross are among the institutions studied in this course.

IR 502 Research Methods and Ethics - 7,5 ECTS

This course aims to introduce students to the knowledge, methods and techniques used in political science research, as well as ethical principles. This advanced course covers basic scientific concepts, literature review, research question, theory and hypothesis formulation and testing, experimental research proposal formulation, and research and publication ethics.

Seminar Course

IR 503 Seminar - 3 ECTS

This course includes the presentation of current research by the faculty members and guest speakers. It is designed to help students develop research ideas and integrate different methods into their research and application work.

 Elective Courses

IR 506 Political Behaviour - 7,5 ECTS

This course aims to offer an in-depth exploration of the intricate dynamics of political participation, voting behavior, public opinion, and the multifaceted influence of political institutions on individual and collective political choices. The course also equips students with the knowledge and skills necessary to apply both quantitative and qualitative research methods to study political behavior, encompassing survey design, data collection, rigorous analysis, and field research. 

IR 512 Global Security - 7,5 ECTS

This course analyses the changes in the global security agenda since the end of the Cold War, both empirically and theoretically. The transformation of military security threats will then be analysed by emphasizing the proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction and the importance of global terrorism. The course will also study the rise of non-military human security issues, including environmental change, crime, disease, poverty and disasters.

IR 515 Diplomacy and Conflict Resolution - 7,5 ECTS

This course examines many dilemmas associated with peace-making, peacebuilding, and post-conflict state-building processes. Considering the concepts of conflict, violence and peace, post-Cold War democracy and the view that a liberal market creates the best institutional environments to foster peace will be evaluated. In addition, the dynamics of peace negotiations, post-conflict reconstruction, state-building and regime-building processes will be examined.

IR 526 Foreign Policy Analysis - 7,5 ECTS

The aim of this course is to analyse foreign policy practices as important areas of political agency and choice in contemporary geopolitics of international relations. This course will draw on applied classical and critical theories of international relations and geopolitical perspectives in examining foreign policy traditions, strategies and the practices of key actors and cases in global politics. The course is designed to equip those wishing to further their specialized studies in foreign policy analysis and/or employment in areas related to governance, trade, policy and diplomacy.

IR 530 Global Food and Agricultural Governance - 7,5 ECTS

This course focuses on food security and the globalization of agricultural systems, which has become one of the most important global issues in the world. Throughout the course, different aspects of agricultural activities, food distribution and consumption, food production, production relations and trade will be covered. At the same time, problems of access to food in urban and rural areas; production relations in food agriculture, the relation between small farmers and large corporate firms and organizations; how the market works and its local, national and international implications; It examines the development strategies of major organizations such as the World Bank, IMF and FAO related to agriculture and food problem.

IR 533 Global Middle East - 7,5 ECTS

The aim of this course is to place the contemporary Middle East region in a global context, to examine the region in depth by considering the different aspects of the region's transnational connections. The course seeks to understand today's Middle East from a global and interdisciplinary perspective, focusing on themes such as trade networks, environmental issues, ideologies and social movements, humanitarian mobility and migration.

IR 535 Global Polarization and Democracy - 7,5 ECTS

This course trains students to identify the historical and contemporary, political, economictechnological, ideological, discursive and institutional causes and dynamics of polarization. The course involves themes and learning tools that help to distinguish when and how polarization harms or fosters democracy, and apply this knowledge to analyze and interpret individual cases, conduct comparative country case studies, present them and formulate policy recommendations.

IR 540 Global Migration and Governance - 7,5 ECTS

This course will look at the relationship between migration, politics and politics from a comparative and European perspective. This relationship will be studied both top-down and bottom-up. Growing conflicts between immigrants and natives over the growth of anti-immigration policies, the use of space and the distribution of wealth resources will also be examined.

IR 590 Computational Social Science - 7,5 ECTS

This course introduces digital methods in social data science using R and Python in order to explore, extract and process large-scale digital footprint. During the course, students are introduced to R and Python to extract, produce, process and analyze behavioral, political and social datasets and craft international, regional and country-level analyses. Students are expected to work with most commonly-used data types, run the most popular forms of analysis methods and produce actionable insights from large, complex datasets.

IR 691 Thesis Proposal - 4,5 ECTS

The aim of this course is to help students write a thesis proposal. The lesson is done in groups.

IR 692-693 Thesis Study I- II - 30 ECTS – 30 ECTS

In these courses, students write their master's theses.