Short course description
European Union governance faces a catch-22 situation. The EU is presented with an increasing set of pressing systemic challenges requiring effective European responses: climate change, energy transition, biodiversity loss, migration policy, sustainable economic growth and defense cooperation. These challenges increasingly touch upon core state powers: highly salient areas of domestic high politics. As a result, European integration meets with increasing contestation at the national level, deeply embedded politico-institutional differences between its member states, and deepening cleavages on key policy issues like the rule of law, migration, and the role of the state in economic policy. These processes of politicization affect EU decision making, compliance and enforcement. In addition, they affect the construction and functioning of the European Administrative Space and policy coordination at the domestic level, by national executives and parliaments.

This course provides participants with an in-depth understanding of these core themes in European integration. In addition, it allows participants to develop their research skills, by discussing the evolution of EU studies as a discipline, and the contributions they can make as a researcher to these core themes. This helps participants to shape and improve their EU-related research projects, which they will present to the group and course lecturers. In addition, participants will explore the nexus between academic research and practice.

The precise themes are:

• Public opinion, politicization and cleavages (Oliver Treib)
• Domestic coordination (Peter Bursens)
• European integration (Markus Haverland)
• EU decision making (Bernard Steunenberg)
• The European administrative space (Ellen Mastenbroek)
• EU enforcement (Ellen Mastenbroek)
• The academic-practice nexus (Mendeltje van Keulen)

Preparation

1. Each topic is accompanied by a set of readings and corresponding study questions. Participants are expected to read the literature on at least five out of seven themes.
2. Students are to prepare a 10-minute presentation of their own research / research ideas. For instance, they can present a research proposal, paper or chapter they are working on.
3. Each student is to read another student’s research paper/research proposal in advance and act as discussant on it.

Please note that this is not an introductory course on European integration / European governance. Participants are expected to have at least a BA-level knowledge of European governance/integration. Participants lacking that background knowledge are recommended to prepare in advance to get acquainted with the basics of European integration (instititutions, decision making, compliance, enforcement, integration theories). They can contact the course coordinator for reading suggestions.

Assesment
PhD students wishing to receive grades for the course are to hand in a revised version of the research proposal/chapter/paper that they presented during the course.