6 ECTS credits
150 h study time
Offer 1 with catalog number 6007587FEW for working students in the 1st semester at a (F) Master - specialised level.
This course guides Master students with a specialization in European Integration through the history, legal-institutional principles and legal aspects of the European Union’s decision-making processes.
The EU Treaties are the primary material on which the course is based. Students shall be guided through the EU Treaties and the related case-law of the European Court of Justice with a view of gaining the ability to read and interpret such legal texts independently.
The main subjects covered during the course are:
1. Basic principles of the EU’s legal & institutional construction: a system based on law – primary law (i.e. the EU Treaties), secondary law (regulations, directives, decisions) and tertiary law (delegated and implementing acts); principle of conferral of competences from the Member States to the EU; categories and areas of EU competence; constitutional importance of the legal basis of EU legislation; subsidiarity and proportionality)
2. EU decision-making institutions (principles of institutional balance and sincere cooperation; European Council; European Commission; Council of Ministers; European Parliament; the interaction between these institutions and the ordinary legislative procedure; interest representation/lobbying during the law-making process)
3. EU legal protection mechanism (Court of Justice of the EU; direct effect and primacy of EU law; protection of fundamental rights in the EU)
4. Historical development of European integration (long-term perspectives on attempts to bring peace and stability in Europe, with the Peace of Westphalia, the Congress of Vienna, the Peace of Versailles and the post-World War II settlement; from the European Coal and Steel Community to the Treaty of Lisbon; EU membership from the 6 to 28 (27); withdrawal from the EU - Brexit)
Throughout the course an active use will be made of the EU Treaties and case-law. Students should therefore bring to class the Course Materials which contain the pertinent extracts from the Treaties and the case-law.
Students take note during the lectures. There are no PowerPoints (as they tend to prevent interactivity and on the spot adaptation of the course content which is often needed for a subject in full evolution) and there is no fixed course book.
It is expected that students compose their own study material, based on an integration of the class discussions and the relevant Treaty articles and case law. To guide the students in this exercise, the list of possible exam questions is distributed during the first class. Instead of assimilating a "ready-made" book, the idea is that students participate in an active manner in the exercise of structuring their replies and distilling the essence out of a mass of information. As such, they "learn to learn".
- Students gain insight in the historical development, institutional law and decision-making of the European Union and acquire the knowledge and skills to understand and interpret past evolutions and current events shaping the European construction and the creation of new EU law.
- Students acquire the technical ability to read and understand the EU's primary law and secondary law texts and the case law of the Court of Justice.
- As the course is taught in the English language, students acquire the knowledge and skill to understanding and use the specialized vocabulary on EU law in the English language.
The learning objectives and examination requirements are identical for both variants of the course.
The final grade is composed based on the following categories:
Written Exam determines 100% of the final mark.
Within the Written Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:
EXAM SYSTEM
Students take a final exam at the end of the semester (this is usually on a Saturday).
Possible exam questions are distributed to the students during the first day of classes. Students thus have an entire semester to prepare themselves and gather the elements to answer the questions.
Each of the exam themes is discussed in class.
The exam is structured as follows:
- Students come into the exam room in groups of about 10 students.
- Each group receives one broad question (out of the list of known questions), covering a large part of the course.
- Students individually put a structured reply on paper. This written part of the exam takes approx. 1 hour and is "closed book".
- If a student has a problem in replying to the initial question, (s)he can request a 2nd question. In that case, the student can receive a maximum grade of 13/20.
- The written part is followed by an individual discussion between student and professor. During this oral part, students can be asked to clarify unclear, incomplete or incorrect elements in the written answer. Additional questions can be asked.
- The grade is calculated on the basis of the written exam paper, but can be adjusted upwards in light of the oral clarifications provided by the student.
- The grade of the exam can be increased with 1 point by handing in a brief reading report on the broad subject of European history. The deadline for handing in this report is the last week before the Christmas and New Year vacation. Separate instructions on this assignment are distributed at the start of the academic year.
EXAMPLES OF POSSIBLE EXAM QUESTIONS (to be confirmed during the 1st class)
This offer is part of the following study plans:
Master of European Integration: Track 1: European Economy - Migration and Europe
Master of European Integration: Track 2: European Economy - European External Relations and Security Policy
Master of European Integration: Track 3: European Economy - European Environmental Governance
Master of European Integration: Track 4: Migration and Europe - European Environmental Governance
Master of European Integration: Track 5: European External Relations and Security Policy - Migration and Europe
Master of European Integration: Track 6: European Environmental Governance - European External Relations and Security Policy