Master of Science in European Politics and Governance Neapolis University Pafos Distance Learning

The Programme is accredited by the Cyprus Agency of Quality Assurance and Accreditation in Higher Education (CYQAA)

The aim of the MSc in European Politics and Governance Programme is to provide a course of advanced study to those who aspire to become effective leaders in European affairs in both the private and public sectors. The programme’s curriculum is designed to explore the essential elements of EU policies and to prepare students for increasingly complex responsibilities in diplomacy, international organisations and the public sector, local government, and research and non-profit organisations. The core curriculum emphasizes both the skills and knowledge required to effectively manage EU affairs and to understand the larger international, European and national settings in which policy is developed and tasks are defined and assessed.

The programme provides up-to-date knowledge in a number of diverse disciplines that make up the field of European Studies such as business/ economics, politics, and law. In addition, the programme equips students with analytical, accountability, and leadership skills enhance their decision-making ability and promote organisational well-being within the context of a continually changing and competitive European environment.

A fundamental philosophy of the programme is its empirical approach to the study of governance, where the students’ newly acquired knowledge and skills are blended with their professional experience and are applied to real-life cases.

This approach broadens and deepens student understanding of cross-border issues and policy processes, fosters skills of research, analysis, synthesis, and creativity and encourages innovation and awareness of the role of competing international actors; finally, it develops awareness of social, cultural, and global issues affecting policy decisions.

Advantages of the Programme

• The international prestige and recognition of the Neapolis University of Pafos.
• Excellent academic staff with strong expertise in the taught subjects.
• International collaborations with many Universities.
• The flexibility of distance learning.
• The use of advanced technology and resources.
• The dynamic choice between synchronous and asynchronous distance education.
• Competitive tuition fees.

Programme Structure

The duration of these studies is three semesters. Entries for the Postgraduate Programme are held in September and February/March of each academic year. Each course lasts an academic semester. All students enrolled in the Postgraduate Programme, either in the winter semester or the spring semester can choose the courses offered in the relevant semesters. To successfully completing their studies, students need to accumulate a total of 90 Credits (ECTS).

In accordance with the relevant announcements made by the Agency of Quality Assurance and Accreditation in Higher Education, students have the opportunity to complete their postgraduate studies in two academic semesters (12 months) as long as they start the conduction of their Master’s Dissertation during the first or second semester of their studies, including the summer period. In this case, the completion of the Master’s Dissertation may be prolonged during the summer period, for one or two months. In any case, the total ECTS remains 90.

In the first semester, students are required to choose one compulsory course DMETH600, and 3 out of 9 elective courses. In the second semester, students are required to choose 4 out of the remaining 6 elective courses. In the third semester, the students prepare their dissertation (see, section 5). Each of the courses corresponds to 7.5 Credits (ECTS). The credits for each course are distributed as follows: 2 for attendance and participation in the courses, 2 for the completion of midterm assessment during the semester, and 3.5 for the final examination. The sequence of elective courses offered per semester is determined by the University at the beginning of each academic year.

In order to obtain their Master’s degree, students are also obliged to conduct a master’s dissertation. The research proposal is submitted by the student, who may request one of the tutors as a supervisor. The thesis can be submitted for up to one academic year after the successful completion of the second semester of study. The dissertation should be relevant to the content of the postgraduate student’s studies and should be original.

Students can write master dissertations and midterm assessments in English regardless of the language of the programme.

The programme is structured as follows:

Semester 1 and 2 Courses

• In the first semester, students are required to choose one compulsory course DMETH600, and 3 out of 9 elective courses.
• In the second semester, students are required to choose 4 out of the remaining 6 optional courses.
• The sequence of elective courses offered per semester is determined by the University at the beginning of each academic year.
• DMETH600 Research Design and Empirical Methods in the Social Sciences
• DHIST610 History of European Integration
• DMPA585 European Governance and Negotiations
• DMEP400 Theoretical Approaches to European Integration
• DMEP300 European Political Economy
• DMEP500 Foreign Policy, Security and Defense in the European Union
• DMEP600 European Banking System
• DMEP700 Special Topics on Police and Judicial Cooperation in the European Union
• DIRSS621 Contemporary Issues in Global Politics
• DIRSS622 Special Topics in the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East Security

Semester 3

• DIS800 Dissertation

Teaching, Learning and Assessment Methods

During the academic year, for each of the courses, training sessions are held as follows: six (6) two-hour meetings with the lecturer for each course, who is responsible for informing, guiding, advising, and evaluating students. These meetings are primarily aimed at the general support of students as well as in the elaboration, deepening, and development of all that students are studying. Student’s presence at these meetings is not mandatory. However, the experience so far has shown that the student’s participation in them contributes to a fuller understanding of the subject matter, and in addition, increases the probability of more positive student performance, both in the midterm assessments and in the final examinations.

Each course is evaluated through the completion of one midterm assessment which is explicitly mentioned in the study curriculum and the study guides (essays, literature critiques, article manuscript for the university’s student journal, etc.) during the semester, and final examinations at the end of the semester in appropriate locations identified in time, according to the geographic distribution of the students. Should a student not attend the examination, or has failed to take a winter or spring semester examination, he or she is entitled to re-sit the examination.

Midterm assessment can take various forms as described earlier like essays, research articles, presentations, literature critiques, book reviews, etc, during the semester and corresponds to 40% of the final grade, while the final exam is 60%. For the student to succeed in a course, he/she must take both the final grade and the midterm assessment a grade of at least 50%. The interactivity and formative assessment form part of the learning and teaching methodology.

In the third semester students complete their Dissertation which corresponds to 30 ECTS. The length of the thesis depends on the type. In the case of a bibliographic thesis, it cannot be less than 12,000 words and more than 15,000 words. The bibliography, the annexes, and the abstract are not included. After submission, the supervisor submits a written and reasoned report, with the student’s consent, to the members of the committee. Support for the thesis is done publicly or via an electronic videoconference before a three-member committee.

Duration: 1.5 academic years (3 academic semesters, 90 ECTS)

In accordance with the relevant announcements made by the Agency of Quality Assurance and Accreditation in Higher Education, students have the opportunity to complete their postgraduate studies in two academic semesters (12 months) as long as they start the conduction of their Master’s Dissertation during the first or second semester of their studies, including the summer period. In this case, the completion of the Master’s Dissertation may be prolonged during the summer period, for one or two months. In any case, the total ECTS remains 90.