Course

Sign up for study activities at STADS Online Student Service within the announced registration period, as you can see on the Study administration homepage. When signing up for study activities, please be aware of potential conflicts between study activities or exam dates.

The planning of activities at Roskilde University is based on the recommended study programs which do not overlap. However, if you choose optional courses and/or study plans that goes beyond the recommended study programs, an overlap of lectures or exam dates may occur depending on which courses you choose.

A specialisation course aims to allow students to immerse themselves in the theories/theory lines and empirical issues pertaining to a particular subject area. The course equips students to competently select and argue for the applicability and relevance of a theory/theory line to given issues. The courses offered are based on the Institute's research in the field and knowledge of the highest international standard. The specific subject area of the courses will be described in the activity description.

Advanced Study Seminars offers students insight for instance into how international politics impacts governance, how governance impacts politics, and what this means for the ability of international institutions, governments, and other organizations to help address current issues such as climate, environment, security, digitalization, and public health.

Managing organizations is an essential part of all areas of interest to International Politics and Governance and many other fields. This course builds on students’ existing knowledge of international governance and public administration to focus on how public organizations are, can, and should be managed across different settings. It focuses on how management and leadership of public organizations differ across levels of government, regional boundaries, and social and economic contexts.

In the course, students are introduced to central differences between management and leadership in national and international organizations; between organizations in affluent and developing countries; and between organizations dealing with more and less politically sensitive issue areas. How is personnel management different in countries that are not democracies? What can leaders in international organizations do to effectively manage diverse teams of employees? And what difference is there between managing an air force and an environmental inspection agency? The course will provide students with tools to provide answers to such questions that are both anchored in theory and applicable in practice. As such, it expands the toolbox of anyone with aspirations for a career in international organizations, organizations dealing with international issues, donor organizations, and private sector organizations interacting with public organizations across diverse contexts.

The course syllabus consists of journal articles, book chapters, policy reports, and other case materials. All materials are available through the library or will be made available on the course moodle site. No books need to be purchased for the course.

Examples of readings include:

Ashworth, R., Ferlie, E., Hammerschmid, G., Moon, M. J., & Reay, T. (2013). Theorizing contemporary public management: international and comparative perspectives. British Journal of Management, 24, S1-S17.

Jankauskas, V. (2021). Delegation and stewardship in international organizations. Journal of European Public Policy, 1-21.

Meier, K. J., Rutherford, A., & Avellaneda, C. N. (Eds.). (2017). Comparative public management: Why national, environmental, and organizational context matters. Georgetown University Press (except).

Schuster, C., Meyer‐Sahling, J. H., & Mikkelsen, K. S. (2020). (Un) principled principals,(un) principled agents: The differential effects of managerial civil service reforms on corruption in developing and OECD countries. Governance, 33(4), 829-848.

The course awards participants 10 ECTS. This means students are expect to spend a total of approximately 270 hours in relation to the course.

The course comprises 12 double sessions, totalling 24 hours.

Course sessions assume that students have read the syllabus and worked on materials related to it ahead of participation. The expectation is that students spend a total of approximately 170 hours on this preparation.

The exam is a individual take-home assignment, written over a 48 hour period. Including preparation ahead of the exam, students are expected to spend a total of approximately 76 hours on the exam.

Course sessions depart from readings and short lectures by the teaching team. Sessions can include the following elements:

Questions for the teaching team related to the session’s readings.

Lectures by the teaching team explaining and expanding on course materials for the session

Exercises in ad hoc groups based on materials provided by the teaching team, mimicing the exam format

Brief individual writing exercises in class, reflecting on a theme presented during the session

Common discussions of syllabus materials, group work, or individual writing exercises.

In-class exercises are small sets of questions concerning syllabus or other materials provided by the teaching team. Examples might include discussing the application and utility of a particular theoretical perspective on a specific international organization.

Writing exercies are short analyses conducted in class, in which students are asked to think and write for a few minutes on a topic related to the content of the session – for instance provide policy or managerial advice based on a theoretical perspective. The aim is to train students to work on the topics covered by the session under time pressure (as the exam is 48 hours).

The exam is a written assignment, maximally 14.400 characters in length, written within the span of 48 hours. Exam questions are provided by the teaching team, and test students’ ability to understand, apply, compare, and discuss perspectives from the course, frequently on concrete case materials provided alongside the questions.

Campus

The activity are evaluated regularly regarding the study board evaluation procedure. The activity responsible will be orientated about a potential evaluation of the activity at semesterstart. Se link to the study board evaluation praxis here https://intra.ruc.dk/nc/for-ansatte/organisering/raadnaevn- og-udvalg/oversigt-over-studienaevn/studienaevn-for-internationale-studier/arbejdet-medkvalitet- i-uddannelserne/

The plan for each course session is available on the course Moodle site.

• Be able to explain and evaluate, using relevant terminology, the advantages and disadvantages of various theories/theory lines within the aspect of a subject area that is dealt with in the specialisation course

• Be able to confidently and independently evaluate, select and apply relevant theories in relation to an issue

• Be able to reflect critically on the relevance of the topic to the subject matter of the course

• Carry out analyses on a scientific basis and deal in a creative and solution-oriented manner with central issues within the course theme

• Communicate knowledge in language that is technically precise, well-structured and well-argued.

• Be able to explain, evaluate, and compare central theories within international and comparative public management and leadership using relevant terminology.

• Be able to apply theories within international and comparative management and leadership to given problems

• Be able to assess and discuss the utility of concrete analyses applying theories within international and comparative public management and leadership.

• Be able to utilize and communicate methods and research designs relevant to international and comparative public management and leadership, and their strengths and weaknesses.

• Be able to formulate and communicate recommendations for policy and managerial practice based on the above.