UN's Sustainable Development Goal 16 highlights democratic principles by emphasizing the need to strengthen the participation of all people and to ensure inclusive, participatory, and representative decision-making at all levels. However, the word "democracy" is not explicitly mentioned in this goal, which may reflect a difference in opinion among countries with varying political systems and perspectives regarding the importance and definition of this value.
This certificate is designed for master students with a keen interest in contemporary political debates. You will be trained in conceptual analysis using an innovative method known as corpus linguistics. Corpora can be used to collect and analyse large amounts of linguistic data, enabling researchers to offer critical, evidence-based insights into how the meaning of key concepts are developed and negotiated in line with different political agendas.
Together with students from different countries and with different disciplinary backgrounds you will gather and analyse data, explore areas of agreement and disagreement, and develop a more nuanced appreciation of the diversity of meanings that one the same concept may acquire in different contexts.
International study environment
Concepts that matter – Debating Democracy is an Honours Certificate to students registered in a master programme at the five following European universities:
- University of Belgrade
- University of Perugia
- Universite Paris Cité
- University of Agder
- University of Oslo
The certificate has six study places available for each university.
The Honours Certificate is an interdisciplinary certificate including Health Science, Political Science, Public Administration, Sociology, Law, Translation, Modern Languages and Communication Studies.
The Honours Certificate consists of two modules
The certificate runs simultaneously with your main Master's programme and consists of two modules. The first module aims to familiarize students with practices of conceptual analysis and existing literature on key concepts in social and political life, most notably democracy, sustainability and related concepts.
- The first module will be taught in a series of eight blended-learning seminars held simultaneously at the five different participating institutions. Summative assessment will be in the form of group presentations.
- The second module aims to provide students with training in corpus analysis, with a particular focus on the use of corpora for conceptual analysis. The module will involve a series of four blended-learning seminars, followed by face-to-face datathon held at each partner university. This datathon will take place over three days in April 2025 and is free.
You will engage in cross-disciplinary collaboration
This Honours Certificate has a strong focus on student participation and interdisciplinary collaboration. You will learn from an international team of highly qualified researchers and take part in innovative student-driven activities. Digital tools will enable autonomous, flexible learning.
You should choose this certificate if you want to
- Communicate effectively with a wide range of stakeholders across different sectors, developing communication strategies, policies and training programs for effective communication in the workplace.
- Gather and analyse evidence to develop and support policies in the public sector, private organizations, or non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
- Work collaboratively across disciplines and cultures.
- Understand the complexity of taken-for-granted concepts that underpin social and political practices, how they contribute to the status quo and how they could be drivers or obstacles to progress.
- Have a heightened sense of civic engagement and willingness to participate meaningfully in the various debates taking place in our democratic societies.