COURSE INFORMATION Course Title: COMPARATIVE POLITICAL STUDIES ON THE BALKAN COUNTRIES

Code	Course Type	Regular Semester	Theory	Practice	Lab	Credits	ECTS
PIR 835	B	2	3	0	0	3	10

Academic staff member responsible for the design of the course syllabus (name, surname, academic title/scientific degree, email address and signature)	NA
Lecturer (name, surname, academic title/scientific degree, email address and signature) and Office Hours:	Lisen Bashkurti , Tuesdays 14:30-17:30 hours
Second Lecturer(s) (name, surname, academic title/scientific degree, email address and signature) and Office Hours:	NA
Teaching Assistant(s) and Office Hours:	NA
Language:	English
Compulsory/Elective:	Elective
Classroom and Meeting Time:	E 310
Course Description:	Fifteen years after the collapse of the communist regimes in Balkan, the post-communist states have evolved into vastly different polities. Some have joined NATO and the European Union, while others still oscillate between semi-authoritarian and semi democratic governance, and a few have reverted to full-blown repression. In this course, we will explore the unprecedented "triple transition" in national identities, political institutions and economic systems that resulted from this systemic breakdown. While due attention will be paid to the main historical developments, the focus of this course will be on theoretical attempts to explain the different developmental trajectories upon which the post-communist states have Embarked.
Course Objectives:	The study of regime change - and in particular of the so-called "Third Wave of Democratization" - has traditionally been dominated by comparative politics, which lays emphasis on national institutions, actors and processes. The collapse of communism in 1989, however, has compelled scholars to shift the analytical focus of their research to the previously under-valued international aspects of transition. The emerging consensus is that, in the dynamics of transition and democratic consolidation, domestic factors remain primary, but they are adjusted, constrained or sometimes even determined by the international context. This changing perception of regime change - from an exclusively domestic affair to a multilayered and highly internationalized phenomenon - poses new conceptual, analytical and methodological challenges to students of political science and international relations. The proposed course seeks to provide a comprehensive overview of the debates on international and transnational factors shaping regime change, with a regional focus on Eastern Europe and the post-Balkan space.

COURSE OUTLINE

Week	Topics
1	Introduction to the course
2	Communism and its Collapse
3	Ethnicity and Nationalist Mobilization
4	Ethnicity and War
5	Democratization and Transition Outcomes
6	Elections
7	Political Parties
8	Civil Society
9	The State and State Institutions
10	Pathologies of Reform and Corruption
11	The Economy and Economic Reform
12	Transnational Movements and International Relations
13	The European Union and Balkan Countries
14	General Discussion

Prerequisite(s):	80 % attendance
Textbook:	Valerie Bunce, Subversive Institutions: The Design and Destruction of Socialism and the State, Cambridge UP, 1999. Susan L. Woodward. Balkan Tragedy: Chaos and Dissolution after the Cold War. Brookings Institution, 1995.
Other References:	Milada Vachudova, Europe Undivided: Democracy, Leverage, & Integration After Communism, Oxford UP, 2005,
Laboratory Work:	N/A
Computer Usage:	N/A
Others:	No

COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES

1	The course helps students to explore the unprecedented "triple transition" in national identities, political institutions and economic systems that resulted from this systemic breakdown.
2	This course will be on theoretical attempts to explain the different developmental trajectories upon which the post-communist states have Embarked.
3	The proposed course seeks to provide a comprehensive overview of the debates on international and transnational factors shaping regime change, with a regional focus on Eastern Europe and the post-Balkan space.

COURSE CONTRIBUTION TO... PROGRAM COMPETENCIES (Blank : no contribution, 1: least contribution ... 5: highest contribution)

No	Program Competencies	Cont.
Doctorate (PhD) in Political Science and International Relations Program
1	Having and using advanced knowledge and comprehension supported by textbooks including actual knowledge in political sciences and international relations literature, materials and the other scientific resources.	5
2	Analyzing data, ideas and concepts of current political issues and international relations, determining complex events and topics, making discussions and developing new suggestions in accordance with researches.	5
3	Having knowledge and thought about actual topics and problems together with their historical, social and cultural aspects.	5
4	Introducing those who are interested in politics and international events with the topics of Political Science and IR and teaching clearly the problems and the types of solutions.	5
5	Improving skills of working together with the main social science disciplines and other disciplines which are related to Political Science and International Relations.	5
6	Improving critical thinking and skills in making research independently.	5
7	Developing solutions about the problems and conflicts which are common in national and international arena.	5
8	Improving skills for leadership and research and analyze capacity of those who is responsible with national and international ones.	5
9	Knowing any foreign language enough to communicate with colleagues and understand actual researches and articles.	5
10	Gaining IT skills to use computer and technology) in order to reach actual knowledge.	1
11	Gaining skills to follow societal, scientific and ethic values during collecting, interpreting, conducting of data related to social and political developments.	4
12	Having consciousness about human rights and environment.	4
13	Gaining the skills to follow actual developments and pursue long-life learning.	4

COURSE EVALUATION METHOD

Method	Quantity	Percentage
Presentation	1	10
Term Paper	1	30
Final Exam	1	50
Attendance		10
	Total Percent:	100%

ECTS (ALLOCATED BASED ON STUDENT WORKLOAD)

Activities	Quantity	Duration(Hours)	Total Workload(Hours)
Course Duration (Including the exam week: 16x Total course hours)	16	3	48
Hours for off-the-classroom study (Pre-study, practice)	16	3	48
Mid-terms			0
Assignments	1	65	65
Final examination	1	55	55
Other	1	34	34
Total Work Load:			250
Total Work Load/25(h):			10
ECTS Credit of the Course:			10