Governance of International Migration

The place and role of the course in the program of study

The course “Governance of International Migration” is a graduate level introduction to international migration flows. Along with core courses in the fields of political science and international relations, this elective aims to provide students with knowledge on the topic. According to new UN global migration statistics, in 2013 232 million international migrants – 3 per cent of the world’s population – are living abroad worldwide. This makes international migration a key feature of globalization and a central issue on the international agenda.

Course aims and learning outcomes

The aim of the course is to provide students with foundational knowledge and sound understanding of what international migration is and recent trends of policies and practices that exist in the field, to introduce students to theories and challenges of Migration, and to orient students to proceed with field research on the basis of their received knowledge. This course examines international migration from both theoretical and empirical perspectives; this provides students with an understanding of the factors behind current trends in international population movements, as well as their impacts on the migrants themselves and the countries of origin and destination.

 The course pursues the following objectives:

1. to introduce theoretical approaches to research in the field of migration.
2. to introduce current trends in international migration.
3. to demonstrate ways and models of how international migration can be governed.
4. to orient students to more detailed research into the issue.
5. to explore the potential of international migration.
6. to offer students the opportunity to develop their own research on the basis of their new knowledge.

 Learning outcomes:

By the end of this course students should be able to:

1. Demonstrate an understanding of the issues related to current trends and patterns in international population movements in different countries and regions;
2. Discuss the policy implications of international migration trends and patterns and critique policy recommendations based on theoretical and empirical perspectives on international migration as examined in the course.
3. Research and write a paper on a topic or issue related to international migration, based on analysis of empirical data or library research.

Course requirements

Students will be required to attend not less than 90% of classes and be prepared for class discussions. Conscientious reading of the assigned materials is compulsory. Students will also be required to make a presentation at home on a prepared topic (during a seminar session). The topic is to be decided and discussed during the lecture period. Each student presents a 5 minute presentation and submits the written variant of the report to the lecturer for the same topic as their presentation (the format of the report is 5-6 pages). The report is to be submitted on the same day as the presentation.

Grading plan

• Class participation.
  Students are expected to attend all the lectures, seminars, and participate in class discussions; since the course is highly interactive, it is essential that students attend the seminars having read the materials for that day’s class.

• Essay (written paper on the presentation topic).
  During the course each student is expected to write an essay (5-6 pages, Times New Roman font, size 12, 1.5 spacing) on the presentation topic. The essay should demonstrate the level of the student’s knowledge of publications on the subject. The work is to be presented on the same day as the presentation is done.

• In-class presentation.
  Such a presentation (up to 10 minutes) is performed by each student once in the term. The presentation will be based on the week’s additional readings. The presenter should devote the presentation to the general topic of the class and include a case study of a particular country as an example. If there are many participants in the class, it is possible to make a group presentation. In cases of group presentations, each participant presents his/her own essay; no group essays are accepted.

• Peers review of the presentation
  The presenter will be given short feedback after the presentation, including questions and remarks. The final grade of the presentation depends on a peer review and the student’s ability to respond to questions.

• Written test (in class, 120 minutes) – in case the student receives less than 70% for class work in total during the semester.

 COURSE CONTENT

1. Introduction into International Migration
2. Labour Migration
3. Migration Policies
4. Governance of Migration in Europe
5. Challenges of Management
6. Regions in International Migration (Asia and Africa)
7. Regions in International Migration (North and Latin America)