B.A. Integrated European Studies

Diversity and interdisciplinarity
Europe is characterised by the diversity of European states and societies. This diversity is expressed through differences in languages, cultures and politics in Europe. The bachelors degree Integrated European Studies deals with this diversity from the perspectives of two academic disciplines: cultural science and political science.
© Pixabay
European culture(s)
The cultural science lectures focus on questions relating European cultures and identities: What does it mean to be European? How do creative practices - such as literature, art, film, music, museums, protest cultures, etc. - contribute to debates about what it means to be European?
© Wikicommons
European politics
The political science lectures analyse, for example, the areas in which the EU member states cooperate and the role played by the Commission, the European Parliament and the Council. Also, the politics in the individual European states are analysed here: How are politics organised in these states and which actors play a central political role?
© Arndt Wonka
IES-Languages
To enable IES students to experience European diversity for themselves, they learn one of the following languages during their studies: French, Polish, Russian or Spanish. These language courses are free of charge for IES students.
© Matej Meza
Integrated semester abroad
IES students spend one semester at one of the numerous partner universities of the Institute of European Studies in or outside of Europe.
© Lea Heitz

The lectures and seminars in cultural studies focus on questions concerning the European sites of memory in Europe in the 20th century, which are becoming increasingly important for a deeper integration of the European Union. Using examples of literary texts, films and monuments, we discuss how collective and cultural memory are created and which media and actors shape them. What is the connection between nation-building and memory? What contribution does coming to terms with the national past make to stabilizing democracy in the EU member states? Theories such as Gender Studies, Postcolonial Studies and Critical Social Theory are used to address these questions.

Prof. Dr. Arndt Wonka: "In my courses on the EU we ask questions from a political science perspective: How does European diversity affect the policies of the European Union? In which areas does it allow effective joint action and in which policy areas does it prevent it?"

In order to find out where cultural and political science perspectives complement each other and where they pursue completely independent interests, we also address these topics in an interdisciplinary seminar. To enable you to experience European diversity for yourselves, you will learn one of the following languages in our program:

French, Polish, Russian and Spanish

Prof. Dr. Wolfgang S. Kissel: "How do European countries and societies today remember the great catastrophes and events of the 20th century: World War I, World War II, Shoah, Gulag...? The cultural memory of Europe is the core topic of my seminars and lectures."

The political science perspective takes a comparative look at the states and politics in Europe: How is politics organized in these states, which actors play a central political role, and which political disputes and conflicts shape the politics of European states? In addition, in this program you will analyze the European Union, the union of currently 27 states and 450 million people, from a political science perspective.

JProf. Dr. Simon Lewis: My courses offer alternative ways of studying European culture, with a focus on Poland, Belarus and Russia, but also looking at Europe’s colonialisms, its difficult histories of violence, and its diverse memory cultures.”

Updated by: IES

RSS

Print page

B.A. Integrated European Studies

Diversity and interdisciplinarity

European culture(s)

European politics

IES-Languages

Integrated semester abroad

Important links

An interdisciplinary program