European Studies

CES organizes the following courses for Bachelor’s, Master’s and PhD students:

1.
Course Name: Europe and the World

Course Instructor: Dr. Rohee Dasgupta, Associate Professor, JSIA

Course Description:

The course addresses key issues in European governance such as, European integration, EU policy-making, European federalism, democratisation/constitutionalisation and European identity. It is rooted in geopolitical analysis and begins with the idea of Europe but necessarily includes aspects of international law and international relations theory. Through ‘internal mapping’ of its borders the course aims to provide students with a deep understanding of the changing role of the state, nations and nationalisms within European society. It will study the liberal-democratic compromise of the European ideology and its impacts on transitions of 1968, 1989 and the rediscovery of ‘civil society’ and cosmopolitanism. Contemporary European trends such as ideological convergence and the politics of risk and security; climate change, migration crisis, political participation and populism in western and post-Communist Europe; the challenges of multiculturalism and transnational integration, ‘governance’, ‘legitimacy’ and the diffusion of state power will be scrutinized. The course will present an overview of the trajectories of post-ideological, post-democratic and post-statal in Europe today and their influences on world politics.

2.
Course Name: European Union in the World

Course Instructor: Dr. Ildikó Éva Gelencsér, Associate Professor, JSIA

Course Description:

The European Union (EU) plays a global role in world politics. As a unique project of integration, it has developed a complex structure in order to make governance more effective. The course focuses on the external relations of the European Union. It discusses topics that are organised along three modules namely: 1. EU and the World 2. EU, the International Organisations, and Development 3. EU’s Conflict Management. The firs module examines the relationship with the major partners such as the US, BRICS and Latin America. The second module introduces the role of the EU in different political, military economic and financial organisations, and involves development and foreign trade. The final module concentrates on the conflict management capabilities of the European integration by examining the new challenges of the 21st century. At the end of this course, students will be able to understand the role of the EU in the world, be able to analyse the competences of the EU as a global actor in different aspects and be able to engage in critical analysis on topics of the EU

3. 
Course Name: European Union Security Architecture

Course Instructor: Dr. Ildikó Éva Gelencsér, Associate Professor, JSIA

Course Description:

The course focuses on the foreign, security and defence policies of the European Union, which, by their development throughout the treaties enhanced the global role of the EU. The foreign affairs includes many components which have specific roles and together they create a complex policy. The topics cover traditional issues in foreign relations such as diplomacy, security and conflict management, however, it also deals with enlargement and neighbourhood policy. The course advances the understanding of international relations in the European context. It explains the institutional evolution, setup and governance in the Common Foreign and Security Policy and Common Security and Defense Policy. During the course students will develop their analytical skills and learn to acknowledge different dimensions of conflict. The course addresses the key challenge of the EU to hold its place as a distinct global player by demonstrating the prospects and limitations of this process.

4.
Course Name: The European Convention on Human Rights

Course Instructor: Dr. Agnieszka Gora- Blaszczykowska, Associate Professor, JGLS

Course Description:

This course studies the international treaty of The Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms better known as the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) which protects the human rights and political freedoms in Europe. Given that all member states of the Council of Europe are a party to the ECHR, the course starts with a look at the origins of the Council of Europe and the coming about of the ECHR. It further considers the rights and freedoms that are protected by the Convention. Finally, the workings of the European Court of Human Rights are considered. During this course students will familiarise with the most important judgements of the ECHR and the readings connected with its provisions.

5.
Course Name: Judgments of the European Court of Justice and the European Court of Human Rights

Course Instructor: Dr. Agnieszka Gora- Blaszczykowska

Course Description:

This course engages in the analysis of the judgments of the two courts namely: i. European Court of Justice which constitutes the judicial authority of the European Union in cooperation with the courts and tribunals of the Member States. ii. European Court of Human Rights which is an international court established by the European Convention on Human Rights to which all the member states of the Council of Europe are a party. During the course students will learn about the two courts, the workings of these two courts and the role of the judge analysing court statements. Further, Students will acquire knowledge about European courts and their perspectives on civil, labour and family law as well as administrative law (including tax law).

Reading Group

CES organizes the following Reading Group for Bachelor’s and Master’s level students to complement the knowledge acquired through various courses taught at CES:

Reading Group Name: European Union and the World

Reading Group Instructor: Mr. Nitin Arya, PhD Candidate, JSIA

Description:

This reading group studies phenomena on EU integration, geopolitics, nationalism and Euroscepticism, Brexit and the EU as a polity. The aim of this group is to engage BA and MA students of JSIA in contextualization of contemporary debates related to the EU to theoretical frameworks in international relations and build critical analysis skills in this area. It involves six sessions of two hours each to be held over a semester. Three readings will be provided for each session. At the end of participation in this reading group, students will be able to critically analyse various European discourses emanating from the nation-state as well as the EU level, understand how political elites across the political spectrum invoke identities to further political and economic agendas and appreciate the role EU plays in world affairs today.

• Oñati International Institutefor the Sociology of Law, Spain
• http://www.iisj.net/
• Newton International Fellowships
• https://royalsociety.org/grants-schemes-awards/grants/newton-international/
• CITSEE– Europeanisation of Citizenship in the Successor States of the Former Yugoslavia.
• http://www.citsee.ed.ac.uk/
• European Consortium for Political Research
• https://ecpr.eu/
• Alliance Française de Delhi – French cultural and language institute
• https://delhi.afindia.org/
• The University Research Priority Program (URPP) Asia and Europeof Zurich University explores exchanges and encounters that have taken and continue to take place between Asia and Europe in the areas of culture, law, religion and society.
• https://www.aoi.uzh.ch/en/institut/geschichte/asienundeuropa/aboutus.html
• Manipal Centre for European Studiesat Manipal University.
• https://manipal.edu/des.html
• The Centre for European Studiesis a multi-disciplinary department within the School of International Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.
• http://www.jnu.ac.in/sis/ces
• Centre for European Studies (CES), Jindal School of International Affairs, O.P. Jindal Global University.
• http://www.jsia.edu.in/european-studies/
• European Studies Programme, Delhi University
• http://grs.du.ac.in/index.html
• The European Management Journal (EMJ)is a generalist, academic review covering all fields in management studies. It is published by Elsevier with six issues a year.
• https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/european-management-journal
• Journal of Balkan and Near Eastern Studies
• https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/cjsb20/current
• Democratiyais a free quarterly on social-democratic and anti-totalitarian politics and culture.
• https://www.dissentmagazine.org/
• Debatte: Journal of Contemporary Central and Eastern Europeseeks to provide a radical critical analysis that is sympathetic to democratic, labour, feminist and ecologist movements from contemporary economic, social, cultural and political perspectives and developments in the region bounded by Germany in the west and Russia in the east.
• https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/cdeb20/current
• The Columbia Journal of European Law 
• http://cjel.law.columbia.edu/
• Centre for Strategic Research and Analysis (CESRAN)
• https://cesran.org/
• The European Union Institute for Security Studies(EUISS)
• https://www.iss.europa.eu/
• The Centre for European Studies, supported by EuroParl
• http://www.thinking-europe.eu/en/about-us/
• The Feminist Institute
• http://feminism-boell.org/en/categories/foundation
• European Jewish Congress
• https://eurojewcong.org/

Nitin Arya – MA (DLB) 2012-2014 (currently pursuing the PhD Program at JSIA since 2017)

Dr. Rohee Dasgupta’s (Executive Director, CES) guidance over the years has been very important for me in planning my career in International Affairs. Her course Europe and the World helps students to acquire critical thinking and analysis skills on regionalism and world affairs. She encourages high quality academic scholarship by providing continuous feedback. After spending a semester as an exchange student at Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso in Chile where I took courses with a focus on Latin America as well as advanced Spanish Language courses, I wrote my MA DLB dissertation on Interregionalism between the European Union and Latin America under the supervision of Dr. Dasgupta.

After graduating from the MA DLB Program, I worked with the Embassy of Peru in New Delhi at their Economic and Commercial Wing. In 2017, I decided to come back to JGU to pursue my PhD in International Affairs. I continue to work under the guidance of Dr. Dasgupta during my current PhD candidature at JSIA. Her feedback on my teaching skills during a Reading Group I tutored as a part of CES will be very useful for me in the coming years. I have recently received a pre-doctoral fellowship from DAAD to conduct part of my current PhD thesis research in Germany for one year. I can easily say that the hand-holding from an expert like Dr. Dasgupta over the years was the most important factor in achieving this fellowship. Thank you CES!

Purnima Kajal – MA (DLB) 2011-2013

Coming from a humanities background, I was always inclined to study IR and with the purpose of bringing my research interests to fruition, I became a part of the Centre for European Studies. The mainstream division of the centre in three research groups drew my attention and I found myself profoundly interested in understanding the various paradigms attached to the region, except for its marked boundaries that define it from the outside.The information process through various seminars and lectures was challenging yet very informative.   

After a series of events and readings I found myself highly disposed to study cosmopolitanism and socio-political aspect of Europe via a lens of multiculturalism. The study abroad programme at the School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Indiana University, further provided me with ample research material to intensify my research interest, and while there, I also wrote a paper on multiculturalism in Europe. It also inspired me to conduct my research and write my MA dissertation on Cosmopolitanism in Europe. Later, amidst all the informative CES Europe in context seminars, one by Prof. Idesbald Goddeeris, on Mental mapping: Europe’s internal borders from a historical perspective, gave a fresh outlook to the region which helped me understand the focus areas that I needed to study.   

Doing my research under CES and the mentoring I received not only helped me attain a perspective, it also inspired me to conduct my research with sheer dedication.    

After conducting my MA dissertation in CES, I was also inspired to take the research further and do a Ph.D. in the same. And thus, I am now pursuing a Ph.D. in European and International Studies at King’s College, University of London.

The research journey at CES has been highly enlightening and I was able to identify my genre of studies. 

Sasanka Kanuparthi – MA (DLB) 2013-2015

Based on the emphasis laid in the classroom while doing the course on Europe and the World, contentious issues like Reconciliation, Nationalism, European Identity, etc. caught my imagination and my interest to engage with the area of study increased. The guidance I received through the readings and the course instructor on case study analyses and theories, especially pertaining to the breakup of the Former Yugoslavia was instrumental in creating the necessary knowledge base. The consequences of Identity Politics and Nationalism in the Balkans intrigued me to the extent that I began to look for study and internship opportunities.    

I recognized the need to pursue an internship concerning the conflicts in the Balkans and took up an opportunity in the multi-ethnic yet divided country of Bosnia & Herzegovina, to understand the workings of Reconciliation in a post conflict society. My learning in the internship was focused on appreciating the political and administrative challenges, methodical asymmetry in reconciliation programs and the domestic hurdles in implementing them as these remain to be some of the major issues that require restructuring. Keeping in the mind the future of the relationship between states in a post-war transition phase and EU, there is a need to work towards lasting solutions. After going through a valuable learning curve in Bosnia, I plan to take up an opportunity to study a semester abroad at KU Leuven in Belgium to establish a higher level of understanding in the specific fields of conflict in Eastern Europe and Balkans to be able to analyze, articulate the recommendations and probable steps for resolution.        

Khushboo Saif – MA (DLB) 2011-2013

I have obtained my Bachelors in Political Science (Honors). I was keen in pursuing an interdisciplinary course in International Relations, thus joined Jindal School of International Affairs (JSIA). I was fortunate to be a part of European studies center at JSIA. The holistic approach, individuality of the subject, the committed teaching staff, path breaking methodology and its execution galvanized my experience to perfection. It was an amalgamation of professional display and quality academic interaction.   

Being a part of Center for European Studies gave me an opportunity to enhance my understanding of Islam in Europe as I attended my fall semester studies at Katholieke Universitiet Leuven, in the Master of European Studies: Transnational and Global Perspectives (MAES) program. I undertook three modules: Introduction to Islam; European Perspectives on Religion and The Linguistic Aspects of Ethno- Cultural Diversity. These modules gave me a significant amount of clarity on my field of interest for further study. I have an in-depth knowledge of International Relations and European Studies. I have also written my dissertation on ‘Euro- Islam and Islamic Feminism’ as I wanted to understand that why Muslim women are denied their rights in the name of their religion- Islam. 

I found the seminars in CES useful in many ways: it gave me a perfect synopsis of the comprehensive series of the academic discussions, a great network and fantastic sources. 

I am presently working at G. D. Goenka University where this interdisciplinary approach is being incorporated.          

Uma Singh -MA (DLB) 2012-2014

My experience in studying at CES in JSIA and at Leiden University has been extremely valuable. Frequent discussions, reading materials and presentations broadened my learning and gave me a clear perspective of things. Two years of intense and vast learning experience has given a new direction and perspective towards building my future prospects much better.Along this journey of knowledge, I realized my interest towards European studies and hence from my second semester, I specifically took courses related to European perspectives, especially in environmental studies based on European Union and Germany and their active role as a leader in Climate Change.      

This interest in the environment from European lens led me to do a study abroad in my third semester at Leiden University, in the Netherlands which gave me an opportunity to personally see the European way of life by interacting with renowned professors and students from all across the world. I took courses in Humanities and behavioral sciences which opened my knowledge towards diversity, environment and society.  Here, I learnt some basic but important ways to write project proposals which would definitely help me in the future.  Also, chairing an audience was the experience which I undertook for the first time here. I remember being very nervous and even spoke for more time than what was required and was thus marked negatively. But in all, I took it as a learning experience.    

While writing my dissertation on the topic, ‘Strategic partnership between EU and India on Climate Change’, I felt that both, India and EU have a great scope to work towards climate change. EU and India through multilateral cooperation can become examples for other countries to work towards a better healthier environment. Now that I have got my MA (D.L.B), I intend to work towards environmental governance. 

Suraj K Rajan – MA (DLB) 2017-2019

The course on Europe and the World taught by Dr Rohee Dasgupta was offered in the third semester of MADLB helped me to have a wider knowledge about Europe, its identity, culture, society etc. The specific topics covered in the course further helped me to pursue my dissertation on EU and Normative power under the supervision of Dr Dasgupta. It was indeed a great learning experience and has helped me to further dwell deep into EU studies.

Siksha Singh – MA (DLB) 2017-2019

Dr. Dasgupta has taught me for two semesters. Her course on Europe and the World is a multidisciplinary one. She has been personally involved in my academic growth. Her style of teaching is interactive and intensive. She makes it a point that there is no rote learning for her electives and inspires her pupils to put the taught theory in practice. She fosters a spirit of enquiry and has a diverse set of knowledge. She has helped me in understanding the nuances of critical writing and has been keenly involved in taking tutorials for thorough understanding of concepts. Apart from her teaching prowess she is a terrific mentor and has been extremely resourceful during my application procedure for research at Queen Mary University of London.

MA Dissertations in CES, JSIA [MADLB 2012-14] 

• Nitin Arya – Trans-regionalism between the European Union and Latin America
• Amit Kumar Jha – Turkey and EU enlargement: Problems and prospects for membership
  Work in progress paper: http://uaces.org/documents/papers/1440/jha.pdf
• Uma Singh – Green Politics of the Kyoto Protocol: EU and the rest

MA Dissertations in CES, JSIA [MADLB 2011-13]

• Sonamika Bishnoi – Cultural Diplomacy of France, Britain and India: A Comparative Study
• Purnima Kajal – Cosmopolitanism in Europe: From Vision to Praxis
• Khushboo Saif – Euro-Islam and Islamic Feminism