IECOB

European Regional Master’s Degree in Democracy and Human Rights in South East Europe

End of the first and second terms of the program. The third term will start 1^st of September in Santa Sofia (FC).

The 25 students of the 11^th generation of the European Regional Master’s Degree in Democracy and Human Rights in South East Europe concluded the first two terms of the program and will soon start the third term which will take place in Italy at the premises of the University of Bologna in Santa Sofia (FC).

The first term of the program started on the 1^st of November 2011 in Sarajevo and ended in June with the midterm exam, an oral exam during which the students had to demonstrate their knowledge about and ability to elaborate the issues presented by the professors during the lectures of the 5 clusters of the program. How the idea of human rights was born, human and natural rights, equality and justice, theories of nationalism, theories of migration, the EU accession process, international and regional instruments to protect human rights: these were some of the issues discussed during the first term. The students had the opportunity to read articles, essays and books about them and learned how to adopt a critical view towards the ideas expressed in them.

The 25 students that successfully passed the midterm exam started the 7 weeks internship in mid-June and left for their destinations in the countries of South East Europe. According to the rules of the program, in fact, students have to do a 7 weeks traineeship in an organization, governmental or non-governmental, research institute or think-tank active in the field of human rights in South East Europe (in a country different from their country of origin). The aim of the internship is for the student to apply their theoretical knowledge in concrete projects and programs and to experience the challenges local organizations face in their daily work. During this period, moreover, students can conduct research projects and gather data for their own MA theses. The 25 students of the 11^th generation did their internships in 8 countries: 1 student in Albania, 10 students in BiH, 2 students in Croatia, 2 students in Kosovo, 6 students in Macedonia, 1 student in Montenegro, 2 students in Slovenia and 1 in Serbia.

The third term of the ERMA program will start on the 1^st of September. The students will spend one month and a half at the premises of the University of Bologna in Santa Sofia (FC). This period will be devoted mainly to the thesis writing process: students will start to write their theses with the help of supervisors and academic tutors and will have the chance of accessing the University Library Ruffilli in Forlì and the online database of the University of Bologna. They will also attend some seminars: Dealing with Diversity: Gender Policy, Nationalism and Discrimination by Julie Mostov (Drexel University, Philadelphia); Deliberation in Deeply Divided Societies by Prof. Jürg Steiner (University of Bern) and Interethnic mediation on Taming the Beast: Preventing Ethnic Conflicts and Promoting Tolerance in Central-Southeastern Europe, by Livia Placks (President, Project on Ethnic Relations USA). Students will also attend the opening and closing ceremony of the 18th CEI International Summer School of Cervia Beyond Enlargement. The Wider Europe and the New Neighbourhood. The students will defend their theses in Sarajevo, at the end of October.

While the students of the 11^th generation wait for the third term to start, the staff of the ERMA program is collecting candidatures for the new academic year 2012/2013. The program will enroll 25 students coming from the countries of South East Europe and 5 students from the EU and non-EU countries. Students get a double degree (one diploma is issued by the University of Bologna and one diploma by the University of Sarajevo) and are awarded 60 ECTS credits. The deadline for the presentation of the application is the 31^st of August 2012. The program curriculum as well as the call for applications and all exact details about the application process are available at the following address: http://www.cps.edu.ba/?q=node/2 The application form can be downloaded at the following address: http://www.cps.edu.ba/?q=node/11 For further information, contact Mariana Hadžijusufović, ERMA Coordinator: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Pictures:

: the ERMA students and Prof. Nina Belyaeva (Higher School of Economics, Moscow) in Sarajevo during the first term.

: some ERMA students during a practical exercise at CIPS, Sarajevo.