The European Peace and Security Studies (EPSS) certificate is a 4-courses programme that provides in-depth and unique insights into the changing nature and fundamental challenges of contemporary security issues from a distinctly Brussels perspective.
By pooling the combined expertise and resources of 3 leading educational institutions in Brussels – the Belgian Royal Military Academy, the Institute for European Studies (IES) and the Global Governance Institute (GGI) - students are taught by prominent specialists in the field of civilian and military security issues, in both theory and practice.
The courses emphasise theoretical and practical analysis of the comprehensive, civil-military nature of contemporary conflict and crisis management from a NATO, UN and EU perspective. They also examine the history, institutional procedures and policies of, and interrelations between, these three organisations, as well as their interaction with a wide range of civilian and military partners. The programme also sheds light on the complex roots and causes of contemporary conflicts in Europe’s periphery and beyond.
Hence, at the end of the semester, students will have acquired an extensive knowledge of the institutional, theoretical and practical dimensions of contemporary issues and of the core actors in the field of European peace and security.
The Brussels School of Governance is an alliance between the Institute for European Studies (Vrije Universiteit Brussel) and Vesalius College. This European Peace and Security Studies (EPSS) certificate is a programme organised by Vesalius College.
Curriculum
Curriculum
The EPSS Programme consists of four interrelated courses worth 6 ECTS credits (3 US credits) each. We recommend students to take this programme in the Fall semester, when its full curriculum of four courses is taught. Students who want to study the programme at a slower pace, could consider starting the programme in the Spring semester, when only part of the curriculum is offered, meaning that they could then finish the remaining courses in the following Fall semester. Upon successful completion of the programme, students will receive a Certificate in European Peace & Security Studies.
Every fall semester, we offer four or more courses from the following list:
- The EU's Common Foreign and Security Policy
- Understanding Contemporary Conflicts in the Euro - Mediterranean Region
- Global Terrorism, Counter - terrorism and (De-) Radicalisation.
- Security, Migration and Cultural Diversity in Europe
- Russian Foreign Policy.
- NATO and Transatlantic Approaches to Security
- Military Approaches to Security
- International Approaches to State - Building, Reform and Good Governance
In Fall 2022, the following four courses will be offered:
- Global Terrorism, Counter-terrorism and (De-) Radicalisation
- Security, Migration & Cultural Diversity in Europe
- Russian Foreign Policy
- Military Approaches to Security
For a description of these courses, we refer to our BA courses overview.
The total tuition fee for this programme is 7500 EUR.
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