Bachelor in Public Management & International Law

Introduction

This Final Year international degree course has been especially created for international students in their final stage of studies in a discipline related to and including Public Administration. Student will be awarded with a bachelors degree in Business Administration (BBA) after succesful completion of the programme.

This degree offers an opportunity for international students (EU and non-EU) to study important issues in our globalizing world such as: legal aspects of international cooperation, (good) governance, (non) governemental organisations, ethics and compliance to international codes.

You have the opportunity to become an expert in dealing with problems and issues that evolve in international cooperation and interaction between citizens, companies and authorities. By attending this programme you can develop expertise which is needed to work in an intercultural and interdisciplinary setting.

You may choose either a minor in Business, Governance and Law studies or a complete final year’s programme.

As part of the programme you will be working on practical assignments for governments, organisations and business. Besides this you will be taking lectures and workshops. The programme offers many opportunities to develop relevant professional competencies like negotiating, leadership, intercultural communication and applying legal, economical, political and social knowledge and skills to the process of policymaking.

Assignments may concern issues like: integrity in public contracting, international cooperation between local governments, legal advice on international business expansion, comparative research on the establishment of legal entities, across border law enforcement and free movement within the European internal market.

Learning by doing is a concept we believe in: a real life assignment not only motivates students but it also enables them to learn in a more effective way. This will enhance your skills in analysing and solving problems in the field of Public administration.

Course content

This final year is built upon two pillars: a minor in business, governance and law studies and a graduation assignment resulting in a final thesis. Students may choose either the minor programme or the complete final year’s programme. On succesful completion of both the minor and the graduation assignment the student will receive the internationally acknowledged degree of BBA (Bachelor of Business Administration).

Minor

The curriculum consists of courses in International Law, European Law, (good)Governance, Intercultural Communication and Management, Integrity and International Business, Safety & Security Management, Ethics, Methodology & Research Methods and Project management techniques. As part of the minor students work as an international interdisciplinary team on an authentic assignment formulated by one of our governmental partners or international business partners. Assignments may be concerned with issues like: integrity in public contracting, across border cooperation in law enforcement, legal advice on international business expansion, comparative research on the establishment of legal entities, researching legal and related commercial risks in international trade, examining business procedures on compliance to relevant laws and codes of conduct and free movement within the European internal market. These are just some of the many possible issues.

A tutor is assigned to the project groups to facilitate the process in the group. Workshops are organized in order to get acquainted with intercultural aspects of working in an international setting and to learn dealing with cultural differences. In addition, you learn how to benefit from these experiences in ‘real life intercultural management’.

Each project results in a report presented to the partner organisation. The result is often an exploratory research, a recommendation, an advice or a policy report.

Graduation assignment/ final thesis

This part of the final year focuses on an in depth practice orientated research assignment. The assignment is the follow up of the preliminary research conducted in the minor. This is an opportunity to complete the assignment and add more depth to it.

In the graduation assignment extra emphasis is put on research methodology, information analyses and writing skills. Within the graduation assignment each project team member may contribute related to his or her expertise, affinity and specialization.

Specific requirements

Before you can be admitted to this degree course you need to have a secondary school certificate and a minimum of three years of higher education in any discipline related to and including Public Administration.

Do you have a foreign degree?

In this case the Saxion will determine the value of your secondary certificate and compare it to the Dutch certificate to determine its level. It should be the equivalent of the Dutch certificate of secondary education, e.g. the German Abitur (allgemeine Hochschulreife), the British GCE A-levels or GSCE grades A, B or C, the French baccalaureat, or the American High School (top stream or plus 1 year of college).

Next to that Saxion will determine whether your further study is the equivalent to three years of Dutch higher education. If both of these equal the Dutch entry requirements, you can be admitted to the course. All students who wish to start this final year need to have a good command of English. If you do not have the Dutch nationality, we require:

• A minimum of three years of higher education in any discipline related to and including Public Administration,
• Either a IELTS test score of 6.0 or a TOEFL test-score of 550 (Computerbased 213 test-score). Without either of these test results, an application will not be considered!

Students who wish to participate must submit a portfolio to the Academy of Governance and Law containing an application letter, a curriculum vitae, a description of the curriculum of their higher education course as well as a list of results validated by the educational institute, a summary of projects. A format is provided here.

Students who wish to take the minor programme only, are advised to check with the appropriate authorities of their institute of higher education whether the credits earned in the Enschede programme will be accepted by their school.

Career prospects

As a beginning professional you have learned to apply knowledge and skills suitable for a career as manager or policy advisor at regional, national or international (non)governmental organisations. In these positions you will deal with practical and institutional issues of international cooperation. Some jobs descriptions are: political assistant to Member of Parliament, expert on subsidies or policy advisor on international cooperation, safety issues or economic development.