Trainer: Laure Wagener
Course overview:
The course will equip students with the necessary practical skills to understand, decrypt and navigate negotiations in the “EU bubble”.
We will first learn about the role of the main EU institutions – the European Commission, the Council of the EU, the European Council and the European Parliament – as well as how the decision-making process works. Emphasis will be placed on the daily functioning “on the ground” of the EU institutions engaged in negotiations, taking less of an academic and a more practical approach. We will link our classes with current EU affairs, to understand how the political context can influence EU decisions and priorities.
Understanding the reality of how the EU gets to agreements will then allow us to dive into an ongoing negotiation of a legislative file in order to dissect the EU decision-making process as it happens “live” (the practicalities of the ordinary legislative procedure).
As a method, we will learn how to set up factsheets, a tool frequently used in EU institutions, corporate and non-governmental organisations, and consultancy offices. The factsheet will train students how to find and structure the most important pieces of information about a given negotiation. A constant effort will be made to link up the granularity of a legislative text with the wider political context and agenda.
In a final stage, we will apply the acquired knowledge in a simplified negotiation simulation/ writing a briefing note to an Ambassador/Head of Unit assessing the prospects of an ongoing negotiation. Students will learn how to “read” a legislative text, evaluate the “bubble” dynamics and work through the process of consensus-building, compromise, and decision-making, using a “real” file.
A final exam will test the extent to which students have gained a general understanding of EU institutions and negotiation dynamics, based on what was learned during class and basic autonomous research. Students will be asked to participate actively in class to encourage interactive sessions.
Assessment:
Students will receive a mark at the end of the course based on
- 25% homework (assigned during class)
- 25% final exam
- 50% participation in class
Students will also receive individual feedback.