PoSIG is the result of a collaboration started by the Political Science Department at the University of Salzburg, with support from the Austrian Development Agency and the Erasmus Mundus SIMA and SIGMA agile programmes. Since 2008, more and more student and staff grants have been helping academics from the Western Balkans to study and research at the University of Salzburg. Working together on teaching and research has led to a shared ambition for more intense cooperation between universities in the region. The fact that this cooperation is generic has created a solid base for it.
The joint Erasmus+ Project: “Curriculum Development joint European Political Science MA (EuroPS)” led by the University of Salzburg – Department of Political Science and Sociology, developed a joint/multiple MA in Political Science to be accredited at all project partner and the development of a multilateral management of this MA. The project (No. 561485-EPP-1-2015—1-AT-EPPKA2-CBHE-JP) set up a joint/multiple MA in Political Science (120 ECTS) with a diploma supplement from all partners, based on European accreditation and European Standards and Guidelines. It’s a modernisation and Europeanisation project, and it supports, reflects and develops standards at EU and Western Balkan partners, encouraging regular academic exchange of good practice and sustainable networking between EU-WB partners, especially between WB.The project was implemented successfully between October 2015 and September 2017.
The consortium kicked off the first intake of students on the joint MA programme in Political Science – Integration & Governance in February 2017, and has been taking in new students ever since.
The PoSIG’s plan to work on an integrated approach for integration and governance capacity development fits really well with the needs of the Western Balkan region as a region of political transformation. The same thing was true for the Eastern Neighbourhood region, where the programme attracted students from this area. Thanks to Erasmus+ KA 107 and KA 171 grant resources, students and staff from these universities have also taken part in PoSIG activities. Since 2019, students from the Eastern Neighbourhood and Lebanon have successfully applied for PoSIG placements, and the annual PoSIG Teacher Academies, first set up in the EuroPS project in 2016, have seen an increasing number of professors from these universities.
Then, with the Erasmus+ CBHE JoPScip project, partner universities from Armenia and Georgia joined the PoSIG consortium in 2024, which should lead to an extended European Accreditation by AQ Austria from the academic year 2025/26. The continued cooperation in student and staff exchange has created a strong generic basis for institutional cooperation.
The PoSIG consortium is also including universities from Central Asia and the South Mediterranean cooperation as associated partners to joint activities.
The following timeline details the key developments in the history of the PoSIG programme.
The annual meeting of the Western European network of Erasmus coordinators in Political Science, Public Administration and International Relations from 8-11 June 2016 at the University of Tampere had internationalisation strategies, academic mobility and dual/joint degrees on the agenda. Dr. Franz Kok gave presentation on how the EuroPS project develops…Read More
The following teachers training was held at the University of Pavia for the Political Theory Module. The training was held from 18th until the 30th of April 2016. Participants shared their ideas and took part in the Seminars of Excellence development. The meeting was held within the framework of preparatory…Read More
According to the time plan of the EuroPS the second teacher training workshop was organized at the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia between the 07th and 16th April 2016 with the participation of lecturers of Public Policy and Administration, Comparative Politics and Research Methodology modules. The aim of the workshop is…Read More
According to the time plan of the EuroPS the first teacher training workshop was organized at the University of Salzburg between the 07th and 19th March 2016 with the participation of lecturers of European Integration and International Relations subjects. The aim of the workshop is to bring together academic staff…Read More
EuroPS was launched in Tirana in October and the work has been continuing with the aim at producing high quality programe. Following the project timeline and work packages, the EuroPS coordinators’ meeting was held at the premises of the University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria from 22 nd until 28 th…Read More
Joint master in European Political Science – EuroPS was launched on 20th of October 2015 at the premises of European University of Tirana. EuroPS is a projected funded by Erasmus+, within the framework of Capacity Building for Higher Education Key Action 2. The leading institution is Paris Lodron University of…Read More
