asignatura master 2025

In the beginning of the 21st century, the European Union faces important challenges. The departure of Great Britain after a long process that began with the referendum on June 23rd, 2016 is one of the most significant, but there are many other issues that occupy and concern politicians and citizens. The successive enlargements of the EU have been an important step towards European integration, but they have also been a source of problems. The political balances of the past have been broken or weakened by the emergence of new actors, including ambiguous or anti-integration populist movements. The recent invasion of Ukraine has highlighted how the European project is cherished by many Eastern Europeans. It seems that the EU is still desired by many.

However, Europe is not the solution to all problems either. The growing disparity in income levels among member countries as a result of successive enlargements has also posed a significant challenge in negotiating internal agreements. The structures of governance, the Common Agricultural Policy, regional solidarity mechanisms, and common trade policy have had to be revised and modernized, while new challenges have emerged in the areas of security and foreign policy. On the other hand, Europe must address the growing challenge of migration, which is ultimately an opportunity as well. The fight against climate change, the control and elimination of tax havens within and outside of Europe, the management of international aid in very poor countries, and the fight against international terrorism are other fronts that the European Union must address.

The Great Recession that began in 2008 complicated decision-making, and the current crisis arising (or worsened) from the coronavirus pandemic will not help. There is no consensus on how to solve the EU's problems, and a lack of political initiative can be very costly. The experience of Greece in 2015 revealed how the combination of unresolved problems with a bad international situation can lead to an economic catastrophe. However, the same crisis showed that all problems can be overcome, and that we can emerge stronger from the worst crises. Additionally, we know that none of these small or large tragedies has been truly original. The economic history of European integration is already quite long, and it teaches us that present turbulence is not so different from that of the past. The way in which past challenges were faced and resolved provides a guide for the future.

The European institutions have an origin that must be explained for a complete understanding of their functioning. Sometimes, this can be complex and even counterintuitive. However, changes in community policies and international agreements, including the founding treaties, follow certain logics that are not coincidental. The institutional framework has been crucial in how crises have been resolved. The directions that European integration has taken are explained by political confrontation and the need to reach mutually beneficial agreements.

No specialized knowledge is required.

Course tutoring will be done through the virtual course. Any doubts that may arise will be addressed in the forum. Students may also contact the teaching staff via e-mail: Ángel Luis González-Esteban (al.gonzalez@cee.uned.es), Rafael Barquín Gil (rbarquin@cee.uned.es) and Héctor García Montero (hector.garcia@cee.uned.es).

COMPETENCIAS BÁSICAS Y GENERALES:

CG01 - Saber resolver problemas en entornos multidisciplinares relativos a la Unión Europea.

CG02 - Saber comunicar ideas y opiniones basadas en conocimientos específicos y avanzados sobre Unión Europea y emitir juicios razonados sobre las mismas.

CG03 - Interpretar el contenido de los textos y documentos de la Unión Europea de forma que el alumno sea capaz de adoptar decisiones y formular opciones sobre ellos en el entorno complejo de la estructura y ordenamiento de la Unión Europea.

CB6 - Poseer y comprender conocimientos que aporten una base u oportunidad de ser originales en el desarrollo y/o aplicación de ideas, a menudo en un contexto de investigación

CB7 - Que los estudiantes sepan aplicar los conocimientos adquiridos y su capacidad de resolución de problemas en entornos nuevos o poco conocidos dentro de contextos más amplios (o multidisciplinares) relacionados con su área de estudio

CB8 - Que los estudiantes sean capaces de integrar conocimientos y enfrentarse a la complejidad de formular juicios a partir de una información que, siendo incompleta o limitada, incluya reflexiones sobre las responsabilidades sociales y éticas vinculadas a la aplicación de sus conocimientos y juicios

CB9 - Que los estudiantes sepan comunicar sus conclusiones y los conocimientos y razones últimas que las sustentan a públicos especializados y no especializados de un modo claro y sin ambigüedades

CB10 - Que los estudiantes posean las habilidades de aprendizaje que les permitan continuar estudiando de un modo que habrá de ser en gran medida autodirigido o autónomo.

COMPETENCIAS ESPECÍFICAS:

CE01 - Trabajar en contextos multidisciplinares que son los propios del ámbito de la Unión Europea y resolver problemas en dicho ámbito.

CE02 - Dominar los instrumentos de regulación y ordenación de la Unión Europea en contextos profesionales y académicos.

CE03 - Identificar normas y documentos dentro del sistema jurídico-político resultante de la integración de los ordenamientos jurídicos de los Estados Miembros y de la Unión Europea

CE04 - Encontrar, analizar y aplicar la legislación emanada de las diferentes instituciones y órganos de la Unión Europea, así como la de los Estados Miembros que se refiera o esté implicada en el sistema europeo.

CE05 - Encontrar, analizar y aplicar la jurisprudencia de los Tribunales que componen la jurisdicción de la Unión Europea así como la jurisprudencia de cualquier orden y nivel de los estados miembros que se refiera o que estén implicadas con el sistema de la Unión Europea

The study of this subject should serve:

* To think over the history of the European Union

* To analyze and understand the formation process of European Union, its stages, achievements and mistakes.

* To understand the functioning of the main European institutions in each historical period.

* To analyze the treaties signed by the states and the balance of power between them.

* To acquire the analytic tools to think up their own studies, including the use of references, data and critical analysis

This course will be taught according to the online methodology that characterizes UNED, in which student self-learning assisted by the teacher takes precedence and is articulated through various teacher-student communication systems.

Additional resources would be offered through the virtual course.

The libraries of the European Documentation Centres (for example, the UNED, Madrid, or Europe-Direct) can provide data and texts needed for your work; as well as the UNED library itself. You can also draw interesting material from the Publications Office of the EU.

In this link you can find a very comprehensive list of books about the European Union, most of them written in Spanish, but also in English.