Entry requirements

Academic requirements

A Bachelor's degree, equivalent to a Swedish Kandidatexamen, from an internationally recognised university, and with a main field of study within the Social Sciences or Arts.

Language requirements

Proficiency in English equivalent to the Swedish upper secondary course English 6. This requirement can be met either by achieving the required score on an internationally recognised test, or by previous upper secondary or university studies in some countries. Detailed instructions on how to provide evidence of your English proficiency are available at universityadmissions.se.

Aims

The aim of the programme is to give the student the theoretical and empirical knowledge and the methodological skills required to be able to independently and critically analyse, understand and explain social developments in Russia and the post-Soviet area on a scientific basis.

The programme has a distinctly multidisciplinary character and includes the study of the history, culture, economics, politics and society of Russia and Eurasia from various theoretical perspectives. Alongside these courses students are offered intensive Russian language training. The programme provides the possibility of in-depth study of various parts of the subject through electable courses. The student is also expected to write a master's thesis (30 credits) of high quality that is anchored clearly in the state of research and contributes new knowledge to Russian and Eurasian studies.

The programme prepares students for a professional career as area specialists in public administration, government agencies, organisations, media and companies at both national and international level. The knowledge and skills acquired also form a basis for doctoral education in the disciplinary domain of humanities and social sciences.

Learning outcomes

After completing the programme students are expected to be able to:

Knowledge and understanding

• demonstrate in-depth empirical and theoretical knowledge and understanding of the post-Soviet area
• demonstrate a basic knowledge of the Russian language
• show an understanding of the possibilities and limitations of multidisciplinary research
• give an account of and demonstrate an in-depth ability to analyse and apply various subject-specific concepts and theories. 

Competence and skills

• identify, formulate and solve advanced research problems in the area of Russian and Eurasian studies with a high degree of independence
• interpret, analyse and explain post-Soviet politics, economics, society and culture with the aid of relevant scientific theories and methods
• write and present advanced research reports on relevant problems in Russian and Eurasian studies
• make scientifically relevant, independent oral presentations
• lead and participate actively and independently in seminar discussions and provide advanced and problematising comments.
• after language studies at beginner level demonstrate basic practical proficiency in Russian with good oral and written proficiency; or after language studies at advanced level independently absorb non-fiction texts in Russian and demonstrate deep practical proficiency in Russian with very good oral and written proficiency
• apply multidisciplinary skills and be able to present well-informed and independently framed knowledge overviews and give an account of the state of research in a specific subject area in Russian and Eurasian studies 
• identify and define the scope of empirically relevant material in Russian and Eurasian studies and work on it analytically in an in-depth research task (thesis)
• communicate complex issues concerning political, economic, social and legal processes to people without special knowledge of the area. 

Judgement and approach

• critically and independently judge and assess concepts, theories and issues of relevance for the subject
• make assessments taking account of scientific, social and ethical aspects and show awareness of ethical aspects of research and development work in Russian and Eurasian studies
• identify and analyse issues of central importance for Russian and Eurasian studies
• critically judge, examine and analyse developments in Russia and the post-Soviet area on a scientific basis
• judge and apply relevant scientific methods

Layout of the programme

The programme consists of 120 credits over two years.

The first semester consists of compulsory courses. The semester includes a methods course that introduces the research area Russian and Eurasian studies and a course in the history, culture and society of Russia and the Soviet Union, which introduces the subject, presents the geographical area and communicates fundamental theoretical and thematic perspectives. Students also take a compulsory course in Russian at either beginner or advanced level depending on prior knowledge.

During the second semester, students take two compulsory subject courses focusing on economic, legal, political and social developments, and international relations. The courses are thematic specialisations that problematize central issues concerning developments in the area on a theoretical basis. Students also take a compulsory methods course as well as a compulsory course in Russian at either beginner or advanced level depending on prior knowledge.

The third semester is devoted to the degree thesis (30 credits). Students are assigned a supervisor to guide them.

The forth semester consists of elective courses. During this semester students are offered the possibility of doing a placement in Sweden or abroad, engaging in language studies abroad, or taking electable courses in one of the subject areas. Students also have the possibility of taking courses from another master's programme.

Instruction

Knowledge is communicated and acquired through instruction, seminar discussions, self-study, oral presentations, written reports and supervision. The instruction is mainly conducted in English. Throughout the programme great weight is attached to both written and oral presentations. The student is expected to take increasing responsibility for their learning during the programme and to gradually acquire both professionally relevant and research-based knowledge and skills. The studies assume that a student admitted to the programme has acquired fundamental methodological knowledge as part of the programme that gave them eligibility.

The programme builds on a scientific foundation and is clearly anchored in research, which enables the student to continually develop their methodological and analytical skills and scientific approach. Studies on the programme are intended to lead to a higher degree of intellectual maturity and to deeper insights into the complexity of the subject. This is presented along with the ability to integrate knowledge and skills and to independently formulate and solve problems in a concluding thesis. The student is encouraged to establish and develop both national and international contacts.

Degree

The programme leads to a degree of master of science (120 credits) with Eurasian studies as the main field of studies.