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Category: Teaching

Careers Conference 2019

Our Careers Conference, held jointly with the sociology programme, on 4 December had extremely positive feedback from students once again.

Using a ‘speed dating’ format, students moved between tables hosted by employers from a wide variety of NGOs and public sector organisations. Many said they were surprised and impressed to realise that there was such a variety of opportunities out there for graduates with their skills and knowledge.

It was also lovely to have three politics graduates in attendance. We are always thankful to our graduate community for their willingness to give up their time and be such positive role models to current students.

  • Jack Bidewell graduated 2019
  • Oscar Lester -graduated 2015

Professor Sir John Curtice visits Parliamentary Studies class

One of the highlights of semester one was the visit of Professor Sir John Curtice to our Level 6 Parliamentary Studies module. As Professor of Politics at the University of Strathclyde and Senior Research Fellow at the National Centre for Social Research, he is widely regarded as the country’s best known polling expert.

Ahead of a public lecture as part of the Vice Chancellor Series, Professor Curtice took part in a Q and A session with our politics staff and Parliamentary Studies students. He covered a wide range of topics including the 2019 general election, Brexit, Scottish independence and the reliability of polls. On the day (12 November 2019), Professor Curtice declared the election too close to call. Nevertheless, his predictions that the Conservatives would win, Corbyn would go, the Brexit Party would fail to gain a seat and the SNP would secure a large number of seats in Scotland, all proved correct despite the volatile voting patterns of the British public.

Students relished the opportunity to engage with Professor Curtice, and we’d like to thank him once again for his generosity with his time and expertise.

Brussels Trip December 2019

On the 9th and 10th of December 2019, 35 students from our 2nd and 3rd year, together with our MSc students, went to Brussels to speak to representatives from the UK Representation in Brussels, EU institutions and to see how the EU works in practice.

On the first day we visited the Welsh Office in Brussels, where representatives from the UK Representation welcomed us. We had further speakers from the European Commission, including DG Grow and DG Near dealing with EU space policy and the EU’s enlargement and neighbourhood policy. Each speaker presented the area they work in briefly, and what the EU is doing in terms of policies and activities.

The day concluded with a city tour, starting at the Grand Place in the centre of Brussels, where we learnt more about the history of Brussels and how it has changed over time, not least as a result of being the capital of the European Union.

On the second day we welcomed Dr Tarik Meziani from the Council of the EU’s Integrated Political Crisis Response team. He briefed the students on how the EU’s crisis response works and what lessons have been learnt in recent years. After his talk, we went to the European Parliament, where we visited the Parliamentarium, which is the documentation centre of the EP. We saw the original copy of the Schuman Declaration as well as other key documents of the EU.   

The trip was funded by our Jean Monnet Chair in European Foreign Policy, which is part of the Erasmus+ funding we have been awarded for 2017-2020.

We would like to thank the UK Representation to the EU, the Wales Office in Brussels, all of our speakers, and particularly John Maas for their contribution to the success of this study trip.

    The academic voice on Brexit must not be silenced

    Dr Sarah Lieberman, Senior Lecturer in Politics & IR at Canterbury Christ Church University, comments on Chris Heaton-Harris’ request for names of academics teaching European politics and warns that the government must not be allowed to silence the voices of academics and experts on Brexit.

    Sixth Summer School on Federalism, Multinationalism and the Future of Europe

    The sixth edition of the CCCU and CIFE (Centre International de Formation Européene) summer school on ‘Federalism, Multinationalism and the Future of Europe’ took place in Canterbury between 13th and 24th of August. Bringing together twenty students from 11 different countries, including France, Germany, Myanmar, Nepal, Spain and the UK, students participated in a range of activities to develop and broaden their knowledge and understanding of federalism, both in theory and practice.

    Politics & IR Top 15 for Overall Satisfaction in National Student Survey, 2016

    The Politics and International Relations team at Canterbury Christ Church University (CCCU) are delighted to achieve, for the second consecutive year, 95% overall satisfaction in the 2016 National Student Survey.

    postcard 3This result places us in the top 15 nationwide for Politics (12th) and it builds on our achievement of a top 30 place in the latest Guardian League Table (27th), released in May.