Bachelor of Arts - European Union, Central and Eastern Europe Minor

A specialisation in the European Union and Central and Eastern Europe

The European Union, Central and Eastern Europe minor within the Sciences Po Bachelor’s programme forms part of the shared multidisciplinary curriculum in the social sciences across the Undergraduate College, while offering a distinctive focus on European integration. Its approach is characterised by a perspective that looks beyond Western Europe towards Central and Eastern Europe, shedding light on key issues such as the challenges of past and future enlargements, the governance of a continental-scale European Union, and questions of neighbourhood and borders.

Delivered at the Dijon campus, this minor offers students a dual perspective.by combining an understanding of the history and functioning of the European Union with an analysis of the specificities of Central and Eastern Europe. Topics covered include the communist past and post-communist transitions, processes of Europeanisation, illiberal trends, the European prospects of the Western Balkans, the war in Ukraine, and relations between Europe and Russia.

The Dijon campus provides a particularly well-suited environment for these studies. As a true “concentration of Europe”, it welcomes a high proportion of students from across the continent, particularly from Central and Eastern European countries. This multicultural setting enables direct engagement with the debates shaping the European Union, including migration crises, challenges to the rule of law, accession prospects for Ukraine, Moldova and the Western Balkans, the evolving transatlantic relationship, and the dynamics of the post-Soviet space.

As part of this minor, two dual degree programmes are available to students at the Dijon campus, one with University College London (UCL) and the other with LUISS in Rome.

The European Union, Central and Eastern Europe minor explained in video

Courses and subjects for understanding contemporary Europe

The European Union, Central and Eastern Europe minor within the Sciences Po Bachelor’s programme is primarily French-taught, with most courses delivered in French and some offered in English.

For international students who are proficient in English but have not yet reached the required level of French to begin their studies in that language upon admission to Sciences Po, the first semester of the first year may be followed in English. At the same time, intensive French language courses are offered to support their transition into the French-taught curriculum from the second semester onwards.

The courses within the minor cover a broad thematic spectrum, combining historical, political, geopolitical and cultural approaches.

Examples of flagship courses offered at the Dijon campus include:

• Nations, States and Geopolitics in the Caucasus and Black Sea Region
• The Western Balkans: From the Break-up of Yugoslavia to the European Perspective
• Major Challenges in European Integration

Languages taught as part of the minor

The Dijon campus offers a wide range of language options. As part of the European Union, Central and Eastern Europe minor, students may study, in addition to French or English, a Central or Eastern European language, including Hungarian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, Czech, German, Spanish or Italian.

Find out more about language teaching.

Skills and career prospects of the European Union, Central and Eastern Europe minor

The European Union, Central and Eastern Europe minor first provides the knowledge, skills and competencies in the social sciences shared by all students of the Undergraduate College, enriched by an in-depth understanding of European Union institutions and policies. It particularly develops the ability to analyse both convergence and divergence within the EU, notably along the East–West axis, as well as a nuanced understanding of past and future enlargement dynamics.

The East–West comparative perspective, central to this minor, offers a rigorous and stimulating framework for students. It encourages them to move beyond established representations in order to grasp the complexity and diversity of Europe. This analytical approach takes on particular relevance in the current geopolitical context, including the war in Ukraine, the renewed enlargement process and the evolving transatlantic relationship.

From a professional perspective, the training provided at the Dijon campus opens up opportunities across a wide range of sectors, including diplomacy, the European civil service, international organisations and the private sector, particularly in a context marked by a shift in Europe’s geopolitical centre of gravity towards the East. It also provides a strong foundation for academic research in European affairs. Beyond career prospects, the minor anchors European citizenship in a concrete and intellectually demanding experience.

Students at the Dijon campus also stand out for their distinctive linguistic profile, combining operational proficiency in French and English with solid grounding in at least one Central or Eastern European language, a valuable asset in both European and international job markets.

A third year to deepen European engagement

The third year of the Sciences Po Bachelor’s programme takes place entirely abroad, at one of the institution’s 445 partner universities. This international mobility, shared by all seven campuses of the Undergraduate College, is a defining stage of the academic journey.

For students at the Dijon campus, this year abroad builds directly on the European studies minor. Many partner universities offer courses dedicated to European integration, a central field within the social sciences, which align closely with the objectives of the minor. In this context, partnerships with universities in Central and Eastern Europe are particularly recommended. Institutions such as the University of Warsaw, Jagiellonian University in Kraków, Charles University in Prague, Masaryk University in Brno, Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) in Budapest, the University of Tartu and Central European University in Vienna offer academic environments closely connected to the campus specialisation.

Beyond its academic dimension, a stay in this region, and especially in a country whose language has been studied during the first and second years, allows for in-depth cultural and linguistic immersion, supporting a stronger command of Central and Eastern European languages.

However, mobility in Central and Eastern Europe is not compulsory. Students at the Dijon campus may choose a destination anywhere in the world. To validate the minor, they are nevertheless required to take several courses related to European issues or to the relationship between their host region and Europe.

Studying at the heart of Europe on the Dijon campus

The European Union, Central and Eastern Europe minor is offered at the Dijon campus.

Find out more about the Dijon campus and its student community.