Security Studies (PhD)

Doctoral Degree Programme – Security Studies

No.

Course

Sem.

Status [1]

Number of Classes [2]

ECTS

L

SRP

FIRST YEAR

1. 1

Modernity Studies – Security Approach

I

C

5

2

10

2. 2

Digital Security – Cyberspace and Artificial Intelligence

I

C

5

1

8

3. 3

Energy Security – Natural Resources Management and Sustainable Development

I

C

5

1

8

4. 4

Doctoral Degree Workshop

I

C

0

1

4

5. 5

Elective course 1

II

E

4

4

12

6. 6

Elective course 2

II

E

4

4

12

7.

Writing and publishing of the academic paper based on the student research paper

II

C

0

4

6

Total active classes and ECTS per year

60

SECOND YEAR

8.

Research Methodology of Security Phenomena

III

C

3

1

6

9.

Elective course 3

III

E

4

4

12

10.

Elective course 4

III

E

4

4

12

11.

Doctoral dissertation – writing and defence of the literature review

IV

C

10

15

12.

Doctoral dissertation – writing and defence of the doctoral dissertation project

IV

C

10

15

Total active classes and ECTS per year

60

THIRD YEAR

13.

Doctoral dissertation – application

V

C

30

15

14.

Doctoral dissertation – research paper

V

C

10

15

15.

Doctoral dissertation – writing and defence of the doctoral dissertation

VI

C

0

30

Total active classes and ECTS per year

60


  • [1] C – Compulsory, E – Elective

  • [2] L – Lecture, SRP –Student Research Paper


No.

Course

Sem.

Status

Number of Classes

ECTS

L

SRP

ELECTIVE COURSES

1.

Strategy, Defence, and Contemporary Wars

II/III

E

4

4

12

2.

International Crime and Security

II/III

E

4

4

12

3.

Contemporary Theoretical Framework in Security Studies

II/III

E

4

4

12

4.

Climate Security – Sustainability and Adaptation

II/III

E

4

4

12

5

Great Power Geopolitics and Strategic Security of Small States

II/III

E

4

4

12

6.

Surveillance Studies in Security

II/III

E

4

4

12

7.

Media, Crime, and Security

II/III

E

4

4

12

8.

Integrated Risk and Disaster Reduction

II/III

E

4

4

12


Course Catalogue
FIRST YEAR (Semesters 1 and 2)

Modernity Studies – Security Approach

This course introduces students to the analysis of key social and political processes regarding Modernism and its conceptual framework of values. Philosophical dimension of the course is oriented towards understanding the relationship between freedom and security, i.e. towards shaping the political balance between security requirements (control/surveillance), community stability and protection of freedom, i.e. citizens’ privacy. Sociological dimension of the course implies the following: national sovereignty: historical perspective and contemporary order; transformation of war: motives and agents; ecology and politics: development and sustainable order; culture and politics: individual, group and national identity; migrations: refugees and emigration; cybersecurity: political and social consequences of cyber diversions; artificial intelligence and human community (unemployment and new working conditions).

Digital Security – Cyberspace and Artificial Intelligence

The goal of the course is to enable students to deepen their understanding and acquire new knowledge of the very concept, content and importance of digital security and artificial intelligence. They will be able to understand methodological problems regarding the classification of cyberthreats and their place within different security paradigms. They will be introduced to the specific features of social conflicts in a digital era, as well as to the wide range of their manifestations. Additionally, they will acquire knowledge of the strategic framework of cybersecurity and new concept of cyber sovereignty, as well as of the activities of national armies in cyberspace, of global initiative to achieve cyber peace. They will gain understanding of the interrelatedness between different levels of national information infrastructure protection and the necessity to take multidisciplinary approach to digital security. They will be introduced to the problems regarding the classification, search, extraction and analysis of big data. They will become familiar with the phenomenon The Internet of Things and how to protect “clever entities”, with basic tools and how to protect ICT infrastructure.

Energy Security – Natural Resources Management and Sustainable Development

This aim of the course to increase students’ awareness of and enable them to acquire new knowledge about the importance of energy security, natural resources management and sustainable development, and gain deeper understanding of the concept of energy security in the light of contemporary political and security theories and political economy. Students will acquire important qualitative and quantitative knowledge essential for the understanding of the types and character of resources, market and infrastructure. Additionally, they will be introduced to the types of dominant market materials, to the process of supply and demand of energy resources, energy markets, global energy distribution and distribution of other strategic resources, strategic reserves, vulnerability of energy infrastructure and ways of distribution, logistics, influential factors and price policy. Moreover, students will gain insight into the opportunities and development of low-carbon economy and new technologies. They will be able to identify and asses potential risks and threats to security in a relevant field. Upon detailed analysis of energy strategies and strategies of sustainable development, they will be able to manage the resources, development and energy sector t. They will understand legal and ethical issues and aspects regarding the energy sector. The analysis of energy sector law refers to the necessity to strike the balance between the safe distribution principle and sustainable development, energy efficacy, offering groundwork for the legal framework for the energy sector law, as well as for subfields of energy sector law (oil law, gas law, electric energy law, thermal energy law, energy efficacy law, renewable energy resources law) and related fields of law (environmental law, traffic law, poverty). They will be able to understand the competitiveness on the energy market and the concept of state power. By the end of the course, students will be able to analyse and apply the acquired knowledge in the context of Serbia.

Doctoral Workshop

Students will be able to prepare presentations for academic conferences and write papers for the proceedings from the conferences. They will be introduced to the fundamental elements of theoretical, methodological, scientific, professional and applicable knowledge to be applied in solving particular problems within selected areas. Students will be able to prepare presentations – to summarize and clearly present the topic, to discuss and answer the questions from the audience, to adapt the material to meet the criteria defined by different journals, to present material in an academic manner, to cite the references according to different criteria.

Writing and publishing of the academic paper based on the student research paper

Students will be able to apply fundamental theoretical and methodological, academic and professional knowledge and methods in order to solve particular problems within the selected field of interest. Besides, they will be able to prepare and publish an academic paper as a result of a research project and present the results of their original research in national and international journals.


SECOND YEAR (Semesters 3 and 4)

Research Methodology of Security Phenomena

This course introduces students to the fundamental epistemological principles of science and enables them to comprehend their application within the social studies. Students will be presented with the aims of academic research, elements of research project, key methodological approaches and methods of empirical research. Special emphasis will be paid to key research approaches within security studies, different forms of data collection and analysis, ethical research principles within this field, and modes of presentation of security phenomena. The goal of the course is to develop and enhance students’ competences in interdisciplinary and comparative studies, and to enable them to use and search online journal bases, as well as open databases. During classes, students will strengthen their skills in designing and preparing adequate research projects, as well as critical analysis skills they have been introduced to during theoretical classes.

Doctoral dissertation – writing and defence of literature review

Doctoral students will demonstrate, through the literature review, that they are able to analyse the material systematically, to underline key concepts, to adopt critical thinking when considering different theoretical approaches to certain topics, to extract and present the topic systematically in an original way which will form the basis for their doctoral research. Literature review should prove that the future project of the doctoral dissertation is grounded in relevant academic literature forming the theoretical part of the doctoral dissertation project.

Doctoral dissertation – writing and defence of doctoral dissertation project

This course will enable doctoral students to prepare a project proposal to be submitted to the Academic Council of the Faculty upon completing all the doctoral programme courses. It will be built upon the Doctoral dissertation – writing and defence of literature review, focusing primarily on the methodological underpinning of the doctoral dissertation project.


FIRST AND SECOND YEAR (Semesters 2 and 3)
ELECTIVE COURSES

Strategy, Defence and Contemporary Wars

Students will be introduced to the analysis and key issues of strategic studies, defence and contemporary warfare, and their perception within international relations. Students should be able to understand the deterrence concept through its nuclear dimension and through the development of the resources for achieving offensive-defensive balance. They will gain deeper understanding of the importance of arms control and disarmament – of weapons of mass destruction primarily, although not underestimating the role of small arms in regional contexts. The course will provide students with the analysis of revolutionary influence on the strategy of warfare within military relations, as well as of some ethical issues of the use of new technologies in modern warfare. They will gain understanding of contemporary security risks – as a present reality and via their impact on strategic thinking, defence and use of military resources. They will be able to understand the place and role of private military companies, and ethical consequences of their participation in armed conflicts. By the end of the course, they will be able to analyse and understand the process of defence planning as a strategic component and a constitutive element of strategic and defence studies.

International Crime and Security

This course is designed to enable students to understand international crimes, including, on one hand, international crimes, i.e. international crimes in a narrow sense as defined by the Roman Statute and which are under jurisdiction of the International Crime Tribunal, and, on the other hand, those types of crimes which are considered international regarding their character, i.e. their transnational dimensions in most cases – terrorism, organised crime and corporate crimes focusing on money laundering. The goal of this course is to enable students to understand all criminal aspects of the above mentioned types of crimes – criminal and legal aspects in a broader sense. The aim of the course is to enhance students’ capacity to analyse relevant international documents regarding the above mentioned types of crimes, i.e. their different aspects and the work of the most important international organisations, particularly those which are directly involved in frustrating and mitigating those crimes, like Interpol and Europol. This course aims at enabling students to understand legal, political and security mechanisms of international legal aid in crime-related matters, as instruments for efficient persecution, processing, trials and sanctioning of international crimes.

Contemporary Theoretical Framework in Security Studies

By gaining knowledge of the contemporary security studies, as well as of its existing theoretical frameworks, doctoral students will enhance their specific skills of critical analysis of current theoretical frameworks within security studies and will be able to develop their academic skills key to the selection of adequate theoretical framework for particular issues to be analysed within security studies. Finally, doctoral students should develop creative skills essential for the adequate application and potential improvement of the selected theoretical framework within their research, in accordance with contemporary trends in security studies. This is a key theoretical premise essential for the objective, systematic and critical analysis of security issues and phenomena.

Climate Security – Sustainability and Adaptation

This course enables students to expand the existing knowledge and acquire new one of the very concept, content and importance of understanding environmental and climate security as pressing issues both globally and in Serbia. As climate security has been recognised as an increasingly relevant issue by the academic community, public and political actors, students will be introduced to its most important aspects through a multidisciplinary approach. It will focus on vulnerability and preservation of vital resources including water and food resources, air quality, climate projection, migration, political and social aspects, mitigation measures and adaptation, as well as population health.

Great Power Geopolitics and Strategic Security of Small States

This course aims to introduce students to the theoretical concepts essential for deeper understanding of contemporary international relations and contemporary geopolitical world; criteria defining great powers, medium powers and small states; different theoretical approaches to geopolitical trends and strategic practice of great powers, geopolitical status of small states and their strategic potential; foreign policy doctrine, security and military strategies of great and small states; mechanisms to establish the relationship of subordination and superordination within contemporary world politics, and by politics and actions of great powers towards certain regions; differences and similarities of ’occidental’ and ’oriental’ strategies. The unique goal of this course is to introduce students to the existing theories and improve their understanding, and enable them develop their analytical skills and ability to apply them to the existing body of knowledge in the field of geopolitics, international relations, strategies and strategic studies, as well as to anticipate future developments within these disciplines.

Surveillance Studies in Security

Students should acquire the ability to successfully analyse general theoretical framework regarding the surveillance and security studies, their fundamental concepts and premises in order to be able to explain and assess their key features, context and interrelatedness, strategic and nonstrategic forms, as well as the traditional forms compared to the new ones (of surveillance and security). This will further enable them to design and conduct original and applicable research projects which will test theory and contribute to the existing knowledge in the field of surveillance and security studies. This analysis will comprise the family of similar concepts including: control, privacy, confidentiality, secrecy, ethics, etc. with the goal of instigating discussion about characteristics of social structures in charge of surveillance  in order to achieve better security, about the characteristics of the tools used and some value-system conflicts and social processes within the context of interactive character of a large-scale surveillance system. This course aims to cherish technological literacy which will enable students to critically analyse surveillance technologies of different social entities and their implications for security, fear, control and/or vulnerability.

Media, Crime, and Security

The goal of this course is to enable students to understand the role of media in the social construction of reality and the influence of media representation of crime on the perception of the public, as well as to introduce students to the issue of relatedness of media representation and security in general, and particularly with regard to crime. In order to understand the role of media in the social construction of crime, they will be presented with the process of news production so as to understand the very mechanism of media representation. They will be introduced to the phenomenon of moral panic and its role in the process of social construction of reality, primarily in the context where there are different individuals or groups eager to impose their standards and achieve their interests. Special attention will be paid to the deeper understanding of the importance of the discourse and concept of the society of risk during the period of moral panic, from its very beginning and throughout its duration. They will gain knowledge about the media representation of the judiciary and their impact on the emergence and duration of a moral panic. They will be able to comprehend the mechanism of the emergence of moral panic with regard to violent crimes and with special emphasis on types of crimes: domestic crime, rape and other sexual abuses, paedophilia, and minor’s delinquency in a broader sense.

Integrated Disaster Risk Reduction

The course aims to introduce students to the disasters research methods, quantitative and qualitative research traditions and current paradigms in the field of disaster studies; students will be provided with the deeper understanding of the disaster risk reduction actions and policies, relevant legislation and institutional frameworks, and how to monitor and influence the latest developments by the means of specific and easily measured indicators. They will be introduced to the relevant measures regarding preparedness, disaster mitigation and prevention of different natural and anthropogenic disasters; additionally, they will improve their knowledge of the disaster risk reduction as a national and local priority with strong institutional support and implementation. They will be able to identify, assess and monitor disaster risks and strengthen the system of early warning, to understand how to use this knowledge, innovative measures and former education and training in order to increase awareness of the security and disaster resilience at all levels. They will be presented with how to reduce the risk factors and improve disaster resilience in order to ensure efficient response at all levels. They will be able to prepare and announce national official assessments of the disaster risk reduction level in accordance with the capacity, need and policy of each state.  They will be able to understand relevant international legal instruments regarding disaster risk reduction, etc.