Politics, Economics and Sustainability
The Politics, Economics and Sustainability undergraduate course is accessible starting from the fourth year and has been designed in accordance with the general characteristics of the Scuola Normaleís undergraduate courses.
The course is offered by the Faculty of Political and Social Sciences at the Scuolaís Florence campus, in Palazzo Strozzi and Palazzo Vegni. It is integrated with the Masterís degree programmes at the University of Florence. The course is taught in English and provides tools for analyzing and interpreting political, societal and economic change through the lens of environmental and social sustainability challenges.
The teaching is structured around three core thematic areas and one transversal methodological area:
1)socio-political: democracy, political communication, associations and social movements, comparative politics;
2)socio-economic: economic politics, social politics, sociology of work, including topics such as technological innovation, inequality, gender relations and migration;
3)socio-environmental: climate crisis and ecological/social sustainability, transformation of values and everyday practices, regulatory frameworks and environmental policies, socio-technical transition;
4)methodological: qualitative and quantitative tools for research and political analysis.
Each thematic area includes one mandatory course. The remaining courses are electives and are shared with the PhD programme in Political Science and Sociology at the Scuola Normale Superiore, offering students a unique educational experience alongside peers from around the world who are already engaged in research, fostering critical thinking and academic socialization.
The teaching programme encourages active student participation, involving presentations and short essay writing.
Distinctive features of the course include the international environment of the Scuola, personalized academic mentoring and research supervision. The course is mainly aimed at students who have completed a Bachelor's degree in Political Science, Sociology, Economics or Environmental Sciences.
Students in the Politics, Economics and Sustainability programme at the Faculty of Political and Social Sciences simultaneously enrol in one of the Masterís programmes of the Cesare Alfieri School of Political Science at the University of Florence: PIM ñ Politics, Institutions and Marketing (LM-62) SOSGLO ñ Sociology and Global Challenges (LM-88) RISE ñ International Relations and European Studies (LM-52 and LM-90), which can be attended entirely in English.
As elective examinations, students may also choose courses from other departments of the University of Florence, such as those on economic and environmental topics, offered also in English by the School of Economics and Management.
The course includes four courses per year, totalling 80 hours annually.
Students of the Politics, Economics and Sustainability programme will find career opportunities in both the public and private sectors.
The course prepares students for social research, as well as for policy analysis and communication on environmental, economic, political and technological transitions. It equips students with tools for pursuing postgraduate studies, such as Master's programmes and PhDs, including the PhD programmes at the SNS, as well as for high-level roles in public administration, European institutions, international organizations, civil society organizations (particularly in areas related to environment, development and social rights), research institutes, consulting firms, corporate think tanks and the media sector.