Postgraduate Module Descriptor

LAWM715: International Migration and the Law

This module descriptor refers to the 2017/8 academic year.

Module Aims

This module aims to provide you with a deep understanding of the international law framework for the regulation of international migration and the legal, political and conceptual problems associated with this framework. You will learn to appreciate and analyse key debates and undertake independent academic research at an advanced level in this area.

The module also aims to develop your capacity to present complex ideas and to identify, explain, analyse and critique in writing complex factual material, legal instruments, and debates and concepts, using appropriate structure, register and language and supported by competent referencing and bibliography.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
This module's assessment will evaluate your achievement of the ILOs listed here - you will see reference to these ILO numbers in the details of the assessment for this module.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to:
Module-Specific Skills	1. Demonstrate deep and systematic knowledge and understanding of the main international and EU law instruments relevant to international migration and the relationship between them and with national laws; 2. Demonstrate an in-depth understanding of the operation and effectiveness of the relevant international law in a number of selected areas and the difficulties that arise from their interaction with national states laws and politics; 3. Identify, explain and evaluate key issues relating to international and European law and migration critically and comprehensively and to apply relevant rules and theoretical concepts systematically 4. Carry out independent advanced research into complex legal and policy questions within the area of international migration law;
Discipline-Specific Skills	5. Demonstrate detailed and comprehensive knowledge and understanding of legal concepts and critical awareness of their contextual/social/political implications 6. Identify, explain, analyse and critique in writing complex factual material, legal instruments, and debates and concepts, using appropriate structure, register and language and supported by competent referencing and bibliography. 7. Integrate and assess complex information from primary and secondary legal sources comprehensively, using appropriate interpretative techniques
Personal and Key Skills	8. Manage relevant learning resources/ information/ learning strategies confidently and independently, and to develop own arguments and opinions at a very high/ professional level 9. Identify, retrieve and use the full range of library-based and electronic resources efficiently and autonomously

Module Content

Syllabus Plan

While the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is anticipated that most of the following topics will be covered:

Problems in regulating migration in international law including state sovereignty and the politics of migration globally and nationally;
The main international European and some other regional instruments in this area;
Attribution of nationality, deprivation of citizenship and statelessness;
Admission and expulsion of non-citizens;
The human rights obligations of states towards migrants;
Refugees and others in need of humanitarian or other forms of protection (e.g. victims of trafficking);
EU free movement and its impact on national immigration controls
Responsibilities of states towards migrants travelling by sea;
Migrant workers (including migrant domestic workers);
Family life across national boundaries.

Learning and Teaching

This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:

Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	Guided independent study	Placement / study abroad
33	267	0

...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:

Category	Hours of study time	Description
Scheduled Learning & Teaching activities	33	11 x 3 hour student-led seminars. Students will have worked in groups to research topics agreed in advance with the module tutor and will present these for discussion during the class
Guided Independent Study	157	Preparation for seminars
Guided Independent Study	30	Preparation for formative assessment
Guided Independent Study	80	Preparation for summative assessment

Online Resources

This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).