Government Pavilion, C/ Padre Herrera s/n
Post Office Box 456
38200, San Cristobal de La Laguna
Santa Cruz de Tenerife - Spain
Switchboard Tel.: (+34) 922 31 90 00
Hours: Mon, 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
University Expert in Political Leadership and Governance
Title justification
2.1.-JUSTIFICATION OF THE TITLE*:
The title proposed in this report aims to train and educate civil servants, social leaders, public managers, political leaders, researchers, and all those interested in public administration and democratic political developments. It responds to the specific needs existing in constitutional democracies regarding the training of public managers and civil society. This fourth title "Political Leadership and Governance" is part of a framework project that includes the development of four other university expertise courses in complementary fields. The first of these "Democracy and Political Parties (from a public ethics perspective)" ended in December 2013, the second of them “Public Policy Management” which ended in July 2015, the third, “Governance, Local Development and Equity”, ended in July 2017 and the fourth one we present in this Report, which will be developed in the last quarter of 2018.
Its title is:
University Expert in Political Leadership and Governance.
In this way, potential students in this program will be able to independently complete one or more courses according to their interests. Successful completion of all four courses will provide the option—if the requirements established in current regulations are met—to obtain a Master's degree in Open Government and Public Policies (own degree from the University of La Laguna)
This fourth expert title in “Political Leadership and Governance” It integrates into its teaching staff teachers and researchers from the University of La Laguna and also other professors from different Spanish Universities and national Research Institutes.
The interests of these professors are related to political, social, legal, and pedagogical studies, but above all, they focus on achieving efficient, transparent, and democratic public management, as well as a social conscience guided by ethical values. The processes of uprooting, disintegration, and the breakdown of social cohesion have very high economic and social costs and must be recognized and appreciated by managers and political leaders.
For this reason, given that public management and the issues it addresses are multidisciplinary in nature, it's obvious that its faculty must also be multidisciplinary. Thus, this third expert qualification we propose integrates not only university professors and researchers, but also professionals in law, sociology, education, philosophy, and other disciplines.
In addition, some teachers who have political responsibilities and whose contribution – in the practical aspect of training – is of significant importance are participating.
This range of interests and objectives is unified with the aim of achieving a well-trained, high-quality expert with experience in the various areas involved in public management to improve its transparency and reliability. The rationale behind this title lies in the current vulnerability of citizens to government actions and their growing distance from institutions. This underlines the need for citizen oversight of the processes of public policy development and approval, but particularly of transparency and innovation in governance.
Furthermore, the development of academic programs and the use of pedagogical methods that facilitate the achievement of the goals of transforming the conduct and behavior of managers, with the aim of improving public management and democratic transparency, are of particular interest to civil society. It is essential that a degree for this type of political and social expert be included in the academic curriculum of the University of La Laguna.
This fourth degree "Political Leadership and Governance" was signed under the Framework Agreement dated April 18, 2008 between the Island Council of Tenerife and the University of La Laguna, an Agreement for the development of joint action programs and that on March 31, 2014, supplemented on June 17, 2014, the University of La Laguna presented a descriptive and budgetary report for its own degree "University Expert in Political Leadership and Governance", for whose execution a subsidy was requested as in previous editions to the Island Council of Tenerife.
2.2.-ANALYSIS OF SOCIAL, ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL DEMAND*:
The University of La Laguna offers various undergraduate degrees whose professional profiles are directly in demand by public managers, such as:
- Bachelor's Degree in Law.
- Bachelor's Degree in Economics.
- Bachelor's Degree in Sociology.
- Bachelor's Degree in Education.
Furthermore, due to the broadly multidisciplinary nature of the program, as well as the fact that the degree is intended to be given a practical and theoretical dimension, this proposal seeks to develop the knowledge, habits, and skills of public managers and political leaders to take into account the requirements of the social context. This will contribute to meeting the potential demand for graduate specialization in:
- Bachelor's degree in Law.
- Bachelor's degree in Economics.
- Bachelor's degree in Sociology.
- Bachelor's degree in Philosophy.
- Bachelor's/degree in Business Administration.
Through this expert program, graduating students would receive training elements, conceptual and methodological tools, in the areas of management and the training of political leaders, based on the provision of theoretical and practical elements of public management, using a comprehensive and social approach. For all of them, this would be an important complement to their professional training.
Should demand exceed the number of places available, priority will be given to graduates of the Faculty of Social Sciences and Communication, graduates of the Faculty of Law, the Faculty of Economics, the Faculty of Philosophy, and the Faculty of Education, as well as public officials with proven experience in their respective positions. Preference will also be given to students who have completed university-level qualifications previously offered by CEILAM.
2.3.-INFORMATION ON THE SITUATION OF SIMILAR OR RELATED DEGREES IN EUROPE AND SPAIN, AND CONSISTENCY WITH UNDERGRADUATE OR POSTGRADUATE DEGREES*:
An increasing number of Spanish universities are increasingly seeking to offer courses on issues related to public management, such as the universities of Seville, Burgos, Oviedo, Complutense University, Zaragoza, and Santiago de Compostela, among others. These degrees are taught at diverse centers, such as research institutes, faculties, or departments related to studies such as sociology, law, education, or philosophy. If we focus on the offerings in the Canary Islands, we can see that there are no degrees of this nature offered, but rather related disciplines such as development cooperation. Precisely this fact has led us to formulate this training proposal. In it, all these issues concerning effective public management and ethical political awareness are much more structured, even allowing for professional internships based on the students' educational profile (law, pedagogy, economics, etc.). Thus, in this degree, we aim for students to complete 9 theoretical credits, 3 external internship credits, and a 3-credit final project.
Theoretical training is common and compulsory for all students, as is the final degree project. However, internships can be validated with proof of professional experience in the field of public administration and in the field of knowledge covered by the expert qualification being awarded. All this is in accordance with current regulations.
2.4.-OTHERS*:
This degree has received a positive assessment from the Center for Latin American Interdisciplinary Studies (CEILAM) of the University of La Laguna—the center responsible for the courses—and the Department of Education, Youth and Equality of the Island Council has also positively evaluated and endorsed it, supporting and funding its implementation.
2.5.-DESCRIPTION OF THE INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL CONSULTATION PROCEDURES USED TO PREPARE THE CURRICULUM. THESE MAY HAVE BEEN WITH PROFESSIONALS, STUDENTS, OR OTHER GROUPS:
This project was carried out by an academic and professional team with experience in teaching, research, and public policy issues. Contacts were also maintained with representatives and leaders of institutions, unions, and other public and private entities at the local, national, and international levels interested in recruiting professionals trained in the topics we propose. In this regard, it should be noted that these institutions are a good indicator of the social demand in our community for the professional profiles that graduates of this degree will possess.
