Demography

Demography
Bachelor in International Studies
ECTS Credits: 6.0
Semester: 2

COMPETENCES AND SKILLS THAT WILL BE ACQUIRED AND LEARNING RESULTS

BASIC AND GENERAL COMPETENCES
CG1 Understand social, political, legal and economic realities from a comparative perspective.
CG4 Be able to manage information: identify, organize and analyze relevant information critically and systematically within the context of international relations.
CG5 Be able to debate and formulate critical reasoning, using precise terminology and specialized resources, when analyzing international and global phenomena, employing both the concepts and knowledge from different disciplines as well as the methods of analysis, paradigms and concepts pertaining to the Social Sciences.

CB1 Be able to show that they possess and comprehend facts and contents in an area of study which, based on a previous general secondary school level, have been extended to those included in advanced textbooks and in some aspects proceed from the most advanced studies in this area.
CB2 Be able to show that they have learned how to apply their knowledge professionally to their future jobs or tasks and that they possess the competences needed to develop and defend arguments and solve problems in that area of study.
CB3 Be able to show that they are capable of collecting and interpreting the relevant data (normally within their area of study) needed for formulating judgments which require critical thought on social, scientific and ethical topics of relevance.
CB4 Be able to show that they are able to transmit information, ideas, problems and solutions both to specialized and non-specialized publics.
CB5 Be able to show that they have developed the learning skills required to perform further studies with a high degree of self-dependence.

OVERLAPPING COMPETENCES
CT1 Acquire the capacity to communicate knowledge in oral and written form, both to specialized and to non-specialized publics.
CT2 Acquire the capacity to establish good interpersonal communication and to work both in interdisciplinary and international teams.
CT3 Acquire the capacity to organize and plan workloads, taking correct decisions based on the available information, collecting and interpreting relevant data in order to provide assessments in that area of study.
CT4 Develop the motivation and capacity to perform independent continuous learning for life, with an endowment to adapt to change and new situations.

SPECIFIC COMPETENCES
CE7 Understand the main dynamics which generate inequality and its consequences, and comprehend the principles on which equal opportunity policies are based.
CE10 Be able to discern the differentiating elements in international problems in accordance to the development stages of a country.

LEARNING OUTCOMES
- to acquire tools for the analysis of the evolution of population and the understanding of contemporary patterns of fertility, mortality and migration in different historical contexts based on relevant theories and using empirical data.
- to understand the evolution of world population from a historical and contemporary perspective of the main forces behind these events.
- to identify the most probable scenarios for the coming decades based on current demographic trends.
- to acquire conceptual and methodological tools for the analysis of the driving forces of migration in a global context and understanding of the main theories.
- to understand the consequences of aging populations in advanced societies.
- to acquire a general view of population policies in comparative perspective.
- to acquire conceptual and methodological tools for critical evaluation of studies that deal with demography
- Knowledge of databases and training to perform basic demographic analysis.

DESCRIPTION OF CONTENTS: PROGRAMME

Introduction to demography (theory, indicators, methods and data sources) and the analysis of demographic trends and challenges from a global, comparative and historical perspective. The main processes of demographic change: fertility, mortality, migration and urbanization, with special attention to the causes and consequences of these processes. Consequences of demographic change and population policies: population aging and sustainability of the welfare state; overpopulation, environmental and health risks; the processes of urbanization, segregation, spatial diffusion and networks; demography, poverty and economic growth.

ASSESSMENT SYSTEM
- 40% Continuous work (assingments, labs, practicals, etc.)
- 60% End-of-term exam