The Advanced Certificate in Political Thought (ACPT) focuses on the comparative, historical and contextual exploration of political thought. The ACPT works across the Departments of Gender Studies, History, International Relations, Medieval Studies, Philosophy and Political Science. Students pursuing the Advanced Certificate in Political Thought as part of their MA studies in the participating departments will engage in the comparative study of political thought from a variety of perspectives. Special attention is given to the historicity of diverse political traditions but also to recurring themes and questions. Learning to recognize political thought, both past and present, as being time- and place-specific equips students, regardless of their major field of study, with additional analytical and methodological skills grounded in the appreciation of the contextual and intertextual aspects of diverse intellectual traditions. Beyond contextualization the students learn about comparative methods, addressing topics of political thought from intercultural and diachronic perspectives.

The ACPT also aims to provide a specific professional framework for participating students and faculty, by linking the program to transnational networks, generating faculty interaction, research and co-teaching. Each fall term the program offers a core course “Introduction to Political Thought”, where members of different CEU departments will introduce their various perspectives on political thought.

The program is offered with 10 credits for students in one-year MA programs and 14 credits for students in two-year MA programs.