https://studiegids.vu.nl/en/courses/2025-2026/S_NMThis course introduces students to the study of international migration and how the phenomena, perceptions, and policies towards migration reflect and shape the governance and self-perception of nation-states. Learning outcomes Knowledge and understanding. Students have acquired knowledge and understanding of: (1) the key theories, concepts and methods for the study of migration in the social sciences. Application. Students have acquired the competences to: (2) apply these to analyse migration dynamics in selected case studies. Attitude. Students are able to demonstrate: (3) a critical perspective on current events surrounding migration.Today’s debates on migration are often inseparable from nations’ perceptions of themselves and each other. This course discusses the relevance of migration in today’s global world, particularly in relation to identity concerns (diasporas, transnationalism, nationalism, multicultural societies), development (migration and development) and international political issues (migration governance and ethnography of the state). The course introduces students to major theories to understand migration, but privileges the adoption of constructivist approaches. It invites students to look at migration from the perspectives of people engaging in migration directly, of people encountering migrants as new neighbours, or of people tasked with the function of controlling and governing migration. Through this perspective, students engage with processes of community building and belonging, and with the power struggles associated with migration. They acquire a thorough theoretical knowledge and critical view of these phenomena and key concepts that can help understand them. How do migrants construct their identities on the move? How do transnational communities and diasporas develop? How do national communities respond to migration and deal with the diversity that derives from it? How is migration governed and controlled by state apparatuses in migrant countries of origin and destination? How do the bureaucrats and professionals dealing with migration translate migration policies into everyday practices? What are the implications of migration for development and social transformation in both origin and destination societies? We will also consider how the relationship between nation and migration is affected by perceptions of gender and sexuality.The course will be a combination of lectures and group work. Students should come prepared to discuss readings assigned for each class and answer questions on them. Students will discuss questions in groups and then report back to the plenary.Combination of formative and summative assessments together with a final exam.To be announced in the course manual (see CANVAS).2nd year bachelor students in Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology; Students in the Minor Anthropology and in the minor Development & Global Challenges.