“I’ll know it when I see it!” That’s the phrase Judge Potter Stewart used in 1964, though he wasn’t describing terrorism (but rather, something else). Nevertheless, it could just as easily be applied to terrorism. If you select this minor, you will develop skills and knowledge that will take you beyond “knowing it when you see it”: you will understand the origins, development and causes of modern terrorism. You will be able to explain which criteria are relevant in making someone a terrorist, and how societies (and governments) respond to (as well as try to prevent) terrorism. You will be able to apply this knowledge to contemporary situations, so that by the end, you’ll be able to answer the most important question: “What is it, and how do we stop it?”.

This minor will cover the following topics:

• What is (modern) terrorism? How do we define it? How did it develop?
• Which forms does (modern) terrorism take? How do we distinguish between different forms?
• Who is a terrorist? How does someone become a terrorist?
• What are general principles of counter-terrorism? How has counter-terrorism changed in recent years?
• What are some of the contemporary topics in counter-terrorism?
• What are some of the differences between theory and practice when it comes to (counter-) terrorism?

At the end of this minor, the student will understand the origins, development and causes of modern terrorism. They will be able to explain which criteria are relevant in making someone a terrorist, and how societies (and governments) respond to (as well as try to prevent) terrorism. They will be able to apply this knowledge to contemporary situations.

This minor is open to students from all study programmes.

Students should have a command of English equal to CEFR B2 or higher. All literature and classes will be in English, and students are advised to take this into consideration. 

Students will be required to purchase literature (or a license to e-books). All reasonable attempts will be made to restrict this to no more than € 150 per student.

Description of teaching methods: Lectures, workshops, assignments

Contact hours: Classes (2x 180 minutes, 1x 120 minutes) will normally be scheduled on three of the following days: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and/or Thursday.

• Knowledge, written exam tasks, 9 ECTS, minimum 5,5: During the minor, students are asked to complete multiple smaller exam tasks. Each task is worth a specific number of points (50 or 100), and at the end of the course all scores are added and divided to come to a grade.
• Assignments, 4 ECTS, minimum VLD: Students will be asked to complete smaller assignments (individually or in a group) throughout the block, which must be uploaded individually to a Dropbox (on Moodle).
• Participation, continuous assessment, 2 ECTS, minimum VLD: Students are expected to come to class prepared to discuss materials. In the case of guest speakers, they are expected to engage actively with the guest speaker by asking relevant questions and responding to discussion points.