Social and Solidarity Economy (KAO)

Objective – Description

Admission requirements

Learning Outcomes

Structure

Teaching Staff

Financial Contribution

Contact

The Post-Graduate Studies Program in “Social and Solidarity Economy” (henceforth SSE) is multidisciplinary, combining the majority of the social sciences, namely Economics, Sociology, Political Science, Law, Geography, and Psychology. Its objectives are twofold, both academic and practical. It offers specialized theoretical and research knowledge in a field that is rapidly growing globally, in addition to specialized practical and applied skills.

The PSP aims to produce graduates with the necessary knowledge and skills to either contribute to theoretical and empirical scientific research or directly implement the principles, values, and practices of the Social and Solidarity Economy by initiating new social and solidarity economy ventures or enhancing already existing ones, through counsel to anyone interested in establishing them, planning the local development of Social and Solidarity Economy or staffing the local, regional and central administration / government and the support structures of the social and solidarity economy.

Type of Postgraduate Programme

Master of Science, M.Sc.

ECTS of M.Sc.

The total sum of ECTS (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System) required for the completion of this M.Sc. is 120 ECTS. Students can select to study Modules whose ECTS adds up to no more than 30 ECTS per semester.

Duration of Study

The minimum time required for the completion of the M.Sc. is two (2) years.

Language of the M.Sc.

The official language of the M.Sc. is Greek. This means that the language in which all materials content and written assignments is Greek.

Classification according to ISCED-2011 of UNESCO:

Based on the level of Education: 7

Classification according to ISCED-2013 of UNESCO:

Based on the field of Education: 0318 – Inter – disciplinary programmes and qualifications involving Economics, Political Sciences and Civics, Psychology, Sociology and Cultural Studies.

QUALITY POLICY *

QUALITY INDICATORS *

*The above files are currently available in Greek.

The Post-graduate programme accepts graduates or higher institution diplomas of related disciplines. The programme is offered in Greek.

The knowledge of a foreign language and good computer-Internet skills would be useful for the successful participation in the programme.

Note:

Holders of a degree or diploma of higher education means graduates of Greek Universities or Polytechnics or Higher School of Fine Arts or Higher School of Pedagogical and Technological Education or Higher Technological Educational Institutions (ATEI) or those who hold academically equivalent first cycle degrees from recognized foreign educational institutions with the degrees awarded by the Greek Higher Educational Institutions, in accordance with the provisions of article 304 of Law No. 4957/2022 (Government Gazette 141/21.07.2022, vol.)

Marking:

For the evaluation of the application to the Postgraduate Studies Programme, it will be examined whether the candidate’s institution of study is or may be included in the National Register of Recognised Higher Education Institutions of Foreign Countries and whether the candidate’s degree is or may be included in the National Register of Types of Degrees of Recognised Institutions of Foreign Countries.

The Hellenic Open University, if the degree is included in the list of article 307 of Law No. 4957/2022, must request a “Certificate of Place of Study”, which is issued and sent by the foreign university. If the place of study or part of the studies is confirmed as the Greek territory, the degree is not recognized, unless the part of the studies that took place in the Greek territory is in a public higher education institution or in a recognized foreign educational institution within the meaning of paragraph b) of article 299 of Law No. 4957/2022.

Upon completion of the Social and Solidarity Economy (Henceforth SSE) PSP, graduates will have learned:

The content, history, and foundations of the concept of SSE.
The basic theoretical – epistemological assumptions and central arguments of the contemporary approaches to SSE.
To identify the diverse types of SSE enterprise, rewards for labor, finance, and transactions.
To critically approach contemporary theories regarding the commons.
The technologies and practices based on or focused on the commons.
To research the commons through an interdisciplinary, multi-faceted approach, combining theoretical study and discussion with practical and participatory learning procedures.

The opportunities and challenges arising from the emergence of new collaborative models of production of commons.

The various approaches to development policies and their spatial dimensions.
The various approaches to social innovation.
To plan the organization and development of the SSE, at the community level, either local or regional.
The objectives and political stakes of public policies as well as the factors that shape them in specific countries.

To assess relations, historically and critically, between the state and the SSE.
The historicity of the political debate that is evolving centered on the SSE.
How to plan and implement public SSE policies.
To assess the relation, historically and critically, between social movements and the SSE.

To identify and evaluate business “opportunities” and innovative perspectives in SSE.
The recent economic – technological developments and evaluating their impact on the SSE.

To develop and coordinate SSE venture management and function strategies.
To develop the appropriate strategies for product and service placement and diversification.

The terms and necessary prerequisites for the creation of different types of teams, in addition to their stages of development.

The factors that influence team dynamics.
To plan and implement communication models between those involved in SSE ventures.
To suggest means of resolving inter-team conflicts.
To plan reflective and self-evaluation processes for team projects.
The variety of management models across SSE ventures.
To support team members of SSE ventures in planning and implementing decision-making and management models.

To organize the management functions of an SSE venture.
To collectively coordinate SSE venture employees.
To program and oversee the implementation of production processes.
To identify and determine the funding/financial requirements of SSE ventures.
The national and European policies in place for funding SSE ventures, in addition to the management and financial positions of said ventures.

To identify and evaluate the available sources of alternate funding for SSE ventures.

To assess the possible risks of alternative sources of funding for SSE ventures and fulfill their individual objectives.

To make decisions in conditions of uncertainty and risk, ensuring the investment readiness of an SSE venture.

1st Semester

2nd Semester

3rd Semester

Semester 4

KAODT Post-Graduate Diploma Thesis (C, 30 ECTS)

Note: C1: Compulsory

Guidelines for the selection of the Thematic Unit:

Students may select one (1) to three (3) T.U. per semester.
In the first semester, if students select only one (1) T.U., they are required to select KAO50. If they select two (2) T.U., they are required to select KAO50 and KAO51. If they select all three, the third shall be KAO52.
In the following two semesters, students may select any of the T.U.s available in each semester, under the condition that they also select any T.U.s that they had not selected from the previous semester. For better comprehension of the individual subjects, the following selection orders are suggested: KAO62-KAO61-KAO60 for the 2nd Semester and KAO71-KAO72-KAO70 for the 3rd semester. Students may begin writing their Diploma Thesis upon successful completion of all nine (9) T.U.s included in the PSP.

Organizational Information

The first semester includes two introductory Thematic Units on the principles and theories (KAO50) and organizational structures and forms of the KAO correspondingly (KAO51), in addition to one Thematic Unit (KAO52) that highlights and discuKAOs modern issues revolving around the commons.

The second semester includes two Thematic Units that combine theory and practice (KAO60 and KAO61), and one historically and theoretically oriented T.U. (KAO62). The first second-semester T.U. discuKAOs the social innovation and communal economic development that the KAO aims to achieve (KAO60). The second T.U. centers on the modern institutional framework in which the KAO functions in tandem with modern public policy (KAO61), while the third T.U. discuKAOs the relationship between the KAO and other forms of collective action, focusing on the one hand on the movements with which it has been connected in the past, and on the other with the state (KAO62).
The third semester is more practically oriented. The first T.U. of the third semester is dedicated to KAO business planning (KAO70), the second to KAO enterprise management (KAO71) and the third to KAO enterprise financial management and funding (KAO72).

DIRECTOR OF THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES

Gritzas Giorgos,

Subject: Geographical Analysis and Social and Solidarity Economy for Spatial Development

e-mail: gritzas.georgios@ac.eap.gr

COORDINATORS

ΚΑΟ50	GRITZAS	GIORGOS	CV
ΚΑΟ51	KOUTSOU	STAVRIANI	CV
ΚΑΟ52	ARVANITIDIS	PASCHALIS	CV
ΚΑΟ60	ANTHOPOULOU	THEODOSIA	CV
ΚΑΟ61	ADAM	SOFIA	CV
ΚΑΟ62	KAVOULAKOS	KAROLOS IOSIF	CV
ΚΑΟ70	KONTOGEORGOS	ACHILLEAS	CV
ΚΑΟ71	SERGAKI	PANAGIOTA	CV
ΚΑΟ72	KOUMANAKOS	EVANGELOS	CV