A note on 500-level courses: Undergraduates who have attained at least junior status and who have completed PSCI 100 or 200 and three additional courses in political science, or who have obtained prior approval of the department chair, may enroll in 500-level courses.

5000-Level Courses

6000-Level Courses

5000-Level Courses

6000-Level Courses

This course will review current literature in the area of political behavior and psychology. Special attention will be paid to controversies in voting behavior and the meaning and significance of vital concepts such as partisanship, ideology, issue voting, belief systems, political sophistication, affective reactions to politics, and the dynamics of citizen participation.

This course provides a graduate-level introduction to American public policy. The focus of this course will be on the stages or elements of the policy process as a means of analysis. While this approach has traditionally included policy formation, implementation and evaluation, it is expanded to include policy studies and other important theoretical aspects of public policy. Consequently, this course will attempt to provide a synthesis between classical and behavioral political science.

This course focuses on the development of policy over time and across state and national boundaries. It deals with how and why policies emerge in particular forms in different countries. Selected substantive issues will be examined comparatively in greater detail.

An examination of two models, the free market mechanism and national industrial policy, that explains how the political-economic system functions in the U.S. and in the American states. The relationship between private enterprise and democracy will be assessed in response to global economic challenges. The American political economy is compared with alternative approaches in the world.

• PSCI 6200: Topics in Public Policy

An examination of selected issues in the field of public policy. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

Study of selected topics in public administration. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

• PSCI 6311 Monitoring and Evaluation of International Development Projects-3 hrs.

This class considers how monitoring and evaluation can be used to enhance the effectiveness of programs and projects in developing countries. We address the main methodologies employed in project evaluation and standards for assessing the quality of evaluations, and we study and critique several completed evaluations.

Consideration of the theoretical and practical aspects of governmental budgeting and financial management in developing countries. Emphasis is placed on developing planning, management of international aid for development projects, budgeting for state-owned enterprises, and basic tools for budget analysis.

This course examines the causes and consequences of more and less effective development strategies primarily at the national level. While the main focus is on experiences with industrialization, the class also considers approaches to agriculture, public health, and other areas of development.

The seminar is devoted to teaching skills, methods and approaches related to administration in developing areas. Topics may include the logical framework, stakeholder analysis, cost benefit analysis, monitoring, evaluation, and participatory methods. The project paper will be shared with other students in the seminar .

As a capstone to the MIDA program, this research seminar calls upon the student to examine the design and implementation of a particular development policy. We address constraints encountered in the policy implementation process and students develop a proposal that would improve conditions in the selected area. Permission of the MIDA Director required to enroll.

Research and study in selected topics in comparative politics. Topics will usually be thematic but may also encompass a regional or country study. In all cases significant issues in the study of the field will be stressed. May be repeated for credit when topics vary. PSCI 641 is prerequisite.

This course surveys the core of the research field of comparative politics, which is concerned principally with the discovery and confirmation of knowledge about the institutions and behavior of the governments and their citizens. The course introduces students to the history of the field, important approaches and theories, major concepts and topics, and its eclectic methodologies.

This class examines theories of economic and social development at the national level since World War II and applications of these theories in specific cases.

The seminar will discuss the challenges faced as well as some successful approaches in rural development in developing countries around the world. Dynamics of agrarian societies and national and local level development policies and programs will be examined. The links between rural development, agriculture, food security, poverty reduction strategies, and resource availability are analyzed. Challenges leaders face in designing and/or reforming administrative structures, institutions, and policies and programs to pursue effective rural development are considered.

Variable topics examining the course of political development among the developing countries, with special reference to the relationship between administrative needs and democratic objectives. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

An analysis of problems and subject matter considered by political philosophers that are significant to the social sciences. Various issues arising in political thought, certain periods in history, or regions of the world may be considered. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

Focus will be on twentieth and twenty-first century writers. Topics may include contemporary forms of liberalism, contemporary theories of justice, contemporary civic republican theory, communitarian theory, critical theory, Continental theory, post-structuralist theory, feminist theory, multicultural political theory, Marxian theory, pragmatism, contemporary forms of conservatism, libertarianism, and rational choice theory. Basic concepts and political processes will be examined critically.

A synthesis of the history of political philosophy and the formal analysis of those positive and normative concepts and processes necessary to the understanding of political systems. The course covers the period from classical Greece through the Renaissance. Superimposed on the overall chronological format are critical inquiries into basic concepts and processes.

A synthesis of the history of political philosophy from the seventeenth century to contemporary times. The course also includes a formal analysis of applicable positive and normative concepts necessary to the understanding of political systems. Superimposed on the overall chronological format are critical inquiries into basic concepts and processes.

An examination of the principles underlying the systematic study of politics. Included are discussions of such basic questions as: How do we obtain knowledge of politics?; How do we explain political phenomena? and What is the relationship between the empirical analysis and normative evaluation of political phenomena? Attention will be given to leading approaches to the study of politics and the formulation and use of concepts, generalizations and theories.

Variable topics in advanced political analysis and research methods are addressed. Topics may include time-series analysis, experimental design, formal methods, game theory, and comparative methods. May be repeated for credit when topics vary. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Introduction to the research process in political science including research design, sampling and case selection, sources of data (e.g., surveys, interviews, archives, government agencies, etc.), and basic descriptive statistics.

The application of statistical and mathematical models to the analysis of political data with emphasis on methodological assumptions and problems: correlation; analysis of variance; and simple and multiple regression. Prerequisite: PSCI 691 or equivalent.

This course addresses the basics of teaching in higher education: class preparation, leading discussions, classroom policies, university policies, classroom management, dealing with problem situations, and basic teaching skills, among others.

This course introduces advanced graduate students and teaching assistants to ideas, information and methods that are innovative and encourages them to approach teaching in a way that goes beyond the traditional lecture format. Critical thinking exercises, group projects, project-oriented learning, portfolio learning, computer-aided instruction and computer simulations are possible topics. Recent research on the nature of the learning process, both among late adolescents and adults, will also be included. Graded on a Credit/No Credit basis. Prerequisite: PSCI 694.

Goals in this course include acquaintance with the department's research agenda; familiarization with the state of the discipline; overcoming common writing problems faced by professionals; demystifying certain professional activities such as conference participation, article submission and grant writing; familiarization with on-campus facilities, including library and computer support; and introduction to computer programs and databases commonly used in political science.

During the course of this workshop, the student will develop a dissertation proposal (and attending grant proposals, where appropriate). While this will be done primarily in conjunction with the committee, the workshop will provide a weekly support structure in which students will discuss their research question, progress and any complications. Graded on a Credit/No Credit basis. Open only to doctoral students.