Local navigation

PS 551: Introduction to Statistical Inference for Political Research

Course Description: Basic statistics course intended to provide students skills essential to read quantitative literature in Political Science and use basic empirical analyses. Fundamentals of probability theory and statistical inference up through bivariate regression and correlation.
Pre-Reqs: Completion of QRA. Sophomore standing

PS 552: Multivariable Statistical Inference for Political Research

Course Description: Extensive treatment of multiple regression and its variants.
Pre-Reqs: PS 551 or equivalent

PS 553: Introduction to Statistical Computing in Political Science

Course Description: Introduction to the issues of statistical computing in political science using statistical packages such as STATA and R with emphasis on developing sound practices for organizing data, protocols, and results in empirical research.
Pre-Reqs: Grad student or consent of instructor

PS 800: Political Science as a Discipline and Profession

Course Description: Describes and evaluates major approaches used in political science. Explores issues related to professional development and political science careers.
Pre-reqs: 1st year doctoral student in Political Science

PS 801: Research and Writing Seminar

Course Description: Intended for PhD students in political science to develop a seminar or conference paper into a publishable journal article. Emphasis on editing, revising, and peer feedback
Pre-reqs: Enrollment in Political Science Ph.D. program

PS 814: Social Identities: Definition and Measurement

Course Description: Analyzes the concept of social identities with a focus on definition, comparison, and measurement. Explores a range of theories as well as methodological techniques for measurement. Examines classic works on race, ethnic, national, class, gender, and religious identities.
Pre-reqs: Graduate student

PS 816: Empirical Methods of Political Inquiry: Qualitative

Course Description: Acquaints students with a wide variety of research methods used to analyze political phenomena, emphasizing qualitative approaches.
Pre-reqs: Graduate student

PS 817: Empirical Methods of Political Inquiry: Quantitative

Course Description: Acquaints students with a wide variety of research methods used to analyze political phenomena, emphasizing quantitative approaches.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 818: Maximum Likelihood Estimation

Course Description: Develops the theory of maximum likelihood estimation and applies it to models for discrete and limited dependent variables common to political and social science data.
Pre-reqs: PS 551 or equivalent

PS 820: Empirical Political Theory

Course Description: Analysis of contemporary behavioral theories of politics which apply broadly across the sub-fields of political science in relation to analogous theories in other social science disciplines
Pre-reqs: Graduate student

PS 821: Mass Political Behavior

Course Description: An empirical analysis of the role of mass publics in political life and the factors which determine the formation and expression of political beliefs and attitudes.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 823: Political Psychology

Course Description: The relationship between psychological processes and political thinking and behavior.
Topics may include the development and functioning of mass and elite level ideology and behavior, political communication, decision-making, perception, and the impact of political experiences on psychological states and processes.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 825: Race and Politics in the United States

Course Description: Analysis of the role of race, class and ethnicity in the political process. Evaluation of theories from political science, economics and sociology. Topics may include policy analysis, political organizations, immigration, political behavior and culture.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 826: The Legislative Process

Course Description: Analysis of legislative process and the role of the legislature in the political system, emphasizing current research.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 827: Interest Groups in American Politics

Course Description: The formation, structure, activities and power of interest groups in the United States with comparisons to interest groups in other countries.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 828: The Contemporary Presidency: Issues and Approaches

Course Description: Current topics of research interest on the American presidency. Alternative approaches and methods for the study of the presidency.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 829: Political Communication

Course Description: This course examines the role of communication in American politics. Topics covered include the communication of politics (e.g., communication by politics elites, effects of mass media and interpersonal communication on political attitudes) as well as the politics of communications (regulation of political communication, policy issues, etc.).
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 830: Constitutional Theory

Course Description: A review of a variety of modern approaches to constitutionalism and its challenges from a theoretical and comparative perspective.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 831: Concepts in Political Theory

Course Description: Studies in normative, analytical, or historical thought about politics
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 833: Topics in Ancient Political Thought

Course Description: Considers varied topics in Greek, Roman, early Christian and Medieval political theory; topics in non-Western ancient and medieval thought may also be offered.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 835: Game Theory and Political Analysis

Course Description: An introduction to the tools of game theoretic analysis, with reference to the use of game theory in political science. Intended for those desiring a basic familiarity with the theory, and for those planning further work in formal modeling.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 836: Formal Models in Political Science

Course Description: Provides an overview of formal, i.e., mathematical, models in political science. It is the second course in a two-semester sequence in formal theory, and builds directly upon the material presented in Political Science 835.
Pre-reqs: PS 835; working knowledge of basic differential and integral calc

PS 837: Formal Models of International Relations

Course Description: Provides an overview of the formal theory literature in international relations, including international security and international political economy.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student and PS 835

PS 839: Methods of Political Theory

Course Description: An overview of the central disciplinary approaches to interpreting, teaching, and writing about philosophical texts.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 840: Comparative Political Economy

Course Description: Survey of field of comparative political economy and in-depth study of political economy of democratic and non-democratic capitalist systems. Key themes include: business and labor relations, globalization and its impact on domestic political economies, rise of emergent powers.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 841: Seminar in International Business and Government

Course Description: This course examines and critiques evolving business-government relationships especially in advanced industrialized democracies; the effects of globalization on these relationships; varying business-government relationships at national, subnational and international levels.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 853: Comparative Political Institutions

Course Description: Comparative theoretical and empirical analysis of political institutions, including electoral systems, legislatures, executives, executive-legislative relationships, political parties, party systems, federalism, economic governance, and link between institutions and internationalization.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 854: Nationalism and Ethnic Conflict

Course Description: Comparative analysis of nationalism, national identity, and ethnicity and their impact on domestic and international conflict. Examines relationship between nationality, citizenship, and minority rights; territoriality and identity, contemporary religious nationalism; relationship between globalization and nationalism.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 855: Politics and Culture in Comparative Perspective

Course Description: Scholarly approaches linking cultural phenomena. Both theoretical and empirical patterns of politics and culture in several regions. The course also explores systematic linkages between politics and culture, evaluates common ways of studying them, and assesses their contemporary importance.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 856: Field Seminar in Comparative Politics

Course Description: A broad introduction to the field of comparative politics. It combines a theory-driven approach with a problem-driven approach to analyze key themes in comparative politics. Four paradigms in comparative politics--structural, cultural, rational-choice and institutional--will be reviewed.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 857: International Relations Theories

Course Description: Analysis of the major theories on the functioning of the international political system and the behavior of nations within it.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 860: Authoritarianism and Its Aftermath

Course Description: Analysis of totalitarian and authoritarian regimes: how and why they came about, what sustains them, the reasons they fall, and what comes after.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 861: Challenges of Democratization

Course Description: Explores the problems of crafting democracies in the broadest comparative perspectives to comprehend the benefit of democracy. Covers democratic drafting in terms of center/federalism, president/parliament, voting systems, party systems, civilian control of the military, etc.; as these relate to particulars of religion, region, language and other communalist identity.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 862: State and Society in Comparative Perspective

Course Description: Reviews a range of approaches that focus on civil society, social movements, ethnic and religious based mobilization, as well as gender and class based approaches to state-society relations.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 863: The Judicial Process

Course Description: Describes and evaluates major approaches used in political science. Explores issues related to professional development and political science careers.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 864: International Political Economy

Course Description: Analysis of key classical and contemporary theories in international political economy.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 865: The Supreme Court and the Constitution in American Politics

Course Description: Analysis of the development of major constitutional doctrines and their impact on politics and public policy in the United States.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 866: Global Environmental Governance

Course Description: In-depth examination of the political and policy challenges posed by global environmental degradation. Analysis of international institutions for managing the global environment.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 871: Public Program Evaluation

Course Description: Compares the conceptual, statistical, and ethical issues of experimental, quasi-experimental and non-experimental designs for program evaluation. Definitions of outcomes, sample size issues, statistical biases in measuring causal effects of programs, and the reliability of findings will be emphasized using case studies selected from current public programs.
Pre-reqs: Graduate student and Public Affairs 818 or equivalent, or cons inst

PS 872: Institutional Policy Analysis

Course Description: Analyzes public policy on how political institutions should be structured. Reforms of different branches of government are assessed through empirical research..
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 873: American Political Parties

Course Description: Reviews major approaches to analyzing political parties and understanding their developmental changes. Examines the parties in operation and the relationship of parties to the state and society.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 874: Policy-Making Process

Course Description: An intensive study of policy-making processes involved in the formulation of public policies.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 875: Public Personnel Administration

Course Description: Analysis of personnel policies and practices in the public sector and examination of patterns of interaction between political executives, personnel professionals, public employees, and interest groups in the development of personnel policies. Compares problems and approaches of different countries as well as those of the various levels of government in the United States.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 878: Public Management

Course Description: Role of administration in American government; problems of organization, bureaucracy and control; public policy as the output of the administrative process.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 881: American Political Development

Course Description: Examination of critical transformations in the structure and activities of the U.S. national state; political models of economic development; periodization versus non-periodization approaches; topics include liberalism and republicanism, southern exceptionalism, labor, race, populism, war and statebuilding; construction of the corporate economy.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 885: Advanced Public Management: Craft, Constraints and Accountability

Course Description: Examines how managers in public and not-for-profit agencies can secure and utilize legal authority, human resources, and funds to accomplish organizational goals. Includes strategies for establishing and maintaining effective external relations and for working through other organizations to accomplish objectives.
Pre-reqs: Pub Affr 878

PS 890: Federal Budget and Tax Policy and Administration

Course Description: Focuses on national budget and tax policy and administration, and the parallel processes at the state and local levels. Included are discussions of: decision-making theories; budget and tax policy; and analysis of normative and empirical criteria and analytical techniques for assessing alternative policy proposals.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student or consent of instructor

PS 900: Topics in Political Science

Course Description: An umbrella course for variable credit topic courses, such as colloquia series, workshops, intensive summer courses, half-semester courses, etc. Recent topics have included: Biodiversity, Conservation & Sustainable Development in China, Seminar in International Human Rights, Training Seminar in Gender Research
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student Prerequisites will according to topice

PS 904: Seminar-American Politics

Course Description: In-depth examination of selected topics on American politics and governmental institutions.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 905: Seminar-American Public Policy

Course Description: Selection of problems and design of research in the study of public policy.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 915: Seminar-Urban Politics

Course Description: Selection of problems and design of research in the study of public policy.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 917: Time Series Analysis

Course Description: This course introduces students to time series methods and applications, including ARMA models, error corrections models and reduced form specifications. Course also discusses co-integration and fractional integration.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student and PS 551 and PS 552

PS 919: Advanced Methodology

Course Description: Design of research and adaptation of advanced methods to solve particular methodological problems in original analyses of political data.
Pre-reqs: PS 551 or equivalent

PS 931: Seminar-Political Theory

Course Description: Analysis of and research on problems of theorizing in and about political life. Topics will vary.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 932: Seminar-Political Theory

Course Description: Analysis of and research on problems of theorizing in and about political life. Topics will vary.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 935: Seminar-Political Socialization

Course Description: Investigation of the processes and effects of political socialization under a variety of cultural conditions using available research data.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 937: Seminar-Topics in Political Psychology and Sociology

Course Description: Investigation of current problems and research strategies in political sociology and psychology; formulation and execution of individual research projects.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 940: Domestic Politics of International Relations

Course Description: Examines how domestic institutions and processes influence the international system. Also examines how international forces influence domestic politics in the areas of foreign policy, international political economy and security.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student and PS 857

PS 945: Seminar-National Security Affairs

Course Description: Contemporary military strategy, the interaction of military and political factors in international politics, and the processes and content of defense policies, with emphasis on the United States.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 948: Topics in Comparative Politics

Course Description: Research seminar on specific topics in comparative politics. Recent topics have included: Comparative Law, Empirical Study of Violence, Environmetal Sociology
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student and /or consent of instructor

PS 949: Seminar-Post Communist Politics

Course Description: Comparative study of political processes in the fomer Soviet Union and communist Eastern Europe states, focusing on the transition from and the continuing legacies of the communist experience; methodological issues in the study of post-communist politics.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 954: Seminar-Revolution and Violence

Course Description: Investigation of theories and case studies of the causes, methods, processes, and consequences of revolutionary movements and violent change.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 958: Seminar-Research in Public Affairs

Course Description: Research seminar on public affairs, management and analysis.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 959: Seminar-International Organizations

Course Description: Read, discuss and engage the modern literature on international institutions, regimes, and organizations.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 960: Seminar-International Relations

Course Description: Research seminar on specific topics in international relation politics.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 961: Seminar-African Politics

Course Description: Comparative study of political processes in the emerging states of Africa; emphasis on tropical African states with some consideration to the Mahgreb and Southern Africa; methodological problems in the study of African politics.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student and PS660 or equivalent

PS 962: Seminar-Latin American Politics

Course Description: This course is intended to provide a graduate-level introduction to the principal issues in the study of Latin American politics.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 964: Seminar-Design and Process of Survey Research

Course Description: Presentation of study designs or research in progress by members of seminar, for critiques leading to further development of project and illustration of research problems in the social sciences.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 969: Seminar-Trends and Issues in Public Planning

Course Description: Topics course that provides a critical review of recent and current thought on the nature and role of planning in governmental and quasi-governmental agencies with particular attention to the adverse critics of planning and the issues they raise about the policy formulation process in public affairs.
Pre-reqs: Consent of instructor

PS 973: Seminar-Political Parties

Course Description: Selection of problems and design of research in the structure and functions of political parties.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 979: Seminar-Administration in Developing Countries

Course Description: Special problems of developmental administration in nations newly organizing modern bureaucracies and public services.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 981: Seminar in the Analysis of Western Europe

Course Description: Focus on a topic of comparative interest to historians, political scientists, and sociologists to provide opportunity to integrate the various perspectives for a more complete analysis.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student and consent of instructor

PS 983: Interdepartmental Seminar-African Studies

Course Description: Interdisciplinary inquiry in African society and culture.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student or consent of instructor

PS 987: Comparative Politics Colloquium

Course Description: Presentation and evaluation of comparative politics research in progress by members of the workshop and invited speakers.
Pre-reqs: Enrollment in the Political Science doctoral program or consent of instructor

PS 988: International Relations Workshop

Course Description: Presentation and evaluation of International Relations research in progress by members of the workshop and invited speakers.
Pre-reqs: Enrollment in the Political Science doctoral program or consent of instructor

PS 989: American Politics Workshop

Course Description: Presentation and evaluation of American politics research in progress by members of the workshop and invited speakers.
Pre-reqs: Enrollment in the Political Science doctoral program or consent of instructor

PS 990: Research and Thesis

Course Description: Describes and evaluates major approaches used in political science. Explores issues related to professional development and political sciPence careers.
Pre-reqs: Graduate Student

PS 999: Independent Work

Course Description: Under the direction of a staff member.
Pre-reqs: Graduate student and written consent of instructor