Undergraduate

International relations, including everything from trade to terrorism, fundamentally shape our world. In this course, students will develop analytical tools to identify puzzles and theorize about answers on crucial issues of international relations. Students will also gain skills and experience to empirically explore these questions, including through critical engagement with different types of academic articles, the examination of quantitative evidence, the exploration of cases, and policy analysis of evolving situations. This course assumes no background of international relations and serves as a prerequisite for several upper-level classes on international relations.

This course is an introduction to the methods employed in empirical political science research. We will cover basic topics in research design, statistics, and formal modeling, considering many examples along the way. The two primary goals of the course are: (1) to provide students with analytic tools that will help them to understand how political scientists do empirical research, and (2) to improve students' ability to pose and answer research questions on their own. There are no prerequisites.

Note: Course description is from Fall 2013

This class is an introduction to the American political system. The course is designed to make you think about the logic of our government's institutions, and the consequences - both intended and unintended - of these institutions for the political behavior of citizens, legislators, and other political leaders and activists. Topics to be covered include the Constitution, American political culture, civil rights, the presidency, Congress, Supreme Court, political parties, elections, public opinion, and interest groups.

Please note the description is from Spring 2014

This course provides an overview of California politics, with a focus on contemporary issues and an analysis of who wields power and why. Specifically, the course will focus on : the demographic, social and economic forces that shape the State's politics- the three official branches of state government (executive, legislative and judicial)- the three unofficial branches (the media, lobbyists and interest groups)- campaigns (candidates, initiatives, consultants, pollsters, political parties and money), local government, the state budget and education policies.

Subfield:   American Politics

Please note this description is from Fall 2013

Political theory is about ideas, including freedom, equality, and justice.  Political ideas matter because we act on them; they inform our institutions of governance.  They matter too because we debate our future using them; they tell us what is to be done.  By the end of this course, you should have a better grasp of the ideas that inspired the world in which we live and the ideas that might direct our future. To be effective, political theories have to contain ideas that support one another in wider webs.  Ideologies are examples of webs of political ideas, containing ideas about what the world is like, why it is as it is, and what it might become.  After a brief examination of the nature of political theory and ideology, we will study the main ideologies found in contemporary political debate: liberalism, conservatism, socialism, nationalism, feminism and environmentalism.

This course will introduce students to some key concepts used in contemporary comparative political analysis. It will do so through an examination of the reasons for why some modern nation states provide better living conditions for their citizens. Are these differences due to factors such as political institutions, legislative arrangements, parties and party systems, or social forces such as culture and ethnicity? Class lectures will focus on developing an understanding of how political scientists use these terms and whether they provide adequate explanations for why states vary so substantially in their performance. There will be two lectures per week and one required discussion section.

This description is from Fall 2012.

This course is an introduction to the methods employed in empirical political science research. We will cover basic topics in research design, statistics, and formal modeling, considering many examples along the way. The two primary goals of the course are: (1) to provide students with analytic tools that will help them to understand how political scientists do empirical research, and (2) to improve students' ability to pose and answer research questions on their own. There are no prerequisites.

Note: Course description is from Fall 2013

This class is an introduction to the American political system. The course is designed to make you think about the logic of our government's institutions, and the consequences - both intended and unintended - of these institutions for the political behavior of citizens, legislators, and other political leaders and activists. Topics to be covered include the Constitution, American political culture, civil rights, the presidency, Congress, Supreme Court, political parties, elections, public opinion, and interest groups.

Please note the description is from Spring 2014

This one-unit course will feature a guest speaker each week discussing an issue currently in the news. The class is open to all students, and there are no prerequisites. The class is offered Pass/Not Pass, based on a final examination. May be repeated for credit.

This course does not count as an upper division Political Science requirement.