Department of Political Science

Graduate Course Offerings

POLS 300. Independent Study in Political Science
1 - 6 credits, Independent Study. Instructor consent required.

POLS 301. Political Theory
Historical and conceptual analysis of selected political ideas such as justice, liberty, rights, political obligation, or the state; including an examination of one or more major schools or bodies of political thought from ancient to contemporary times.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 304. Proseminar in Political Theory
Historical survey and analysis of fundamental concepts in political theory.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 307. Seminar in American Thought and Ideology
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 311. Proseminar in International Relations
Current theories of and methodological approaches to international relations.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 313. Seminar in American Diplomacy
Problems in American diplomacy and foreign policy.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 317. Capital Financing and Budgeting
Examination of the municipal bond market, capital budgeting techniques, and related public policy issues.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 319. Program Developmemt and Evaluation
Techniques for evaluating and improving organizational performance and the ability to deal with the challenges posed by changing environments. Topics include strategic planning, program development, program implementation, evaluating effectiveness, and performance measurement and improvement.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 320. Administrative Ethics
Examination of models and standards of ethics in public administration, decision-making techniques and tools, and analyses of selected, contemporary dilemmas confronting public administration and public policy.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 321. Foreign Policies of the Russian Federation and the Former USSR
Regional and global roles of the former USSR and post-Communist Russia.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 323. International Conflict and Cooperation
Examination of theories and methodologies relating to the study of international conflict and cooperation. Topics include deterrence, negotiation and bargaining, theories of conflict and war, and approaches to conflict resolution.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 324. International Business and World Politics
Major problem areas in which politics, economics, and business intersect at the international level - trade, foreign investment, and monetary relations. The politics and mechanisms of U.S. foreign economic policy.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 325. Foreign Policy Analysis
Analysis of foreign policy processes from a comparative, theoretical perspective.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 326. International Organization
Methods of international cooperation for the preservation of peace and for dealing with economic, social, and political problems down to the present time.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 328. U.S. Foreign Policy in the Middle East
Examination of U.S. political, economic and strategic interests and aims in the Middle East.
3 units min / 3 units max, Seminar

POLS 329. Politics and Security in the Middle East
Examination of security issues in the Middle East and the responses of regional actors and external powers.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 330. Seminar in Comparative East Asian Politics
Processes of development, modernization, and administrative techniques of economic development in East Asia against the background of revolutionary changes in the People's Republic of China.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 331. West European Politics
Contending approaches to the political systems of West European nations. Comparative analysis of industrialization, institutional structure, and political economy.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 332. Seminar in Latin American Politics
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 335. Proseminar in Comparative Government
Political institutions and processes compared. Derivation of generalizations.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 336. Comparative Political Development
Development of political systems in relation to socio-economic level and other conditioning factors. Political stability and change.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 337. Politics of Russia and the Former Soviet Union
Analysis of the collapse of political authority in the former Soviet Union and the process of political development in post-Communist Russia. Comparison of Soviet/Russian political attitudes and behavior with that of other industrial societies.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 339. Seminar in African Politics
Focus on the rise of nationalism in post-war Africa, the process of decolonization, and the problems of economic growth and national integration. Attention will also be given to the role of ideology as a determinant in the choice of development policies.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 340. East European Politics
Comparative analysis of the political development, economic modernization, social stratification, and indigenous ideologies of post-Communist Eastern Europe.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 341. Public Opinion and American Democracy
Theories of democracy and what they imply about the public's capabilities and role; empirical research on the American public and public opinion in the context of democratic theory.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 342. American Political Parties
The development, organization, and role of political parties in the United States, with implications for public policy.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 345. Politics, Society, and Educational Policy
The analysis of the interactions among educational policy, politics and other social forces. In-sights and concerns from politics and other social sciences disciplines will be applied to different levels and types of schooling.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 346. Proseminar in Public Policy
Major works in U.S. public policy, with comparative illustrations of general principles.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 347. State and Substate Political Systems
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 348. Connecticut State Government and Administration
Structure, organization and functioning of Connecticut's state government. Management and administrative issues in the executive, legislative and judicial branches.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 351. Constitutional Interpretation
An exploration of the theories and process of constitutional interpretation in the United States, with an emphasis on the role the Supreme Court plays in defending and enforcing civil liberties.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 352. Seminar in Public Law
Selected topics in public law, the administration of justice, and jurisprudence.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 353. Judicial Decision-Making
The judicial decision-making process in terms of methods and models developed in the framework of the behavioral sciences.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 358. Administrative Law
The basis legal framework of administrative organization and the rules governing administrative powers and their exercise; also the legal procedures for the enforcement of bureaucratic responsibility in the democratic state.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 360. Proseminar in Public Administration
Theory and structure of administration and the public service.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 361. Theory of Public Organization
An examination of organization theory and research findings; their relation to public organizations.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 362. Organizations & Management
The application of organization theory and research findings; their relation to public organizations.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 363. Administrative Functions of Local Government
An examination of the characteristic managerial problems of the several functions of local government such as police, fire, traffic, public works, parks, health, recreation. The course is designed for individuals planning to work with citizen agencies, in agencies for governmental management, or in journalism.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 364. Governmental Financial Administration
Techniques, practice, and organization of the financial functions in governmental administration, including revenues administration, fund operation, debt operations, records administration, purchasing, audits, and financial reports.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 365. Human Resource Management
The structures, processes, and principles of human resource management and labor-management relations in the public service, and examination of contemporary human resource policies and challenges.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 366. Organizational Politics and Policy Development
Analysis of the policy making process at the federal level.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 367. Problems in Intergovernmental Administration
Examination of intergovernmental relations as an administrative system, with emphasis on current problems.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 368. Development Administration
Strategies of implementing development in Latin America, Asia, and Africa; social, political, and cultural obstacles to administrative reform in developing nations; problems of technical assistance in overseas administration; theories of development administration.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 371. Urban Management and Politics
Analysis of urban political systems. Emphasis on both theoretical analysis of political structures and knowledge of urban problems and proposed solutions.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 373. Public Budgeting
An examination of the development and structure of the public financial sectors; the principles and roles of operating and capital budgets in public organizations; and introduction to the relationships between funding mechanisms and public policy.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 374. Planning and Land Use
A consideration of alternative approaches to planning, with emphasis on legal and political issues in communities and organizations.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 375. Politics of Organization and Bureaucracy
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 377. Complex Systems Management
Multi-organizational systems settings in managing delivery and public services, the administrative dimensions of large-scale public/private endeavors.
3 credits, Lecture.

POLS 378. Computer Applications in Administration
Introduction to computers as currently used by managers and analysts in the public sector. Adaptation of computer software to the analysis of problems of state, local and national significance, integrating concepts of benefit-cost analysis, risk management, decision analysis, and statistics.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 380. The Practice of Survey Research
The practice and use of survey research in the United States and throughout the world. The structure, culture and professional norms of the survey community. The role of public opinion polling in government and public policy-making.
6 credits, Seminar.

POLS 381. Proseminar in American Politics
Theory and practice of American government and politics, with an emphasis on various theoretical and methodological perspectives.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 384. National Decision-Making Process: Presidency and Congress
The interaction of the institutionalized Presidency and the Congress in the formulation and execution of public policy. Emphasis given to current issues and problems.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 385. Politics of Federal Organization
3 credits, Lecture.

POLS 386. Public Opinion and Public Policy
Theoretical and empirical study of public opinion and its role in policy formation.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 391. Public Policy Analysis
Methods of empirically evaluating public policies.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 393. Nature of Political Inquiry
The scope of political science, modes of inquiry, the role of concepts and theory. Graduate students are urged to take the course in their first semester.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 394. Social Policy
Examination of the concepts and principles of public policy analysis, with applications to important social issues.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 395. Seminar in Quantitative Methods of Political Science
Introduction to the data analysis techniques most often used by political scientists. Requires no previous background in statistics.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 396. Research Design in Political Science
Introduction to non-quantitative methods in political science research.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 397. Investigation of Special Topics in Political Science
1 - 3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 401. Research Seminar in Political Theory
Investigation of special topics in political theory, with emphasis on the preparation and completion of original research projects.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 411. Research Seminar in International Relations
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 429. International Politics in East Asia
China, Japan, Russia, and the United States in East Asia; comparative policy making processes, the relationship between perception and policy outcome, and the linkage between national and international systems.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 431. Research Seminars in Comparative Politics
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 441. Research Seminars in American Politics
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 451. Research Seminar in Judicial Process
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 461. Research Seminar in Public Administration
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 471. Research Seminar in Comparative Public Policy
Comparative analysis of particular public policies. Countries and policies considered may vary from year to year.
3 credits, Seminar.

POLS 493. Research Seminar in Quantitative Methods
Research in quantitative applications to political data.
1 - 6 credits, Seminar. Prerequisite: POLS 395 or POLS 376.

POLS 496. Special Topics in Public Policy
3 credits, Lecture.