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Course Descriptions (POLI)

Students should select courses appropriate to their degree program in consultation with graduate directors.

  • 501 -- Contemporary Issues in International Relations. (3) Intensive study of selected global problems. May be repeated or taken simultaneously as topics vary. Variations will be announced in the schedule of classes by suffix and title.
  • 502 -- Methods of Political Analysis. (3) Quantitative techniques in political science; levels of measurement; problems of description, causation, and inference.
  • 503 -- American Political Thought. (3) Themes and thinkers in American political history.
  • 504 -- Politics and Ethics. (3) The nature of, and relationship between, politics and ethics.
  • 505 -- Utopian Political Thought. (3) A critical examination of utopian and dystopian political ideas.
  • 515 -- Analysis of International Systems. (3) An introduction to empirical methods of analyzing international political behavior.
  • 517 -- Theories of War in International Relations. (3) The contributions of the social sciences and social theorists to an understanding of the causes of war.
  • 531 -- International Relations of Europe. (3) Contemporary international relations among European nations.
  • 534 -- International Relations of South Asia. (3) An examination of the international relations of India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh in both the South Asian regional and the world political context.
  • 535 -- International Relations of Southeast Asia. (3) Contemporary international relations among Southeast Asian nations including regional security and economic problems, and Soviet, Chinese, and United States interest and involvement in the region.
  • 537 -- International Relations of Latin America. {=LASP 451} (3) Contemporary international relations among Latin American states, including economic and political security and relations with the United States.
  • 550 -- Constitutional Law. (3) Nature and functions of the national government and its relations with the states.
  • 551 -- Constitutional Law. (3) Due process and civil liberties.
  • 553 -- Regulatory Policies. (3) Types and limits of powers exercised by regulatory agencies; procedural law and remedies against administrative action.
  • 554 -- Law and Society. (3) The American judicial system, including the decision to resolve disputes by legal means, political influence on the legal system, the social impact of legal rulings, the relationship of the courts to other branches of government, and the applicability of higher law concepts in judicial decision making.
  • 565 -- Psychology and Politics. (3) (Prereq: PSYC 101) The role of psychology in political attitudes and behavior. Examination of individual psycho-political relationships and aggregate typologies. Particular emphasis on the psychological roots of the need for or the rejection of political authority.
  • 567 -- American Local Government. (3) An introduction to the institutions, functions, policy-making processes, and politics of American local government.
  • 570 -- South Carolina Government and Politics. (3) South Carolina state and local government in the context of South Carolina history and U.S. state and local government.
  • 571 -- Public Financial Administration. (3) Principles and practices of financial administration, including organization, budgeting, assessment, treasury management, and debt.
  • 572 -- Public Personnel Management. (3) Fundamental principles of personnel organization and administration, including an analysis of personnel techniques.
  • 573 -- Politics and Public Planning. (3) The scope and nature of public planning in American government
  • 580 -- Politics and Governments of Europe. (3) Political processes and institutions of European nations.
  • 585 -- Politics and Government of the Indian Subcontinent. (3) Contemporary political development, processes, and institutions of India and Pakistan.
  • 586 -- Politics and Governments of Southeast Asia. (3) Political developments, processes, and institutions of Indonesia, Philippines, Burma, Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, and other nations of Southeast Asia.
  • 589 -- Politics and Governments of Britain and the Commonwealth. (3) An analysis of the political processes and institutions of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
  • 670 -- Problems in Public Administration. (3 per semester; 12 maximum) (Prereq: consent of instructor for students not in the Master of Public Administration program) Subject areas include principles and behavioral aspects of administration, utilization of financial and personnel resources, and operational techniques. Course primarily designed for students with HUD assistantships.
  • 680 -- Politics of Revolution in Middle America. {=LASP 454} (3) Contemporary political development of Middle American nations with emphasis on the background and significance of revolution in such countries as Mexico and Cuba.
  • 700 -- The Teaching of Political Science/International Studies. (1) A review of teaching techniques and problems in the fields of political science and international studies. (Pass-Fail Grading)
  • 701 -- Theories of Political Inquiry I. (3) A brief overview of the growth of the social sciences and of the history of the American discipline of political science in the 20th century, including an examination of the rise of behavioralism. Study of the principles of neo-positivist political inquiry, including problems of empirical research and research design.
  • 702 -- Theories of Political Inquiry II. (3) A critical examination of theories of political inquiry conceived as alternatives or supplements to neo-positivist research.
  • 703 -- Democratic Theory. (3) Critical study of theories of democracy.
  • 704 -- Political Theory and Feminism. {=WOST 704} (3) How contemporary feminist theory has responded to and reformulated traditional theories about the role and nature of women.
  • 705 -- Theory of Marxism. (3) Critical study of the development of Marxist theory.
  • 706 -- Advanced Methods of Political Analysis. (3) (Prereq: POLI 502 or 515; or consent of instructor) Advanced techniques and approaches to multivariate analysis of empirical data in the context of political problems and events.
  • 707 -- Classics of Political Theory. (3) Introduction to the nature and tradition of political theory; readings from selected political theorists.
  • 708 -- Women in American Studies. {=WOST 708} (3) Impact of gender in American politics; elections, representation, rights, social movements, legal institutions.
  • 709 -- Qualitative Methods of Political Analysis. (3) Techniques and approaches to qualitative analysis of political problems and events. Topics include field research, interviewing, case studies, content analysis, archival research, and presentation of data.
  • 710 -- Introduction to International Relations. (3) (Prereq: POLI graduate students) An introduction to the field of international relations, including causes of war, world order, international distribution of wealth, durability of state system, and the individual in the world system.
  • 715 -- International Relations Theory. (3) Systematic survey, analysis, and comparison of major contemporary theoretical works in international relations.
  • 717 -- Comparative Foreign Policy. (3) A seminar treating the development, interests, formulation, and conduct of the modern foreign policies of selected states, with special reference to their interactions with other states' policies.
  • 718 -- Revolution and Politics. (3) An analytical investigation of political violence in the international arena, its sources, internal and external bases, and consequences for political behavior within and among states in the contemporary international system.
  • 719 -- Political and Social Change. (3) Systematic survey, analysis, and comparison of major contemporary theoretical works on political and social change.
  • 720 -- Political Communication. (3) The role of communication in creating collective political reality, with particular attention to how governmental, economic, professional, and cultural factors influence media organizations.
  • 725 -- International Conflict. (3) Survey, analysis, and comparison of theory and research findings on the nature, conditions, and causes of international conflict and violence.
  • 726 -- Survey of African International Relations. (3) Contemporary relations among African nations, including foreign policy and international organization.
  • 730 -- Science, Technology, and International Affairs. (3) Study of contemporary national and international public policy issues relating to scientific and technological developments, including examination of transnational and intergovernmental institutional efforts to manage such global problems as resource depletion, marine pollution, and increasing sophistication of weapons.
  • 732 -- International Law. (3) Study of the role of law in international relations, emphasizing both substantive and theoretical problems relating to development of systems of law in such areas as war, protection of human rights, outer space and oceans, and international commerce.
  • 733 -- International Organization. (3) Examination of theoretical and substantive problems relating to the development and functioning of international intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations.
  • 734 -- Economics of International Politics. (3) Study of the international political significance of economic issues relating to monetary reform, trade, aid, and economic development.
  • 735 -- International Cooperation. (3) Approaches to the study of international cooperation, including international integration, community formation, regime formation, interdependence, international institutionalization, and global governance.
  • 736 -- Public Opinion and Political Attitudes. (3) Examines the determinants, content, and consequences of citizens' political beliefs and attitudes with attention to political culture, ideology, issue dynamics, and popular support for democratic principles.
  • 740 -- Formulation and Conduct of United States Foreign Policy. (3) Study of the constitutional bases, institutions, instruments, and decision-making processes of U.S. foreign policy.
  • 741 -- Contemporary United States Foreign Policy. (3) Analysis and interpretation of the substantive problems of contemporary U.S. foreign policy.
  • 742 -- Problems in National Security. (3) Continuing problems and competing strategies involved in formulating a national security strategy for the U.S. Issues include the defense structure and budget; the National Security Council and the decision-making process; the volunteer Army and the role of the military in society; nuclear weapons and arms control.
  • 743 -- Comparative Defense Studies. (3) Cross-national analysis of defense communities, including study of policy formation, organization, strategic perspective, manpower, and technology issues. Emphasis is placed on development of a comparative policy analysis model.
  • 744 -- Strategic Intelligence and National Security. (3) An examination of the role of strategic intelligence in military and political decision making as it affects national security. Special emphasis will be placed on established doctrine, problems of organization, and administrative control as developed through an examination of historical case studies.
  • 745 -- Russian Foreign Policy. (3) Study of the foreign policy of Russia and the other states of the former Soviet Union, including consideration of historical developments, institutions, capabilities, and strategic objectives.
  • 746 -- Chinese Foreign Policy. (3) A seminar on the Chinese tradition in foreign policy and the foreign policies of the Republic of China and the People's Republic of China, emphasizing the impact of domestic Chinese affairs on their foreign relations in the post-World War II period.
  • 747 -- Japanese Foreign Policy. (3) A seminar on the foreign policy of Japan with emphasis on the post-World War II period and on the analysis of Japanese objectives and capabilities in international relations.
  • 749 -- International Relations of the Middle East. (3) Foreign policies and international relations of the Middle East, focusing on relations within the region and with the West and Soviet bloc.
  • 750 -- Personal Rights in the United States. (3) A study of the constitutional aspects of the liberties of the individual in the United States, with special emphasis on the problems involved in the protection of rights under a federal government system.
  • 751 -- Governmental Decision Making. (3) Different approaches to governmental decision making; development of analytic and quantitative skills and techniques in order to model, analyze, and solve governmental decision problems.
  • 752 -- Public Sector Labor Relations and Collective Bargaining. (3)
  • 753 -- Capstone Seminar in Public Administration. (3) (Prereq: 30 credit hours, M.P.A. program, and permission of the department) Critical issues in public administration; term project integrating the material from other courses in the analysis of a contemporary problem. Field work and applied project required.
  • 754 -- Public Accountability and Ethics. (3) An examination of the legal, political, professional, and organizational accountability demands made on administrators; the interplay of these demands with the needs for ethical decision making and integrity.
  • 755 -- Grants Administration. {=EDRM 800} (3) Analysis of grant and contract functions in government agencies; proposal writing; legal and fiscal requirements of grants administration.
  • 756 -- Administration of Criminal Justice. {=CRJU 704} (3) Administrative problems of the criminal justice systems.
  • 757 -- Health Politics. {=NURS 779 and HSPM 711} (3) (Prereq: HSPM 700 and HSPM 782, or consent of instructor) Analysis of issues and forces affecting health delivery through the public sector; major models of political decision making; and current health legislation.
  • 758 -- The State and Economic Life. {=ECON 745} (3) A study of the relation of government to the economy in the modern world, including theories of the economic functions of the state.
  • 759 -- Information Systems and Public Administration. (3) The development and uses of information systems in local, state, and federal administrative agencies with emphasis on the management of information systems in the public agency environment; the problems of interagency and intergovernmental relations; the politics of technological innovation; privacy, confidentiality, and security and information policy; and the role of information technology in democratic government.
  • 760 -- American Government and Politics. (3) Advanced survey of the institutions and processes of the American political system.
  • 761 -- American National Government for Professionals. (3) Fundamental institutions, processes, values, and policies of the U.S. political system. Designed for master's and non-degree students in education, public administration, and business administration.
  • 762 -- Politics of the Budgetary Process. (3) Analysis of the political, economic, and social influences on the budgetary process.
  • 763 -- Legislative Process and Behavior. (3) The structure, organization, powers, functions, and problems of legislative bodies in America; the behavior of members of those bodies, with emphasis on the United States Congress.
  • 764 -- Problems of the Presidency. (3) A seminar on the problems of the contemporary presidency. Various approaches to the study of the presidency will be used as a means to uncovering and examining some of the major problems connected with the role of the president in the American system of government. Leading exponents of various approaches will be read and discussed.
  • 765 -- Political Parties and Interest Groups. (3) Intensive examination of contemporary development of political organizations in the United States.
  • 766 -- Electoral Behavior. (3) Examination of electoral behavior, including historical patterns in electoral history and forces affecting individual voting behavior such as partisan and class loyalties, political socialization, political attitudes, and candidate appeals. The role played by elections in the larger political system.
  • 767 -- State Government. (3) State government problems and policy issues. Emphasis on the modernization of government institutions and comparative state politics.
  • 768 -- Local Government Administration. (3) Administration of local government from the perspective of the professional administrator. Emphasis on the growth of the manager form of local government and the role of local government administrators with regard to policy making, management, and the delivery of services.
  • 769 -- Southern Politics. (3)
  • 770 -- Perspectives on Public Administration. (3) The study and practice of public administration in the United States.
  • 771 -- Public Data Analysis. (3) (Prereq: POLI 502 or consent of instructor) Problems of gathering and using public data for public administrators and policy analysts. Includes problems of research design and data gathering, interpretation, and use in the analysis of public problems.
  • 772 -- Contemporary Administrative Organization. (3) An examination of the problems, processes and theories of communication, decision making, agency planning, and control in administrative agencies.
  • 773 -- Human Resources Administration in Government. (3) Organization, techniques, and theories of personnel management; interpersonal relations in organizations; personnel change and development; changing conditions in the public service
  • 774 -- The Public Policy Process. (3) An examination of the public policy process, including the role of public officials in the process and constraints on its outcomes.
  • 775 -- Financial Administration. (3) Organization and techniques of governmental financial management; budgetary theories, intergovernmental financial relations.
  • 776 -- Policy Formation and Program Planning. (3) Conceptual and analytic issues in formation and planning of public policies and programs, including problem identification, goal setting and criteria formulation, forecasting, prospective evaluation research, and modeling of programmatic cost and outcomes.
  • 777 -- Policy Evaluation. (3) Conceptual and analytic issues in policy and program evaluation, including problem definition, goal setting and criteria formulation, design of evaluation research, indicator design, treatments of uncertainty, and special problems raised by constraints of the political context.
  • 778 -- Practicum in Public Administration. (3) Selected problems in public administration. May be repeated or taken simultaneously as topics vary. Variations will be announced in the schedule of classes by suffix and title.
  • 779 -- Public Administration Internship. (3) (Pass-Fail Grading)
  • 780 -- Comparative Politics. (3) Survey, analysis, and comparison of major contemporary theoretical works in comparative politics.
  • 781 -- Government and Politics of Japan. (3) Explores the key institutions, actors, and processes of contemporary Japanese domestic politics.
  • 782 -- Problems in Chinese Government and Politics. (3) The Chinese political tradition as it has merged with Communist theory and practice with special attention to problems of regionalism, localism, and central planning.
  • 783 -- Dynamics of Middle East Politics. (3) The comparative politics of the Arab countries and inter-Arab relations. Comparative analysis is used to study common political problems (authority, participation, integration) and political structures. Aspects of inter-Arab relations analyzed include: Arab unity, the Israeli conflicts, and East-West competition.
  • 784 -- Problems in Western Political Systems. (3)
  • 785 -- Contemporary Russian Politics. (3) An examination of current domestic issues in Russia and other states of the former Soviet Union, focusing on the institutions, processes, and results of policy decisions.
  • 787 -- Seminar on African Politics. (3)
  • 788 -- Comparative Multi-State Systems. (3) An examination of the structure, functioning, and values of earlier multi-state systems found in Greece, Italy, the Holy Roman Empire, China, Sumeria, India, and pre-Roman Near East, and a comparison with the modern European state system.
  • 789 -- Area Analysis: Europe, the Latin American Republics, Asia, or the United States. {=MIBS 704 and GEOG 789} (3-6) To provide the student with a substantial understanding and familiarity with the region of specialization; a multidisciplinary approach with an emphasis on geographic, political, and economic issues most significant for each region. Offered for the Master in International Business Studies program.
  • 790A -- Independent Readings in Political Science. (3)
  • 790B -- Independent Readings in International Studies. (3)
  • 791 -- Selected Topics in American Politics. (3) Topics selected for any semester will be identified by a suffix and course title.
  • 792 -- Selected Topics in Comparative Politics. (3) Topics selected for any semester will be identified by a suffix and course title.
  • 793 -- Selected Topics in Area Studies. (3) Topics selected for any semester will be identified by a suffix and course title.
  • 794 -- Selected Topics in International Relations. (3) Topics selected for any semester will be identified by a suffix and course title.
  • 795 -- Selected Topics in International Law and Organization. (3) Topics selected for any semester will be identified by a suffix and course title.
  • 796 -- Selected Topics in Foreign Policy. (3) Topics selected for any semester will be identified by a suffix and course title.
  • 797 -- Selected Topics in Public Administration. (3) Topics selected for any semester will be identified by a suffix and course title.
  • 798 -- Selected Topics in Public Law. (3) Topics selected for any semester will be identified by a suffix and course title.
  • 799A -- Thesis Preparation. (1-9) For candidates for the Master of Arts degree in Political Science.
  • 799B -- Thesis Preparation. (1-9) For candidates for the Master of Arts degree in International Studies.
  • 800 -- Selected Topics in Political Theory. (3) Analysis of particular topic or topics as chosen by instructor. May be repeated as topics vary. Variations will be announced in the schedule of classes by suffix and title.
  • 801 -- Selected Thinkers in Political Theory. (3) Analysis of particular theorist or theorists as chosen by the instructor. May be repeated as topics vary. Variations will be announced in the schedule of classes by suffix and title.
  • 802 -- Seminar in Comparative Administration. (3)
  • 803 -- Research Methods in Political Science. (3) Consideration of advanced methods in statistics and research design and their application and use in the writing of a major research paper.
  • 806 -- Seminar in Advanced Methods of Political Analysis. (3) Advanced methodological strategies for empirical analysis. The course will focus primarily on causal models, data theory, dimensional analysis, and scaling techniques.
  • 815 -- Seminar in Advanced International Relations Theory. (3) A critical examination of contemporary efforts to analyze international relations through the use of empirical methodologies, including: social-psychological studies, simulation, game theory, decision theory, quantitative analyses.
  • 816 -- Seminar in Comparative Study of Foreign Policy. (3) Research seminar stressing systematic research procedures in the investigation of the determinants of foreign policy, including the employment of empirical data for testing theoretical propositions.
  • 817 -- Seminar in International Organization and Cooperation. (3) Advanced research seminar in selected topics related to international organization, international law, world order, ethics of international affairs.
  • 820 -- Comparative Social Movements. (3) Advanced research seminar on social movement theories for the analysis of contemporary political and social movements worldwide.
  • 831 -- Seminar on Europe. (3) Advanced study of the European interstate system and Europe's role in world affairs. Emphasis on post-World War II Western and Central Europe, major powers, the European Union, and intra-European relations after the Cold War.
  • 832 -- Seminar on the Western Hemisphere. (3) Research on the formation of foreign policies and patterns of international relations of the nation states of the Western Hemisphere, to include their association with the United States and with other blocs and forces in world politics.
  • 833 -- Seminar on Southeast Asia. (3) Selected variables of domestic and international political change in Southeast Asia, structured around original and comprehensive seminar papers.
  • 834 -- Seminar on Africa. (3) Advanced study of the politics and international relations of Africa, regional development, foreign policy patterns, security problems, and questions of governance.
  • 835 -- Seminar on South Asia. (3) Advanced study of selected domestic and foreign policy problems of the Indian subcontinental area, including the preparation of research papers.
  • 840 -- Seminar in United States Foreign Policy. (3) Intensive study of selected problems in contemporary U.S. foreign policy, with emphasis on individual research.
  • 850 -- Seminar in Public Law. (3)
  • 865 -- Seminar in Urban Politics. (3) Advanced study of the politics and governmental problems of urban areas.
  • 871 -- Seminar in Implementation of Planning. (3) Advanced survey of planning in the public sector, with emphasis on urban, regional, and state planning. Includes analysis of the theory and application of planning in state and local government, problems in the planning process, and implementation of plans.
  • 880 -- Seminar in Comparative Politics. (3) Intensive study of selected problems in comparative politics, with emphasis on individual research.
  • 881 -- Seminar in Post-Communist Systems. (3)
  • 899A -- Dissertation Preparation. (1-12) For candidates for the Doctor of Philosophy degree in political science.
  • 899B -- Dissertation Preparation. (1-12) For candidates for the Doctor of Philosophy degree in international studies.

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