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University Bulletin: Undergraduate Programs 2003-2004 The George Washington University  

 
   
 

POLITICAL SCIENCE



University Professors J.N. Rosenau, H. Harding
Professors B. Reich, H.R. Nau, J.B. Manheim, C. McClintock, L. Sigelman, M.J. Sodaro, S.L. Wolchik, D. Shambaugh, C.J. Deering (Chair), H.B. Feigenbaum, N.J. Brown, H.L. Wolman, F. Maltzman, M. Finnemore, J. Goldgeier, S.K. Sell, B. Dickson, P. Wahlbeck, S. Binder, M.E. Brown
Associate Professors J.H. Lebovic, R.P. Stoker, A. Bowie, M.M. Mochizuki, S.J. Balla, S. Wiley, I. Creppell, M. Lynch
Assistant Professors E.Z. Csergo, W.J. Winstead, K.J. Morgan, A.E. Searight, C. Rector, S. Kelts, E.D. Lawrence, G.S. Lambright, H. Farrell, H.E. Hale, J.M. Sides, E.J. Teitelbaum, D.K. Park, R.F. Adcock
Instructors H. Schmidt, E. Saunders

Bachelor of Arts with a major in political science—The following requirements must be fulfilled:
1. The general requirements stated under Columbian College of Arts and Sciences.
2. Prerequisite: PSc 1, 2, and 3 (or the equivalent). Six courses in the social sciences, other than political science, including at least two history or two economics courses. (In addition to the CCAS General Curriculum Requirements list of courses in social and behavioral sciences, courses in history, peace studies, and women's studies are considered social sciences for this requirement.) Twelve credit hours of introductory foreign language and statistics are strongly recommended.
3. Required courses in the major: 30 credit hours of 100-level political science courses, including a distribution requirement that consists of 3 credit hours from each of the following groups: Group A (comparative politics)—PSc 130, 131, 134, 136, 137, 166, 167, 169, 170, 171, 173, 174, 177, 179, 181, 183; Group B (American government and politics)—PSc 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, 118, 119, 120, 121, 122, 124, 125, 128, 129; Group C (international politics, law, and organizations)—PSc 139, 140, 142, 144, 146, 149, 161, 168, 175, 176, 178, 180, 182, 184; Group D (methodology)—PSc 101, 104; Group E (political thought)—PSc 105, 106, 107, 108, 110.
Every major must complete a proseminar (which counts toward the 30-hour requirement) in the junior or senior year. A maximum of two of these may be included in a student's program; such courses do not satisfy the department's group distribution requirements. A 200-level course may be substituted for the proseminar requirement with the written permission of the instructor and the undergraduate coordinator.

Bachelor of Arts with a major in political science (public policy focus)—Requirements are the same as for the B.A. with a major in political science with the required 30 credit hours of 100-level courses in political science distributed as follows: PSc 104; 9 credit hours in policy-oriented courses to be selected from PSc 112, 117, 122, 124, 146; one policy-oriented proseminar; 3 additional credit hours from each of Groups A, B, C, and E; and 3 credit hours in a political science elective at the 100 level. No more than 3 hours of internship courses may be credited toward the major; these courses do not satisfy the distribution requirement. Specific group credit for offerings of PSc 190 Special Topics is determined by the undergraduate advisor. Five-Year Bachelor's/Master's Dual Degree Programs—Four master's programs can be undertaken in combination with the Bachelor of Arts with a major in political science. Departmental majors should consult the undergraduate program advisor at the beginning of the junior year (after completing 60 credit hours at GW) for the dual degree programs that lead to the Master of Professional Studies in the field of legislative affairs, the Master of Public Policy, and the Master of Public Administration (the M.P.P. is available only to majors in the public policy focus). For the dual degree program leading to the Master of Arts in the field of political science, students should consult the undergraduate program advisor as soon as possible in order to select courses appropriately; the program is available only to students who qualify for Special Honors.

Special Honors—Students may apply for graduation with Special Honors. To qualify, a student must fulfill the general requirements stated under University Regulations and have a GPA in the major of 3.5 or higher. Those with a GPA in the major of 3.8 and higher will then be recommended for Special Honors. Those with a GPA in the major between 3.5 and 3.7 must complete an independent research project, usually done in PSc 192, that has been approved as meriting Special Honors by two members of the Political Science faculty. Application for Special Honors must be in writing and received by the undergraduate coordinator by the third week of the semester preceding the final semester of study.

Minor in political science—Required: PSc 1, 2, and 3 (or the equivalent) plus 12 credit hours of 100-level political science courses, including one course each from Groups D and E. A minimum of 9 credit hours of other social science courses is also required. With permission of the instructor and the undergraduate coordinator, a limited number of graduate courses in the department may be taken for credit toward an undergraduate degree. See the Graduate Programs Bulletin for course listings. Departmental prerequisite: PSc 1 is prerequisite to Group A courses (comparative politics), PSc 2 is prerequisite to Group B courses (American government and politics), and PSc 3 is prerequisite to Group C courses (international politics, law, and organizations). Courses are defined by their group under item 3, above. Elliott School students substitute IAff 5 for PSc 3 as a prerequisite to Group C courses. Qualified juniors and seniors who are not political science majors and who wish to take 100-level PSc courses without having the appropriate prerequisites may do so only with the written permission of the instructor.

1 Introduction to Comparative Politics (3) Sodaro, Dickson, Morgan
  Concepts and principles of comparative analysis, with an examination of politics and government in selected countries.
2 Introduction to American Politics and Government (3) Sigelman, Maltzman
  Structure, powers, and processes of the American political system and the impact on public policy.
3 Introduction to International Politics (3) Goldgeier, Nau, Rector
  Analysis of world politics, focusing on the role of nation–states and international organizations and on selected foreign policy issues.
1112 Politics and Values (6–6) Kelts
  Role of personal and social values in politics. Fall: Problems in the Western (especially American) tradition of political science. Spring: Thinking outside the Western state: culture, nationalism, ethnic conflict, democratization, international conflict. Admission by special selection process.
101 Scope and Methods Lebovic, Wahlbeck, Wiley, Voeten, Lawrence of Political Science (3)
  Nature of political inquiry, approaches to the study of politics and government, empirical methods of research. Laboratory fee, $20.
104 Methods of Public Policy Analysis (3) Stoker, Balla
  Introductory overview of the concepts, issues, and techniques of systematic policy analysis and its role in the policy process.
1056 Major Issues of Western Political Thought (3–3) Creppell, Kelts
  PSc 105: foundations of Western political thought—Plato to Aquinas. PSc 106: history of political thought from the 16th through the late 19th century, as set forth in the works of representative thinkers.
107 20th-Century Political Thought (3) Creppell, Winstead
  Recent Western political thought; analysis and critique of the legacies of modern political theories and ideologies.
108 Freedom and Equality (3) Kelts
  Case analysis of major ideas related to freedom and equality in the Western political tradition.
110 American Political Thought (3) Staff
  Political thought in the U.S. from colonial times to the present as seen through major representative writings.
111 State and Urban Politics (3) Wolman
  Comparative analysis of context, institutions, processes, and policies of state and urban political systems.
112 State and Urban Policy Problems (3) Wolman
  Selected issues in state and urban policymaking, with emphasis on urban and metropolitan settings.
113 Judicial Politics (3) Wahlbeck
  An examination of judicial process and behavior. Emphasis on judicial selection, decision making, interaction with the political environment, and impact and implementation of decisions.
11415 U.S. Constitutional Law and Politics (3–3) Wahlbeck
  PSc 114: Separation of powers, federal–state relationships, economic regulation. PSc 115: Political and civil rights.
116 The American Presidency (3) Maltzman, Lawrence
  Examination of the politics of presidential selection, the authority of the contemporary institution, the mechanisms and processes for formulating public policy, and the influences of personality on performance in office.
117 Executive Branch Politics (3) Balla
  Basic concepts in public administration; influence of bureaucratic politics on policy formulation and implementation. Same as PAd 117.
118 Legislative Politics (3) Deering, Maltzman, Binder
  Theory, structure, and process of the U.S. Congress, with emphasis on elections, party organization, committees, and floor procedure, in the context of executive–legislative relations and interest-group activities.
119 Political Parties and Interest Groups (3) Binder
  Role of parties as a linkage between mass preferences and government policies. Organization, nominations, voting, and activities in legislative and executive branches.
120 Public Opinion (3) Sides
  How public opinion is measured, how it is shaped, and its consequences for policymaking.
121 U.S. Political Participation (3) Park
  Examination of the various forms of American political participation in electoral and governmental politics and their effects on the political process.
122 Science, Technology, and Politics (3) Rycroft
  Multiple impacts of scientific and technological developments on the political systems. Discussion of public policies for support, use, and control of science and technology.
124 Issues in Domestic Public Policy (3) Stoker, Balla
  Examination of the decision-making process and the substance of various issues in domestic public policy in such areas as crime, economics, education, energy, the environment, poverty, and health.
125 Women and Politics (3) Morgan
  An examination of the role and impact of women in politics, including women's interests and access to the political system; specific public policy issues with a particular focus on the role of women.
128 Media, Politics, and Government (3) Staff
  Same as SMPA 128.
129 Media and Politics (3) Sides
  The impact of the media on American politics, including the nature of coverage of political issues and campaigns, dynamics of selecting and presenting news stories, and consequences of media messages for public opinion and action.
130 Comparative Politics of Western Europe (3) Feigenbaum
  Comparative political analysis with primary focus on the principal states of Western Europe.
131 Comparative Politics of Central and Eastern Europe (3) Wolchik
  Specific countries vary, to include nations of central and Eastern Europe and/or the newly independent states.
134 Global Perspectives on Democracy (3) Brown, Dickson
  International experiences with the historical evolution and current nature of democratic political systems.
136 State–Society Relations in the Developing World (3) Bowie
  Historically informed exploration of enduring issues of concern in state–society relations, with an empirical focus on selected countries and regions of the developing world.
137 Development Politics (3) Lambright
  An examination of how and why political systems develop the way they do. Why do some countries develop into democracies, while others become authoritarian? How do class conflict, the nature of the elite, and the political culture affect the development of political institutions?
139 International Political Economy (3) Sell, Posner
  Analysis of the political aspects of global economic relationships, focusing on such issues as economic hegemony, interdependence, trade relations, development assistance, multinational corporations, and the role of international organizations.
140 Theories of International Politics (3) Nau, Lebovic, Goldgeier
  Exploration of alternative theoretical approaches to understanding world politics in its historical and contemporary dimensions.
142 International Organizations (3) Finnemore, Voeten
  Development and operations of the United Nations, regional organizations, and functional international organizations.
144 Public International Law (3) Staff
  Survey of essential principles and concepts of public international law through case analysis and with reference to political factors.
146 U.S. Foreign Policy (3) Goldgeier
  Constitutional, political, and international factors that determine the formulation, execution, and substance of U.S. foreign policy.
149 International Security Politics (3) Schmidt
  Overview of international security issues. Insights from a variety of historical periods and theoretical approaches inform the analysis.
161 European–Atlantic Relations (3) Rector
  International politics of the North Atlantic area, the European Union, and U.S.–European relations.
166 Government and Politics of Russia (3) Hale
  An examination of political institutions, processes, and issues of Russian politics.
167 Human Rights (3) Staff
  Human rights theory, the various movements for human, religious, civil, political, and other rights.
168 Post-Soviet Foreign Policy (3) Staff
  External problems and policies of Russia and the other successor states of the former USSR (especially the Baltics, Ukraine, and southern rim of the former Soviet Union).
169 Comparative Politics of South Asia (3) Teitelbaum
  A comparative examination of colonialism, economic development, and identity politics in South Asia.
170 Comparative Politics of China and Northeast Asia (3) Dickson
  Political institutions and processes of China (including Taiwan), Japan, and Korea since World War II. Influence of indigenous traditions and foreign contacts.
171 Politics and Foreign Policy of China (3) Shambaugh
  An examination of political institutions, processes, and issues of Chinese politics and foreign policy.
173 Comparative Politics of Southeast Asia (3) Bowie
  Political forces, processes, and outcomes, using empirical examples from Southeast Asia.
174 Politics and Foreign Policy of Japan (3) Searight
  An examination of political institutions, processes, and issues of Japanese politics and foreign policy.
175 International Relations of East Asia (3) Mochizuki, Shambaugh, Harding
  Analysis of the foreign policies of selected East Asian countries and the foreign policies of major powers toward the region.
176 The Arab–Israeli Conflict (3) Reich
  Origins, evolution, and issues of the Arab–Israeli conflict.
177 Comparative Politics of the Middle East (3) Reich, Brown
  Politics of the eastern Arab states, Turkey, Iran, and Israel.
178 International Relations of the Middle East (3) Reich, Brown
  Analysis of the regional and international relations of the Middle East.
179 Politics and Foreign Policy of Israel (3) Reich
  Examination of the institutions, processes, and issues of Israeli politics and foreign policy.
181 Comparative Politics of Middle and Southern Africa (3) Lambright
  Comparative analysis of political systems in selected countries of non-Mediterranean Africa.
182 African International Politics (3) Lambright
  Analysis of interstate relations in Africa and of selected aspects of African relations with the outside world. Recommended prerequisite: PSc 181.
183 Comparative Politics of Latin America (3) McClintock
  The politics of selected countries in South America, Central America, and the Caribbean. Emphasis on revolutionary movements and democratization.
184 International Relations of Latin America (3) McClintock
  Emphasis on U.S. foreign policy toward Latin America.
187 Internship Wiley
  Study of political behavior and institutions through internship experience. Open to departmental major only. Admission requires departmental approval and junior standing.
190 Selected Topics (3) Staff
191 Independent Study Staff
  For departmental majors and minors. Prerequisite: 15 credit hours of 100-level political science courses and approval of the undergraduate program advisor and the faculty member who will direct the study.
192 Proseminar (3) Staff
  Examination of selected problems in political science. Admission requires departmental approval.
 

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© 2008 University Bulletin
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Information in this bulletin is generally accurate as of fall 2007. The University reserves the right to change courses, programs, fees, and the academic calendar, or to make other changes deemed necessary or desirable, giving advance notice of change when possible.