Political Science
College of Letters and Science
Department Office: 210 Barrows Hall, (510) 642-6323
Chair: Eric Schickler, PhD
Department Website: Political Science
Major Requirements
For freshmen admitted to UC Berkeley in fall 2008 and onward, and junior transfers admitted to Berkeley fall 2009 and onward, the Political Science Major is now comprised of two introductory courses (from Political Science 1, 2, 4, 5), Political Science 3; eight upper division political science courses; and one history course for a total of 12 courses (48 units). Within the major, students are required to take at least one course (lower or upper division) in each of the five primary subfields—American Politics, Comparative Politics, Empirical Theory and Quantitative Methods, Political Theory, International Relations—and must also specialize in one subfield by completing the introductory course and two upper division courses in that subfield. Completion of any two of the introductory courses PS 1, 2, 4, or 5 is required to declare the major.
For freshmen who entered Berkeley prior to fall 2008, and junior transfers admitted prior to fall 2009, please consult the Political Science undergraduate advisers for your respective requirements.
Advanced placement credit does not satisfy any major prerequisites, but students scoring four or five on the American Government Advanced Placement Exam may substitute an upper division American politics course for Political Science 1, before or after declaring the major. This course, however, may not also be used to fulfill an upper division requirement.
A list of approved history courses, specific requirement information, and detailed course descriptions are available on the undergraduate program section of the department's website .
All major requirements must be taken on a letter-grade basis.
To declare the major, students must have completed the minimum eligibility (see above), and must attend a declaration-orientation session. The session schedule is posted on the undergraduate program section of the department website . Declarations must be done in person. Transfer students may go to the website assist.org for a list of California community college courses that satisfy University and major requirements.
Honors Program
Declared political science majors with a 3.5 GPA in the major and a 3.3 GPA overall, who have senior standing and who have completed Political Science 3 and at least two letter-graded upper division political science courses at Berkeley are eligible to apply for the honors program. The honors program consists of a two-semester seminar, H190A and H190B (offered in fall/spring only), and culminates in the writing of an honors thesis. Students must also obtain the sponsorship of a member of the faculty who will guide the research. Applications can be made only online ; please refer to the undergraduate program section of the website. Departmental honors are awarded upon completion of the honors seminar with a grade of B+ or better, a minimum GPA of 3.5 in the major, and a 3.3 in overall work at Berkeley.
Additional Information
Please consult the undergraduate advisers in 296 Barrows Hall and/or refer to the undergraduate program section of the department's website .
Graduate Program
Information about the graduate program may be obtained from our website .
POL SCI 1 Introduction to American Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture and 1 or 2 hours of discussion per week.
An introductory analysis of the structure and operations of the American political system, primarily at the national level.
Satisfies the American Institutions requirement
POL SCI 2 Introduction to Comparative Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture and 2 hours of discussion per week. 8 hours of lecture and 4 hours of discussion per week for 6 weeks.
This course deals with the basic problems and processes that all political systems face and examines their particular expression in Western, Communist, and Third World settings.
POL SCI 3 Introduction to Empirical Analysis and Quantitative Methods 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture and 1 to 2 hours of discussion per week. 9 hours of lecture and 2 hours of discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Analytical and methodological problems of political inquiry, with an emphasis on quantification and measurement.
POL SCI 4 Introduction to Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture and 1 or 2 hours of discussion per week. 7.5 hours of lecture and 2.5 or 5 hours of discussion per week for 6 weeks.
An approach to the understanding of politics through the perspectives and language of the political theorist.
POL SCI 5 Introduction to International Relations 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 6 hours of Lecture and 1.5 to 2.5 hours of Discussion per week for 8 weeks.
This course is designed to introduce students to the major theoretical approaches to international politics, to explore important historical and contemporary questions and debates in international affairs, and to teach students to think critically about international relations. It is a prerequisite for most upper division international relations courses in Political Science.
POL SCI 18AC Race, Culture, and Politics in the Golden State 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 6 hours of Lecture per week for 6 weeks.
Prerequisites: Consent of instructor.
This course will study the historical processes of racial formation and transformation in California. Students will develop an understanding of the dynamic nature of racial and ethnic cultures and identities, and use these tools to better understand their own cultural position. Two periods are studied: 1848-1882 and 1964-1988. The course will consider the experiences of Asian Americans, Chicano/Latinos, African Americans, European Americans, and Native Americans.
Satisfies the American Cultures requirement
POL SCI 39B Freshman/Sophomore Seminar 2 - 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: The grading option will be decided by the instructor when the class is offered.
Hours and format: 1 hour of seminar per unit.
Prerequisites: Priority given to freshmen and sophomores.
Freshman and sophomore seminars offer lower division students the opportunity to explore an intellectual topic with a faculty member and a group of peers in a small-seminar setting. These seminars are offered in all campus departments; topics vary from department to department and from semester to semester.
Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
POL SCI 41 Freshman Seminar 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: The grading option will be decided by the instructor when the class is offered.
Hours and format: 3 hours of seminar and 1 hour of conference per week.
Topics, experimental in nature, will vary from year to year.
Course may be repeated for credit with consent of department.Course may be repeated for credit with consent of department.
POL SCI C79/COMPSCI C79/STAT C79 Societal Risks and the Law 3 Units
Department: Political Science; Computer Science; Statistics
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Defining, perceiving, quantifying and measuring risk; identifying risks and estimating their importance; determining whether laws and regulations can protect us from these risks; examining how well existing laws work and how they could be improved; evaluting costs and benefits. Applications may vary by term. This course cannot be used to complete engineering unit or technical elective requirements for students in the College of Engineering.
POL SCI 98 Directed Group Study for Lower Division Students 1 - 3 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Offered for pass/not pass grade only.
Hours and format: Hours to be arranged.
Prerequisites: Consent of instructor.
Lectures and small group discussion focusing on topics of interest that vary from semester to semester.
Course may be repeated for credit with consent of department.Course may be repeated for credit with consent of department.
POL SCI 99 Supervised Independent Study 1 - 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Offered for pass/not pass grade only.
Hours and format: By arrangement with faculty.
Prerequisites: Completion of two Political Science courses and a 3.3 GPA.
Supervised Independent Study and Research for lower division students, pursuant to the Regulations of the Berkeley Division, Section A230.
POL SCI 102 The American Presidency 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 10 hours of lecture/discussion per week for 6 weeks. 6 hours of lecture and 2 hours of discussion for 8 weeks.
Analysis of principal institutions, functions, and problems of the Presidency and the federal executive branch. Special attention will be given to topics of presidential leadership, staffing, executive-legislative relations, and policy formation. Comparative reference to executive processes in other political systems.
POL SCI 103 Congress 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 10 hours of lecture/discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Prerequisites: 1 or consent of instructor.
Nomination and election, constituent relations, the formal and informal structures of both houses, relations with the executive branch, policy formation, and lobbying.
POL SCI 103W The Congress 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 2 to 3 hours of Seminar per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Admittance to UC Berkeley-Washington Program. For details see http://learning.berkeley.edu/ucdc.
This course will explore the Congress--the first branch under the Consititution--and its role in our political system. It will leverage our environment in Washington by featuring frequent guest speakers and seeking connections to current policy and political debate. In addition to surveying the pathways of lawmaking, we will ask how Congress and its members relate to the other branches of government, to the press, and to the public.
POL SCI 104 Political Parties 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
The institutional environment within which American politics takes place. Concept and history of parties in the American context: their nature and function, origin and development. Party organization and structure. State, national, and local party systems and their variations. Nominations and elections. One directed research paper will be required.
POL SCI 105 The Politician 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
The nature of politics, the education of politicians, the structure of ambition, and the ethical values of social behavior in the political world. Sessions with elected officials and party workers on their vocation. Directed field research.
POL SCI 106A American Politics: Campaign Strategy - Media 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing.
An inside look at how political campaigns operate from the viewpoint of the media, taught by the people who run them. Class material will be directed towards students who are interested in direct involvement in campaign politics or who are looking for a greater understanding of the political process. Students will be required to develop a complete written campaign strategy document in order to fulfill class requirements. Students will be expected to follow political and campaign news via the media and be prepared to discuss those developments in class.
POL SCI 109A Special Topics in American Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
POL SCI 109B Special Topics in American Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 109G Special Topics in American Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 109H Special Topics in American Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 109L Special Topics in American Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 109M Special Topics in American Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 109R Special Topics in American Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 109W Selected Topics in American Politics-UCDC 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Seminar per week for 15 weeks. 6 hours of Seminar per week for 8 weeks.
Prerequisites: Admission to UC Berkeley-Washington Program. For details see http://learning.berkeley.edu/ucdc.
Topics will vary.
Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes. Formerly known as 108W.
POL SCI 110B Cal-in-Sacramento 2 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 2 hours of Seminar per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Limited to summer Cal-in-Sacramento interns.
The purpose of this course is to provide Cal-in-Sacramento interns and other interested UC Berkeley students with a rudimentary understanding of our state government. We will focus on the state legislature and executive branch, exploring both the policy-making process and the politics in Sacramento, which we will learn are quite closely related to one another.
Course may be repeated for credit with consent of department.Course may be repeated for credit with consent of department.
POL SCI 111AC The Politics of Displacement 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 4 hours of Lecture per week for 15 weeks. 10 hours of Lecture per week for 6 weeks.
Antebellum American political history generally follows a routine script in which the purpose of the Revolution was to liberate Americans for self-government and economic and social development. Slavery is viewed as an anomaly still needing explanation, and Native American relocation as the consequence of natural forces of immigration and pre-modern social values. In this class, the revolution against traditional political authority embodied in Jefferson's and Thomas Paine's attack on the British crown, the rise of slavery, and the conflict with Native America are seen as coherent parts of a cultural and social development that emerges in the 18th- and 19th-century America. Using both original antebellum materials, including biographies, history, and literature, and contemporary images from American popular culture such as film, news and magazine articles, and music, we will compare and contrast the experiences of antebellum Native Americans, Euopean immigrants, and African slaves as a connection between the past and the present emerges.
Satisfies the American Cultures requirement
POL SCI 112A History of Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture, 2 hours of discussion, and 1 hour of conference per week.
Major theories from the ancient Greeks to the modern period. Ancient and medieval political thought, including Plato, Aristotle, and St. Augustine.
POL SCI 112B History of Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture, 2 hours of discussion, and 1 hour of conference per week.
Early modern political thought up to the French Revolution, including Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, and Rousseau.
POL SCI 112C History of Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture, 2 hours of discussion, and 1 hour of conference per week.
Nineteenth and twentieth century political thought, including Burke, Utilitarianism, Marx, and contemporary theory.
POL SCI 112D History of European Political Theory: The 20th Century 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
This is a survey course that will examine developments in 20th-century European Political Theory. It will focus on theorists' contributions and reactions to various major political and intellectual shifts, including Marxism (as "Western Marxism" and Critical Theory, as well as institutionalized Soviet communism in its heyday); psychoanalysis; and fascism.
Instructor: Thomas
POL SCI N113A American Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 8 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Basic problems of political theory as viewed within the context of American history and institutions.
POL SCI 114A Theories of Governance: Late 20th Century 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
What is governance? How should we explain its emergence? What are its implications for public policy and democracy? This course uses debates about contemporary governance to examine four approaches to political science and political theory. The approaches are rational choice theory, institutionalism, Marxism, and poststructuralism. The course looks at the narrative that each approach provides of the origins and workings of governance since 1979, and at the way these narratives embody theoretical commitments about rationality and power, structure and agency, and democracy. It thus promotes an awareness of the way questions about contemporary governance are inextricably linked to philosophical and normative commitments. This course has a required discussion section.
POL SCI 116A Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116B Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116C Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116D Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116E Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116F Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116G Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116H Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116I Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116J Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 8 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116K Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116L Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116M Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116N Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116O Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116P Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116Q Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116R Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116S Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116T Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116U Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116V Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116W Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116X Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116Y Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 116Z Special Topics in Political Theory 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Intensive study of one topic, problem, or intellectual movement in political theory. See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 118AC Three American Cultures 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture per week for 15 weeks. 5.5 hours of Lecture per week for 8 weeks. 7.5 hours of Lecture per week for 6 weeks.
The course will examine three American cultural forms. The focus of the course is to be comparative; readings will center around first-person accounts, written by members of the ethnic groups most immediately involved in each of the cultural forms. The theme is that of identity, seen politically as well as culturally: examining how the various ethnic groups involved came to forge a collective identity for themselves. The three groups studied will vary by instructor. See departmental listings for more specific information.
Satisfies the American Cultures requirement
Course may be repeated for credit with department approval. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
POL SCI 122A Politics of European Integration 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
The European Union is the world's most advanced experiment in governance beyond the level of the traditional nation-state. Through the European Union, the main members countries have pooled their national sovereignty and created new ways political authority, economic competition, social cohesion, and cultural identity. While specialists in comparative politics focus on the separate countries, scholars in international relations emphasize the construction of supranational institutions and transnational identities. This course seeks to synthesize the comparative and international approaches by examining the economic, political, and cultural aspects of integration. Readings are drawn from international relations, comparative politics, public policy, sociology, and some anthropological debates. Course requirements include careful preparation of the readings, discussion sections, participation in a group report on one of the major domains mentioned above, and a closed-book final.
POL SCI 123A Special Topics in International Relations 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Prerequisites: 120A highly recommended.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 123G Special Topics in International Relations 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Prerequisites: 120A highly recommended.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 123H Special Topics in International Relations 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Prerequisites: 120A highly recommended.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 123M Special Topics in International Relations 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Prerequisites: 120A highly recommended.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 123S Special Topics in International Relations 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Prerequisites: 120A highly recommended.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 124A War! 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 8 weeks.
Prerequisites: 5.
War, what is it good for? Absolutely nothing! Is this necessarily true? Wars are brutal and horrific events, but are they all necessarily the result of miscalculation, accident, or fanaticism? Can war serve a rational purpose? Are wars governed by rules and do states care about these rules? This course is designed for upper-level undergraduate students.
POL SCI 124C Ethics and Justice in International Affairs 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Should nations intervene in other countries to prevent human rights abuses or famine? On what principles should immigration be based? Should wealthy states aid poorer states, and if so, how much? Who should pay for global environmental damage? Answers to these moral questions depend to a great degree on who we believe we have an obligation to: Ourselves? Nationals of our country? Residents of our country? Everyone in the world equally? We will examine different traditions of moral thought including skeptics, communitarians, cosmopolitans, and use these traditions as tools to make reasoned judgments about difficult moral problems in world politics.
POL SCI 126A International Political Economy 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: A is prerequisite to B.
Economic concepts in the study of international political behavior. Political concepts influencing the choice of economic policies.
Instructor: 126A is prerequisite to B.
POL SCI 128 Chinese Foreign Policy 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
This course covers the history and analysis of Chinese foreign policy since the inception of the People's Republic of China 1949. Some attention is devoted to pre-1949 Far Eastern international relations, but only as a background to the study of the contemporary period. Emphasis is placed on Sino-American and Sino-Soviet relations, on the domestic determinants of Chinese foreign policy, on the changing nature of China's relations with her Asian neighbors, and on important substantive issues.
POL SCI 128A Chinese Foreign Policy 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Chinese foreign policy from the inception of the People's Republic of China in 1949 to the present. This course aims at providing the student with a sufficient factual base, alternative theoretical approaches and some of the methodological tools useful in studying Chinese foreign policy.
POL SCI 129B Russia after Communism 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture and 1 hour of discussion per week. 8 hours of lecture and 2 hours of discussion per week for 6 weeks.
This course presents a broad introduction to contemporary politics and society in Russia. The social movements and political transformations of the Gorbachev period will be explored. Most of the course is devoted to the post-communist period and current problems of political change and upheaval. Topics to be investigated include the movement from a command economy to capitalism, struggles among emerging social interests, the changing role of the military in society, crime and social disintegration, the rise of nationalism and the search for national identity, civil war, and the transformation of political institutions. The course is recommended for juniors and seniors but is open to all students.
POL SCI C131A/ECON C142/PUB POL C142 Applied Econometrics and Public Policy 4 Units
Department: Political Science; Economics; Public Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture and zero to 1 hour of discussion/laboratory per week.
Prerequisites: 140 or 141 or consent of instructor.
This course focuses on the sensible application of econometric methods to empirical problems in economics and public policy analysis. It provides background on issues that arise when analyzing non-experimental social science data and a guide for tools that are useful for empirical research. By the end of the course, students will have an understanding of the types of research designs that can lead to convincing analysis and be comfortable working with large scale data sets.
POL SCI C135/ECON C110 Game Theory in the Social Sciences 4 Units
Department: Political Science; Economics
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
A non-technical introduction to game theory. Basic principle, and models of interaction among players, with a strong emphasis on applications to political science, economics, and other social sciences.
Students will receive no credit for C135 after taking Economics 104. Formerly known as 135.
POL SCI 137A Revolutionary Change 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Theories of revolutionary violence, rebellion, and revolution. Strategies of revolution, terrorism, sources of revolutionary action.
POL SCI 138E The Varieties of Capitalism: Political Economic Systems of the World 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
This course examines the interaction between politics and markets, both in theory and in practice, explicitly linking classic works on political economy with current policy debates. We study how political systems and markets are organized in a wide range of different national settings, looking at both history and contemporary issues. Topics include: 1) early industrialization in Britain and the United States, 2) late industrialization in continental Europe and Japan, 3) the varieties of capitalism in contemporary industrialized countries, 4) the newly industrializing economics of Latin America and East Asia, 5) the problems of development, and 6) the transition from communism to a market economy in Eastern Europe and China.
POL SCI 138G National Success and Failure in the Age of a Global Economy: from Pleats to Cleats 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
In the present era political, economic, and social organization powerfully influence national capacity to assure economic success, real and rising incomes for the population, and political success, basic survival, and the projection of its purposes and values. This course looks at the continual process of international competition and transformation, and examines which factors separate the winners from the losers. We will gain leverage into these questions by examining critical moments in the 20th and 21st centuries and analyze according to national responses. What choices signal success? Can the failures be avoided? The course will discuss whether globalization is shunting aside national political choice, or whether globalization is in fact a sequence of national and regional stories played out on a larger stage. We will consider how economic constraint structures political choice and national response to the global economy. But we will also examine how political developments shape market dynamics and national innovations. We will learn about all sorts of things from the politics of French fashion to why Japanese make good cars.
Instructor: Zysman
POL SCI 139B Development Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 7.5 hours of Lecture and 2.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Politics of economic development in developing countries. Comparative analysis of the theories and practice of development in the light of contemporary experience. Political strategies of agrarian, industrial, educational, and regional development and their impact on autonomy, welfare, justice, and human development.
POL SCI C139/CY PLAN C139 Urban and Sub-national Politics in Developing Countries 4 Units
Department: Political Science; City and Regional Planning
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Over half of the world's population is now urban. As urban populations swell, metropolitan areas in both the developed and the developing world struggle to provide basic services and address the negative externalities associated with rapid growth. Sanitation, transportation, pollution, energy services, and public safety typically fall to sub-national governments. Yet local sub-national institutions face difficulties as they tackle these challenges because development tends to spill over political boundaries and resources are limited. Such difficulties are particularly acute in the developing world due to tighter resource constraints, weak institutions, and the comparative severity of the underlying problems. Moreover, democratization and decentralization suggest that urban governance and service delivery may have become more democratic, but present challenges with respect to priority setting, coordination, and corruption.
Instructor: Post
POL SCI 139D Urban and Sub-national Politics in Developing Countries 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Over half of the world's population is now urban. As urban populations swell, metropolitan areas in both the developed and the developing world struggle to provide basic services and address the negative externalities associated with rapid growth. Sanitation, transportation, pollution, energy services, and public safety typically fall to sub-national governments. Yet local sub-national institutions face difficulties as they tackle these challenges because development tends to spill over political boundaries and resources are limited. Such difficulties are particularly acute in the developing world due to tighter resource constraints, weak institutions, and the comparative severity of the underlying problems. Moreover, democratization and decentralization suggest that urban governance and service delivery may have become more democratic, but present challenges with respect to priority setting, coordination, and corruption.
POL SCI 140E Selected Topics in Comparative Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 4 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 140F Selected Topics in Comparative Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 4 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 140R Selected Topics in Comparative Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 4 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 140S Selected Topics in Comparative Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 4 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 141C Politics and Government in Eastern Europe 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Modern politics and government in the states of Eastern Europe presented within a broader cultural, historical, and sociological framework. Problems of economic underdevelopment and national fragmentation. Comparisons of the pre-Communist, Communist, and post-Communist periods.
POL SCI 142A Middle East Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture and 1 to 2 hours of discussion per week. 8 hours of lecture and 2 hours of discussion per week for 6 weeks.
The Middle East in world affairs, international relations and domestic policies of contemporary states in the Middle East; policies and strategy of major powers; supranational movements, regional political and security organizations. The area comprises Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Israel, and the Arab countries.
POL SCI 143A Northeast Asian Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 1.5 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
The structure and evolution of political institutions in China, Japan, and Korea. Emphasis upon such topics as nationalism, political modernization, and ideology.
POL SCI 143B Japanese Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 1.5 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
The structure and evolution of political institutions in Japan. Emphasis upon such topics as political parties, the bureaucracy, social change, and contemporary policy issues.
POL SCI 143C Chinese Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
An overview of Chinese politics since the fall of the Qing Dynasty. Emphasis on the People's Republic of China and post-Mao reforms.
Instructor: O'Brien
POL SCI 143T Chinese Politics and Society 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 18 hours of lecture/discussion per week for the first week in Berkeley and 15 to 20 hours of lecture/discussion per week while in China.
This course offers the opportunity to learn about contemporary Chinese politics and society while visiting both famous and ordinary places to see and hear first hand how the Chinese people have experienced over five decades of dramatic change. The course has two components. The first week will be spent on the Berkeley campus and will involve an intensive introduction to the major strands of scholarly work on Chinese politics since the Communist revolution. During this time, students will also have a chance to become familiar with the basic outlines of recent Chinese history. The remaining 3 weeks of the course will be held in the Peoples Republic of China with an emphasis on experiential learning. Lecture and discussions will be on-going during and following field work and tours. In addition to lecture and discussions, two essays will be required.
Course may be repeated for credit with departmental approval. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
POL SCI 144 American Foreign Policy Toward Asia 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Fall
Grading: Letter grade.
This course is designed primarily for students interested in exploring in depth the relationship between U.S. foreign policy and developments in East Asia. This course will explore the historical and contemporary foreign policies of the United States toward Asia with an eye toward analyzing the ways in which Asia has been shaped by American, and in turn American policies have been shaped by events in Asia.
POL SCI 144B Politics of Divided Korea 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
An overview of modern Korea divided into the Republic of Korea and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. The course will compare the two Koreas in terms of political, social and economic institutions, culture, political elites and modernization strategy.
POL SCI 145A South Asian Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
A comparative analysis of development and change in the political systems of contemporary South Asia.
POL SCI 145B South Asian Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
A comparative analysis of development and change in the political systems of contemporary South Asia.
POL SCI W145A Understanding Political Developments in India 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 6 hours of Web-based lecture and 2 hours of Web-based discussion per week for 8 weeks. 8 hours of Web-based lecture and 2 hours of Web-based discussion per week for 6 weeks. This is an online course.
This class focuses mostly on the "domestic" politics of India. In addition to providing an overview of political developments in India since independence, this online course assesses the nature of democratic participation and representation in contemporary India - the world's largest democracy.
POL SCI 146A African Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Introduction to politics in the states of contemporary sub-Saharan Africa. Comparative study of political institutions and regime transitions; economic crisis and development; political violence and civil conflict.
POL SCI 146D Environment, Culture, and Peacebuilding 6 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 15 hours of Lecture per week for 6 weeks.
The course begins at the global level and moves to the local level in examining the nexus of politics, environment, and culture where conflicts ensue. These conflicts can lead to violence and hardship. They can also result in creative adaptations and solutions based in political and administrative institutions and processes that build peace. The first three weeks of the course examine global trends and institutions; the last three weeks examine the specific dynamics involving land and resource conflict in Kenya. Throughout the course, students will be introduced to social science and environmental science perspectives. Students will be exposed to the analytical tools of political economy, history, and political ecology. The class will consist of students from the University of California, Berkeley and Kenyatta University. It will be led by faculty from both institutions.
Instructors: Arriola, Kanogo, Olukoye
POL SCI N146C Conflict and Change in Southern Africa 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 20 hours of Lecture per week for 3 weeks.
Combining classroom lectures and discussion with visits to interesting and relevant places in the Cape Town area, this course will be concerned with the dynamics of political change in South Africa. We will sketch the historical evolution of the system of minority racial rule that characterized South Africa until 1994; analyze the process of political upheaval and the transformation that culminated in the transitional election of 1994; examine the process of negotiations and constitution making that began in 1990, and its implications for the nature of politics and governance in a new government to overcome the legacies of South Africa's past.
Instructor: Price
POL SCI 147F Contemporary French Politics: The Republican Model in Transition 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
French political life has long gravitated around a "Republican model" marked by an unmediated relationship between the citizen and the state, socialization into French values through secular public education, a special vocation for France on the international stage, and an activist state. Recent developments have called the Republican model into question. This course will examine the transformation of France's Republican model - its origins, operations, and responses to contemporary challenges.
POL SCI 147G The Welfare State in Comparative Perspective 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Comparision of welfare states in Western Europe and North America. Origins of welfare states. Varieties of welfare states. Relationship between welfare states and the economy. Impact of changing social, economic, and family structure states. Contemporary welfare reform.
POL SCI 147T German History and Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 4 hours of lecture for 4 days per week for 4 weeks.
This course provides an introduction to German history, from ancient times to the post-reunification period. Special emphasis will be placed on the history of the city of Berlin. Except for a few preparatory activities in Berkeley, the course will be conducted in Berlin, offering lectures as well as hands-on visits to important places of German history. This is a four-week travel-study course.
Instructor: Sperlich
POL SCI 148A Latin American Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 10 hours of lecture/discussion per week for 6 weeks. 10 hours of lecture/discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Political institutions, groups and parties in Latin American countries. Basic characteristics of political processes in Latin America; problems of political development and modernization and political change. Comparative study of political systems, institutions, groups and political culture.
POL SCI 149B Special Topics in Area Studies 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 149C Special Topics in Area Studies 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 149E Special Topics in Area Studies 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 149F Special Topics in Area Studies 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 149I Special Topics in Area Studies 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 149J Special Topics in Area Studies 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 8 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 149P Special Topics in Area Studies 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 3 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 149W Special Topics in Area Studies 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture and 1 hour of discussion per week. 9 hours of lecture and 1 hour of discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 149Y Special Topics in Area Studies 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 149Z Special Topics in Area Studies 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
See department web site for specific course offerings.
POL SCI 150 The American Legal System 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 6 hours of Lecture and 1.5 hours of Discussion per week for 8 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
The nature of the American legal system; the interrelationships of judges, lawyers, police, political officials, bureaucrats, press, and general public; the political and social aspects of the legal process.
Students who have taken 150A during the 1983-84 or 1984-85 academic year will receive no credit for 150.
POL SCI 157A Constitutional Law of the United States 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 to 4 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Fundamental principles of constitutional law, leading cases, causes, and consequences of legal decisions and their role in influencing, shaping, and constraining the American political system. Judicial Review and the Limits to National Power.
POL SCI 157B Constitutional Law of the United States 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 to 4 hours of Lecture and 1 to 2 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Prerequisites: 157A.
Fundamental principles of constitutional law, leading cases, causes, and consequences of legal decisions and their role in influencing, shaping, and constraining the American political system. Civil Rights and Civil Liberties.
POL SCI 161 Public Opinion, Voting and Participation 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 10 hours of lecture/discussion per week for 6 weeks. 6 hours of lecture and 2 hours of discussion per week for 8 weeks.
The nature of public opinion, attitude formation, electoral turnout and choice; political cleavages; the role of the mass public.
POL SCI 164A Political Psychology and Involvement 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 8 weeks.
Personality factors in political behavior; psychological roots of decision-making; leadership; psychological sources of political belief; conflict theory.
POL SCI N164A Psychology of Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture and 1 hour of discussion per week. 8 hours of lecture and 2 hours of discussion per week for 6 weeks.
This course explores the sources of political beliefs and actions through the application of psychological theories about personality, learning, cognition, and group dynamics. The course begins by briefly considering a number of alternative analytic approaches to linking human nature and politics and then considers such problems as political ideology, persuasion, compliance, protest, violence, and leadership in terms of these approaches. The course considers both mass and elite political behavior. The readings include both quantitative materials drawn from survey research and experiments and more impressionistic and clinical studies.
POL SCI 166 Latinos and the U.S. Political System 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
This course provides a critical analysis of the political circumstances, political behavior, and the activities and consequences of Latinos (or Hispanics) within the governmental and political system of the United States. Latinos became the nation's largest minority group in 2005 and are also the largest minority group in U.S. elementary/secondary schools. For these and other reasons the situation of Latinos has broad social and political significance.
POL SCI 167AC Racial and Ethnic Politics in the New American Century 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Some of the most enduring and violent conflicts in America center on race. The goal of this course is to explore, discuss, and better understand the relationship between perceptions of racial identity, attributions of racial difference, and politics, broadly defined. We focus on the recent and persistent debates about racism, identity, rights, representation, citizenship, conflict, and coalitions. A repeated theme of this course is the question whether racial order and inequality are essential to, or an exception from, the liberal democracy in the U.S. This is a lecture course with intensive readings, written assignments, and in-class discussion.
Satisfies the American Cultures requirement
POL SCI 169 Selected Topics in Political Behavior 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
See departmental announcements.
Course may be repeated for credit with consent of department.Course may be repeated for credit with consent of department.
POL SCI 171 California Politics 4 Units
Department: Political Science
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
An inquiry into the political environment of the state--historical, economic, geographic, and social; its political institutions--government, parties, interest groups, and citizens; and the policies resulting from the interaction of environment and institutions.
POL SCI 173S Political Economy of the California Crisis 4 Units