This is an archived copy of the 2020-21 catalog. To access the most recent version of the catalog, please visit http://catalog.utexas.edu/.

Graduate Courses

The faculty has approval to offer the following courses in the academic years 2019–2020 and 2020–2021; however, not all courses are taught each semester or summer session. Students should consult the Course Schedule to determine which courses and topics will be offered during a particular semester or summer session. The Course Schedule may also reflect changes made to the course inventory after the publication of this catalog.

Please see the General Information Catalog for an updated list of courses effective fall 2020.¹

Added fall 2020.

Government: GOV

GOV 380R. Mathematical Methods for Political Analysis.

An introduction to mathematical concepts essential for quantitative analysis, such as statistics and formal political theory. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

GOV 381J. Political Institutions and Processes.

Local, state, and national political institutions and policy processes, and specific areas of public policy. Field core course. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

GOV 381L. Seminar in American Government and Politics.

Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, twenty-four semester hours of coursework in government or related fields, and consent of the graduate adviser.

Topic 1: Parties and Interest Groups. An empirically oriented inquiry into political parties and interest groups in the political process.
Topic 2: The Legislative Process. Legislative functions, processes, and behavior, with special reference to representative assemblies in the United States.
Topic 3: Money in United States Politics. Explores the role, nature, and consequences of money in American politics.
Topic 4: State Government and Politics. Institutions, processes, and problems of the American political system at the state level.
Topic 5: Government and the Economy. Selected topics on the interrelations between governments and economic systems, with particular reference to American experience.
Topic 6: Ethnic Politics. An examination of the status and behavior of racial, ethnic, and religious minorities in the American political system.
Topic 7: The American Presidency.
Topic 8: Congress.
Topic 9: Campaigns and Elections.
Topic 10: American Political Development.
Topic 11: Evolution of American Politics.
Topic 12: Positive Political Economy.

GOV 381R. Political Behavior.

Political socialization, political psychology, public opinion, and electoral behavior. Field core course. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

GOV 381S. Seminar in Political Behavior.

Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

Topic 1: Public Opinion and Voting Behavior.
Topic 2: Political Participation.

GOV 382K. Studies in Political Theory and Philosophy.

Intensive study of selected classical and contemporary theorists and source materials related to political theory and philosophy. Field core course. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, twenty-four semester hours of coursework in government or related fields, and consent of the graduate adviser.

GOV 382M. Seminar in Political Theory and Philosophy.

Topic 1: Contemporary Political Theory. Analysis of contemporary theoretical problems and detailed study of the works of contemporary Western theorists.
Topic 2: American Political Thought. Examination of the origins and development of political ideas that have influenced the evolution of the American political system.
Topic 4: Feminist Theory.
Topic 5: Natural Law Modernized.
Topic 6: Postmodernism.
Topic 7: Classical Liberalism, Utilitarianism, and Democratic Theory.
Topic 8: Philosophy of History.
Topic 9: Rousseau.

GOV 383K. Problems in the Study of Politics.

Normative orientations in research, theory formation and empirical assessment, various conceptions of explanation, and historical development of the social sciences. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, twenty-four semester hours of coursework in government or related fields, and consent of the graduate adviser.

GOV 384L. Seminar: Latin American Politics.

Analysis of selected problems in politics and international relations of the countries of Latin America. Two class hours and one conference hour a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, twenty-four semester hours of coursework in government or related fields, and consent of the graduate adviser. Some reading knowledge of Spanish or Portuguese is recommended.

Topic 1: Brazilian Public Policies. Same as Latin American Studies 384L (Topic 1: Brazilian Public Policies). Three lecture hours a week for one semester.
Topic 2: Latin American Urban Politics. Same as Latin American Studies 384L (Topic 2: Latin American Urban Politics). Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

GOV 384M. Seminar in Public Policy and Administration.

Topic 1: Policy Evaluation. Quantitative assessment and analysis of the impact and consequences of public policies.
Topic 2: Policy Analysis. Same as Latin American Studies 384L (Topic 4: Policy Analysis). Study of the nature and operation of the national policymaking process.
Topic 3: Organizational Theory. Analysis of the structure and operation of complex public bureaucracies.
Topic 4: Comparative Administration. Study of administrative theory and practice in comparative perspective.
Topic 5: Public Management. Analysis of the executive function in the public sector.
Topic 6: Development Policy. Same as Latin American Studies 384L (Topic 3: Development Policy).
Topic 7: Comparative Public Policy.
Topic 8: Public Policy Clinic.

GOV 384N. Seminar in Public Law.

Topic 1: The Judicial Process. An exploration of the nature of the judicial function, with emphasis on the roles of law and discretion in the decisional process.
Topic 2: Core Readings in Public Law.
Topic 3: Constitutional Interpretation.
Topic 4: State Constitutions and Human Rights.

GOV 385K. Foundations of Public Policy.

Introduction to major institutions, values, processes, and problems that shape contemporary public policies. Review and appraisal of current international, national, state, and local policy debates. Sampling of theoretical literature in policy analysis, American politics, institutional and organizational theory, macroeconomic management, democratic theory, policy evaluation, and politics-governance conflicts. Field core course. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

GOV 385L. Seminar in Methodology.

Intensive examination of selected issues in the methodology of political inquiry. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

Topic 1: Time-Series Analysis.
Topic 2: Introduction to Political Methodology.
Topic 3: Simultaneous Equation Models.
Topic 4: Advanced Regression.
Topic 5: Bayesian Statistics. Bayesian statistics with a focus on social science (especially political science) examples and applications.

GOV 185M. Colloquium in Politics.

Field roundtables, reports of current research, and panel discussions of significant issues in the study of politics. One lecture hour a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

GOV 385N. Introduction to Formal Political Analysis.

Critical, comparative survey of important formal theories of political processes, stressing general approaches rather than mathematical results. Presupposes no technical background. Field core course. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

GOV 385R. Seminar in Formal Theory.

Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

Topic 1: Game Theory.
Topic 2: Spatial Theory. Only one of the following may be counted: Government 381L (Topic: Spatial Theory), 385L (Topic: Spatial Theory), 385R (Topic 2).

GOV 386J. Social Science Research for Political Professionals.

Restricted to students in the option III master's program in applied politics. A survey of research methods focused on applications for policy, legislative, and advocacy purposes. Covers quantitative and qualitative methods including basic statistical analysis as well as legal and public source research. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Offered on the letter-grade basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.

GOV 386L. Survey Methods for Campaigns and Advocacy.

Restricted to students in the option III master's program in applied politics. An introduction to the use of statistical methods in political practice, including an overview of statistical concepts; special attention is paid to survey design, analysis, and use of common statistical applications. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Offered on the letter-grade basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.

GOV 388K. The Study of International Relations.

Comparison of various theories of international politics and analysis of basic forces that underlie national policies and condition the nature and concerns of contemporary international relations. Discussion, reading, and research. Field core course. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, twenty-four semester hours of coursework in government or related fields, and consent of the graduate adviser.

GOV 388L. Seminar in International Relations.

Topic 1: Study of International Conflict. Studies of the determinants of foreign policy in selected countries, with consideration of both domestic and international factors.
Topic 2: American Foreign Policy. Topics in the study of American foreign policy, including the problems and instruments of American diplomacy, and the process by which policy is made.
Topic 3: International Security. Study of the political determinants and the substantive issues of national security policy with particular emphasis upon the United States.
Topic 4: Contemporary Issues in International Relations. An analysis of major current developments and issues in international politics and military relations.
Topic 5: International Law and Organization. An analysis of the forms and functions of international law and organization, with particular emphasis on the case method as means of adjusting interstate relations.
Topic 6: International Political Economy.
Topic 7: Theory and International Relations.
Topic 8: Competing Approaches to World Politics.

GOV 390K. Comparative Study of Political Systems.

Theory and method of comparative political study; varieties of governmental institutions in Western and non-Western countries; comparative examination of political institutions. Field core course. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, twenty-four semester hours of coursework in government or related fields, and consent of the graduate adviser.

GOV 390L. Seminar in Comparative Government and Politics.

Topic 2: Political Systems of Western Europe. Analysis of Western European politics; may include both particular political systems and comparative study of political institutions, processes, and behavior.
Topic 4: Politics of the Middle East and North Africa. Same as Middle Eastern Studies 381 (Topic 22: Politics of the Middle East and North Africa). Readings and research on the political systems of the Arab world, Israel, Turkey, Iran, and Afghanistan. Precise topics vary.
Topic 7: Authoritarian Political Systems. Same as Asian Studies 390 (Topic 2). Comparative study of authoritarian and totalitarian patterns of government, past and present, Western and non-Western; special emphasis on Communist and Fascist systems.
Topic 9: Political Sociology.
Topic 10: Elites. Same as Sociology 396P (Topic 6: Elites). May be counted toward the political sociology specialization in the sociology degree program.
Topic 11: Seminar in Russian, East European, and Eurasian Civilizations and Cultures.
Topic 12: Soldiers and Politics.
Topic 13: Political Transition in Eastern Europe.
Topic 14: Comparative Political Institutions.
Topic 15: Politics and Society in the Third World. Same as Latin American Studies 384L (Topic 5: Politics and Society in the Third World).
Topic 16: Politics of Mexico.
Topic 17: Ethnicity, Religion, and Politics in South Asia. Same as Asian Studies 384 (Topic 3: Ethnicity, Religion, and Politics in South Asia).
Topic 18: Comparative Politics: Latin America. Same as Latin American Studies 384L (Topic 6: Comparative Politics: Latin America).
Topic 19: Advanced Readings in Chinese Politics. Same as Asian Studies 381 (Topic 1: Advanced Readings in Chinese Politics).
Topic 20: Japanese Politics. Same as Asian Studies 383 (Topic 4: Japanese Politics).
Topic 21: Comparative Ethnic Conflict. Same as Asian Studies 391 (Topic 1: Comparative Ethnic Conflict).
Topic 22: Analytical Issues in Latin American Politics. Designed to provide theoretical and analytical tools to engage in cross-national study and research of political processes in Latin America. Only one of the following may be counted: Government 390L (Topic: Analytcl Iss in Lat Amer Polit), 390L (Topic 22), Latin American Studies 384L (Topic: Analytcl Iss in Lat Amer Polit)

GOV 391J. Statistical Analysis in Political Science I.

An introductory course covering estimation theory and hypothesis testing for statistical models in political science and the basic probability theory needed for statistical theory. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

GOV 391K. Seminar in Political Science.

Topic 7: Scope and Methods of Political Science. History, scope, and methods of political science as a discipline; major paradigms and current subfields; conceptions of explanation in the social sciences; concept formation, theory construction, and empirical assessment; problems of interpretation, comparison, measurement, and experimentation; designs for research; normative orientations in research.

GOV 391L. Statistical Analysis in Political Science II.

Multivariate statistical techniques and their applications to problems in political science. Field core course. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, one course in statistics, and consent of the graduate adviser.

GOV 391R. Research Colloquium in Political Science.

Forum for development of research projects and dissertation proposals. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

GOV 397K, 697K. Conference Course in Political Science.

Readings in the literature of political science in fields in which the student is preparing for the qualifying examinations for the Doctor of Philosophy. May be repeated for credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, twenty-four semester hours of coursework in government or related fields, and consent of the graduate adviser.

GOV 698. Thesis.

The equivalent of three lecture hours a week for two semesters. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: For 698A, graduate standing in government, twelve semester hours of upper-division or graduate coursework in government, six of which must be in the field of the thesis subject, and consent of the graduate adviser; for 698B, Government 698A.

GOV 398R. Master's Report.

Preparation of a report to fulfill the requirement for the master's degree under the report option. The equivalent of three lecture hours a week for one semester. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing in government and consent of the graduate adviser.

GOV 398T. Supervised Teaching in Government.

Teaching under the close supervision of the course instructor; group meetings with the instructor, individual consultations, and reports throughout the teaching period. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, appointment as a teaching assistant, and consent of the graduate adviser.

GOV 399W, 699W, 999W. Dissertation.

May be repeated for credit. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Admission to candidacy for the doctoral degree.