Course Offerings by Subfield

All students in the PhD in Political Science program are required to choose courses from their selected major and minor fields. Find graduate courses listed by topic area on this page, and visit the Office of the Registrar’s Schedule of Classes for a complete listing of classes by semester.

American Politics

• PSC 8220: Public Opinion and Political Psychology (every other year)
• PSC 8286: Campaigns, Elections, and Political Communication (every other year; future course number will be PSC 8222)
• PSC 8213: Judicial Politics (every other year)
• PSC 8217: Executive Branch Politics (every other year)
• PSC 8218: Legislative Politics (every other year)
• PSC 8226: Politics and Organizations (every other year)
• PSC 8229: Politics and Public Policy (every fall)
• PSC 8489: Institutions (every other year; future course number will be PSC 8456)

Comparative Politics

• PSC 8331: Advanced Theories of Comparative Politics (core course; every year)
• PSC 8333: Political Violence (approximately every other year)
• PSC 8337: Theories of Political Development (every other year)
• PSC 8338: Nationalism and Nation-Building (approximately every other year)
• PSC 8388: Authoritarianism & Democratization (every other year)
• PSC 8388: Theories of Comparative Political Economy (every other year; future course number will be PSC 8336)
• PSC 8341: Theories of Ethnic Politics (approximately every other year)
• PSC 8226: Politics and Organizations (every other year)
• PSC 8489: Institutions (every other year; future course number will be PSC 8456)

International Relations

• PSC 8441: Advanced Theories of International Politics (core course; every year)
• PSC 8452: Theories of International Security (core course; every other year)
• PSC 8453: Advanced Theories of International Political Economy (core course; every other year)
• PSC 8454: Domestic Politics and International Relations (every other year)
• PSC 8461: Military Effectiveness (every other year)
• PSC 8226: Politics and Organizations (every other year)
• PSC 8489: Institutions (every other year; future course number will be PSC 8456)

Public Policy

• PSC 8229: Politics and Public Policy (every Fall)
• PSC 8226: Politics and Organizations (every other year)
• PSC 8217: Executive Branch Politics (every other year)
• PSC 8218: Legislative Politics (every other year)
• PSC 8489: Institutions (every other year; future course number will be PSC 8456)
• PSC 8454: Domestic Politics and International Relations (every other year)
• PSC 8461: Military Effectiveness (every other year)

For courses in the Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration and the Elliott School of International Affairs, please consult the director of graduate studies.

Research Methods

• PSC 8101: Introduction to Empirical Political Analysis (required course; every Fall)
• PSC 8108: Craft of Political Inquiry (required course; every Spring)
• PSC 8120: Nonlinear Models (every Spring)
• PSC 8124: Multilevel Modeling (every Fall)
• PSC 8185: Causal Inference (every Spring; future course number will be PSC 8126)
• PSC 8185: Surveys and Experiments (every other year; future course number will be PSC 8134)
• PSC 8130: Game Theory I (every Fall)
• PSC 8131: Game Theory II (every other year)
• PSC 8109: Dissertation Development Workshop (required course for 3rd year students; every Fall)