Political Science

                         Graduate Faculty
Chair: S. C. Craig. Graduate Coordinator: B. J. Moraski.
Complete faculty listing by department: Follow this link

The Department of Political Science currently offers two graduate degrees: Master of Arts (thesis or nonthesis option) and Doctor of Philosophy. The political science--international relations program currently offers the Master of Arts (thesis or nonthesis option). Requirements for these degrees are given in the General Information section of this catalog.

Admission to graduate study in the Department of Political Science normally requires the completion of an undergraduate major in political science or its equivalent. Students without this preparation may be required to make up deficiencies early in their graduate work.  The core sequence begins in the fall term, providing basic knowledge that students need in later semesters. In evaluating candidates for admission, the Department considers

• Prior academic achievement
  
  

• GRE scores
  
  

• Letters of recommendation from three faculty members or others familiar with the academic potential or work habits of the applicant
  
  

• A statement of purpose that conveys intellectual ambitions, indicates how the program of study satisfies the student’s interests and goals, and tells how the student would contribute to the program.

Fields of specialization offered by the Department include American government and politics, comparative politics, international relations, public policy, political theory, political behavior, and political methodology.

Master of Arts: The M.A. curricula are designed to serve students who want to pursue goals of an advanced general education, to gain skills and knowledge suitable for various types of public or private employment, or to prepare for further work at the doctoral level. M.A. students are required to complete POS 6736 Conduct of Inquiry and STA 6126 Statistical Methods in Social Research I. Students may complete their M.A. degrees with or without writing a thesis. Students pursuing the thesis option must complete 30 hours of graduate course work. The thesis is expected to be of length and quality comparable to papers presented at professional academic conferences or published in academic journals. Students pursuing the nonthesis option must complete 36 semester hours of graduate course work and defend two qualifying papers. For both M.A. options, course work in political science, exclusive of core courses, must include a minimum of two graduate-level courses in one field of political science. The M.A. degree may be taken in conjunction with the following certificate programs:

• Political campaigning
  
  

• Public affairs

Students in these certificate programs pursue the nonthesis option.

Public affairs: This program trains students for leadership positions in state, local, and national governments as well as for careers in nonprofit organizations by providing students with knowledge and skills in the areas of organization behavior, public budgeting and finances, public management, policy analysis, program evaluation, and computer applications. The curriculum consists of seminars in political science, public administration, public policy, process, state and local politics, and research methods. Supervised internships in selected agencies in Florida are arranged by the Department of Political Science as an integral part of the training program. This specialization requires 39 hours of course work plus satisfactory completion of a 3-hour internship at the discretion of the Department. Students must also defend a final management-policy paper that incorporates analytical and substantive expertise. Graduates of the program serve in a variety of professional positions, including city managers, heads of municipal departments, directors of nonprofit organizations, analysts for the state legislature, and budget analysts for the federal government. In addition to the M.A. degree in political science, students receive the Certificate in Public Affairs.

Political campaigning:  The program is designed to provide students with the basic political skills, insights, and experience that are critical for success in the rapidly changing profession of politics and political consulting. The program combines an awareness of the academic literature on mass and elite behavior with exposure to the increasingly sophisticated techniques used by campaigns. Students take a total of 39 hours from four major areas:

• Courses required of all M.A. students
  
  

• Courses oriented to practical aspects of political campaigning and governmental affairs (lobbying), including a 3-credit campaign-related internship
  
  

• Courses placing campaigns and elections in the broader context of American politics
  
  

• Related courses offered by the College of Journalism and Communications.

Entry-level jobs have included such positions as legislative aide, campaign (or deputy campaign) manager, polling analyst, state party political coordinator, general campaign consultant, and media relations. With additional experience, some former students have gone on to become state legislator (and later, member of the U.S. House of Representatives), deputy chief of staff to the governor of Florida, partner in a major Washington area polling firm, assistant to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, and head lobbyist for a nationwide restaurant chain. In addition to the M.A. degree in political science, students receive the Certificate in Political Campaigning.

Political science--international relations: The M.A. degree in political science-- international relations is designed to provide professional education to those whose primary interest is a career in foreign relations. In this program, students must complete course work in the core of international relations theory and in two or more of the four major subfields of international relations, international political economy, international security, foreign policy, and international organization. The M.A. is a 36-hour degree, requiring successful completion of a 6-credit political science core sequence, 15 credits of departmental or extra-department electives, and a 15- credit international relations major. Students may pursue either a thesis option or take a comprehensive examination at the end of the program.

Law/Public Affairs joint degree program: This program culminates in the Master of Arts in political science and Juris Doctor degrees. A joint degree program culminating in the Master of Arts in political science international relations and Juris Doctor degrees is also available. The joint program enables students to earn both the J.D. and the M.A. in less time than would be required to earn both degrees consecutively. Full-time students who make satisfactory progress can usually earn both degrees in 4 years. Candidates for the joint degree program must meet the entrance requirements for, and be admitted to, both the College of Law and the Department of Political Science. These requirements include both the LSAT and the GRE. Students are encouraged to announce their intent of seeking a joint degree as soon as possible. The Department of Political Science will allow 12 hours of appropriate law school courses to be credited toward the M.A. degree. The 12 credits selected from the law curriculum must be approved by the Political Science graduate coordinator on the recommendation of the student’s supervisory committee. The College of Law will permit 12 hours of credit earned in political science graduate courses to be credited toward the J.D. degree. Students in the joint degree program are permitted, but not required, to pursue a companion certificate program in public affairs, political campaigning, or international development policy and administration.

Combined bachelor’s/master’s degree program: This combined program is designed for superior students who have the ability to pursue an accelerated program leading to the Bachelor of Arts and the Master of Arts degrees in political science or political science international relations.

Up to 12 semester hours of approved graduate-level political science courses may be used as credit for both the undergraduate and graduate degree. Applicants to the program must present

• Acceptable scores on the verbal, quantitative, and analytical writing portions of the GRE
  
  

• Completion of at least 24 semester hours at the University of Florida (including at least 12 semester hours of political science) with a GPA of 3.7 or higher
  
  

• Letters of recommendation from two faculty members in the Department of Political Science.

The combined program is not recommended for students considering a Ph.D. program in political science at UF but is appropriate for those considering one of the M.A. degree plus certificate programs described above. Further information concerning this program is available from the departmental undergraduate and graduate coordinators.

Doctor of Philosophy: The Ph.D. program emphasizes preparation for academic careers through seminars, independent work with faculty, and professional development experiences including graduate paper readings, placement workshops, and a distinguished lecture series. The Ph.D. prepares students for teaching and research in either an academic or governmental environment and opens doors to other career opportunities in both the private and public sectors. The Ph.D. program emphasizes the development of strong analytic skills and sophisticated research methods. As resources permit, the Department provides students with funding for travel expenses to scholarly meetings and professional (methodological) training support. As part of the preparation for careers in academia, doctoral students are also generally expected to contribute to the teaching mission of the Department. All Ph.D. students must complete the following:

• POS 6736P: Conduct of Inquiry
  
  

• POS 6716: Scope and Epistemologies
  
  

• POS 6737: Data Analysis
  
  

• POS 6502: Politics and Theory
  
  

• Course work in a major and two minor fields of study
  
  

• Qualifying examinations in a major field and one minor field
  
  

• A dissertation.

Fields of study open to Ph.D. students include comparative politics, American politics, public policy, international relations, political behavior, political theory, and political methodology. Applications are particularly welcome from students whose intellectual interests traverse these fields, including those with interests in religion and politics, state political institutions and policy, environmental politics, international development, and minority and ethnic politics.
University of Florida Ph.D. students benefit from associations with faculty in numerous other departments and centers. The Centers for Latin American Studies, African Studies, and European Studies, and the Asian Studies Program complement department faculty strengths in comparative politics and international relations. Students in the public policy concentration benefit from substantive expertise of faculty in the Institute for Child Health Policy, the Shimberg Center for Affordable Housing, and the Center for Gerontological Studies. Several faculty in the College of Journalism and Communications have interests in media and politics. For more information on these graduate programs, visit http://www.clas.ufl.edu/polisci/.

CPO 5935: Advanced Topics in Comparative Politics (3; max: 6) Prereq: departmental approval.
CPO 6046: Politics in Advanced Industrial Societies (3) Comparative analysis of typical political, economic, and social problems confronting governments of advanced industrial states.
CPO 6059: Democracy and Its Competitors (3) Analysis of democracy's components and several forms of authoritarianism such as apartheid, racism, fascism, right-wing populism, and totalitarianism.
CPO 6077: Social Movements in Comparative Perspective (3) Examines major classical and contemporary theoretical approaches to the field of collective action and social movements.
CPO 6091: Introduction to Comparative Political Analysis (3) Introduction to major theoretical and methodological approach to study of comparative politics.
CPO 6206: Seminar in African Politics (3) Study of African politics in comparative perspective.
CPO 6307: Latin American Politics I (3) Prereq: knowledge of Spanish or Portuguese; French may be substituted with consent of instructor.
CPO 6732: Democratization and Regime Transition (3) Prereq: CPO 6091. Review of structural, institutional, and cultural dimensions of democratization, with special attention to Latin America, Africa, and Eastern Europe.
CPO 6736: Post-Communist Politics (3) Analysis of problems associated with democratic transition and market reform in the post-communist countries of Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union.
CPO 6786: Peasant Politics and Society (3) Analysis of social organization and politics of the rural poor in Latin America, Africa, Asia, and pre-industrial Europe.
INR 5935: Advanced Topics in International Relations (3; max: 6) Prereq: departmental approval.
INR 6036: Globalization, Regionalism, and Governance(3) Analysis of interplay between globalization and regionalism, and effects on governance.
INR 6039: International Political Economy (3)
INR 6213: Seminar: Politics of the European Union (3) Predominant political and economic theories that explain and prescribe regional economic cooperation. Sub-theories and models of decision making in European Union. Processes of EU policy making including agenda setting, policy formulation, and implementation. EU legislation in selected policy areas. Salient issues facing EU policy makers.
INR 6305: Politics of American Foreign Policy Making (3) Interaction between foreign policy and domestic political variables.
INR 6337: Survey of International Security (3) Principal problems and issues in the area of international security, considered by examining samples of scholarly literature in the subfield.
INR 6352: International Environmental Relations (3) Introduction to theories, processes and results of cooperation among states to deal with environmental issues that cross borders. Designing and implementating international environmental institutions and negotiating treaties that create institutions.
INR 6507: International Organization (3) Prereq: INR 6607. Advanced reading and research. Special focus on international norms, regimes, formal intergovernmental and supranational organizations, and global constitutions.
INR 6607: International Relations Theory (3) Basic forces, problems, and developments in international politics and organization.
INR 6936: Seminar in Transnational and Global Studies (1) Seminar on current issues in transnational and global studies.
PAD 5935: Advanced Topics in Public Administration(3; max: 6) Prereq: prior departmental approval.
PAD 6108: Public Administration Theory (3) Public administration, with emphasis on the units of analysis and contributions of each approach to general understanding of the field.
PAD 6227: Public Budgeting and Finance (3) Decision making; budget planning and formulation.
PAD 6434: Leadership and Ethics in Public Agencies (3)
PAD 6865: Development Administration (3) Prereq: consent of instructor. Public administration practices in developing societies.
PAD 6946: Internship in Government (3) Prereq: departmental approval. S/U.
POS 5935: Advanced Topics in Political Science (3; max: 6) Prereq: departmental approval.
POS 6xxx: Politics of Campaign Finance(3) History, theories, and practice of campaign finance in American politics.
POS 6045: Seminar in American Politics (3) Introduction to major conceptual approaches to the American political system and to the history of the study of American politics.
POS 6048: American Political Development(3) Development from founding to the present.
POS 6127: State Government and Politics (3) The bibliography, methodology, and research topics of American state and local governments.
POS 6146: Urban Politics (3) Explores processes, actors, and institutions in local U.S. politics. Briefly examines significant issue areas including fiscal crisis, racial conflict, and education.
POS 6157: Community Analysis(3) Development of social, economic, and political profiles in understanding trends, projections, and public policy alternatives.
POS 6207: Political Behavior (3) Examines participation, political culture, and public opinion including classic and current research.
POS 6208: Empirical Political Research (3) Prereq: POS 6207. Criticism/evaluation of research, hypothesis formulation, concept development, measurement, secondary data analysis, and microcomputer statistical analysis. Original empirical research paper on some aspect of political behavior.
POS 6247: Seminar in Political Socialization and Political Cognition (3) Review of literature on political socialization, social influence, personality, and political cognition.
POS 6272: Political Participation (3) Social, political, and institutional factors that affect patterns of electoral and non-electoral political participation in the U.S. and other societies.
POS 6274: Political Campaigning (3) Overview of tasks and challenges, including strategy, uses of campaign polls, organization, management, communication, and mobilization.
POS 6278: Advanced Campaign Strategy (3) Prereq: POS 6274. Strategy implications of media production on campaigns, party management, direct mail, polling, and fundraising.
POS 6279: The Politics of Direct Democracy (3) Theory and practice of direct democracy in American states, including processes of initiative, referendum, and recall.
POS 6292: Religion and Politics (3) Interplay between religion and politics from the perspective of relevant social science approaches.
POS 6427: Legislative Process (3) Examines the role of legislative institutions in American government.
POS 6453: Political Parties and Interest Groups (3) Examines the structure and functions of political parties and interest groups in the United States.
POS 6458: The Politics of Campaign Finance (3) History, theories, and practices of campaign finance in American politics.
POS 6707: Qualitative Research Methods for Political Science(3) Survey of methods focusing on concept formation, case selection, and data collection suitable for research designs based on small number of case studies.
POS 6712: Empirical Theories of Politics (4) Developing theory as part of empirical inquiry, particularly as related to dissertations. Attributes that make a theory compelling and useful. Major traditions of empirical theory in political and social sciences. Assistance in creating theory.
POS 6716: Scope and Epistemologies of Political Science (3) Overview of development of political science as discipline and pluralistic introduction to epistemological perspectives that characterize field.
POS 6736: The Conduct of Inquiry (3) Empirical research methodology in political science.
POS 6737: Political Data Analysis (3) Introduction to quantitative methods and techniques.
POS 6747: Topics in Political Research Methodology (3) Review of recent applications of advanced research methods to different types of political science data.
POS 6757: Survey Research (3) Methods of survey research in context of field investigation: formulating research hypotheses, constructing measurement instruments, and collecting and analyzing data.
POS 6909: Individual Work (1-4; max: 12)
POS 6910: Supervised Research (1-5; max: 5) S/U.
POS 6933: Special Topics (1-3; max: 6)
POS 6940: Supervised Teaching (1-5; max: 5) S/U.
POS 6971: Research for Master's Thesis (1-15) S/U.
POS 7979: Advanced Research (1-12) Research for doctoral students before admission to candidacy. Designed for students with a master's degree in the field of study or for students who have been accepted for a doctoral program. Not appropriate for students who have been admitted to candidacy. S/U.
POS 7980: Research for Doctoral Dissertation (1-15) S/U.
POT 5935: Advanced Topics in Political Theory (3; max: 6) Prereq: departmental approval.
POT 6016: Ancient Political Thought(3) Intensive exploration of Classical Greek and Roman thinkers and texts.
POT 6056: Modern Political Thought (3) Close reading of political theorists and themes from the Renaissance through the 19th century. Emphasizes thinkers regarded as central to the development of republicanism, absolutism, liberalism, democracy, conservatism, and feminism.
POT 6067: Contemporary Political Theory (3) Close reading of one or more twentieth-century contemporary political philosophers whose works have made major impacts on field (e.g. Arendt, Foucault, Habermas).
POT 6314: Democratic Theory (3) Brief look at some classical theorists and critics of democracy (Plato, Rousseau, Tocqueville, Marx). Focus on contemporary debates in democratic theory. Participation, deliberation, representation, and multiculturalism.
POT 6416: The Marxist Tradition and its Critics (3) Examines the seminal works of Karl Marx and a selection of influential contemporary texts challenging and transforming the Marxist tradition.
POT 6505: Politics and Theory (3) Investigation of the nature of political theory and normative issues in politics.
POT 6516: Political Judgment(3) Investigation of the nature of political judgment from historical, conceptual, and empirical perspectives in western thought.
POT 6xxxB: Liberalism and Its Critics (3) Close reading of selected texts by leading defenders of liberalism and influential theoretical standpoints questioning liberal orthodoxy. Communitarianism, multiculturalism, Marxism, democratic theory, feminism, and critical race theory.
PUP 5935: Advanced Topics in Public Policy(3; max: 6) Prereq: departmental approval.
PUP 6006: Policy Evaluation (3) Examines methodologies appropriate for analyzing public policies.
PUP 6007: Policy Process (3) General examination of public policy formulation and implementation. Special emphasis upon political and economic determinants and relationship to social theory.
PUP 6009: Public Policy Analysis (3) Analytic approach to understanding economic and political tools used to formulate solutions to public problems such as environmental quality, business regulation, public education, health care, and welfare.
PUP 6015: Comparative Policy Analysis (3) Approaches to analyzing policy, with a comparative perspective.
PUP 6315: Race, Gender, and Politics (3) Politics and cultural discrimination, political power, political behavior, and public policy.