Political Science

Faculty | MA| Shared | Courses

Chair -Maureen Mancuso (626 MacKinnon, Ext. 6503/6504) (E-mail: mancuso@css.uoguelph.ca)
Graduate co-ordinator - Richard W. Phidd (632 MacKinnon, Ext. 3341) (E-mail: rphidd@css.uoguelph.ca)
Graduate secretary - Millie MacQueen (623 MacKinnon, Ext. 3895) (E-mail: milllie@css.uoguelph.ca)

FACULTY
William E. Christian BA, MA Toronto, PhD London - Professor
O.P. Dwivedi BSc Allahabad, MA Saugor, Carleton, PhD Queen's, LL.D. (Hon.) Lethbridge - Professor
Fred Eidlin BA Dartmouth, MA Indiana, PhD Toronto - Professor
William D. Graf BA British Columbia, MSc Berlin, PhD London - Professor
J.R. Happy BA, MA McMaster, PhD Rochester - Associate Professor
J. Patrick Kyba BA, MA Saskatchewan, PhD London - Professor
Theresa M.L. Lee BA Toronto, MA, PhD Princeton - Assistant Professor
Maureen Mancuso BA McMaster, MA Carleton, DPhil Oxford - Associate Professor
Jorge Nef Lic. Chile, PhD California - Professor
Richard W. Phidd BA Sir George Williams, MA Carleton, PhD Queen's - Professor
Terisa Turner HBA York (U.K.), MA Oberlin College, PhD London - Associate Professor
R. Brian Woodrow BA, MA, PhD Toronto - Associate Professor
Kenneth B. Woodside BA Toronto, MA, PhD Chicago - Associate Professor

Associated Graduate Faculty
John B. Black BA, MA Western Ontario, PhD London - Professor
Patrick Boyer BA Carleton, MA, BL Toronto - Faculty of Law, University of Toronto
Henry Wiseman BA, PhD Queen's - Professor Emeritus

MA PROGRAM
The Department of Political Studies offers programs of study leading to the MA degree. Students may pursue either a thesis option or a coursework option, both of which are research-based.
   The MA programs focus on three fields: the Americas, public policy and administration, and international and comparative development. The Americas field includes the study of the government and politics of Canada, the United States, and Latin America and the Caribbean from a comparative and theoretical perspective. The public policy and administration field includes the study of the operation and management of governmental institutions and selected areas of public policy. The internation al and comparative development field includes both area studies and theories of development which link these areas.
   The department works jointly with the Department of Political Science at McMaster University in offering a collaborative program in public policy and administration. Faculty members in the department also participate in the Collaborative International Development Studies program.

Admission Requirements
   The department requires an honours degree in political studies (or its equivalent) with at least a 'B' average (second-class standing) for consideration for admission to the program. A methodology course equivalent to The Systematic Stud y of Politics, 7803650, in the Department of Political Studies' undergraduate program, is necessary for admission to the graduate program. Students not satisfying this requirement may be admitted with the provision that it be satisfied by completing the r equisite extra course. Students are also expected to have an adequate working knowledge of a language in addition to English which may be needed for their particular course of study.

Degree Requirements
Departmental Program - Guelph MA Program in the Fields of the Americas, Public Policy and Administration, and International and Comparative Development
In order to fulfill the requirements of the MA degree, students must complete the requirements of either the thesis or the coursework options.

Thesis option (2.25 course credits plus a thesis):
  1. Proseminar, 7806900 (0.25)
  2. Political Research: Theories and Approaches, 7806940, or an equivalent methodology/quantitative methods course such as Statistical Analysis for Public Policy, McM7840 (McMaster University - available in the electronic classroom, University of Guelph) , Research Methodology, 8606120 (Department of Sociology & Anthropology, University of Guelph), or Quantitative Research, 8606130 (Department of Sociology & Anthropology, University of Guelph).
  3. One of the following field core courses:
    • Comparative Governments in the Americas, 7806250
    • Public Policy and Administration: Theory and Practice, 7806630
    • The Politics of Development and Underdevelopment, 7806730.
  4. 1.0 additional course credits, normally taken from other offerings in the department. Students may, however, with permission, take courses relevant to their research from other departments.
  5. complete and successfully defend a thesis of no more than 20,000 words on a topic approved by the department.

Course-work option (4.25 course credits including a major paper of no more than 10,000 words)
  1. Proseminar, 7806900 (0.25)
  2. Major Paper, 7806970 (1.0)
  3. Political Research: Theories and Approaches, 7806940 (0.5), or an equivalent methodology/quantitative methods course such as Statistical Analysis for Public Policy, McM7840 (McMaster University - available in the electronic classroom, University of Gu elph), Research Methodology, 8606120 (Department of Sociology & Anthropology, University of Guelph), or Quantitative Research, 8606130 (Department of Sociology & Anthropology, University of Guelph).
  4. 1.0 course credits from two of the following field core courses:
    • Comparative Governments in the Americas, 7806250
    • Public Policy and Administration: Theory and Practice, 7806630
    • The Politics of Development and Underdevelopment, 7806730
  5. 0.5 course credits drawn from one of the two areas in (iv)
  6. 1.0 additional course credits, normally taken from other departmental offerings. Students may, however, with permission, take courses relevant to their research from other departments.

Interuniversity Program - Guelph-McMaster Collaborative MA Program in Political Studies/Science in the Field of Public Policy and Administration
    The collaborative program in public policy and administration is an initiative on the part of the Departments of Political Studies/Science at the University of Guelph and McMaster University to co-ordinate their involvement in this parti cular field.
   In order to fulfill the requirements of the degree, students must complete the equivalent of eight Guelph semester-long courses (or McMaster half-courses) from a prescribed schedule of studies (4.0 credits). The schedule of studie s is moderately structured but does allow students choice and specialization within particular categories of courses.
   Courses are divided into three categories. Students must fulfill the requirements of all three categories. (McM indicates courses offered at McMaster University.)

Category A
   Students are required to take all four of the following core one-semester courses offered either at Guelph or McMaster.

Category B
   Students are required to take at least three one-semester elective courses from the following list. At least one of the three must be selected from each of the two sections.

Category C
   Students must complete one course from the following:
  1. Regular departmental graduate courses; or
  2. Other courses in the collaborative program from Category B; or
  3. Selected courses from allied disciplines, with the approval of the collaborative program committee.

INTERDEPARTMENTAL PROGRAMS
Collaborative International Development Studies MA/MSc Program
   The Department of Political Studies participates in the MA Collaborative International Development Studies (CIDS) program. Professors Dwivedi, Eidlin, Graf, Lee, Nef, Woodrow and Woodside are members of the International Development Stud ies Interdepartmental Group. These faculty members' research and teaching expertise includes aspects of international development studies; they may serve as advisers for MA students. Please consult the International Development Studies listing for a detai led description of the MA collaborative program including the special additional requirements for each of the participating departments.

Thesis option (3.25 course credits plus a thesis):
  1. CIDS core courses (2.5)
  2. Proseminar, 7806900 (0.25)
  3. Political Research: Theories and Approaches, 7806940, or an equivalent methodology/quantitative methods course such as Statistical Analysis for Public Policy, MCM7840 (McMaster University - available in the electronic classroom, University of Guelph), Research Methodology, 8606120, (Department of Sociology & Anthropology, University of Guelph), or Quantitative Research, 8606130 (Department of Sociology & Anthropology, University of Guelph).
  4. complete and successfully defend a thesis on a topic approved by the department.

Course-work option (5.25 course credits):
  1. CIDS core courses (2.5)
  2. Proseminar, 7806900 (0.25)
  3. Major Paper, 7806970, (1.0)
  4. Political Research: Theories and Approaches, 7806940 (0.5), or an equivalent methodology/quantitative methods course such as Statistical Analysis for Public Policy, MCM7840 (McMaster University - available in the electronic classroom, University of Gu elph), Research Methodology, 8606120 (Department of Sociology & Anthropology, University of Guelph), or Quantitative Research, 8606130 (Department of Sociology & Anthropology, University of Guelph).
  5. 1.0 additional course credits, normally taken from other departmental offerings. Students may, however, with permission, take courses relevant to their research from other departments.

Rural Planning and Development Shared MA Program
   Students registered in the Department of Political Studies may participate in a shared MA program with the University School of Rural Planning and Development. Please consult the Rural Planning and Development Shared Programs listing for a detailed description of the shared programs including the core course requirements of the university school.

COURSES
(*=Core Course)
The Americas
7806250* Comparative Governments in the Americas (0.5)
This course provides the theoretical and methodological foundation for the analysis of Canada, the United States, and Latin America and the Caribbean. Methodological issues in the analysis of constitutional regimes and theoretical frameworks for the comparative analysis of political institutions are examined.
7806210 Canadian Politics: Process and Culture (0.5)
This course begins with a study of the works of democratic theorists, Canadian and foreign. Conclusions drawn from this analysis are then applied to our political institutions and processes with a view to their evaluation and reform in accordance wi th the democratic ideal.
7806290 The American Political System (0.5)
This course examines the institutions, processes and policies of the government and politics of the United States. Seminar discussion focuses on evaluating approaches to the study of the American system. Topics to be covered include Congress, intere st groups, executive-legislative relations and reinventing government.
7806370 Latin America and the Caribbean (0.5)
The analysis of the political development of Latin America and the Caribbean looking at the context, ideologies, structures, processes and effects of policy formulation and implementation.

Public Policy and Administration
7806630* Public Policy and Administration: Theory and Practice (0.5)
This course provides an overview of important contributions in the study of public policy and public administration. It reviews a number of theories of the state and the literatures which have grown up around them. It also covers a range of narrower areas of public policy and administration such as organization theory, public budgeting and regulation and the literatures which they have generated.
7806640 Canadian Public Administration: Public Sector Management (0.5)
This course examines the growth of the administrative state in Canada, especially in the post World War II period. It critically reviews issues such as the concept of public sector management, the delegation of authority, personnel management, accou ntability and the ethics of ministers and officials to Parliament and the public.
7806390 Environmental Policy and Law (0.5)
Examination of the policy, institutions, processes and legal procedures which encompass the field of environmental policy-making and law in Canada.
7806450 The Political Economy of Trade Policy (0.5)
This course examines international trade policies - multilateral, bilateral and unilateral - from a political economy perspective with particular attention to the evolving World Trade Organization as well as regional experiences under NAFTA and the European Union.
7806650 Organization and Decision-Making Theory (0.5)
This course reviews a variety of theories and models used for explaining public sector organization behaviour. The models include economics, political science, contingency and institutional approaches. The theories and models are then used to examin e actual behaviour in a variety of public sector organizations.

International and Comparative Development
7806730* The Politics of Development and Underdevelopment (0.5)
This course, for MA students specializing in international and comparative development, has a primarily theoretical orientation, focusing on the main paradigms that have evolved to explain central problems and issues of development and underdevelopm ent, particularly modernization theory, dependency theory, world-systems theory and Marxist state- theory.
7806750 Development Administration (0.5)
This course traces the roots of the developmental paradigm and the emergence of a unique administrative mechanism to handle the development goals of Third World nations. Special issues for discussion include: the cultural context of development admi nistration, sustainable development, technology transfer, corruption and administrative accountability.

Methodology and Research Courses
7806940* Political Research: Theories and Approaches (0.5)
This course provides an introduction to the nature of empirical social science by examining the major theoretical approaches to the study of politics. It is designed to encourage students to understand and critically assess the potential and limitat ions in each. Accordingly, a comprehensive survey of the philosophical assumptions and the methodological issues underlying political inquiry and analysis are undertaken, with a focus on the fields of study in the departmental graduate program.
7806950 Specialized Topics in Political Studies (0.5)
This course is intended to be an elective course for students wishing to pursue an area of investigation not covered in the other courses offered by the department. This course may also be chosen by students who want to further pursue a subject area to which they were introduced in a previous course.

Other
7806900 Proseminar (0.25)
This course is a 0.25 credit course introducing students to graduate studies in the department and to the profession of political science. It includes information on the following: formation of a student's faculty advisory committee; preparation of research proposals for thesis and major papers; library orientation; research using the WWW and computers; and discussion of faculty research. All graduate students are required to take this course. The course is graded satisfactory (SAT) or unsatisfactor y (UNSAT).
7806970   Major Paper (1.0)
The major paper is an extensive research paper for those who do not elect to complete a thesis. It may be taken over two semesters. The length of the major paper is not to exceed 10,000 words.

Courses at McMaster University available to students in the collaborative MA program
 McM7470   Welfare States in Comparative Perspective
McM7740 International Political Economy
McM7750 Canadian Foreign Policy
McM7820 Development Theory and Administration
McM7830 Comparative Public Policy
McM7840 Statistical Analysis for Public Policy
McM7850 Canadian Public Administration: Public Sector Management
McM7860 Organizational Theory and the Public Sector
McM7870 Intergovernmental Relations and Public Policy-Making
McM7890 Public Sector-Private Sector Relations
McM7900 The Politics of Economic Policy in Market Economies
McM7920 Public Choice
McM7930 Research Seminar in Public Administration
McM7940 Research Seminar in Public Policy
McM7950 Research Project in Public Policy
McM7960 Research Design and Methods for Comparative Public Policy
McM7970 Readings in Comparative Public Policy




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