Advising and Resources

Advising in Political Science

Academic advising for undergraduate students in the Department of Political Science is coordinated by the POLS Academic Advisor.

All incoming first-year and transfer students are assigned to the POLS academic advisor. All rising juniors and seniors are assigned a faculty advisor. Regardless of class level or assigned advisor, all students are welcome to make an appointment with the POLS academic advisor via the Nexus scheduling app, as well as attend the Peer Academic Assistant's walk-in hours.

Students will have the option of conducting advising appointments with the POLS academic advisor either in-person or virtually using Webex. Students can choose either option when they schedule 30-minute advising appointments using Nexus. The POLS advisor will also be available for walk-ins during certain hours on Tuesdays. Additionally, students are welcome to visit the Peer Academic Assistant during certain walk-in hours.

For quick questions regarding add/drop, schedule adjustments, and signatures, please email jessamy.hoffmann@uconn.edu.

POLS 2998 Sections

Instructor & Section	Title	Description	Subdivision	Notes (W, Campus, Cross-listing, Honors, Restrictions, etc.)
Adamatti, 002	Critical Genocide Studies	This course critically examines key issues in contemporary genocide studies, addressing both the legal and social dimensions of genocide. Students will explore the distinctions between genocide and crimes against humanity, the causes and dynamics of genocidal violence, and the historical and ongoing realities of colonial genocides. Additionally, the course engages with critiques of the concept of genocide, interrogating its political and theoretical limitations, particularly to the Genocide Convention. Designed as a workshop, this course strengthens students' research and writing abilities across disciplines, using genocide studies as a framework for applying and refining these skills. Instead of a traditional exam, students will develop a 15-page final paper over the semester. They will have the opportunity to choose a topic related to genocide studies, conducting in-depth research and applying critical perspectives explored in class.	International Relations OR Methods	Storrs; W
Ahmed Zaki, 002	Gender and Politics in the Middle East and North Africa	This course explores the different ways in which politics, in a broad sense, is gendered in the Middle East. It examines how the social and political construction of women as political subject influence the nature and practice of political life, as well as the ways in which sexual difference has served as a basis for social and political organization. It seeks to unravel, from a social science perspective, the political nature of the “woman’s question” in the Middle East. We seek here to go beyond the centrality of religion, mainly Islam, as the major cultural determent of the status of women in the Middle East, to discuss the role of the state, the social organization of religion and other cultural factors, and the role of local, national and transnational actors in determining the politics of gender in the region. We theoretically analyze the economic, social and political contexts of struggles around gender issues and cast a critical look at the policies of the postcolonial states in the region. Finally, we empirically examine in a number of issues such as the institutional roots of violence against women, the interaction of religion, law and interpretation, the mobilization of women’s movements and their relation to the state, the public/private divide and the gendered boundaries of public life. We also explore the role of oil in shaping the lives of women in the region. Finally, we will examine the challenges facing women in the wake of the Arab spring, and how Arab women mobilized in a diverse of ways to face those challenges.	Comparative Politics	Storrs
Arat, 801	Sex, Money, Politics and Law	This course is about power. It examines the distribution of power, power relations, and power struggles by focusing on gender power dynamics. It studies how sex assigned at birth is used to construct gender roles and norms, and how those norms interact with economic, political and legal structures. In addition to the factors that contribute to the subjugation of women, it discusses women’s struggles – how they challenge cultural and legal norms, use national and international laws to combat discrimination, and seek to transform economic and political systems. Emphasizing the diversity among women, it examines the factors that contribute to variations in their experiences, as well as the differences in their issues and priorities. The course fulfills the Comparative Politics requirement for the POLS major.	Comparative Politics	Stamford; W; Online synchronous
Best, 001	Contemporary Political Issues	This course explores major policy questions in contemporary American politics. It considers topics ranging from education, health care, and immigration to international trade and global relations. For each issue, the course will detail the key challenges underlying it and describe how the two major political parties have approached resolving them in recent years.	American Politics	Storrs; Not available for credit if taken under former titles, “Politics in the Time of Trump” or “The Trump Legacy”.
Byers, 001	The Legislative Process	This course is intended as a broad survey of the legislative branch of the American government. In this course we discuss the origins and development of the U.S. Congress, the committee systems, legislative process, the role of political parties, and inter-branch relations. The primary goal of this course is to familiarize ourselves with the workings of the United States Congress. The U.S. Congress is not only the oldest popularly elected legislative body, but also one of the most complex and powerful. A thorough understanding of the body requires not only a familiarity of its evolution and institutions, but a deep comprehension of the trade-offs inherent in policy-making.	American Politics	Storrs; W
Canbolat, 009	International Relations Through Cinema	This course will use films to understand and explain international issues. Through classroom discussions, readings and movies that deal with international issues, we will analyze how these films shed light on international relations, how they show us different perspectives on such issues and deepen our understanding. In these movies and readings, we will focus on issues like foreign policy making, war, terrorism, ethnic conflict, identity, environmental issues, revolutions, civil wars, foreign intervention, international institutions, espionage, Cold War and so on.	International Relations	Storrs
Grande Storrs section - 005 Avery Point section - 660	Native American and Indigenous Theory, Governance and Politics Storrs title abbreviation – Nat Amrcn & Indg Thry & Pol Avery Point title abbreviation – Indigenous Thry, Gov n Pols	This introductory level Political Science course introduces students to some of the major trajectories and key concepts in Indigenous theory, politics and governance including: Indigenous dispossession, settler colonialism, Indigenous feminism, sovereignty, survivance, recognition/reconciliation, resurgence, and refusal. Since Indigenous politics is deeply intertwined with the emergence of colonialism, capitalism, white supremacy and heteropatriarchy we will also study the imposition of these systems and structures on Indigenous polities. This work will be undertaken through multiple disciplines (e.g. law, history, literature, the arts) as Indigenous peoples’ efforts to assert, maintain and revitalize their political, economic, cultural, and social systems are not bounded by Western frames of knowledge. Also, because Indigenous politics are fundamentally place-based, emerging through kinship with land and all its relations, our studies will focus on Indigenous peoples of North America, the Northeastern U.S., and Quinnehtukqut (a.k.a. Connecticut). Finally, while Indigenous erasure and dispossession are ongoing, we will spend time learning about Indigenous political movements that resist and refuse these oppressive systems, exploring what it means to live outside of and beyond the constitutive elements of the nation-state.	Theory	Storrs modality - In person remote Avery Point modality – In person This course may be cross-listed with NAIS 2035. Eventually the course will be given a permanent number and will change from POLS 2998 to POLS 2035.
Grey, 008	Innovation and Entrepreneurship for Defense	A part of the nationally-recognized Innovating 4 ecosystem, this course is sponsored by both the Department of Defense and Department of State. Students will work in teams, acting as lean start ups to solve real-world problems sourced from both Departments, interviewing and making connections with program leads across both DoD and State. Problems this semester will focus primarily on the AUKUS submarine and technology sharing collective defense treaty, and both the technological and policy issues which arise from such a paradigm shift. Funding is available for teams to travel to Australia and/or the United Kingdom for site visits as a part of their projects.	International Relations	Storrs; Combined with ENGR 3195-034
F. Lee, 003	Political Theory and Speculative Fiction	An examination of how speculative fiction and political theory work together or even as one another. More specifically, we will ask how fantasy and science fiction can be understood as critical theory and speculative history.	Theory	Storrs
M. Lee, 003	Political Psychology in International Relations	This course explores the influence of the psychological characteristics of diverse political actors, such as leaders, policymakers, states, and international organizations, on their decision-making process and international politics (IR). It covers various classic and contemporary IR topics and theories such as perception and misperception discussed by Robert Jervis, security dilemma, psychological approaches in deterrence theory, prospect theory, audience cost, emotions in IR, ontological security, memory politics, public opinion, the role of trust/confidence in international conflicts, peacebuilding, national identity, and national images and nation branding. This course aims to offer a comprehensive understanding of key concepts, theories, and themes used to explain the psychological aspects of international relations. By the end of the semester, students should be able to (1) understand how political psychology has contributed to developing and diversifying international relations theories, (2) explain the theories, methods, and key terms such as perception, security dilemma, prospect theory, ontological security, and national identity, and (3) develop your critical thinking skills to assess historical or current events in international politics.	International Relations	Storrs; W
Orozco Mendoza, 004	Latin American Social Movements	Examination of Latin America social movements as related to intersections of gender, race, sexuality, disability, class, nationality, ethnicity. May include related topics such as capitalism, democracy, globalization, colonialism, extractivism, the environment, abortion, worker’s rights, militarism, sexual freedom, etc.	Intersectional Indigeneity, Race, Ethnicity, and Politics OR Comparative Politics	Storrs; W
Orozco Mendoza, 006	Latin American and Latinx/e Feminist Theory	This course offers an in-depth exploration of Latin American and Latine feminist thought, integrating academic, artistic, creative, and activist perspectives with a strong emphasis on lived experience and praxis. The course centers three primary objectives: -To examine influential authors, artists, and activists shaping key debates and critical issues within Latin American and Latine feminist theory. -To analyze the contributions of Latin American and Latine feminisms to social justice movements, focusing on their real-world applications and lived experiences. -To cultivate students’ skills in critical thinking, artistic and creative expression, and coalition building, enabling them to engage deeply with primary sources and produce a major scholarly, artistic, creative, or activist project informed by Latin American and Latine feminist theory. Students will explore diverse perspectives on how Latin American trans and cis women, as well as nonbinary individuals, understand, challenge, and resist gender and sexual oppression and examine how scholars, artists, and activists address the intersections of gender, race, ethnicity, (dis)ability, and class in their work.	Theory OR Intersectional Indigeneity, Race, Ethnicity, and Politics	Storrs; W; Combined with WGSS 2256W
Rubin, 005	Civil Wars & World Politics	This course examines how world politics shapes contemporary civil wars, and vice versa. We will apply concepts and theories from the study of international relations to understand why civil wars begin, how they are fought, which foreign states or organizations get involved, and why they persist or end. We then interrogate the consequences of civil wars for international politics and security; including for conflicts between states, economic relations, and individual countries’ foreign policy decisions. Throughout, we draw upon research examining the relationship between world politics and civil wars to explore the relevant foreign policy challenges, and potential solutions, associated with these causes and consequences of civil wars in the modern world.	International Relations	Storrs; W

Instructor & Section	Title	Description	Subdivision	Notes (W, Campus, Cross-listing, Honors, Restrictions, etc.)
Anievas, 003	Politics of Horror	‘There are two different stories in horror’, John Carpenter (dir. Halloween, 1978) once remarked: ‘internal and external. In external horror films, the evil comes from the outside, the other tribe, this thing in the darkness that we don’t understand. Internal is the human heart’. Reframing Carpenter’s statement, we might say that there are in fact three stories in horror each of which corresponds to a specific dimension of the human experience: (1) the horror lurking within the Self (‘the human heart’); (2) the evil that exists within a particular society or political community and; (3) the evil that comes from without, ‘the other tribe’, the ‘Others’ which form a part of our shared inter-societal existence. Looking at the stories of horror through these three ‘levels of analysis’, this class aims to excavate the layers of hidden – or perhaps not so hidden – meaning and symbolism buried deep within one of cinema’s most political genres: horror. In so doing, the class examines the intimate connections between horror films and (world) politics through different interpretative approaches.	International Relations	W course; Storrs
Evers, 500	US Foreign Policy	This course explores contemporary relations between the United States and the world. The primary goal is to give students conceptual and critical tools to understand and analyze how international relations theory, U.S. government, and current events fit together to produce U.S. foreign policy outcomes in the modern era.	International Relations OR American Politics	Stamford; W course; For students in the Honors Congressional Internship Program
Ginsberg, 801	LGBTQ+ Politics in the US	This course will offer a broad and comprehensive understanding of the political life of the LGBTQ+ community. Our discussions will cover a variety of topics including: public opinion, ideologies, voting, and group identity. This is not an exhaustive list. We will begin the course with the history of the LGBTQ+ community. We will also study the relationship between the various political actors and the LGBTQ+ community. Finally, we will discuss contemporary political issues, policies and electoral behavior.	American Politics OR Intersectional Indigeneity, Race, Ethnicity, and Politics	Stamford; Online Synchronous; Recommended Preparation: POLS 1602
Kelly, 001	Surveillance & the Politics of Visibility	In this W course, students will explore two distinct but intersecting themes: The “expansion of surveillance in U.S. society” and “the politics of visibility” that have accompanied this expansion. This course begins with a consideration of the theoretical foundations for understanding the cultural, social, and political impacts of surveillance. The remainder of the semester will be devoted to investigating the role that surveillance plays in making things, people, and/or issues either more or less visible. The political implications of both visibility and invisibility will be our primary focus. Students will be required to write and revise a 12-15 page paper that connects one or more course themes to George Orwell's novel '1984' (and/or an alternative book selected by the student and approved by the instructor).	Public Administration, Policy, and Law OR American Politics	W course; Storrs
Lee, 004	Political Psychology in International Relations	This course explores the influence of the psychological characteristics of diverse political actors, such as leaders, states, and international organizations, on their decision-making process and international politics. It covers various classic and contemporary IR topics and theories such as perception and misperception discussed by Robert Jervis, security dilemma, emotions in IR, ontological security, memory politics, public opinion, the role of trust/confidence in international conflicts, and peacebuilding to national identity and national images.	International Relations	Storrs
Oquendo, 002 (George J. and Helen M. England Professor of Law, UConn School of Law)	Perspectives on Civilian Law: From the United States to Latin America via Europe	Students will explore the civilian legal system of Latin America besides that of Continental Europe. They will view it from the perspective of the United States model. The course will foreground several fields: to wit, constitutional, civil, procedural, and commercial law. It will study them with an eye on the role of codification alongside human rights within them.	Public Administration, Policy, and Law	Storrs; Cross-listed with LLAS 3998-004; Online synchronous with in person final exam in Storrs. Exam could be given in person on a regional campus upon advanced request.
Orozco Mendoza, 002	Political Theory and the Comparative Turn	Founded in the mid-1990s, the subfield of comparative political theory (CPT) promotes the decolonization of political theory by studying and engaging non-Western political ideas, texts, concepts, and epistemic resources produced by authors geopolitically and intellectually situated in the Global South. The course brings non-Western perspectives on politics to bear onto familiar debates about the problems, joys, and responsibilities of living together.	Theory and Methodology OR Intersectional Indigeneity, Race, Ethnicity, and Politics	W course; Storrs; Not available for credit for students who took the course as “Comparative Political Theory” in Fall 2021.
Rubin, 003	Civil Wars & World Politics	This course examines how world politics shapes contemporary civil wars, and vice versa. We will apply concepts and theories from the study of international relations to understand why civil wars begin, how they are fought, which foreign states or organizations get involved, and why they persist or end. We then interrogate the consequences of civil wars for international politics and security; including for conflicts between states, economic relations, and individual countries’ foreign policy decisions. Throughout, we draw upon research examining the relationship between world politics and civil wars to explore the relevant foreign policy challenges, and potential solutions, associated with these causes and consequences of civil wars in the modern world.	International Relations	Storrs
Stumpf, 001	Prisons, Policing, and Punishment	This course will examine the politics of prisons, policing, and punishment in the United States and around the world. Themes will include questions of power, the carceral state, crime, state formation, race, class, gender, sexuality, political imprisonment, incarcerated activism, climate change, social movements, and debates around abolition and reform.	Theory and Methodology	Storrs

Instructor & Section	Title	Description	Subdivision	Notes (W, Campus, Cross-listing, Honors, Restrictions, etc.)
Herbst, 825	The American 2024 Presidential Election: Surprises, Analysis and Critique	This Winter Session course is focused on the 2024 Presidential Election and its outcomes. While most all elections matter, and shape the nature of the United States on many critical dimensions, there is no question that the ’24 election is absolutely pivotal. We have much at stake, from the future of immigration and the economy to the texture of our politics and the balance of our branches of government. Political Scientists have excellent tools for assessing election outcomes, and it does take many years to understand the full extent of an election’s impact. That said, an immediate review of who won the election, by what margin, and why the winner triumphed are possible and indeed mandatory for serious students and observers of politics.In this course, we will read key articles about the campaign and election, some scholarly classics and some current essays. We will meet virtually, by Webex, once a week. At the start of the term, I will give you some choices for writing a paper, 8-10 pages in length, due on the last day of class. The paper will concern the election, but you will have many options to write about the aspects of the campaign and outcome you find most intriguing. I am also open to you choosing your own topic altogether. Our sessions together as a class will last approximately 1.5 hours each and are mandatory. Your participation grade will rely on your attendance and your participation, so you will need to speak up at least 2-3 times per session at a minimum! Your grade will be calculated as follows: 75% for your term paper and 25% for your participation (attendance plus speaking up in class). Papers are due on the last day of class.	American Politics	Online synchronous. There are no pre-requisites for this course, and it is open to students from all majors and campuses.

Instructor & Section

Title

Description

Subdivision

Notes (W, Campus, Cross-listing, Honors, Restrictions, etc.)

Herbst, 825

The American 2024 Presidential Election: Surprises, Analysis and Critique

This Winter Session course is focused on the 2024 Presidential Election and its outcomes. While most all elections matter, and shape the nature of the United States on many critical dimensions, there is no question that the ’24 election is absolutely pivotal. We have much at stake, from the future of immigration and the economy to the texture of our politics and the balance of our branches of government. Political Scientists have excellent tools for assessing election outcomes, and it does take many years to understand the full extent of an election’s impact. That said, an immediate review of who won the election, by what margin, and why the winner triumphed are possible and indeed mandatory for serious students and observers of politics.In this course, we will read key articles about the campaign and election, some scholarly classics and some current essays. We will meet virtually, by Webex, once a week. At the start of the term, I will give you some choices for writing a paper, 8-10 pages in length, due on the last day of class. The paper will concern the election, but you will have many options to write about the aspects of the campaign and outcome you find most intriguing. I am also open to you choosing your own topic altogether.

Our sessions together as a class will last approximately 1.5 hours each and are mandatory. Your participation grade will rely on your attendance and your participation, so you will need to speak up at least 2-3 times per session at a minimum!

Your grade will be calculated as follows: 75% for your term paper and 25% for your participation (attendance plus speaking up in class). Papers are due on the last day of class.

American Politics

Online synchronous. There are no pre-requisites for this course, and it is open to students from all majors and campuses.

Instructor & Section	Title	Description	Subdivision	Notes (W, Campus, Cross-listing, Honors, Restrictions, etc.)
Ahmed Zaki, 003	Gender and Politics in the Middle East and North Africa	This course explores the different ways in which politics, in a broad sense, is gendered in the Middle East. It examines how the social and political construction of women as political subject influence the nature and practice of political life, as well as the ways in which sexual difference has served as a basis for social and political organization. It seeks to unravel, from a social science perspective, the political nature of the “woman’s question” in the Middle East. We seek here to go beyond the centrality of religion, mainly Islam, as the major cultural determent of the status of women in the Middle East, to discuss the role of the state, the social organization of religion and other cultural factors, and the role of local, national and transnational actors in determining the politics of gender in the region. We theoretically analyze the economic, social and political contexts of struggles around gender issues and cast a critical look at the policies of the postcolonial states in the region. Finally, we empirically examine in a number of issues such as the institutional roots of violence against women, the interaction of religion, law and interpretation, the mobilization of women’s movements and their relation to the state, the public/private divide and the gendered boundaries of public life. We also explore the role of oil in shaping the lives of women in the region. Finally, we will examine the challenges facing women in the wake of the Arab spring, and how Arab women mobilized in a diverse of ways to face those challenges.	Comparative Politics	Storrs
Anievas, 007	International Relations Theory and the "Rise of the West" Debate	What is often referred to as ‘the West’ has been the dominant power in world politics for nearly three centuries. It was, however, not always like this. The ‘rise of the West’ was a historical process. The primary purpose of this course is to familiarize students with this history and the dominant theoretical frameworks that seek to explain it. To this end, the course will introduce students to a wide range of literatures and debates concerning the ‘rise of the West’ and, relatedly, the global origins and expansion of capitalism and the making of the modern international system. While focusing in particular on the field of International Relations, the course materials will also draw on various contributions from the classical social theory tradition, along with the more contemporary historical sociology and world history literatures.	International Relations	Storrs
Best, 002	The Trump Legacy	This course investigates the presidency of Donald Trump, exploring its impact on American politics. It begins by looking at how he successfully won the Republican nomination and Presidential election, considering his appeal to different segments of the electorate. It examines how the Trump Administration approached the key issues, laying out the reasoning and consequences of its decisions. It concludes by examining his reelection campaign and its aftermath.	American Politics	Storrs Not available for credit if taken under former title, “Politics in the Time of Trump.”
Grande, 001	Introduction to Native American and Indigenous Theory and Politics	This course introduces students to the study of Indigenous Theory and Politics through the fields’ major trajectories and key concepts. We will think with and alongside critical Indigenous scholars, artists, and community organizers. Also, because Indigenous politics are fundamentally place-based and emerge through kinship with land and all its relations, our studies will focus on the Indigenous peoples of Turtle Island (North America) and Quinnehtukqut or what is currently called Connecticut.	Intersectional Indigeneity, Race, Ethnicity, and Politics	Storrs
Grey & Donegan, 008	Innovation and Entrepreneurship for Defense	A part of the nationally-recognized Innovating 4 ecosystem, this course is sponsored by both the Department of Defense and Department of State. Students will work in teams, acting as lean start ups to solve real-world problems sourced from both Departments, interviewing and making connections with program leads across both DoD and State. Problems this semester will focus primarily on the AUKUS submarine and technology sharing collective defense treaty, and both the technological and policy issues which arise from such a paradigm shift. Funding is available for teams to travel to Australia and/or the United Kingdom for site visits as a part of their projects.	International Relations	Storrs
House, 004	National and Cyber Security	This course examines how the United States’ national security system has managed intelligence, defense and foreign policy since its creation in 1947 and is currently accommodating the advent of cyber weaponry. Specific areas of interest are national security leadership, structure and processes with some case studies. The course considers the evolution of cyber weaponry and how the United States has sought to integrate cyber offense and defense into national security management.	International Relations	Storrs
Lee, 006	Political Theory and Speculative Fiction	An examination of how speculative fiction and political theory work together or even as one another. More specifically, we will ask how fantasy and science fiction can be understood as critical theory and speculative history.	Theory and Methodology	Storrs
Lupton, 801	American Political Campaigns and Elections	This course examines American campaigns and elections. Students will identify the major campaign players—parties, candidates, interest groups, mass media and voters—as well as describe and explain how the pageantry of campaigns has evolved over time and unfolds throughout individual electoral contests.	American Politics	W Stamford
Rubin, 005	Ending War and Building Peace	This course explores the politics of conflict management, war termination, and building durable peace. It examines how warring parties seek and reach solutions to end military hostilities, and why some wars end in outright victory for one side while others end through negotiated settlement, or somewhere in between (e.g. ceasefires). It then examines why some post-war settlements result in lasting peace while others descend into renewed conflict, focusing on a variety of strategies to build sustainable peace; including power-sharing arrangements, institutional design, political and economic development, transitional justice, peacekeeping, and international intervention.	International Relations	Storrs
Waddell, 701	The United States and the Vietnam War	Despite the fact that the Vietnam War lives on as metaphor and analogy, it is too little studied and understood, receding further every year into the mists of history. Yet the War has much to tell us today about the limits of U.S. power, and about how war and the modern national security state distorted American democracy. The War was the culmination of a particular mindset among American leaders that saw the world as a kind of chessboard in which the U.S. needed to marshal its considerable economic and military resources to control events in far-away places. Due to an easy confidence and ideological certainty that ignored complex realities, we stumbled to a stunning defeat that undermined this nation’s faith in its leaders and that led to a broad attack by various government institutions on those who would question our leaders and their policies. How to tackle such a subject? A course on the United States and the Vietnam War means confronting a huge swath of modern American history, the enormous institutional changes initiated by World War II, and the attitudes and outlooks of an entire generation of political leaders. It also means confronting the experiences and memories of those who experienced the war firsthand. How to do this in one semester? My approach is to intermix scholarly analysis with memoirs; to gain some analytical tools for comprehending why and how the War proceeded the way it did, but also to listen closely to the voices of those who experienced it. Key questions include: Why did we get involved in Vietnam? How did we go about fighting this war? Why did we lose? What did the war do to those who fought it, and to our nation as a whole? What did we take away from our involvement in this war?	American Politics	Hartford

Instructor & Section	Title	Description	Subdivision
Basiri POLS 2998W-004/WGSS 3105W-001 & 002	The Politics of Reproduction (W course)	This course looks at the politics of reproduction globally, influenced by reproductive justice activism history, arts, and literature of the 20th and 21st centuries. Throughout the semester, we will explore the intersections of politics and reproduction, social and cultural norms linked to reproductive rights, and reproductive justice activism as a way of transforming the world's reproductive experiences and apply an intersectional analysis to showcase how reproductive oppression is a product of ableism, sexism, homophobia, racism, classism, and other interlocking systems of oppression. The course will approach the issues around reproductive justice from a human rights perspective, incorporating the intersections of gender identity, class, race, age, religion, and sexual orientation that make up the experiences of reproduction around the world.	Intersectional Indigeneity, Race, Ethnicity, and Politics
Bergendahl POLS 2998-002	Connecticut General Assembly (For students in the Connecticut General Assembly, CGA, Legislative Internship Program.)	This is the graded course for the Connecticut General Assembly (CGA) Legislative Internship Program. Since this internship program requires the completion of academic work for both the Director of the CGA Legislative Internship Program and the courses in which you are enrolled, we will meet on designated dates. Consider part of your time at the CGA as “field work.” On the dates we meet, as a group, we will discuss the internship experience and assess the different components of the legislative process, including, but not limited to, political parties, lobbyists, and elections. You will also complete participation assessments that test your understanding of the legislative process at these class meetings, including what may be covered in the assigned reading(s). As part of the internship program, you are required to track a bill as it moves through the legislative process. Your final presentation is based on that bill tracking project.	American Politics OR Public Administration, Policy, and Law
Dudas POLS 2998W-002	Politics of Popular Culture (W course) (Honors)	Explores how popular culture texts both reflect and shape political practices.	Theory and Methodology OR American Politics
Evers & Hill POLS 2998W	US Foreign Policy (W course) (For students in the Honors Congressional Internship Program.)	For students in the Honors Congressional Internship Program.	International Relations OR American Politics
Gercek POLS 2998W-701	Social Contract Theory and its Critics (W course) (Hartford)	Social contract theory is a tradition in Western political thought according to which a legitimate political authority rests on individuals' mutual agreement. This course explores this tradition with a particular attention to its defenders and its critics throughout the history of political thought. It compares early-modern social contract theorists and their respective ideas of the “state of nature,” sovereignty, freedom, and political authority. It also explores modern challenges to social contract theory with a specific focus on issues of history, revolution, and alienation. The course also examines contemporary scholarship that makes affirmative or critical appeals to this tradition in order to address problems such as social injustice and settler colonialism.	Theory and Methodology
Gordon POLS 2998W-003/WGSS 3269W-001	Gender, Sexuality, and Social Movements (W course) (Not available for credit for students who took the course as POLS 2998W: Women, Sexuality, and Social Movements.)*	This cross-listed (POLS/WGSS), writing-intensive seminar will explore the centrality of power, solidarity, and storytelling to forging and sustaining effective progressive social movements. We will examine their meanings through a focus on women’s and queer leadership in two moments in U.S. struggles for racial justice, at sex worker activism and how it became allied with disabilities rights activism in Australia, and at ecological movements that frame sustaining an inhabitable and thriving Earth as inseparable from the growth of Indigenous and Afro-descended power and sovereignty.	Theory and Methodology OR Intersectional Indigeneity, Race, Ethnicity, and Politics
Grande POLS 2998-001	Environmental Justice, Climate Colonialism, and Indigenous Food Sovereignty	Students will explore the intersections among global climate change, colonialism, and food justice through the voices and frameworks of Indigenous theory and politics.	Intersectional Indigeneity, Race, Ethnicity, and Politics
House POLS 2998-004	National and Cyber Security	This course examines how the United States’ national security system has managed intelligence, defense and foreign policy since its creation in 1947 and is currently accommodating the advent of cyber weaponry. Specific areas of interest are national security leadership, structure and processes with some case studies. The course considers the evolution of cyber weaponry and how the United States has sought to integrate cyber offense and defense into national security management.	International Relations
Lavender POLS 2998-007	Politics and Religion in the US (Not available for credit for students who have taken POLS 2602W: Religion and Politics in America.)*	The First Amendment to the US Constitution begins with these words: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” A decade later Thomas Jefferson wrote that there should be a “wall of separation” between religion and the state to protect each. But to truly understand the U.S. political and governmental systems, the role of religion must be acknowledged and studied. Some in the U.S. believe that religion should be the foundation of everything that government does: others want a complete separation of religion and state. Most Americans fall in between these two positions, but there is no consensus on where to draw this hypothetical line. This course will explore the delicate, dynamic, and controversial mix of religion, state, and policy within the U.S. from the colonial era to modernity. Topics will include the role of religion in politics, the impact of religion on public policy, the rise of the evangelical conservative movement and the counter- mobilization of religious progressives, and the impact of religion on electoral behavior.	American Politics
Lee POLS 2998-005	Asian and Black Science Fiction	A course on the historical imaginations, racial politics, and economic analyses of Asian diasporic and African diasporic creators of science fiction (with “science fiction” broadly construed). Our basic premise is that such Asian and Black science fictions are a variety or kind of political theory. This is an experimental, discussion- and writing-based course.	Theory and Methodology
Morse POLS 2998W-881	Contemporary Challenges of Democratic Governance (W course) (Stamford)	The 20th century witnessed an immense expansion of freedom, voting rights, and elections across most of the world. Collectively known as the “Third Wave” of democratization, this unprecedented development reshaped the world and challenged our preconceptions about where and when democracy might flourish. However, in recent years scholars have noted a troubling trend of democratic erosion and decline, even among established democracies like the United States. This course explores these themes by introducing students to the varieties of democratic governance, theories of political transition, and the emerging global forces such as populism and international interference that appear to challenge the future of democracy.	Comparative Politics
Oquendo (George J. and Helen M. England Professor of Law, UConn School of Law) POLS 2998-006/LLAS 3998-005	Comparative Law and Rights (Online synchronous)	The course will not pursue narrowly defined, one-size-fits-all objectives but rather invite a fluid conversation on its topics. Mindful of the sociological and historical context, it will legally and philosophically cogitate the vindication of human rights in international, constitutional, civil, and procedural law, comparing Latin American and Continental European experiences with those of the United States. The overarching aim will consist in reflecting upon the relationship between legal institutions and social change, with a focus on domestic and global norms or caselaw and on philosophical debates.	American Politics

Instructor	Title	Description	Subdivision
Ahmed Zaki	Gender and Politics in the Middle East and North Africa	This course explores the different ways in which politics, in a broad sense, is gendered in the Middle East. It examines how the social and political construction of women as political subject influence the nature and practice of political life, as well as the ways in which sexual difference has served as a basis for social and political organization. It seeks to unravel, from a social science perspective, the political nature of the “woman’s question” in the Middle East. We seek here to go beyond the centrality of religion, mainly Islam, as the major cultural determent of the status of women in the Middle East, to discuss the role of the state, the social organization of religion and other cultural factors, and the role of local, national and transnational actors in determining the politics of gender in the region. We theoretically analyze the economic, social and political contexts of struggles around gender issues and cast a critical look at the policies of the postcolonial states in the region. Finally, we empirically examine in a number of issues such as the institutional roots of violence against women, the interaction of religion, law and interpretation, the mobilization of women’s movements and their relation to the state, the public/private divide and the gendered boundaries of public life. We also explore the role of oil in shaping the lives of women in the region. Finally, we will examine the challenges facing women in the wake of the Arab spring, and how Arab women mobilized in a diverse of ways to face those challenges.	Comparative Politics
Best	The Trump Legacy (Not available for credit if taken under former title, “Politics in the Time of Trump.”)	This course investigates the presidency of Donald Trump, exploring its impact on American politics. It begins by looking at how he successfully won the Republican nomination and Presidential election, considering his appeal to different segments of the electorate. It examines how the Trump Administration approached the key issues, laying out the reasoning and consequences of its decisions. It concludes by examining his reelection campaign and its aftermath.	American Politics
Ginsberg	Divided Government in America (W course)	This class will examine the impact divided government at the federal level has on passage of laws, policy enactment, policy provision, and legislative activity. This is a writing intensive course. Students will study the impact divided government has on that police issue.	American Politics (Stamford)
Grande	Intro to Native American and Indigenous Theory and Politics (Section 003)	This course introduces students to the study of Indigenous Theory and Politics through the fields’ major trajectories and key concepts. We will think with and alongside critical Indigenous scholars, artists, and community organizers. Also, because Indigenous politics are fundamentally place-based and emerge through kinship with land and all its relations, our studies will focus on the Indigenous peoples of Turtle Island (North America) and Quinnehtukqut or what is currently called Connecticut.	Intersectional Indigeneity, Race, Ethnicity, and Politics
Grande	Theory and Politics of Student Government, Organizing and Activism	This course is designed for student leaders working in and across a variety of organizations, programs, and centers. Since the founding of American colleges and universities, students have been integral to broader social and political movements in and beyond the university. This course offers an opportunity to explore the historical, political, and theoretical foundations of these movements and their impact.	Intersectional Indigeneity, Race, Ethnicity, and Politics
House	National and Cyber Security	This course examines how the United States’ national security system has managed intelligence, defense and foreign policy since its creation in 1947 and is currently accommodating the advent of cyber weaponry. Specific areas of interest are national security leadership, structure and processes with some case studies. The course considers the evolution of cyber weaponry and how the United States has sought to integrate cyber offense and defense into national security management.	International Relations
Luo	Political Organizing (W course)	In this course, we will be exploring the theory and practice of "visionary organizing," a theory of progressive social change that tends to both internal and external transformation. Throughout the semester, we will be encountering various visions of revolution and evolution in the works of thinkers like Grace Lee Boggs, Octavia Butler, Gloria Anzaldúa, and more. The course will be divided into three units, focused on these questions: "Who are you and how do you want to grow? Who are our neighbors? What time is it on the clock of the world?" The course is designed to be co-created and students will be expected to participate in assigning books, poetry, music, or films that represent their answers to those questions. Throughout the semester, students will also be learning practical organizing lessons like how to craft compelling public narratives, carry out community conversations, and do power mapping.	Theory and Methodology
Morse	Politics in Africa (W course)	This course exposes students to the diverse and complex politics of sub-Saharan Africa. The course will incorporate narratives of African history, but also use the lens of political science theory to understand both persistence and change in African politics. The course is introductory and comparative in nature. We will delve into the pre-colonial and colonial history of Africa and explore the challenges of state building, the role of ethnic identity, the exercise of political power, and the nature of African political institutions and regimes. We will also spend time discussing what democracy means in Africa, what are the sources of economic development, and what the nature of civil conflict is. Note that this is a W course, meaning it is writing intensive and requires you to submit 15 pages of revised work throughout the semester.	Comparative (Stamford and Storrs)
Orozco Mendoza	Political Theories of Peace and Violence (W course)	This course explores political theorizing about the origins, motivations, and impacts of interstate as well as domestic war and the necessary conditions for peace. We ask whether a militaristic approach to solving conflict is unavoidable and the extent to which peace is better conducive to democracy, economic prosperity, and environmental sustainability. Throughout the course, we will read both historical and contemporary political and philosophical texts that engage with the theme of peace and war globally to better understand how the present world is defined through the lens of war, violent/non-violent conflict, peace, and justice. Note. This is a W course. Students are required to write, revise, and re-submit an approximately 15-page, double spaced, paper to be completed throughout the semester.	Theory and Methodology
Pressman	The United States and Israel-Palestine (W course)	This class will address US government policy and societal perspectives toward Israel and Palestine. It will consider the US debate and the US impact on the conflict. Students will research specific aspects of the topic, with the aim of publicly posting the students’ case studies on a class website.	International Relations
Sterling-Folker	Nationalism and World Order (W course)	This course explores the practice of nationalism in both a domestic and global context.	International Relations

Instructor	Title	Description	Subdivision
Bergendahl	The CT General Assembly	This is the graded course for the Connecticut General Assembly (CGA) Legislative Internship Program. Since this internship program requires the completion of academic work for both the Director of the CGA Legislative Internship Program and the courses in which you are enrolled, we will meet on designated dates. Consider part of your time at the CGA as “field work.” On the dates we meet, as a group, we will discuss the internship experience and assess the different components of the legislative process, including, but not limited to, political parties, lobbyists, and elections. You will also complete participation assessments that test your understanding of the legislative process at these class meetings, including what may be covered in the assigned reading(s). As part of the internship program, you are required to track a bill as it moves through the legislative process. Your final presentation is based on that bill tracking project.	American Politics OR Public Administration, Policy, & Law
Best	The Trump Legacy (Not available for credit if taken under former title, “Politics in the Time of Trump.”)	This course investigates the presidency of Donald Trump, exploring its impact on American politics. It begins by looking at how he successfully won the Republican nomination and Presidential election, considering his appeal to different segments of the electorate. It examines how the Trump Administration approached the key issues, laying out the reasoning and consequences of its decisions. It concludes by examining his reelection campaign and its aftermath.	American Politics
Dudas	American Heroes and Villains (W course)	Both American politics and American popular culture are obsessed with stories of heroism and villainy. In this writing-intensive course we will explore the structure and content of these stories, paying particular attention to: 1) how in the American tradition heroism and villainy depend upon one another; 2) how the categories of heroism and villainy give rise to stock characters who both recur in our popular entertainment and influence the trajectory of our politics; and 3) how we employ these stock heroes and villains to understand both ourselves as citizens and those who are considered “other” to the American nation.	American Politics
Evers & Hill	U.S. Foreign Policy (W course)	For students in the Honors Congressional Internship Program.	International Relations OR American Politics
Gercek	Social Contract Theory and its Critics (W course)	Social contract theory is a tradition in Western political thought according to which a legitimate political authority rests on individuals' mutual agreement. This course explores this tradition with a particular attention to its defenders and its critics throughout the history of political thought. It compares early-modern social contract theorists and their respective ideas of the “state of nature,” sovereignty, freedom, and political authority. It also explores modern challenges to social contract theory with a specific focus on issues of history, revolution, and alienation. The course also examines contemporary scholarship that makes affirmative or critical appeals to this tradition in order to address problems such as social injustice and settler colonialism.	Theory and Methodology
Gordon	Women, Sexuality, and Social Movements (W course)	This cross-listed (POLS/WGSS), writing-intensive seminar will explore the centrality of power, solidarity, and storytelling to forging and sustaining effective progressive social movements. We will examine their meanings through a focus on women’s and queer leadership in two moments in U.S. struggles for racial justice, at sex worker activism and how it became allied with disabilities rights activism in Australia, and at ecological movements that frame sustaining an inhabitable and thriving Earth as inseparable from the growth of Indigenous and Afro-descended power and sovereignty.	Theory and Methodology OR Race, Gender, Ethnicity, and Politics
Kelly	Surveillance and the Politics of Visibility (W course)	In this W course, students will explore two distinct but intersecting themes: The “expansion of surveillance in U.S. society” and “the politics of visibility” that have accompanied this expansion. This course begins with a consideration of the theoretical foundations for understanding the cultural, social, and political impacts of surveillance. The remainder of the semester will be devoted to investigating the role that surveillance plays in making things, people, and/or issues either more or less visible. The political implications of both visibility and invisibility will be our primary focus. Students will be required to write and revise a 12-15 page paper that connects one or more course themes to George Orwell's novel 1984 (and/or an alternative book selected by the student and approved by the instructor).	Public Administration, Policy, and Law OR American Politics
Lee	Asian and Black Science Fiction	A course on the historical imaginations, racial politics, and economic analyses of Asian diasporic and African diasporic creators of science fiction (with “science fiction” broadly construed). Our basic premise is that such Asian and Black science fictions are a variety or kind of political theory. This is an experimental, discussion- and writing-based course.	Theory and Methodology
Lupton	American Political Polarization	This course will investigate rigorously the causes and consequences of partisan and ideological polarization in American politics. We will seek to understand the structural factors, core values, beliefs, issues, demographic characteristics and identities that divide Democrats from Republicans and liberals from conservatives. We will also explore differences within each party and speculate upon potential remedies for the dysfunction that the polarization phenomenon has wrought upon our national discourse and policymaking, as well as consider the potential benefits that distinct party positions offer the electorate.	American Politics (Stamford)
Morrell	Political Theory and Popular Music	An exploration of 17th to early 20th century political theories of anarchism, communism, conservatism, feminism, liberalism, race, and the state of nature, and an examination of their echoes in contemporary popular musical genres, for example folk, hip-hop, pop, reggae, and rock. Students will conduct original content analysis research connecting political theory to contemporary popular music genres and artists.	Theory and Methodology
Scruggs	Science, Technology and Public Opinion	This class will examine the relationship between recent developments in science and technology and democracy. What is the promise and peril of cutting edge technologies for automation and biotechnology? Why don’t all Americans know that most scientists believe that humans are causing global warming and that its harms are getting worse? What role does expert (as opposed to majority) opinion play in the discovery and dissemination of technologies? How do we reconcile public and private ownership of inherently collective discovery? Is most disagreement about science and technology driven more by ignorance, or by conflicting values of the importance of science and technology in human society? Is ignorance really easier to overcome than value conflict?	American Politics
Sylvester	The Politics of Memorializing War and Peace (W course)	War is memorialized far more than other types of public action, surely more than activities we associate with peace. This course explores the politics of what is memorialized, where and how in the USA and internationally, and considers issues such as attacks on memorials and debates over reasons certain memorials exist and other meaningful events are not memorialized.	International Relations
Waddell	The United States and the Vietnam War	Key questions include: Why did we get involved in Vietnam? How did we go about fighting this war? Why did we lose? What did the war do to those who fought it, and to our nation as a whole? What did we take away from our involvement in this war? Although the Vietnam War was the most significant event in America’s postwar era, it is too little studied and understood, receding further every year into the mists of history. Yet the War has much to tell us today about the limits of U.S. power, and about how war and the national security state distorted American democracy in significant ways. The War was the culmination of a particular mindset among American leaders that saw the world as a kind of chessboard in which the U.S. needed to marshal its considerable economic and military resources to control events in far-away places, an attitude that persists today. Due to an easy confidence and ideological certainty that ignored complex realities, we stumbled to a stunning defeat that undermined this nation’s faith in its leaders and that led to a broad attack by various government leaders and institutions on those who would question our leaders and their policies. How to tackle such a subject? A course on the United States and the Vietnam War means confronting a huge swath of modern American history, the enormous institutional changes initiated by World War II, and the attitudes and outlooks of an entire generation of political leaders. It also means confronting the experiences and memories of those who experienced the war firsthand. How to do this in one semester? My approach is to intermix scholarly analysis with memoirs and documentaries – to gain some analytical tools for comprehending why and how the War proceeded the way it did, but also to listen closely to the voices of those who experienced it.	International Relations OR American Politics OR Public Administration, Policy, and Law (Hartford)

Instructor	Title	Description	Subdivision
Best	The Trump Legacy	This course investigates the presidency of Donald Trump, exploring its impact on American politics. It begins by looking at how he successfully won the Republican nomination and Presidential election, considering his appeal to different segments of the electorate. It examines how the Trump Administration approached the key issues, laying out the reasoning and consequences of its decisions. It concludes by examining his reelection campaign and its aftermath.	American Politics
Dabrowski	Studying War Critically (W course)	Academic studies of war have traditionally taken a top-down, big-picture approach to understanding the topic. Historically, war is the primary topic of study for the field of international relations. This course aims to introduce students to alternative means by which war can be studied and analyzed. How does war embed itself in everyday lives? What is militarization? Are spaces of war separate from spaces of non-war? These questions and more guide this course’s exploration.	International Relations
Gercek	Social Contract Theory & its Critics (W course)	Social contract theory is a tradition in Western political thought according to which a legitimate political authority rests on individuals' mutual agreement. This course explores this tradition with a particular attention to its defenders and its critics throughout the history of political thought. It compares early-modern social contract theorists and their respective ideas of the “state of nature,” sovereignty, freedom, and political authority. It also explores modern challenges to social contract theory with a specific focus on issues of history, revolution, and alienation. The course also examines contemporary scholarship that makes affirmative or critical appeals to this tradition in order to address problems such as social injustice and settler colonialism.	Theory and Methodology
Perkoski	Rebel Group Dynamics (W course)	Rebel groups -- like terrorists and insurgent organizations -- face many difficult tasks. In this class we will explore how they recruit, finance, organize, and survive against much stronger state opponents.	International Relations
Sylvester	The Politics of Memorializing War & Peace (W course)	War is memorialized far more than other types of public action, surely more than activities we associate with peace. This course explores the politics of what is memorialized, where and how in the USA and internationally, and considers issues such as attacks on memorials and debates over reasons certain memorials exist and other meaningful events are not memorialized.	International Relations
Venator	Law and Ideology	This course provides a historical overview of the relationship between law and political ideologies. The course examines a wide range of historical examples of how different legal ideologies were invoked to legitimate political arguments. We will read a wide array of texts alluding to a wide array of debates including Socrates, Trial, the pamphlets of The White Rose, and President Clinton’s free speech argument on behalf of restraint during the Rwandan genocide.	Public Administration, Policy, and Law

Instructor	Title	Description	Subdivision
Anievas	IR Theory & the Rise of the West (W course)	What is often referred to as ‘the West’ has been the dominant power in world politics in the modern epoch. It was, however, not always like this. The ‘rise of the West’ was a historical process that was far from inevitable. The primary purpose of this course is to familiarize students with this history and the dominant theoretical frameworks that seek to explain it. To this end, the course will introduce students to a wide range of literatures and debates concerning the ‘rise of the West’ and, relatedly, the global origins and expansion of capitalism and the making of the modern international system. While focusing in particular on the field of International Relations, the course materials will also draw on various contributions from the classical social theory tradition, historical sociology and world history.	International Relations
Bergendahl	The CT General Assembly (Internship participants only)	This is the graded course for the Connecticut General Assembly (CGA) Legislative Internship Program. Since this internship program requires the completion of academic work for both the Director of the CGA Legislative Internship Program and the courses in which you are enrolled, we will meet on designated dates. Consider part of your time at the CGA as “classroom time.” On the dates we meet, as a group, we will discuss the internship experience and assess the different components of the legislative process. You will also complete participation assessments that test your understanding of the legislative process at these class meetings. As part of the internship program, you are required to track a bill as it moves through the legislative process. Your final presentation is based on that bill tracking project. You must provide an overview of the legislative process, especially in relation to how your bill has gone through it, noting which part of that process is the most influential.	American Politics
Bergendahl	Criminal Justice in Practice (W course, Section 009)	This course provides students with the opportunity to gain a more practical understanding of the criminal justice system- especially by way of active learning assignments. Students interested in possible careers in law enforcement, prosecution, criminal defense, courts, corrections, and rehabilitation and re-entry programs will find this course particularly useful as they will have the opportunity to meet and interact with the practitioners in the field as well as take part in simulations that provide a “realistic” understanding of the challenges faced by the actors in the system. From there, students will then develop strategies and solutions for dealing with those challenges and incorporate those findings into the final paper assignment for the semester.	Public Administration, Policy, and Law
Berghel	Repression in a Digital Age (W course)	The spread and use of digital age technologies are impacting political cultures, civil societies, and state-society relations in every region of the world. This class will review the history of these technologies and the human and machine networks that developed alongside them. We will explore the debates about its potential for democratization as well as the evolution of these tools of interstate war, commerce, communication, and entertainment into 21^st century instruments of state repression. We will draw upon insights from the literature on social psychology, contentious politics, and political regimes to help us investigate the variation in digital authoritarianism and identify patterns of state behavior as they relate to regime durability. Topics include mass mobilization, e-governance, the Arab Spring, mass surveillance, censorship, disinformation, and artificial intelligence.	Comparative Politics
Best	The Trump Legacy	This course investigates the presidency of Donald Trump, exploring its impact on American politics. It begins by looking at how he successfully won the Republican nomination and Presidential election, considering his appeal to different segments of the electorate. It examines how the Trump Administration approached the key issues, laying out the reasoning and consequences of its decisions. It concludes by examining his reelection campaign and its aftermath.	American Politics
Dabrowski	Studying War Critically (W course)	Academic studies of war have traditionally taken a top-down, big-picture approach to understanding the topic. Historically, war is the primary topic of study for the field of international relations. This course aims to introduce students to alternative means by which war can be studied and analyzed. How does war embed itself in everyday lives? What is militarization? Are spaces of war separate from spaces of non-war? These questions and more guide this course’s exploration.	International Relations
Dudas	American Political Heroes & Villains (W course)	Both American politics and American popular culture are obsessed with stories of heroism and villainy. In this writing-intensive course we will explore the structure and content of these stories, paying particular attention to: 1) how in the American tradition heroism and villainy depend upon one another; 2) how the categories of heroism and villainy give rise to stock characters who both recur in our popular entertainment and influence the trajectory of our politics; and 3) how we employ these stock heroes and villains to understand both ourselves as citizens and those who are considered ‘other’ to the American nation.	American Politics
Gercek	Social Contract Theory & its Critics (W course)	Social contract theory is a tradition in Western political thought according to which a legitimate political authority rests on individuals' mutual agreement. This course explores this tradition with a particular attention to its defenders and its critics throughout the history of political thought. It compares early-modern social contract theorists and their respective ideas of the “state of nature,” sovereignty, freedom, and political authority. It also explores modern challenges to social contract theory with a specific focus on issues of history, revolution, and alienation. The course also examines contemporary scholarship that makes affirmative or critical appeals to this tradition in order to address problems such as social injustice and settler colonialism.	Theory and Methodology
Ginsberg	Divided Government in the United States (W course)	This course will attempt to understand the governmental phenomenon of Divided Government – how it happens and its consequences. This course is extremely timely as we enter an election year and citizens will once again have to choose their elected representatives in the fall. Will the November 2022 election results lead to a Divided Government or will government remain unified?	American Politics (Stamford)
Gordon	Gender, Sexuality, & Social Movements (W course)	This cross-listed (POLS/WGSS), writing-intensive seminar will assess how social movements have been defined, categorized, and theorized through exploring a range of historical and global examples of collective efforts that mobilize insights and aspirations based in experiences of gender, sexuality, race, indigeneity, disability, class, nationality, and spirituality to expand meaningful options and freedoms. Students will choose a particular movement and movement members to make their primary focus, drawing from those that critically engage with capitalism, colonialism, democracy, and globalization and seek economic and environmental justice, health, and sexual freedom.	Race, Gender, and Ethnic Politics OR Theory and Methodology
Grande	Native American & Indigenous Theories of Liberation	In this moment of increased state violence, this course is committed to foregrounding Native American and Indigenous theories of liberation and resurgence. Over the semester, students will engage in sustained inquiry into the tensions and intersections between liberal and radical theories as articulated Indigenous politics, paying particular attention to the interplay of racial capitalism and settler colonialism, historically and in the present day. Finally, while our aim is to develop deeper understandings of the various manifestations of racialized and colonialist violence and injustice, we also look forward to envisioning new possibilities and horizons. Together we will engage the question posed by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor: “How do we get free?”	Race, Gender, and Ethnic Politics
Hettinger	Women & the Law	This course explores the status of women under the law in the United States. Examines how advocates for women’s rights have used the political process and the judicial system to fight for recognition and equality and how opponents have used the same processes and systems to block those efforts.	Public Administration, Policy, and Law
House	National & Cyber Security	This course examines how the United States has managed national security challenges and is accommodating the advent of cyber threats to national security. It reviews the evolution of the U.S. national security system from 1947 to the present: leadership, structure, processes, the role of intelligence, assessment of priorities and some case studies. The course concurrently considers the evolution of cybersecurity threats to the United States and how the national security system addresses them, including the roles of our allies, state and local governments and the private sector.	International Relations
Kelly	Surveillance & the Politics of Visibility (W course)	In this course students will explore two distinct but intersecting themes: The “expansion of surveillance in U.S. society” and “the politics of visibility” that have accompanied this expansion. This course begins with a consideration of the theoretical foundations for understanding the cultural, social, and political impacts of surveillance. A central focus of the course will be on the role that surveillance plays in making things, people, and issues either more or less visible. Topics to be discussed include: national security, crime control, artificial intelligence, big data, income and racial inequality, and environmental justice. Students will be expected to come to class prepared to discuss and analyze the readings. Grading will be based on weekly reading question response, seminar participation, a draft paper, and a final paper.	Public Administration, Policy, and Law
Luo	Political Organizing	This course is about both the theory and practice of political organizing for social change. We will be exploring how social movements have been formed and carried out through focusing on a range of historical and global examples of collective efforts that utilize people power to create political change. The movements we study will range from a variety of movements that critically engage with capitalism, colonialism, democracy, and globalization and seek racial, economic, environmental, and sexual freedom (just to name a few). We will be hearing from various activists and community organizers who have various different theories and practices of political organizing in order to learn from their experiences. Students will also be practicing together various political organizing skills such as how to carry out community conversations, coaching others, power mapping, etc. Students will be expected to choose a particular movement to make their primary focus, with an emphasis on their local communities.	Race, Gender, and Ethnic Politics OR Theory and Methodology (Hartford)
Morrell	Political Theory and Popular Music	An exploration of 17th to early 20th century political theories of anarchism, communism, conservatism, feminism, liberalism, race, and the state of nature, and an examination of their echoes in contemporary popular musical genres, for example folk, hip-hop, pop, reggae, and rock. Students will conduct original content analysis research connecting political theory to contemporary popular music genres and artists.	Theory & Methodology
Orozco Mendoza	Latin American Feminist Theory (W course)	This course considers the historical development and contemporary formations of Latin American feminist theory. Students in this course will study foundational authors and texts who have considerably impacted the development of Latin American feminist theory. Some of the central questions in this course are: what is Latin American feminist theory? Who are the leading proponents of this field, and what methods do they employ? What role does Latin American feminism extend to experience/praxis? What central themes, preoccupations, and political problems guide feminist inquiry in Latin America? How has Latin American feminist thought traveled beyond the geographical area of the Americas, and with what effects? In exploring these questions, students will examine how considerations of race, ethnicity, gender, and sexuality intersect in Latin American feminist thought.	Theory and Methodology
Sylvester	The Politics of Memorializing War & Peace (W course)	War is memorialized far more than other types of public action, surely more than activities we associate with peace. This course explores the politics of what is memorialized, where and how in the USA and internationally, and considers issues such as attacks on memorials and debates over reasons certain memorials exist and other meaningful events are not memorialized.	International Relations
Venator Santiago	The Puerto Rican Catastrophe	The United States invented a new type of expansionist territorial law and policy global in scope to rule the annexed ultramarine territories acquired in the aftermath of the Spanish-American War of 1898. Also known as the “Third View,” the new territorial law and policy was created as an alternative to the prevailing colonial and imperialist traditions. The ensuing territorial doctrine described Puerto Rico as an unincorporated territory that could be ruled as a foreign possession for domestic or constitutional purposes. Since 1898, the United States has ruled Puerto Rico as a separate and unequal territory that belongs to, but is not a part of the Anglo-American polity. The United States has invoked this territorial doctrine to legitimate its response to various types of catastrophes that have historically affected Puerto Rico.	Race, Gender, and Ethnic Politics

Instructor	Title	Description	Subdivision
Berghel	Repression in a Digital Age (W course)	The spread and use of digital age technologies are impacting political cultures, civil societies, and state-society relations in every region of the world. This class will review the history of these technologies and the human and machine networks that developed alongside them. We will explore the debates about its potential for democratization as well as the evolution of these tools of interstate war, commerce, communication, and entertainment into 21^st century instruments of state repression. We will draw upon insights from the literature on social psychology, contentious politics, and political regimes to help us investigate the variation in digital authoritarianism and identify patterns of state behavior as they relate to regime durability. Topics include mass mobilization, e-governance, the Arab Spring, mass surveillance, censorship, disinformation, and artificial intelligence.	Comparative Politics
Best	The 2020 Presidential Election	This course examines the 2020 presidential election, investigating how the race unfolded and what were the key factors shaping its outcome. It explores how Biden successfully won the Democratic nomination, topping 28 other candidates in the race, as well as defeated Trump in the general election. It focuses on the issues, groups, and tactics instrumental to the result.	American Politics
Evers	International Security (W course)	Theory and practice of international security. Topics include why groups use terrorism, why states go to war, the emergence of humanitarian intervention, and the role of technology ranging from nuclear weapons to computer viruses.	International Relations (Stamford)
Gercek	Social Contract Theory and its Critics (W course)	Social contract theory is a tradition in Western political thought according to which a legitimate political authority rests on individuals' mutual agreement. This course explores this tradition with a particular attention to its defenders and its critics throughout the history of political thought. It compares early-modern social contract theorists and their respective ideas of the “state of nature,” sovereignty, freedom, and political authority. It also explores modern challenges to social contract theory with a specific focus on issues of history, revolution, and alienation. The course also examines contemporary scholarship that makes affirmative or critical appeals to this tradition in order to address problems such as social injustice and settler colonialism.	Theory and Methodology
Grande	Theory and Politics of the University (W course)	This course examines the university as an arm of the state, a tool of social reproduction, and site of possibility. Students will consider how conventional renderings of higher education presume a depoliticized if not romanticized vision of the university, detached from politics of imperialism, militarism, racism, and nationalism. Students will consider the broader social and political economy of the university, engaging contemporary debates on the corporatization and privatization of public higher education, rising tuition rates and student debt, the assault on humanities and ethnic studies, and the adjunctification of labor. Finally, students will work to imagine the university beyond its current parameters, thinking critically about the radical possibilities of a university aligned with social and political movements beyond the institution.	Race, Gender, and Ethnic Politics OR American Politics
Morrell	Political Theory and Popular Music	An exploration of 17th to early 20th century political theories of anarchism, communism, conservatism, feminism, liberalism, race, and the state of nature, and an examination of their echoes in contemporary popular musical genres, for example folk, hip-hop, pop, reggae, and rock. Students will conduct original content analysis research connecting political theory to contemporary popular music genres and artists.	Theory and Methodology
Orozco Mendoza	Comparative Political Theory		Race, Gender, and Ethnic Politics
Richards	IR in Film (W course)	Not only have films addressed seemingly every possible issue in the realm of world politics, but the medium itself allows these issues to be explored in ways that inform and connect to us differently than can a book, journal article, or newspaper story. Thus, as students of international relations, we do ourselves a favor in taking seriously the intellectual possibilities offered to us by films. We will be discussing films from across a wide spectrum of well-established genres, including: science fiction, comedy, anime, drama, romance, and documentary. Our goal is to appreciate and understand how films affect how we think about world politics.	International Relations
Scruggs	Public Opinion and Science: The Crisis of Faith in Science and Technology	This class will examine the decline in public confidence about science. Why don’t all Americans agree that most scientists believe that humans are causing global warming and warming is increasing? Is vaccine hesitancy greater in America than Europe? Is disagreement about science and technology driven by relative ignorance, or by conflicting values of the importance of science and technology? What is the promise or peril of cutting-edge technologies for automation (e.g., artificial intelligence or autonomous vehicles) and biotechnology (e.g., CRISPR-CAS9)? We will examine these questions in part by examining data from public opinion polls, and students will learn how to access and evaluate key questions using public opinion poll data.	Comparative Politics OR Public Administration, Policy, and Law
Sylvester	The Politics of Memorializing War and Peace (W course)	War is memorialized far more than other types of public action, surely more than activities we associate with peace. This course explores the politics of what is memorialized, where and how in the USA and internationally, and considers issues such as attacks on memorials and debates over reasons certain memorials exist and other meaningful events are not memorialized.	International Relations
Venator-Santiago	Law and Ideology	This course provides a historical overview of the relationship between law and political ideologies. The course examines a wide range of historical examples of how different legal ideologies were invoked to legitimate political arguments. We will read a wide array of texts alluding to a wide array of debates including Socrates, Trial, the pamphlets of The White Rose, and President Clinton’s free speech argument on behalf of restraint during the Rwandan genocide.	Public Administration, Policy, and Law
Waddell	The United States and the Vietnam War	How to tackle such a subject? A course on the United States and the Vietnam War means confronting a huge swath of modern American history, the enormous institutional changes initiated by World War II, and the attitudes and outlooks of an entire generation of political leaders. It also means confronting the experiences and memories of those who experienced the war firsthand. How to do this in one semester? My approach is to intermix scholarly analysis with memoirs and documentaries – to gain some analytical tools for comprehending why and how the War proceeded the way it did, but also to listen closely to the voices of those who experienced it.	American Politics OR Public Administration, Policy, and Law OR International Relations (Hartford)

Instructor	Title	Description	Subdivision
Venator- Santiago	Constitutional Dictatorship		Public Administration, Policy, and Law

Instructor	Title	Description	Subdivision
Ahmed Zaki	Comparative Law and Society (W Course)		Comparative Politics
Anievas	IR Theory and Rise of the West	What is often referred to as ‘the West’ has been the dominant power in world politics in the modern epoch. It was, however, not always like this. The ‘rise of the West’ was a historical process that was far from inevitable. The primary purpose of this course is to familiarize students with this history and the dominant theoretical frameworks that seek to explain it. To this end, the course will introduce students to a wide range of literatures and debates concerning the ‘rise of the West’ and, relatedly, the global origins and expansion of capitalism and the making of the modern international system. While focusing in particular on the field of International Relations, the course materials will also draw on various contributions from the classical social theory tradition, historical sociology and world history.	International Relations
Best	Politics in the Time of Trump		American Politics
Dudas	Heroes and Villains in American Politics (W Course)	An exploration of how conventional understandings of heroism and villainy influence American politics and, reciprocally, how reigning trends in American politics influence widely shared conceptions of heroism and villainy.	American Politics
Gercek	Social Contract Theory and its Critics (W Course)		Theory and Methodology
Grande	Black and Indigenous Theories of Resurgence and Liberation (W Course)		Race, Gender, and Ethnic Politics
Hettinger	Gender and the Law		Public Administration, Policy, and Law
Kelly	Surveillance of the Politics of Visibility (W Course)	In this course students will explore two distinct but intersecting themes: The “expansion of surveillance in U.S. society” and “the politics of visibility” that have accompanied this expansion. This course begins with a consideration of the theoretical foundations for understanding the cultural, social, and political impacts of surveillance. A central focus of the course will be on the role that surveillance plays in making things, people, and issues either more or less visible. Topics to be discussed include: national security, crime control, artificial intelligence, big data, income and racial inequality, and environmental justice. Students will be expected to come to class prepared to discuss and analyze the readings. Grading will be based on weekly reading question response, seminar participation, a draft paper, and a final paper.	Public Administration, Policy, and Law
Sterling-Folker	Nationalism and World Order (W Course)		International Relations
Sylvester	Politics of War through Fiction		International Relations
Venator	Constitutional Dictatorship		Public Administration, Policy, and Law
Venator	Puerto Rican Catastrophe		Race, Gender, and Ethnic Politics

Instructor	Title	Subdivision
Ahmed Zaki	Gender and Politics in the Middle East (W Course)	Comparative Politics
Best	The 2020 Elections	American Politics
Gercek	Rethinking Collectivity	Theory and Methodology OR Comparative Politics
Grande	COVID19, Indigeneity, Race and Racialization (W Course)	Race, Gender, and Ethnic Politics
House	National and Cyber Security	International Relations
Ladewig	The 2020 Presidential Election (W Course)	American Politics
Morrell	Political Theory and Popular Music	Theory and Methodology
Pressman	Contemporary Affairs in the Middle East	International Relations
Schurin	Critical Elections in US History (W Course)	American Politics
Sylvester	Politics of Memorializing War and Peace (W Course)	International Relations
Sylvester	Politics of War through Fiction (W Course)	International Relations
Venator	Totalitarianism and Latin America	Race, Gender, and Ethnic Politics
Venator	Legal Histories Research (W Course)	Public Administration, Policy, and Law

Instructor	Title	Subdivision
Ahmed Zaki	Comparative Government and Politics in the Middle East	Comparative Politics
Bergendahl	CT General Assembly (internship participants only)	Public Administration, Policy, and Law
Bergendahl	Women and the Law	Public Administration, Policy, and Law
Besso	Political Crises in American Politics	American Politics
Best	Politics in the Times of Trump	American Politics
Doukas	Colonialism, Racism, and US Polity (W course)	Theory and Methodology OR American Politics OR Race, Gender, and Ethnic Politics (Hartford)
Dudas	Heroes and Villains in 21st Century Politics	American Politics
Kashwan	Indian Politics and Economy	Comparative Politics
Kelly	Politics of Surveillance and Visibility	Public Administration, Policy, and Law
Lupton	Campaigns and Elections (W course) (May see course as "Primary Campaigns" on transcript)	American Politics (Stamford)
Morse	Democracy and Democratization	Comparative Politics
Perkoski	Rebel Group Dynamics	International Relations
Venator	The Puerto Rican Catastrophe	Race, Gender, and Ethnic Politics

Instructor	Title	Subdivision
Beltran-Alvarez	Political Thought of the Margins	Theory and Methodology
Bergendahl	Criminal Justice in Practice	Public Administration, Policy, and Law
Best	Politics in the Time of Trump	American Politics
Doukas	Families, Intimacy, and the Political State	Theory and Methodology
Kashwan	Contentious Politics and Collective Action (W Course)	Comparative Politics
Ladewig	Making the Modern American Presidency	American Politics
Ladewig	Congressional Apportionment and Redistricting	American Politics
Perkoski	Technology and Security	International Relations
Pressman	Protest in the United States	American Politics
Scruggs	Experiments and Experimental Design in POLS	Theory and Methodology
Simien	Historic Firsts in US Elections	American Politics
Sylvester	Politics of Memorializing War and Peace	International Relations
Venator	Totalitarianism and Latino American Political Thought	Race, Gender, and Ethnic Politics
Venator	Constitutional Dictatorship	Public Administration, Policy, and Law
Zaki	Comparative Gender Politics	Comparative Politics

Pre-Approved Related Courses

Students may take all 2000-level or higher courses in the following subject areas as relateds. Any course in these departments that is cross-listed with POLS will count towards the major and not as a related course.

ANTH - Anthropology
ECON - Economics
GEOG - Geography
HIST - History
HRTS - Human Rights
PHIL - Philosophy
PP - Public Policy
SOCI - Sociology

Courses from the following list (or their W variant) count as relateds, as do other courses as approved by advisor. Click on a subject below to see which specific courses are approved. If the course you're looking for isn't on this list, check to see if it's cross-listed with ANTH, ECON, GEOG, HIST, HRTS, PHIL, PP, or SOCI.

COMM 2200: Interpersonal Communication
COMM 2300: Effects of Mass Media
COMM 2500: Persuasion
COMM 3130: Communication in Conflict Management
COMM 3210: Gender and Communication
COMM 3241: Motivation and Emotion
COMM 3310/W: Media Literacy and Criticism
COMM 3321: Latinas and Media
COMM 3410/W: Political Communication
COMM 3415: Protest & Communication
COMM 3530: Public Relations
COMM 3605: Communication Technology and Social Change
COMM 4200/W: Advanced Interpersonal Communication
COMM 4411: International Communication and Conflict
COMM 4501: Advanced Persuasion and Communication
COMM 4510: Communication Campaigns & Applied Research

There are a lot of different options when it comes to how to fulfill your requirements. This is only one of many. You do not have to do things this way. This is just to give you an idea.

This sequence was created as if a student wasn't bringing in any credits. You may very well have credit that's helping you fulfill one or more requirements.

A slash "/" means a course is fulfilling more than one requirement. You can do this less frequently or more frequently than is done here.

Tips

You DO need to complete at least 120 credits.
You DO need to complete at least 45 credits at the 2000 level or above.
You CAN use double major, dual degree, and minor courses as your relateds.
You CAN take summer and/or winter classes if you'd like.
You CAN request permission to take excess credits if you have the appropriate GPA.
You CAN take your POLS subdivision courses and POLS additional major courses in any order.
You DO NOT have to have a Q in your major. You DO NOT have to have a Q in a related. These are just ways in which you could potentially fulfill multiple requirements with one class.
You DO NOT have to study abroad.
You DO NOT have to do an internship.
You DO NOT have to complete your requirements in four years if more or less time works better for you.
You DO NOT have to take 1000 level POLS classes before 2000 level and above POLS classes.

First Year, Fall Semester

Course	Credits
ENGL 1007	4
Language Elementary I	4
POLS 1000 level/CA 2/CA 4	3
POLS 1000 level/CA 1D	3
UNIV 1800	1

Total credits: 15

First Year, Spring Semester

Course	Credits
CA 1A	3
CA 2	3
Language Elementary II	4
MATH or STAT Q	3 or 4
POLS 1000 level/CA 4	3

Total Credits: 16 or 17

Second Year, Fall Semester

Course	Credits
CA 1B	3
CA 1C	3
Language Intermediate I	4
POLS 2000+ level (additional major)/W	3
POLS 2000+ level (subdivision)	3

Total Credits: 16

Second Year, Spring Semester

Course	Credits
CA 1 1 more/W	3
CA 3 (non-lab)/E	3
Language Intermediate II	4
POLS 2000+ level (additional major)	3
POLS 2000+ level (subdivision)	3

Total Credits: 16

Third Year, Fall Semester

Course	Credits
CA 3 (lab)	4
POLS 2000+ level (additional major)/Q	3
POLS 2000+ level (subdivision)	3
Related 2000+ level	3
Related 2000+ level	3

Total Credits: 16

Third Year, Spring Semester

Course	Credits
POLS 2000+ level (additional major)	3
POLS 2000+ level (subdivision)	3
Related 2000+ level/Q	3
Related 2000+ level	3
UNIV 3088	1

Total Credits: 13

Fourth Year, Fall Semester

Course	Credits
Study abroad	15

Total Credits: 15

Fourth Year, Spring Semester

Course	Credits
2000+ level	3
2000+ level	3
2000+ level	3
Internship	3
UNIV 3088	1

Total Credits: 13
Additional Notes

Go to the Forms section of this page for a copy of the Major Plan of Study.
You can find a list of pre-approved related courses in the Courses and Credits section of this page.
Go to the General Education section of the CLAS Academic Services Center's webpage for information about which courses are approved to fulfill which general education requirements.

Academic Achievement Center: Assists students in attaining their academic and personal goals by providing a comprehensive, personalized array of programs, resources, and services which enhance skill development, effective decision-making, and personal transitions to and within the university setting.

Center for Students with Disabilities: Engages in an interactive process with each student and determines appropriate accommodations on an individualized, case-by-case, class-by-class basis.

CLAS Academic Services Center: Coordinates all academic advising for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Student Health and Wellness-Mental Health: Offers a variety of virtual mental health services for students with an existing relationship with the center, students who are seeking new services, and students experiencing a mental health crisis or emergency.

Experiential Global Learning: Coordinates study abroad programs for students in all majors and all colleges.

Student Activities: Provides programs and services that promote student self-governance, respect for diversity, civic responsibility, and lifelong learning.

Dean of Students: Provides interactions that help all students experience a sense of community and belonging and access to support resources to help students navigate challenges that sometimes arise during their college experience.

Transfer Credit Evaluation Form

Please complete this form to have upper division (2000+) POLS transfer courses evaluated by the department. This form may only be used if Transfer Admissions has completed an initial evaluation of your courses.

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Prior School Course Title Course Description

Please fill in your course information - you may add multiple courses by selecting the + sign on the right. Please be sure to upload a syllabus for each course below. Courses will not be evaluated without a syllabus attached.
Course Syllabus
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Please upload the course syllabus and any additional information regarding the course that can help with our evaluation
- Transfer admissions must have already evaluated the course and determined it is worth UConn credit before this form can be reviewed.
- Please ensure you have uploaded a syllabus for each course. Courses will not be evaluated without a full syllabus.
- Course evaluations can take up to a month to be completed. You will be contacted by email with a decision regarding your evaluation.
- Questions can be sent to jessamy.hoffmann@uconn.edu
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Prior School	Course Title	Course Description

Phone:	(860) 486-2440
E-mail:	pols@uconn.edu
Address:	365 Fairfield Way, Unit 1024 Storrs, CT 06269-1024 Susan V. Herbst Hall, Room 409

Advising in Political Science

Fall 2025 Advising

POLS Academic Advisor

Jessamy Hoffmann

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Sample Semester Sequence

First Year, Fall Semester

First Year, Spring Semester

Second Year, Fall Semester

Second Year, Spring Semester

Third Year, Fall Semester

Third Year, Spring Semester

Fourth Year, Fall Semester

Fourth Year, Spring Semester

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Transfer Credit Evaluation Form

Transfer Credit Evaluation Form

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