Institut d'Etudes Politiques (Sciences Po)

Being useful appears like a value per se: it would be an absolute, an ideal giving meaning to a life, a job, a public policy, a political project. Usefulness has been defined as a good in itself, and its negative, uselessness, as a criticism that devalues any object, especially any object in the political sphere. In contemporary times, the dividing line between useful and useless has come to be seen as a division between good and evil. But is this axis of division neutral? On what conceptual history does it rest? This course identifies the sources that have fueled the way in which, in a neoliberal context, public interest has become the equivalent of the Public Good, and the useless as the parasite that must be reduced, hunted down, and annihilated. An analysis of the notions of liberalism, neoliberalism and new public management are required for that.

This course considers and explains why and how the international system is characterized by the return of a tough competition among states. That is what we call power politics. This dynamic is reflected in the return of inter-state conflicts (Russia/Ukraine, Iran/Israel) and the risk of their spreading to other regions (Taiwan, South China Sea). The central question addressed in this course from both a conceptual and empirical perspective is why we moved within a decade from a world of economic interdependence based on the decline of interstate wars to a world where states are on the forefront of global competition including through the weaponization of economic interdependence. This course is by definition transversal and trans regional since the competition affects all regions of the world. It focuses on three types of actors: the drivers of this new competition who are setting the new rules of the game (United States and China), the contenders who have global ambitions while facing obstacles on their way (Russia, India, and the European Union) and the Hedgers who are middle income countries who are trying to leverage this new global dynamic for their own benefit (Brazil, South Africa, UAE, Indonesia, and Vietnam among others).

Receiving an adequate level of education can be seen as a fundamental social right. Yet, the extent and ways in which education is provided vary substantially across countries, social groups, and over-time. This course is designed to introduce students to the study of educational inequality and education policy. The course begins by reviewing the main goals, achievements, and outstanding challenges in education policy in the early 21st century. Specifically, it takes a historical perspective to review the significant progress made with respect to providing education to large parts of the world's population and with respect to reducing gender inequality in educational attainment. The course then turns to one key policy challenge of the early 21st century—reducing the inequalities in educational attainment between individuals from different socio-economic backgrounds. It discusses normative arguments for why we may care to understand and address inequality of educational opportunity. Moreover, the course examines the social mechanisms that account for educational inequalities between individuals from different social backgrounds and discusses whether and how policies and social interventions can reduce these educational inequalities. The structure of the course follows the early life-course and educational trajectory of individuals to critically examine educational policies on early childhood education, the notion of "social investment", ability tracking at the secondary level, the function of school autonomy, the effectiveness of education policy to equalize access to elite institutions, the role of large crises — such as the COVID-19 pandemic — in exacerbating existing inequalities, and how education policy can protect children's learning in the face of such crises. The course fosters students' ability to think like a social scientist and to critically approach and examine major issues of educational inequality. It develops the conceptual tools and substantive knowledge to address current questions on educational inequality.

This course is based on a so-called “bottom-up” field approach in order to measure the social and societal effects of public policies in a different way. To illustrate this method, it draws on various visible situations related to migration: resurgence of shantytowns, increase in unaccompanied minors wandering around, etc., in order to analyze the sociological mechanisms at work within migrant groups, host societies, and countries of origin. This method uses social science research tools to be able to evaluate and then propose improvements to the policies and measures put in place. It is an introduction to action research based on a shared field diagnosis facilitating the acceptance of change and social innovation.

Queer histories situate the emergence of queer identities and subcultures in turn of the century European urban centers. Yet these were shaped by a more global context, in which imperialism and Orientalism were central. To understand this, the course first reads texts which explore the intersections of histories of imperialism and histories of gender and sexuality. It then focuses on Orientalism and racism in queer representations. In a third part, it turns to studies which highlight the importance of travel and encounters for queer experiences. A fourth part addresses the question of silences and absences in the archive, and scholarly approaches to tackling these. Finally, the course turns to primary sources and analyzes them, drawing on the ideas developed throughout the course.

This course offers a comprehensive examination of the dynamic interplay between religious freedom and secularism in the diverse cultural landscape of the Americas. From the early colonial encounters to the contemporary socio-political debates, it explores the complex interactions between religion, state, and society in shaping the religious and secular identities of the Americas. Competing understandings of religious freedom and secularism in human rights (what they are, what they should be, and how they operate) are examined. The course is organized into two sections each with a distinctive set of themes: the first section focuses on the conceptual approaches to religious freedom and secularism in the Americas, including historical context. The second section focuses on the circulation of ideas among the continent and beyond, by exploring the transnational impact of politics of religious freedom and secularism in the world.

This course focuses on sociological concepts and methods to link theory with evidence and asks how sociological concepts can be applied to the world around us. It develops the key skills of academic writing: how to write an effective academic research paper and how to read academic papers to link theory with evidence. A key learning objective is close reading of texts, understanding the key argument of each text, and applying concepts to the real world. This course has a theme of the "city" to focus on producing original research work on a focused domain. It uses key sociological readings, case studies, and in-the-news topics to study society as a complex space where buildings, people, animals, laws, policies, and international financial flows, intersect to produce our lived experience. The course examines sociological concepts through walks around in the city. It explores foundational texts and addresses specific questions related to inequality, power, conspiracy theories, global finance, environmental crisis, social policy, violence, segregation, and so on.

This course explores the evolution of women's work inside and outside of the home; traditional and emerging views relative to women and domestic and/or care work; and current models that include greater State involvement and societal support for domestic and care work as prerequisites for gender equity and more robust democracies in Latin America. Students derive the conceptual tools for their own critical analyses, developing an amplified understanding of the role of care and domestic work in Latin America; the role that women play in the same, and what this classic equation has meant for the region's development trajectories. Likewise, the course introduces existing models and policy alternatives. It is divided into two parts: the first part covers Latin American women's inequality in labor and in society, and the second part considers emerging responses.

This course examines contemporary issues in outer space at the the intersection of outer space law, telecommunications, science, security and defense. It covers how to navigate and apply the Outer Space Treaties to contemporary issues including rocket launches, scientific missions, satellite mega-constellations, space debris, rescue of astronauts, space tourism, electronic satellite warfare, the settlement of the Moon and Mars, and use of space resources. The course provides an opportunity to develop and propose new regulation and policy in order to address burgeoning challenges, as well as the ability to advocate for change and support the global community in realizing the benefits of space activities. The course provides an understanding of the geopolitical history of the space race; the international framework governing activities in outer space, including the Outer Space Treaty (1967), the astronaut Rescue Agreement, and allocation of radio frequencies and orbits by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU); the application of principles in the Outer Space Treaties to real-life case studies; the political forces shaping EU and international space policy; and the escalating risk to global peace and security in a space arms race.

This course introduces the current and past issues at stake in the political, legal, and cultural relations between religions and states. A subject of recurrent debate and controversy in France, laïcité (or rather, secularism) is rarely treated critically, dispassionately and from an international perspective. Such is the focus of this seminar. Depending on the areas covered, the course discusses more generally about “laïcité” (in the case of France) or “secularism” (in the case of Anglo-Saxon countries). The course is interdisciplinary, drawing on historical, political, legal, and sociological approaches. It also focuses on comparative approaches in Europe, North America, North Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.