Political Science

This course provides an analysis of key EU policies as well as contemporary issues in the EU, including the Common Agricultural Policy, Environmental Policy, Security and Defense policies, the Democratic Deficit and Euroscepticism.

This course investigates the tensions that arise at the interface between morality and politics. It introduces students to deontological and consequentialist thinking on morality; examines the notions of a political ethic and "dirty hands"; offers some insights into, and the possible resolution of, the tensions that exist between strong and effective political action (realpolitik) and the constraints of morality.

This course represents additional work for the AGENDA SETTING AND ISSUE DEFINITION course. This course is concerned with how public problems are formed and framed. It considers how public problems become, or do not become, items on the public agenda in order to lead to policy development. After introducing the notion of agenda setting, the course develops the social problem approach, and then exposes leading concepts to explain the character of the agenda in modern times.

While the study of social and public policy has traditionally been concerned with actions taken by governments, the wider non-governmental sector is increasingly recognised as playing a key role. This course focuses on both international and local “non-governmental organizations” (NGOs) that have emerged around the world to address a wide range of social, political, and environmental concerns. It offers a critical perspective on NGOs in the context of development and social policy, covering both theoretical and policy issues. The focus is on two main inter-related themes: how NGOs serve as vehicles through which citizens organize, and how NGOs are instruments through which states, businesses, and funding agencies pursue their interests.