2024-2025 Bulletin: Program Requirements

Oct 06, 2024

2024-2025 Bulletin: Program Requirements

Political Science, PhD

The doctoral program in Political Science provides students with in-depth knowledge of domestic and international politics and the analytical skills required for careers in academia, the public sector, think tanks, and private enterprise.

Five PhD fields are offered by the Department of Politics and Policy: American Politics, Comparative Politics, International Relations & International Political Economy, Public Policy Analysis, and Research Methodology.

Admission. Admission requirements are detailed in the Admissions section of the current Policies and General Information Bulletin.

University Policies. Policies detailed in the current Policies and General Information Bulletin apply.

General Requirements

Coursework: A minimum of 72 units is required for the PhD.

Field of Study: Students must elect two fields and must notify the Department which two fields have been selected. The fields are American Politics, Comparative Politics, International Relations & International Political Economy, Public Policy Analysis, and Research Methodology.

Transdisciplinary Requirement: CGU requires all Doctoral students to complete at least 4 units of Transdisciplinary coursework (TNDY) within the first two years of their program or by the completion of 48 units in their program. These units will count as 4 units towards the doctoral degree requirement of 72 units.

Research Tools: Satisfactory completion of research tool requirements through methods courses, as detailed below is required. If you completed a research tool at another institution, you may petition to apply the tool to your CGU degree program. Non-CGU tools must meet the following qualifications: 1. Transfer credit requirements apply – that is, graduate-level achievement from an accredited institution and documented on an official transcript; 2. In compliance with transfer credit policies, grades received in non-CGU coursework must be B or better; 3. Tools completed at another institution must have been accomplished within three years of the date of your petition; 4. A faculty advisor must approve the transfer. In some cases, you must also successfully pass a test in the material covered by the tool.

Practical Experience Milestone: Please see below

Qualifying Examinations: Successful completion of qualifying examinations in each of the two fields. Qualifying examinations are offered once in each of the fall and the spring semesters. Students can attempt each written qualifying exam twice. In the event that a student fails a second attempt, an oral examination is administered as soon as possible after the written examination is graded, but at a time that meets the scheduling needs of both the student and examining faculty. A third attempt may be petitioned to the examination committee, Dean, and Provost; however, approval is generally subject to the student having passed other qualifying exams. Failure to pass the required qualifying exams results in the student’s termination from the PhD program.

Dissertation: Campus policies and procedures are detailed in the Doctoral Degree Regulations section of the Bulletin and on the registrar’s Completion of Degree webpage.

Degree Requirements

Research Tools (16 units)

General Tool #1:

PP 480 - Nature of Inquiry: Quantitative Research in Social Sciences
PP 481 – Introduction to Statistical Analysis OR Econ 381 - Probability & Statistics for Econometrics (check prerequisites)

Specialized Tool #2:

PP 482 – Multivariate Regression Analysis OR Econ 382- Econometrics I
PP 487 - Applied Data Analysis (various letters and topics) OR Another as approved by advisor

Transdisciplinary Studies (4 units)

CGU requires that all PhD students take 4 units of TNDY classes.

FIELDS OF STUDY

American Politics (24 units)

Core Courses

PP 300 - American Politics & Institutions
PP 302 – American Political Behavior
PP 313 – Representation & Elections
PP 305 – Congressional-Executive Institutions & Policymaking

Choose two additional courses from the following:

PP 333 – Identity Politics
SPE 351 - Comparative Political Institutions

Also eligible:

PP 484 – Survey Research
SPE 489 – Computational Tools for the Social Science
SPE 487 – Visualizing Data
PP 487L – Applied Data Analysis: Limited Dependent Variables and MLE
TNDY 407V – Urban Studies
SPE 352 – Comparative Political Economy
SPE 353 – Comparative Political Behavior
PP 331 - Policy Evaluation
PP 349F - Special Topics in Public Policy: Inequality
TNDY 407K - Transdisciplinary Approaches to Inequality

**Substitutions must be approved and documented by your advisor and reported to the Program Coordinator.

Compartative Politics (28 units)

Core Courses

SPE 350 - Theories and Issues in Comparative Politics
SPE 351 - Comparative Political Institutions
SPE 352 – Comparative Political Economy
SPE 353 – Comparative Political Behavior
SPE 354 – Comparative Public Policy

Choose two additional courses from the following:

PP 300 - American Politics & Institutions
PP 302 - American Political Behavior
PP 305 - Congressional-Executive Institutions & Policymaking
PP 313 - Representation & Elections
PP 330 - Public Policy Process
PP 331 - Policy Evaluation
PP 333 – Identity Politics
PP 338 - Policy Design & Implementation
PP 408 – Seminar in World Politics: Political Demography & Development OR
TNDY 407I – Special Seminar in Social Demography
PP 353 - Comparative Parties & Elections
PP 356 - Politics of Non-Democratic States
SPE 359 - Economic Development: Household and Local Development Issues
PP 366 – Latin American Politics
PP 375/POST 225 - Politics of Africa (when taken as POST 225 requires instructor permission and agreement to bring it up to graduate level)
PP 484 - Survey Research
PP 487L - Applied Data Analysis: Limited Dependent Variables and MLE
SPE 318 - Cost-Benefit Analysis
SPE 429 - Political Economy of China
SPE 489 - Computational Tools for Social Science
SPE 487 – Visualizing Data
TNDY 407V - Urban Studies

*Other courses can be taken in Economics and other fields. Substitutions must be approved and documented by your advisor and reported to the Program Coordinator.

International Relations and International Political Economy (28 units)

Core Courses

PP 401 - World Politics
PP 430 – Perspectives in Conflict & Peace
PP 432 - Seminar in Security
Econ 370 - World Economy
SPE 410 – Political Economy of International Development
SPE 411 – International Political Economy

Choose one course from the following selection:

SPE 408 – Globalization & Regional Integration
SPE 313 - Microeconomics and Public Policy
SPE 486 - Predictive Analytics and Machine Learning
ECON 350 - Global Money & Finance
ECON 351 - Contemporary Issues in International Finance and Economic Development

**Substitutions must be approved and documented by your advisor and reported to the Program Coordinator.

Public Policy Analysis (28 units)

Core Courses

ECON 313 – Microeconomics* OR SPE 313 - Microeconomics and Public Policy
PP 330 - Public Policy Process
PP 331 - Policy Evaluation
PP 338 - Policy Design and Implementation
SPE 318 - Cost-Benefit Analysis

*ECON 313 is recommended only for students with strong backgrounds in Calculus; check with the professor. Note: If students have an equivalent college-level course in Microeconomics, this requirement may be met, but units may only transfer if the Microeconomics course is a graduate-level course that meets the institutional transfer standards. See your advisor for details.

Another policy analytic tool (in addition to courses used to meet the research tools requirements), such as:

SPE 489 – Computational Tools for Social Science
IST 370 – Introduction to GIS Analytics and Solution Development
IST 377A through IST 377G – GIS Special Topics (various letters and topics)

See advisor for additional suggestions.

Choose one additional course from the following subcategories- Diversity Policy, Evaluation, Education Policy, Health Policy, and Methods for Policy Analysis:

Diversity Policy

PP 309 - Women, Politics, and Policy
SPE 354 – Comparative Public Policy
PP 323 - Racial & Ethnic Political Behavior
PP 408 – Seminar in World Politics: Political Demography & Development
PP 341 - US Immigration Policy
PP 366 - Latin American Politics
SPE 371 – Globalization
EDUC 699 - Educating Minority Students in Urban Schools: Policy & Practices
EA 86 - Environmental Justice (this Pitzer course requires instructor agreement to add additional work for graduate students)
TNDY 407K - Transdisciplinary Approaches to Inequality
TNDY 407V - Urban Studies
CGH 317- Ethics, Human Rights and Cultural Diversity
CGH418 - Health Equity in Research and Practice

OR other courses approved by your faculty advisor

Evaluation (with Division of Behavioral and Organizational Sciences)

PSYCH 326 - Foundations of Evaluation (2 units)*
PSYCH 315Z – Comparative Evaluation Theory
PSYCH 315EE – Evaluation Procedures

OR another course approved by your faculty advisor

* Note that a 2-unit elective is usually offered to complement PSYCH 326 (Other programs also offer 2-unit courses.) PSYCH 326 and PSYCH 315Z should be taken before PSYCH 315EE.

Education Policy (with School of Educational Studies)

EDUC 407 – Foundations of Educational Policy
EDUC 457 - Economics and Finance of Higher Education
EDUC 654 – Higher Education and the Law
EDUC 657 - Access and Equity in Higher Education
EDUC 698 - Teaching and Learning in Developing Countries

OR other courses approved by your faculty advisor

Health Policy (with School of Community and Global Health)

CGH 300 – Theoretical Foundations in Health Promotion and Education
CGH 302 - Epidemiology
CGH 303 - Health Services in the US and Abroad
CGH 310- Foundations of Global Health: A Transdisciplinary Approach
CGH 317 - Ethics, Human Rights, and Cultural Diversity
CGH 349F - U.S. Health Policy
CGH 411- Health Economics and Financing
CGH 418- Health Equity in Research and Practice

OR other courses approved by your faculty advisor

Methods for Policy Analysis

Note: these courses must be in addition to courses used to meet the Research Tools requirement and the Policy Analytic Tool requirement.

PP 487L - Applied Data Analysis: Machine Learning and Data Mining (or other PP487 topical course not used for Research Tools or for Policy Analytic tool)
IST 370 – Introduction to GIS Analytics and Solution Development
IST 377A through IST 377G – GIS Special Topics (various letters and topics)
SPE 489 - Computational Tools for Social Science
SPE 448 – Seminar in Social Network Analysis
SPE 487 - Visualizing Data
PP 487S - Applied Data Analysis: Survey of Advanced Methods
SPE 316 - Computational & Agent Based Modeling

OR other courses approved by your faculty advisor

Research Methodology (24 units)

Core Courses

All students in the PhD in Political Science program are required to take 16 units of Research Tools courses.
Students in the Research Methodology field are required to take the 16 units of Research Tools courses (PP 480, PP 481, PP 482, and one course from the PP 487 series.) AND
An additional 24 units from the following categories, including at least one additional course from the PP 487 series.

Other courses

Students should take 20 units from the courses listed below. Categorization is to assist students in selecting courses.

Professional and Applied Courses

These courses focus on a particular set of methods implemented in professional and academic settings such as policy analysis, program evaluation, the technology and research industries, non-profit organizations (NGO’s) and governmental institutions.

PP 331 - Policy Evaluation
PP 484 - Survey Research OR PSYCH 315J - Survey Research Methods
SPE 318 - Cost-Benefit Analysis (prerequisite: microeconomics or instructor permission)
SPE 471 - Strategic Modeling for Politics, Economics & Business Decisions
SPE 487 - Visualizing Data
SPE 489 - Computational Tools for Social Science

Machine Learning/Artificial Intelligence/Computational Analytics/Big Data

These courses represent a set of interdisciplinary, state-of-the-science methodologies to analyze large datasets with classification, prediction, and exploratory research purposes.

PP 487 - Applied Data Analysis (various letters and topics)
ECON 377 - Causal Modeling, Big Data, and Machine Learning (check with Econ faculty for prerequisites)
SPE 316 - Computational Agent-Based Modeling
SPE 448 – Seminar in Social Network Analysis
MATH 466 - Advanced Big Data Analysis (check with faculty for prerequisites)
SPE 486 - Predictive Analytics and Machine Learning

Statistical Analysis

These courses offer a set of foundational skills for systematically collecting, processing, and analyzing data to discover, describe, and quantify patterns and trends.

PP 487L - Applied Data Analysis: Limited Dependent Variables and MLE OR PSYCH 308D - Categorical Data Analysis (2 units)
ECON 383 - Econometrics II (4 units) (check with Econ faculty for prerequisites)
ECON 384 - Time Series Econometrics OR MATH 351 - Time Series Data Analysis (check with faculty for prerequisites)
ECON 386 - Advanced Applied Econometrics (check with Econ faculty for prerequisites)
SPE 438 - Dynamic Modeling
PSYCH 308B – ANOVA (2 units)
PSYCH 315E - Multilevel Modeling (2 units)
PSYCH 315F - Factor Analysis (2 units)
PSYCH 315H - Structural Equation Modeling (2 units)
PSYCH 315I - Longitudinal Methods
MATH 454 - Statistical Learning
CGH 301 – Biostatistics

Foundational

These courses teach the theoretical (mathematical, technical, or conceptual) fundamentals of research methods. Check with faculty for prerequisites.

ECON 317 - Game Theory & Asymmetric Information
ECON 316 – Consumer Theory and General Equilibrium
ECON 320 – Experimental Economics
MATH 352 - Nonparametric Statistics
MATH 353 - Asymptotic Methods in Statistics with Applications
MATH 452 - Large-Scale Inference

Other Methods and Skills

These courses offer students the opportunity to acquire analytic skills from an interdisciplinary perspective and diversify their methods repertoire.

PP 483 - Legal Research Methods
PP 485 - Qualitative and Mixed Methods Research OR PSYCH 315Q - Qualitative Research Methods
IST 370 - Introduction to GIS Analytics and Solution Development
HIST 304 - Introduction to Oral History Methodology
CLST 415 - Ethnographic Field Research Methods in Cultural Studies

Note: Courses taken in the Department of Psychology are often 2-credit courses and they need to be combined with another 2-credit course. Also, in conferral with an advisor and as appropriate, students can take courses related to research methodology not listed here from any department at CGU. Substitutions must be documented, approved by a faculty advisor, and reported with the Program Coordinator.

Practical Experience Milestone

Doctoral students in the Division of Politics and Economics must meet the Practical Experience Milestone through:

A Teaching Assistantship OR
A Research Assistantship OR
An external teaching opportunity OR
A research project with CGU or 5C faculty OR
One or more articles submitted for publication OR
Completion of one or more semesters in Doctoral Study that includes relevant work experience and/or progress on the doctoral dissertation.

Students must have their milestones approved by the department prior to the submission of their Final Approval Form. This milestone is to be completed during the time to degree at CGU (7 years for doctoral students). Extensions of Time to Degree citing the need to complete this milestone will n ot be approved. Students can have a maximum of 4 years of experience for the Practical Experience Milestone.