E2024

International Bachelor Study Programme in Social Science

Basic course

English

Studerende på 1. semester bliver automatisk tilmeldt. Hvis du skal tage kurset igen, og ikke går på 1. semester, skal du kontakte sib-exams@ruc.dk.

Students on their 1st semester will be registered automatically. If you are taking the course again and are not on your 1st semester, please contact sib-exams@ruc.dk.

The course aims to provide the student with a broad introduction to central political science theories and concepts.

The objective of the course is to enable students to apply central concepts in political science in the analysis of specific empirical fields and larger political issues and debates. Upon successful completion of the course, students should be able to explain, apply, and learnedly discuss core theoretical approaches and key concepts in the field of political science.

Among a broad array of topics, the course introduces frameworks for analyzing democracy and other regime types, political party behavior, executive politics, public policy, and the study of international organizations and war. The empirical examples are drawn from various countries around the world, including Denmark.

Teaching= 9 lectures * 4 hours and 1 lecture* 2 hours = total 38 hours Preparation for class, i.e. reading = 49 hours group assignment = in class group work plus 14 hours exam preparation= 20 hours exam= 14 hours

The course textbook is: Hague, Rod, Martin Harrop, and John McCormick. 2019. Comparative Government and Politics. 11th edition. Red Globe Press.

As we will read a significant portion of the book, it is necessary to purchase it. Note that it does make a difference which edition of the book you read, so we strongly recommend not buying previous editions.

The remaining literature can either be downloaded from the library or will be made available on moodle.ruc.dk.

The exercise questions students work on during the class will be discussed at the end of each class, thereby providing continued feedback to the students in preparation for their group assignment.

Students will be offered oral individual feedback on their exam.

The teachers will organize a mid-term evaluation and discuss the formative feedback with the students.

SIB Registration & Exams (sib-exams@ruc.dk)

Thomas Paster (paster@ruc.dk)

5

• Knowledge and an overall grasp of central concepts and theories in Political Science, including perspectives on democracy and other political regimes, public policy, the operations of government, and international relations.

• Knowledge of the fundamental functions of core political institutions, including legislatures, executives, the bureaucracy, and political parties.

• Skills in identifying and applying relevant political science concepts and theory to illuminate an issue.

• Skills in understanding and discussing political phenomena on the basis of political science concepts and theory

• The competence to evaluate the usefulness of particular political science concepts and theory for illuminating particular issues.

• The competence to assess the quality of arguments using political science concepts and theory

The purpose of the course is to introduce the core concepts, approaches, and issues of political science. This is partly achieved through an overview of the perceptions of politics, power, democracy, and political regimes, systems and actors that exist within the field, and partly through a discussion of the upward, downward and outward shift of political power to the transnational level, the local level, and to various negotiation networks respectively.

The course will provide students with theoretical and empirical knowledge that enables them to understand and orientate themselves within the field of political science, and further to enable students to understand and process theories, concepts and issues of political science, as well as applying these in the subsequent interdisciplinary and problem-oriented project work of their bachelor programme.

The course consists of both lectures and seminars. As part of the course, the students will carry out group work.

Mandatory course

Individual written portfolio.

The portfolio consists of 2 written products, that wholly or partially are are developed during the course. For example, products can be exercise responses, talking points for presentations, written feedback, reflection, written assignments. The preparation of the products may be subject to time limits.

The character limit: 7,200-14,400 characters, including spaces.
The character limits include the cover, table of contents, bibliography, figures and other illustrations, but exclude any appendices.

The portfolio's specific products and the (if relevant) recommended size (character limit) for the individual products are made public on study.ruc.dk before the course begins.

The entire portfolio must be handed in at the same time.
The submission deadline will be public on study.ruc.dk before the course begins.

The assessment is individual and based on the entire portfolio.

Assessment: 7-point grading scale.

Samme som ordinær eksamen / same form as ordinary exam