Undergraduate Courses

*See the bottom of this page for a list of courses by sub field.

 


(Tentative) Winter 2024 Course Offerings (Subject to Change without Notice):

*Planned for in-person instruction - per University directive.

  • PS 1 - Intro to Political Theory - Dr. Stein
  • PS 15 - Intro to Research Methods - Prof. Martinez-Alvarez
  • PS 117 - Social Movements (CP) - Prof. Ahuja
  • PS 119JW - Ethics of Just War (PT/IR) - Dr. Stein
  • PS 121 - International Politics (IR) - Dr. Strathman
  • PS 135 - Government & Politics of Japan (CP) - Prof. Freeman
  • PS 143 - Russian Domestic Politics (CP) - Prof. Kaplan
  • PS 147 - Developing Country Politics (CP) - Prof. Bruhn
  • PS 149 - Israeli Politics (CP) - Dr. Amado
  • PS 166 - U.S. Immigration Politics (AP) - Prof. Lien
  • PS 172 - U.S Political Communication (AP) - Prof. Bimber
  • PS 173 - Comparative Media and Politics (CP) - Prof. Freeman

 

  • PS 197B – Honors Thesis Seminar (Enrollment by Instructor Approval ONLY) - Prof. Masterson

 

Special Topics Courses [Open to full POLS majors ONLY during PASS 1 registration]

  • PS 106AD - American Political Development (AP) - Prof. Nall
  • PS 106AS - American Social Movements (AP) - Prof. Parker
  • PS 106BT - Black Political Thought (PT) - Prof. Parker  (Not open to students who have take Prof. Rice's POLS 196 on Black political thought in S23 or F23)
  • PS 106GR - Gender Rights (CP/IR) - Prof. Brysk
  • PS 106HR - Human Rights (IR/CP) - Prof. Morse

 

  • SENIOR SEMINARS: Open only to Seniors.  Requires a 3.0 GPA in all GPA (UCSB cumulative; POLS overall major; and POLS upper division major) categories, as well as a full "B" earned in an upper division POLS course of the same subfield (coursework petitioned from outside of the major cannot satisfy this requirement).  Students may take only ONE Senior Seminar during their time at UCSB.
  • PS 196-01 - Politics & Gender (CP) - Prof. Brysk
  • PS 196-02 - Environmental Political Theory (PT) - Dr. Hobbs-Morgan 

 

Click here to view petitionable Winter 2024 courses from outside of the Department of Political Science.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

(Last) Spring 2023 Course Offerings:

Planned for in-person instruction - per University directive.

  • PS 1 - Intro to Political Theory - Prof. Keum
  • PS 6 - Intro to Comparative Politics - Prof. Bruhn
  • PS 7 - Intro to International Relations - Prof. Coggins
  • PS 119JW - Just War (PT/IR) - STAFF
  • PS 126 - International Security (IR) - Dr. Strathman
  • PS 127 - American Foreign Policy (IR/AP) - Dr. Strathman
  • PS 162 - Urban Government  & Politics (AP) - Prof. Nall
  • PS 170 - Public Policy Analysis (AP) - Prof. Nall
  • PS 173 - Comparative Politics and Media (CP) - Prof. Freeman
  • PS 187 - Classical Political Theory (PT) - Prof. Keum
  • PS 197C – Honors Thesis Seminar (Enrollment by Instructor Approval ONLY) - Prof. Masterson

 

Special Topics Courses [Open to full POLS majors ONLY during PASS 1 registration; POLS pre-majors and other majors can enroll druing PASS 2 & 3]

  • PS 106AM - African American Politics (AP) - Prof. Parker
  • PS 106CI - Causal Inference (Area D, POLS elective) - Prof. Mildenberger
  • PS 106DQ - Democracy and Inequality (AP) - Prof. Rice
  • PS 106EA - Northeast Asian Politics (CP) - Prof. Freeman

 

SENIOR SEMINARS: Open only to Seniors.  Requires a 3.0 GPA in all GPA (UCSB cumulative; POLS overall major; and POLS upper division major) categories, as well as a full "B" earned in an upper division POLS course of the same subfield.  Students may take only ONE Senior Seminar during their time at UCSB.

  • PS 196-01 - Black Political Thought (PT) - Prof. Rice
  • PS 196-02 - Contemporary Israeli Society: Its Cleavages and Complexities (CP) - Dr. Amado

 

_______________________________________________________________________________

Summer 2023 Course Offerings:

Planned for in-person instruction - per University directive - with the exception of POL SW 121.

Session A:

  • PS 6 - Intro to Comparative Politics - Prof. Moreno-Plascencia
  • PS 15 - Intro to Research Methods - Dr. Stein
  • PS 121 W - International Politics (IR) - Dr. Strathman (ON LINE version of POLS 121)
  • PS 152 - American Political Parties (AP) - Dr. Fontaine
  • PS 172 - US Political Communication (AP) - Prof. Labarre

Session B:

  • PS 7 – Intro to International Relations - Prof. Gamarnik
  • PS 119JW - Ethics of a Just War (PT/IR) - Dr. Stein
  • PS 170 - Public Policy Analysys (AP) - Prof. Nall
  • PS 177 - Comparative Environmental Politics (CP) - Dr. Moosbrugger
  • PA 186 - Intro to Political Economy (IR) - Prof. Rochat

Click here to view petitionable summer courses from outside of the Department of Political Science.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


Fall 2023 Course Offerings (Subject to Change without Notice):

Offered via in-person instruction - per University directive.

  • PS 1 - Intro to Political Theory - Dr. Hobbs-Morgan
  • PS 6 - Intro to Comparative Politics - Prof. Bruhn
  • PS 7 - Intro to International Relations - Prof. Morse
  • PS 12 - Intro to American Politics - Prof. Bimber
  • PS 106AM - African American Politics (AP) - Prof. Rice
  • PS 106ET - Comparative Political Economy of the Energy Transition (CP) - Prof. Mahdavi
  • PS 106PP - Political Psychology in International Relations (IR) - Dr. Strathman
  • PS 118 - Comparative Ethnic Politics (CP) - Prof. Kaplan
  • PS 119JW - Ethics of Just War (PT/IR) - Dr. Eric Stein
  • PS 124 - International Organizations (IR) - Prof. Morse
  • PS 126 - International Security (IR) - Dr. Strathman
  • PS 127 - American Foreign Policy (IR/AP) - Dr. Strathman
  • PS 177 - Comparative Environmental Politics (CP) -  Dr. Moosbrugger
  • PS 189 - Contemporary Political Theory (PT) - Dr. Hobbs-Morgan
  • PS 197A – Honors Thesis Seminar (Enrollment by Instructor Approval ONLY) - Prof. Masterson

 

SENIOR SEMINARS: Open only to Seniors.  Requires a 3.0 GPA in all GPA (UCSB cumulative; POLS overall major; and POLS upper division major) categories, as well as a full "B" earned in an upper division POLS course of the same subfield.  Students may take only ONE Senior Seminar during their time at UCSB.

  • PS 196-01 - Black Political Thought (PT) - Prof. Rice

Click here to view petitionable Fall 2023 courses from outside of the Department of Political Science.


 

COURSES BY SUB FIELD: 

Below are the default subfield classifications for POLS courses appearing in the UCSB Catalog.  Parentheses alongside a course number indicate other subfields that a course may be petitioned toward.  Please see this page of our website for downloadable course petition forms: https://www.polsci.ucsb.edu/undergrad/major-requirements#Forms  Please submit course petition forms to the POLS Advising Office (Advising@polsci.ucsb.edu) as scanned PDF documents or in person.

A student may petition for a different subfield classification (than what has been listed below) of a POLS course - if justified by course content as demonstrated with a course syllabus.  Requests for variances to the list below require Department approval (which is rare). Such approval is conditioned upon course content only, and not student need to satisfy a degree requirement. 

Please note: POLS/ ENV S double majors are only allowed to share two crosslisted POLS/ENV S courses (POLS 175/ENV S 178; POLS 176/ENV S 176; POLS 177/ENV S ENV S 177).   Should a student take all three of these courses, only one will be allowed toward either their POLS or ENV S upper division requirements, but will be applied to overall UCSB degree requirements.

 

 

  • AMERICAN POLITICS:
  • 108 (also CP & PT)
  • 115
  • 151
  • 152
  • 153
  • 154 (also PT)
  • 155 
  • 156
  • 157 & W157
  • 158
  • 160 [Cross-listed with Asian American Studies as AS AM 160]
  • 161
  • 162 (also CP in W18)
  • 165
  • 166 (Replaces 106IP effective S17)
  • 170
  • 171 (also CP)
  • 172 (Replaces 171 effective M17)
  • 175 [Cross-listed with Environmental Studies as ENV S 178]
  • 176 (also CP) [Cross-listed with Environmental Studies as ENV S 176]
  • 178
  • 180
  • 182
  • 185

 

  • COMPARATIVE POLITICS:
  • 101
  • 105 (also IR)
  • 108 (also AP & PT)
  • 109
  • 116
  • 117 (Replaces 106SM effective W18)
  • 118
  • 128 (also IR)
  • 130
  • 132
  • 133 (also IR)
  • 134
  • 135
  • 136
  • 137
  • 138
  • 140
  • 143
  • 144
  • 145 (also IR; Cross-listed with Italian as ITAL 161AX]
  • 147
  • 148
  • 149
  • 150A & B (also IR)
  • 173 (Replaces 171 effective M17)
  • 176 (also AP) [Cross-listed with Environmental Studies as ENV S 176]
  • 177 [Cross-listed with Environmental Studies as ENV S 177]

 

  • INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS:
  • 121 & W121
  • 123 
  • 124
  • 126
  • 127 (also AP)
  • 141 (Replaces 106CW effective S17)
  • 142 (Replaces 106DM effective S17)
  • 144 (also CP)
  • 146 (also CP)
  • 186 [Cross-listed with Global Studies as GLOBL 123]

 

  • POLITICAL THEORY:
  • 108 (also AP & CP)
  • 110 series (all)
  • 110AM (also AP)
  • 110AN
  • 110CT
  • 110CD
  • 110DT (also CP or AP)
  • 110ET (also AP)
  • 110J
  • 110PC
  • 114 [also AP; Cross-listed with Chicano Studies as CH ST 179]
  • 119 series (all – also IR)
  • 154 (also AP)
  • 187
  • 188
  • 189

 

  • AREA D, POLS UPPER DIVISION ELECTIVES​:  
  • 106AC (CP)
  • 106AD (AP)
  • 106AF (AP)
  • 106AM (AP)
  • 106AT (AP)
  • 106BP (CP)
  • 106BT (PT)
  • 106CE (AP or CP)
  • 106CL (AP)
  • 106CI (Area D)
  • 106CP (AP)
  • 106CW (IR -- Replaced by 141 effective S17)
  • 106DG (CP)
  • 106DI (AP - Replaced by 178 effective S22)
  • 106DM (IR -- Replaced by 142 effective S17)
  • 106DP (CP)
  • 106DG (CP)
  • 106DQ (AP or PT)
  • 106EA (CP)
  • 106EC (CP)
  • 106ED (CP)
  • 106EJ (CP)
  • 106EP (AP or CP)
  • 106ER (CP or IR)
  • 106ET (CP)
  • 106GR (CP/IR)
  • 106HR (CP or IR)
  • 106IC (IR or AP)
  • 106IG (AP)
  • 106IL (AP)
  • 106IP (AP -- Replaced by 166 effective S17)
  • 106IV (AP)
  • 106LC (CP or IR)
  • 106LP (AP)
  • 106LR (CP or IR)
  • 106MI (CP or IR -- Replaced by 133 effective F20)
  • 106MM (AP -- Replaced by 156 effective W17)
  • 106MO (IR -- Replaced by 123 effective W21)
  • 106MS (CP)
  • 106ND (CP or IR)
  • 106NG (AP or IR - Replaced by 120 effective S21)
  • 106NS (IR)
  • 106PK (IR)
  • 106PO (AP)
  • 106PP (IR)
  • 106PW (CP) (Replaced by 140 effective F22)
  • 106RM (CP)
  • 106RP (AP)
  • 106SM (CP -- Replaced by 117 effective W18)
  • 106UN (IR)
  • 120 (AP or IR)
  • 133 (CP or IR)
  • 148 (CP)
  • 155L
  • 176 (AP or CP)
  • 177 (CP)
  • 178 (AP)
  • 192 
  • 196 (petitionable toward a sub field with syllabus)
  • 197ABC (up to 8 units may be petitionable toward a sub field, see form on website)
  • 199 (petitionable toward a sub field with syllabus)
  • 199RA (petitionable toward a sub field with syllabus)
  • UCDC 192DC
  • UCDC 199DC (subfield reallocation will depend on content)
  • UCCS 192A
  • UCCS 193 (also AP)
  • UCCS 195 (also AP)
  • UCCS 196E