**Scroll down to the bottom of the page for a list of POLS courses by sub field defaults and information on how to reallocate them.

 

 

 

Tentative Winter 2026 Course Offerings (Subject to Change without Notice):

Offered via in-person instruction - per University directive.

  • PS 1 - Intro to Political Theory - Prof. Keum
  • PS 6 - Intro to Comparative Politics - STAFF
  • PS 12 - American Government & Politics - STAFF
  • PS 15 - Intro to Research Methods - Prof. Mahdavi
  • PS 101 - Mexican Politics (CP) - Prof. Bruhn
  • PS 117 - Social Movement Politics (CP) - Prof. Ahuja
  • PS 120 - Negotiation (IR/AP) - Prof. Stokes
  • PS 135 - Government & Politics of Japan (CP) - Prof. Freeman
  • PS 142 - Decision Making (IR ) - Prof. Strathman
  • PS 173 - Comparative Media & Politics (CP) - Prof. Freeman
  • PS 180 - Bureaucracy (AP) - Prof. Gonzalez
  • PS 189 - Contemporary Political Theory (PT) - Prof. Norris
  • PS 197B – Honors Thesis Seminar (Enrollment by Instructor Approval ONLY) - Prof. Morse

 

Special Topics Courses [Open to full POLS majors ONLY during PASS 1 registration.  All others can register or waitlist during PASS 2.]

  • PS 106CC - Climate Change & Conflict (IR/CP) - Prof. Nomikos
  • PS 106GI - Indigenous Peoples' Politics (AP/CP) - Prof. Orr
  • PS 106LP - Latinx Political Development (AP) - Prof. Gonzalez
  • PS 106PP - Psychology in International Relations (IR) - Prof. Strathman

 

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.  [*Courses default to Area D, POLS elective, but can be petitioned for reallocation to their indicated subfields.]

  • PS 196-01 - Plato  (PT) - Prof. Keum
  • PS 196-03 - American Institutions (AP) - Prof. Nall

 

 

Fall 2025 Course Offerings:

Offered via in-person instruction - per University directive.

  • PS 6 - Intro to Comparative Politics - Prof. Bruhn
  • PS 7 (hybrid) - Intro to International Relations - Prof. Narang
  • PS 12 - Intro to American Politics - Prof. Nall
  • PS 15 - Intro to Political Science Research - Prof. Mildenberger
  • PS 121 - International Politics (IR) - Prof. Strathman
  • PS 127  - American Foreign Policy (IR/AP)) - Dr. Strathman
  • PS 134 - US-Mexico Relations (CP/IR) - Prof. Bruhn
  • PS 160 - Asian American Politics (AP) - Prof. Lien
  • PS 166 - US Immigration Policy (AP) - Prof. Gonzalez
  • PS 172 - U.S Political Communication (AP) - Prof. Bimber
  • PS 177 - Comparative Environmental Politics (CP) -  Prof. Mildenberger
  • PS 188 - Modern Political Theory (PT) - Prof. Norris  
  • PS 197A – Honors Thesis Seminar (Enrollment by Instructor Approval ONLY) - Prof. Masterson

 

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

  • PS 106CD - Comparative Democracies (CP) - Prof. Stoll
  • PS 106HR - International Human Rights (IR/CP) - Prof. Morse
  • PS 106NS - Nuclear Security (IR) - Prof. Narang

 

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 - Hegel's Philosophy (PT) - Prof. Norris 

 

 

 

(Last) Summer 2025 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 - STAFF
  • PS 7 – Intro to International Relations -STAFF
  • PS 121 W - International Politics (IR) - Dr. Strathman (ON LINE version of POLS 121)
  • PS 145 - European Union (IR/CP) - STAFF

 

Session B:

  • PS 1 - Intro to Political Theory - STAFF
  • PS 12 – Intro to American Government & Politics - Prof. Nall
  • PS 101: Mexican Politics (CP) - STAFF
  • PS 186 - Intro to Political Economy (IR) - STAFF

 

 

(Last) Spring 2025 Course Offerings:

*Planned for in-person instruction - per University directive - unless otherwise noted.

  • PS 7 (hybrid) - Intro to International Relations - Prof. Narang
  • PS 6 - Intro to Comparative Politics - Prof. Moosbrugger
  • PS 12 - Intro to American Government - Prof. Bimber
  • PS 15 - Intro to Research Methods - Prof. Stokes
  • PS 110DA - The Political Dark Arts (PT) - Prof. Keum
  • PS 110ET - Environmental Political Theory (PT/AP) - Dr. Hobbs-Morgan
  • PS 114- Democracy & Diversity (PT/AP) - TBD
  • PS 127 - American Foreign Policy (IR/AP) - Dr. Strathman
  • PS 141 - Civil War (IR) - Prof. Coggins
  • PS 142 - Decisionmaking (IR) - Dr. Strathman
  • PS 150A - Mid East Politics (CP/IR) - Prof. Masterson
  • PS 155/155L - Congress (AP) - TBD
  • PS 162 - Urban Government  & Politics (AP) - Prof. Nall
  • PS 166 - US Immigration Policy (AP) - Prof. Lien
  • PS 170 - Public Policy Analysis (AP) - Prof. Nall
  • PS 173 - Comparative Media & Politics (CP) - Prof. Freeman
  • PS 176 - Energy Politics (AP/CP) - Prof. Stokes
  • PS 178 - Democracy & the Internet (AP) - Prof. Bimber
  • PS 188 - Modern Political Theory (PT) - Prof. Norris
  • 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 106CI- Causal Inference (Area D, POLS elective) - Prof. Mildenberger  Course description: This course is about what quantitative political scientists do when they can’t do experiments. You will learn more about when and how political scientists make causal statements about observational data. We will start by reviewing the promise and pitfalls of experiments as a tool for political scientists. Then, we will think about a series of other approaches that political scientists use to tease apart cause and effect in their work. These techniques have somewhat daunting names - regression discontinuity designs, instrumental variables, difference-in-difference models - but they all approach the task of making causal inferences in a similar way.
  • PS 106DQ - Democracy & Inequality (AP/PT) - Prof. Rice
  • PS 106EA - Northeast Asian Politics (CP) - Prof. Freeman
  • PS 106LP - Latino/a/x Politics (AP) - Prof. Gonzalez

 

 

 

 

Political Science Department Courses by Default Sub Field

 

ALL POLS courses default to one sub field area on a student's record, but many can be reallocated. Below are the default sub field classifications for POLS courses appearing in the UCSB Catalog.  Parentheses alongside a course number indicate other sub fields 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 sub field 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 cross listed 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 two will be applied toward either their POLS or ENV S upper division requirements, the thiid course will be applied to overall UCSB degree requirements.

CROSS-LISTING means that a course is equivalent in either version across both majors, and will show up on a student's progress check as satisfying a major's requirement in either version the student enrolls in.

 

  • 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 (also IR)
  • 135
  • 136
  • 137
  • 138
  • 140
  • 143
  • 144
  • 145 (also CP; Cross-listed with Italian as ITAL 161X]
  • 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)
  • 131
  • 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 (also AP)
  • 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)
  • 106AI (AP)
  • 106AM (AP)
  • 106AS (AP)
  • 106AT (AP)
  • 106BP (CP)
  • 106BT (PT)
  • 106CC (CP/IR)
  • 106CD (CP)
  • 106CE (AP or CP)
  • 106CL (AP)
  • 106CI (Area D)
  • 106CP (AP)
  • 106CR (IR)
  • 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)
  • 106GI (AP/CP)
  • 106GR (CP or 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)
  • 106PB (CP)
  • 106PK (IR/CP)
  • 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