Classes Offered · USC Schedule of Classes

Political Science (POSC)

http://dornsife.usc.edu/politicalscience/
D class assignments for undergraduates available in VKC-214; Phone: (213) 740-3621.
D class assignments for graduate students available in VKC-327; Phone: (213) 740-1695.
D class assignments for undergraduates please email poir@usc.edu

POSC 100g: Theory and Practice of American Democracy (4.0 units)

Theoretical, institutional, and functional aspects of American national, state, and local government and politics; contemporary issues. Recommended for freshmen and sophomores.

General Education: This course satisfies the university's general education requirement.
Note: Register for lecture and one discussion

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location
51900R	001	Lecture	12:00-1:50pm	Mon, Wed	100 of 100	Morris Levy	THH102
51901R	001	Discussion	8:30-9:20am	Tuesday	25 of 25	Ian Ermatinger-Salas	CPA209
51902R	001	Discussion	10:00-10:50am	Wednesday	25 of 25	Ian Ermatinger-Salas	CPA157
51903R	001	Discussion	10:00-10:50am	Monday	25 of 25	Chaerim Kim	CPA155
51904R	001	Discussion	9:00-9:50am	Thursday	25 of 25	Chaerim Kim	CPA205

POSC 120: Comparative Politics (4.0 units)

Gateway to the major in political science. Comparative analysis of political institutions and processes in selected industrial, developing and socialist countries, in terms of contrasting ideologies, parties, elites, and economies.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location
51910R	001	Lecture	9:30-10:50am	Tue, Thu	35 of 51	Allison Hartnett	CPA150
51911R	001	Discussion	11:00-11:50am	Monday	23 of 25	Tolulope Babalola	CPA154
51912R	001	Discussion	12:00-12:50pm	Thursday	12 of 25	Tolulope Babalola	WPH205

POSC 130g: Law, Politics and Public Policy (4.0 units)

Interaction between law and politics; overview of the American legal system; value conflicts and public policy questions which arise within it.

General Education: This course satisfies the university's general education requirement.
Note: Register for lecture and one discussion

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location
51920R	001	Lecture	12:30-1:50pm	Tue, Thu	192 of 200	Arthur Auerbach	THH201
51921R	001	Discussion	11:00-11:50am	Tuesday	25 of 25	Melissa Watanabe	SOSB47
51922R	001	Discussion	2:00-2:50pm	Tuesday	23 of 25	Laura Brisbane	CPA201
51923R	001	Discussion	4:00-4:50pm	Tuesday	25 of 25	Laura Brisbane	THH110
51924R	001	Discussion	1:00-1:50pm	Wednesday	25 of 25	Henry Aoki	CPA206
51925R	001	Discussion	1:00-1:50pm	Friday	24 of 25	Melissa Watanabe	CPA209
51926R	001	Discussion	2:00-2:50pm	Thursday	25 of 25	Kayla Wolf	CPA151
51927R	001	Discussion	4:00-4:50pm	Thursday	23 of 25	Kayla Wolf	SOSB37
51928R	001	Discussion	8:30-9:20am	Friday	22 of 25	Henry Aoki	CPA151

Crosslist POSC 201: Law and Politics (4.0 units)

Examination of the rules and realities of American politics, and the role politics plays in American life and culture.

Crosslist: This course is offered by the LAW department but may qualify for major credit in POSC. To register, enroll in LAW 201.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
02616R	001	Lecture	4:00-7:20pm	Tuesday	23 of 40	Franita Tolson	LAW2	PDF (304789 KB)

Crosslist POSC 210mgw: Social Analysis of Gender (4.0 units)

Multidisciplinary survey of gender assumptions in relation to sexuality, mental health, social and political relations, and artistic expression.

General Education: This course satisfies the university's general education requirement.
Diversity: This course satisfies the university's diversity requirement.
Crosslist: This course is offered by the SWMS department but may qualify for major credit in POSC. To register, enroll in SWMS 210.
Note: Register for lecture and one discussion

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location
34900D	001	Lecture	5:00-6:20pm	Tue, Thu	139 of 150	Christina Belcher	SAL101
34906D	001	Discussion	9:00-9:50am	Friday	24 of 25	Nancy Hernandez	CPA258
34907D	001	Discussion	10:00-10:50am	Friday	24 of 25	Nancy Hernandez	CPA258
34908D	001	Discussion	11:00-11:50am	Friday	25 of 25	Cecilia Caballero	LVL13
34909D	001	Discussion	12:00-12:50pm	Friday	23 of 25	Cecilia Caballero	WPH206
34910D	001	Discussion	2:00-2:50pm	Friday	22 of 25	Britton Hack	CPA109
34911D	001	Discussion	3:00-3:50pm	Friday	21 of 25	Britton Hack	THH121

POSC 248gw: Human Rights (4.0 units)

Overview of human rights controversies across the globe. Introduction to techniques of analysis for social issues, interdisciplinary research methods, and interpretation of complex political problems.

General Education: This course satisfies the university's general education requirement.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location
51945R	001	Lecture	11:00-12:20pm	Tue, Thu	99 of 102	Alison Dundes Renteln	ONLINE
51932R	001	Discussion	8:30-9:20am	Tuesday	23 of 25	Therese Franklin	CPA158
51933R	001	Discussion	10:00-10:50am	Tuesday	25 of 25	Therese Franklin	CPA157
51936R	001	Discussion	9:00-9:50am	Thursday	24 of 26	Chloe Bernadaux	CPA157
51937R	001	Discussion	2:00-2:50pm	Thursday	27 of 28	Chloe Bernadaux	CPA256

POSC 265gw: Environmental Challenges (4.0 units)

Examination of the challenges of environmental problem-solving at the personal, local, national and global scales, focused on the issue of climate change.

General Education: This course satisfies the university's general education requirement.
Note: Register for lecture and one discussion

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location
51940R	001	Lecture	2:00-3:20pm	Mon, Wed	100 of 101	Jefferey Sellers	THH202
51941R	001	Discussion	1:00-1:50pm	Monday	25 of 25	Jose Alcocer	THH213
51942R	001	Discussion	1:00-1:50pm	Wednesday	25 of 26	Jose Alcocer	THH213
51943R	001	Discussion	3:30-4:20pm	Monday	25 of 25	Karen Romero	THH108
51944R	001	Discussion	3:30-4:20pm	Wednesday	25 of 25	Karen Romero	THH108

POSC 270: Introduction to Environmental Law and Politics (4.0 units)

Overview of environmental policy, law and politics at the international, domestic and local levels. Social science gateway to the Environmental Studies major.

Prerequisite: ENST 100

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
51946R	001	Lecture	4:00-6:50pm	Wednesday	53 of 53	Darry Sragow	CPA156	PDF (129179 KB)

POSC 311: Political Analysis (4.0 units)

Methodological and theoretical problems of micro-analytic studies in political science. Techniques of data collection and assimilation.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
51949R	001	Lecture	5:00-6:20pm	Mon, Wed	37 of 48	Sherry Zaks	CPA100

POSC 315: Regulation of Elections and Political Finance (4.0 units)

The role money plays in elections and public decisions: disclosure requirements, limits on campaign contributions and expenditures, regulation of radio/television time, tax incentives, public funding.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
51950R	001	Lecture	4:00-6:50pm	Thursday	66 of 66	Darry Sragow	SOSB46	PDF (118010 KB)

POSC 323: Applied Politics (4.0 units, max 12)

Provides students with the knowledge and skills necessary to become active in politics based on understanding the history, theory, and practices of public participation.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
Great Races from the Senate to the White House
51960R	001	Lecture	3:00-5:50pm	Monday	64 of 65	Robert Shrum	GFS116

POSC 335: Political Parties, Campaigns, and Elections (4.0 units)

Organization and function of political parties, nominations and elections, strategy and tactics of campaigning, professional candidate management finance, political machines, voting behavior.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
51985R	001	Lecture	2:00-3:20pm	Mon, Wed	57 of 57	Erik Hanson	SOSB2

POSC 340: Constitutional Law (4.0 units)

Development of constitutional law by the courts; leading cases bearing on major constitutional issues; the federal system; powers of government; civil liberties.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
51990R	001	Lecture-Discussion	9:30-10:50am	Tue, Thu	51 of 60	Arthur Auerbach	CPA156

POSC 345: International Law (4.0 units)

Nature, origin, and development of international law; basic principles analyzed and illustrated with cases.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
51995R	001	Lecture	2:00-3:20pm	Tue, Thu	44 of 50	Alison Dundes Renteln	CPA150

POSC 351: Middle East Politics (4.0 units)

Political development in the Middle East, emphasizing historical, cultural, and socioeconomic conditions affecting political structures and functions; modernization and countervailing social, economic and religious forces.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
52020R	001	Lecture	3:30-6:20pm	Thursday	41 of 45	Fayez Hammad	CPA150

POSC 355: Politics of East Asia (4.0 units)

Institutions and processes of advanced societies; political culture, interest articulation and aggregation, the governmental process.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
52038R	001	Lecture	1:00-3:50pm	Friday	9 of 30	Jinhee Choung	CPA200

POSC 356: Politics in the People's Republic of China (4.0 units)

The Chinese revolution; social, political, and economic developments in post-1949 China; China after Mao Zedong (Mao Tse-tung).

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
52040R	001	Lecture	2:00-4:50pm	Monday	40 of 40	Stanley Rosen	CPA101

POSC 370: European Political Thought I (4.0 units)

Basic concepts of Western political thought from Plato through the contract theorists.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
52060R	001	Lecture	2:00-3:20pm	Mon, Wed	60 of 60	Anthony Kammas	GFS101

POSC 380: Political Theories and Social Reform (2.0-4.0 units)

Political theories and philosophies in modern times and their relation to public policy and social reform.

Section	Session	Units	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
52070R	001	4.0	Lecture	3:30-5:00pm	Mon, Wed	62 of 62	Anthony Kammas	GFS101

POSC 381: Sex, Power, and Politics (4.0 units)

An evaluation of the ways in which different ideologies, institutions, and policies contribute to differences in political power between men and women.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
52010D	001	Lecture	12:30-1:50pm	Tue, Thu	40 of 42	Christian Phillips	THH116

POSC 390: Special Problems (1.0-4.0 units)

Supervised, individual studies. No more than one registration permitted. Enrollment by petition only.

Section	Session	Units	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
52115D	440	1.0	Lecture	TBA	TBA	1 of 1		OFFICE

POSC 391: Honors I: Undergraduate Seminar (4.0 units)

Selected topics in designated area of political science. Discussion of readings and presentation of papers.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
52083D	001	Lecture	9:00-10:20am	Tue, Thu	8 of 12	Victoria Chonn Ching	VPD107

POSC 395: Directed Governmental and Political Leadership Internship (2.0-8.0 units, max 8)

Intensive experience in governmental and political offices. Minimum time requirement; evaluation by office and intern report required.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
52086D	001	Lecture	TBA	TBA	27 of 40	Arthur Auerbach	CPA263
52088D	001	Lecture	TBA	TBA	9 of 13	Arthur Auerbach	CPA263

POSC 398: Trial Advocacy: Theory and Practice (1.0-4.0 units, max 8)

Course covering substantive law, evidence, public speaking and use of societal mores in courtroom advocacy. Open only to Mock Trial team members.

Section	Session	Units	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location
52092D	001	1.0	Lecture	7:00-8:50pm	Tue, Thu	25 of 28	Olu Orange,Hooman Kazemi	CPA156
52094D	001	2.0	Lecture	7:00-8:50pm	Tue, Thu	5 of 10	Olu Orange,Hooman Kazemi	CPA152
52096D	001	4.0	Lecture	7:00-8:50pm	Tue, Thu	1 of 10	Olu Orange,Hooman Kazemi	CPA151

POSC 421: Ethnic Politics (4.0 units)

Analysis of the political behavior and roles of ethnic and racial groups in the American political system; policy issues and patterns of political action are examined.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
52065D	001	Lecture	9:30-10:50am	Tue, Thu	21 of 20	Christian Phillips	CPA151

POSC 436: Environmental Politics (4.0 units)

The political realities of selected environmental issues; resolving and implementing social priorities; interests, attitudes, strategies, and tactics of pressure groups; institutional biases and opportunities.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
52137R	001	Lecture	2:00-4:50pm	Thursday	25 of 48	Erik Hanson	CPA102

POSC 439: Critical Issues in American Politics (4.0 units, max 12)

Intensive examination of critical issues of particular interest in the field of American politics.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
Environmental Policy
52138R	001	Lecture	3:30-6:20pm	Monday	48 of 48	Christian Grose	CPA102

POSC 451: Politics of Resources and Development (4.0 units)

Comparison of relationships between rich and poor countries involving political and economic resources and prospects for development; impact on industrialized states; interdependence; new international economic order.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
52149R	001	Lecture	2:00-4:50pm	Tuesday	19 of 19	Eliz Sanasarian	CPA256

POSC 452: Critical Issues in Law and Public Policy (4.0 units, max 12)

Intensive examination of special topics in the field of law and public policy.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
The Politics of Rights
52152R	001	Lecture	11:00-12:20pm	Tue, Thu	43 of 48	Steve Swerdlow	CPA156

POSC 469: Critical Issues in Comparative Politics (4.0 units, max 12)

Intensive examination of critical issues of particular interest in the field of comparative politics.

Section	Session	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus
Politics and Film in Comparative Perspective
52155R	001	Lecture	2:00-4:50pm	Tuesday	47 of 48	Stanley Rosen	THH208
Electoral Institutions and Reforms
52156R	001	Lecture	2:00-3:20pm	Mon, Wed	20 of 34	Tine Paulsen	CPA102	Word (12487 KB)

POSC 490x: Directed Research (1.0-8.0 units, max 12)

Individual research and readings. Not available for graduate credit.

Restriction: Registration open to the following class level(s): Junior, Senior

Section	Session	Units	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location
52169D	001	1.0	Lecture	7:00-8:20pm	Wednesday	20 of 27	Karen Figueroa	CPA258
52170D	001	2.0-8.0	Lecture	TBA	TBA	2 of 15	Sally Pratt, Akeya Harmon	TBA
52175D	001	4.0	Lecture	TBA	TBA	0 of 5		TBA

POSC 499: Special Topics (2.0-4.0 units, max 8)

Section	Session	Units	Type	Time	Days	Registered	Instructor	Location	Syllabus	Info
Colonialism and Decolonization in the Middle East and North Africa
52180R	001	4.0	Lecture	2:00-4:50pm	Tuesday	12 of 19	Allison Hartnett	CPA151

Information accurate as of February 15, 2023 7:45 am.
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