Course Schedule and Catalog

Long Title: BAKER INSTITUTE INTRODUCTION TO PUBLIC POLICY ISSUES

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Description: Introduction to foreign and domestic public policy issues by Baker Fellows.

Long Title: BAKER INSTITUTE INTRODUCTION TO PUBLIC POLICY

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: Baker Institute fellows will rotate through the course, introducing students to a variety of public policy issues. Among them will be energy, taxes, health care, religion and politics, science, space, information technology, urban problems, environment, and international relations. One research paper will be required.

Long Title: PUBLIC POLICY PLANNING, MANAGEMENT AND ADVOCACY

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Description: When planning policy strategies, industry decision makers and policy makers must understand where policy ideas come from, how they are shared within and across government entities and how they change. This course provides an introduction to policy change, innovation and diffusion. We will discuss and apply four specific frameworks/approaches: the policy diffusion framework, punctuated equilibrium, advocacy coalitions and the policy network approach. At the end of the semester, we will have shed some light into the "black box" of the policy process which will allow you to have a deeper understanding of how policy is made.

Long Title: POLICY ANALYSIS

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Distribution Group: Distribution Group II

Credit Hours: 3

Description: Familiarizes students with the analytical tools necessary for evaluating and analyzing public policies. Cross-list: POLI 338, SOSC 301.

Long Title: GLOBAL URBAN LAB - LONDON

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Laboratory

Distribution Group: Distribution Group II

Credit Hours: 3

Description: STUDY ABROAD CAPA IN LONDON ONLY. The course examines the key theories and approaches to cities and urban development. Based on this understanding the students will investigate a specific topic in one or more global cities. The program is set to compare London and Istanbul in the ways in which cities manage major international events. The students will be expected to gather data, conduct interviews, organize reports, record observations and make presentations upon return to Rice. The students will meet with Rice faculty before winter recess to identify their study topics. The lab will include a workshop with a London reporter on data gathering, field trip to a news center, three meetings with Rice faculty and a week in Istanbul, Turkey with a Rice faculty led student group. Instructor Permission Required. Repeatable for Credit.

Long Title: ETHICS IN THE MEDIA

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: STUDY ABROAD CAPA IN LONDON ONLY. This course will address the principal ethical issues facing print and broadcast journalism. It will consider the practical dilemmas reporters and editors have to deal with and relate them to a moral framework. The focus will be on the real time arguments that arise almost daily in media coverage of matters of public controversy - crime, war, privacy and the like. The course objectives are to learn how to evaluate the performance of the media and to help students develop their own ethical philosophy. Problems of regulation and codes of practice will also be examined. Students will be able to take advantage of London's global importance as a media hub and the distinctive media culture of the UK through a program of case studies, visits and guest lectures by practitioners. Instructor Permission Required.

Long Title: INTERNATIONAL ECONOMICS

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Description: STUDY ABROAD CAPA IN LONDON ONLY. The objective of this course is to introduce the student to the theoretical analysis of international trade and commercial policy. Students will look at the pure theory of international trade as exemplified by comparative advantage and gains from trade in the classical and neo classical models and explore alternative explanations of trade and development. The theory of customs unions and modern day explanations of preferential trading arrangements will be explored and some of the principal unresolved theoretical and practical problems of free trade will be examined. Instructor Permission Required.

Long Title: THE SOCIAL DYNAMICS OF LONDON: CONTEMPORARY ISSUES THROUGH SERVICE LEARNING

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: STUDY ABROAD CAPA IN LONDON ONLY. Service-Learning is an academic experience that utilizes community service, community-based research, or other civic engagement activities along with regular reflection to meet course goals and community needs. This is a service-learning experience with a strong educational philosophy which combines a community service placement with CAPA's curriculum. Students will be paired with non-governmental organizations and other community service organizations where they will fulfill their on-site service-learning requirement. Weekly interactive seminars will examine British society to establish links to the context of global social realities using an academic framework which includes readings, discussion of current events, visits to relevant local agencies and dialogue. The course aims to utilize London as the students' urban laboratory - the course, including the placement in group projects, will examine the structures that serve London, both in terms of successes but increasingly in terms of failures and issues relevant to current affairs. This is a comparative course, dealing with themes and issues in London, but using this city as a lens through which to examine urban issues in Britain and other cities as well. Instructor Permission Required.

Long Title: UNDERSTANDING BRITAIN TODAY

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: STUDY ABROAD CAPA IN LONDON ONLY. This course offers students the opportunity to become familiar with a range of aspects of contemporary Britain through which they can understand the diverse nature of this country's society. Students will explore areas of British life including entertainment, sport, politics, religion and social problems. By the conclusion of the course students will have gained a good knowledge and understanding of contemporary British life and culture. Note: Students taking this course should not take "Exploring the Global City" (POST 359) because of similar content. Instructor Permission Required. Mutually Exclusive: Cannot register for POST 354 if student has credit for POST 359.

Long Title: EUROPEAN GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Description: STUDY ABROAD CAPA IN LONDON ONLY. This course introduces students to the history, concepts and structures of politics and government in Western Europe. Students will gain knowledge on the debates, disagreements, problems and changes in west European government and politics, and will be able to think critically on these issues as well as defend their ideas on them. Instructor Permission Required.

Long Title: POLITICS, DEMOCRACY AND ISLAM: APARTISM AND ALIENATION IN LONDON'S EAST END

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: STUDY ABROAD CAPA IN LONDON ONLY. This course seeks to develop an in-depth understanding of democratic citizenship, identity, and religion among young Muslims in London's East End. It first examines the foundations of participatory democracy and their adaptation to an increasingly de-territorialized world. The course then illustrates the subsequent conflicts with an examination of Muslim migrant communities' confrontation with Western democratic policies. We consider a range of explanations for sociopolitical alienation, and introduce the concept of 'Apartism.' Finally, these concepts an applications are actually encountered on field trips to the East End to look at the history and reality of the discussed socio-political phenomena, face-to-face. Instructor Permission Required.

Long Title: INTERNATIONAL FINANCE

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Description: STUDY ABROAD CAPA IN LONDON ONLY. This course will examine the structure and principal operations of the international financial economy. It will examine operations and their impact in terms of trade, the trading of financial assets and capital movements. It will also assess and risk management techniques used by governments, corporations and other entities operation internationally and the global regulatory challenges posed by these developments. The course covers topics such as the historical development of money and capital markets, the role of major central banks, the maintenance of price stability, the control interest rates, the management of monetary policy and the management of global systemic risk. Instructor Permission Required.

Long Title: INTERNATIONAL MARKETING

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: STUDY ABROAD CAPA IN LONDON ONLY. This course reflects the increasing amount of international marketing carried out by a wide and diverse range of organizations. Starting with why organizations may wish to expand their activities across national boundaries, students develop knowledge to identify which markets to enter, the methods of market entry available, and the management and control implications. Instructor Permission Required.

Long Title: ANALYZING AND EXPLORNG THE GLOBAL CITY: LONDON-MODERNITY, EMPIRE AND GLOBALIZATION

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory

Credit Hours: 3

Description: STUDY ABROAD CAPA IN LONDON ONLY. We will examine how the city of London has been transformed by the forces of industrialization, imperialism and globalization and consider the ways in which London and its inhabitants have been shaped by their relationships with the rest of the world. Students will gain insight into London's changing identity as a world city, with a particular emphasis on comparing the city's imperial, post-imperial, and transatlantic connections and the ways in which past and present, local and the Victorian metropolis of the nineteenth century; London as an imperial space; multicultural London; London as a commercial centre global capitalism; future scenarios of urban change. Note: Students taking this course should not take "Understanding Modern Britain" (POST 354) because of similar content. Instructor Permission Required. Mutually Exclusive: Cannot register for POST 359 if student has credit for POST 354.

Long Title: PUBLIC DIPLOMACY AND GLOBAL POLICYMAKING IN THE 21ST CENTURY

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: The Public Diplomacy and Global Policymaking (PDGP) has been restructured to enable students to follow individualized research topics within a trans-disciplinary framework. Combining seminars with a student symposium in Doha, students will examine critical public policy trends in US-Qatar relations while receiving instruction in research methodology and writing skills. Instructor Permission Required. Mutually Exclusive: Cannot register for POST 370 if student has credit for UNIV 312. Repeatable for Credit.

Long Title: GLOBAL URBAN LAB - ISTANBUL

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Research

Credit Hours: 1

Description: Guided independent research with lab component to study questions under the topics of sports, healthcare, transportation, immigration, and urban development in Istanbul and other global cities covered in the Global Urban Lab program. Instructor Permission Required.Cross-list: ANTH 400.

Long Title: ENERGY POLICY

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Description: Energy is credited with many contradictory properties. It is a curse that enables dictatorship and war, undermines the work ethic, and taints our environment. It is also the world's largest business and a chief ingredient of state power, stitching together disparate countries in webs of mutual dependence. Energy shapes our physical landscapes and personal habits, providing services that make us comfortable and secure, while producing waste that threatens this way of life. These are the areas where energy and politics intersect, the topics of concern to this course. We will discuss global trends in the production and use of energy, its impact on the environment, and the geopolitical issues around energy security and trade. We will explore theoretical debates about energy's influence on governance and development, and ponder the future roles of big exporters in the Middle East and growing centers of demand in Asia. We will study innovations and events that have reshaped the energy landscape in the United States and other big consumers, and look at policies that are shifting economies away from fossil fuels and nuclear power. We will also get involved in these debates, drafting recommendations intended to inform government policy.

Long Title: INTERGRATED APPROACHES TO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Description: This is a multidisciplinary course in which students explore the origins, connections and consequence of social and political tensions arising from the expansion of commercial energy resources in unique and rapidly changing Arctic and sub-Artic environments. The challenge for the class will be to understand that in matters of sustainable development systemic complexities often give rise to a disconnect between analysis and decision-making. Topics will include the impacts of commercial energy development and drilling in rapidly changing Arctic environments, as well as strategies that can promote sustainable development and improved conditions for indigenous populations in the context of environmental challenges associated with the Arctic meltdown and drilling activities for oil and gas. Methodologies for structuring the analysis to be applied to enhance systemic resilience of the Alaska environment will be presented. Students will learn explore the barriers to sustainable development and discuss cost-effective, culturally appropriate solutions to energy related issues by integrating technical, organizational, and personal perspectives. Each class will have formal lectures(s) by Rice faculty or guest lecturer. Registered students are eligible to apply for a summer internship in Alaska. Cross-list: GLHT 411. Recommended Prerequisite(s): POST 401 Mutually Exclusive: Cannot register for POST 411 if student has credit for GLHT 411. Repeatable for Credit.

Long Title: HEALTH CARE: COMPETITION & MANAGED CARE

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Description: Introduction to managed care and its distinguished characteristics. Includes managed care and market competition and impact on science in general and medical science in particular, as well as evaluation of how competition and regulation influence the development, assessment, and diffusion of new health technologies within the managed care framework.

Long Title: THE SHAPING OF HEALTH POLICY

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Description: Study of how health-care policy decisions are made and implemented, using an interdisciplinary approach involving government, law, ethics, economics, and history. Includes case discussions of major policy problems by faculty experts in these disciplines and guest speakers who are leading national figures in the shaping of public policy. Course is part of the course work required for the M.S. in Bioscience Research and Health Policy housed in the School of Natural Science. Cross-list: SOSC 430.

Long Title: UNITED STATES MIDDLE EAST POLICY

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: Provides an introduction to the underlying political, socio-economic and cultural trends in contemporary Broader Middle East (From the Maghreb to South Asia.) the course focuses on the struggle of ideas between the forces of extremism and moderation in the Arab and Muslim world, the Arab-Israeli conflict, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan, and the geopolitics of energy. It also examines the region from the perspective of U.S. national security interests, foreign policy and public diplomacy.

Long Title: INDEPENDENT STUDY

Department: Policy Studies

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Independent Study

Credit Hours: 3

Description: Study of selected topics including individual investigations, special lectures, and seminars. Offered upon mutual agreement of faculty and student. Instructor Permission Required. Repeatable for Credit.