POL 409 Colloquium for Research in Government and Politics

3 hours 

This course is a research colloquium in which students initiate, develop, and present independent work related to government, politics and the state. The diversity of projects undertaken by students emphasizes the breadth of concerns related to government, law, and politics, identifying emerging scholarly interests and concerns. Students design research projects in conjunction with faculty instructors and report regularly on progress to the seminar. The final research paper will demonstrate the student's familiarity with relevant literature in the subfield, competence in research, research methods, writing and analysis, and the mastery of basic concepts in the discipline. In addition, the course will integrate the various subfields of the discipline through the examination of current research.