Course Descriptions
PBPL 100 INTRODUCTION TO PUBLIC POLICY
This course provides students with a basic discussion of the history and principles of public policy. Public policy is a large and diverse topic of scholarly and applied study covering a number of academic disciplines including but not limited to political science and government, economics, sociology, anthropology, public administration and management, organizations and institutions. The central purpose of any investigation of public policies is to understand the socioeconomic and political processes behind their formulation and implementation as well as to evaluate their consequences (3 credits).
Cross-listed with SOC 260 Introduction to Public Policy
ACCT 205 PRINCIPLES OF ACCOUNTING I
MATH 212 BIOMEDICAL STATISTICS (C)*
PBPL 350 APPLIED STATISTICS
This course provides sociology/ public policy majors and others with the tools for understanding, evaluating, and conducting social science research. Students will acquire a better understanding of the relationship between the theoretical and substantive questions germane to the discipline and the diverse empirical work addressing those questions. Analytic objectives consistent with Mount Saint Vincent and sociology department learning goals include: (1) developing rudimentary statistical skills (2) linking theoretical problems to hypothesis testing and statistical inference (3) exploring major types of empirical research and their implications for problem solving (e.g., experiments, surveys, participant observation) (4) applying and refining knowledge of sociological methods through diverse readings in both the sociological literature (e.g., American Sociological Review, American Journal of Sociology, Social Forces, Sociological Methodology) and in non-academic publications (e.g., The New York Times) (3 credits).
*Cross-listed with SOC 350 Social Science Research Methods
PBPL 360 PUBLIC POLICY ANALYSIS AND CASES
Public policy analysis serves as an intermediate/advanced seminar designed to explore the principles of public policy decision-making. Public policy is a large and diverse topic of scholarly and applied study covering a number of academic disciplines, including but not limited to political science and government, economics, sociology, anthropology, public administration and management, organizations, and institutions. The central purpose of any investigation of public policies is to understand the socioeconomic and political processes behind their formulation and implementation, as well as to evaluate their consequences. To do so, public policy analysis will provide the intermediate to advanced student knowledge and tools with which to: understand the nature of cooperation and joint action; assess and evaluate the efficacy of public policies and programs to achieve social, political and economic objectives; formulate and evaluate normative and ethical ramifications of policy, including equity and justice, and; apply these tools to decision-making practice, not simply as a matter of theoretical understanding. While some of these objectives parallel those of foundation-level courses in public policy, the intermediate to advanced student will be expected to achieve competency rather than simply gain familiarity with the topics of discussion (3 credits).
PBPL 375 SURVEY INTERNSHIP
The public policy internship (like the capstone course, PBPL 460) takes place under the auspices of the UMSV Center for University Research. The Center, along with the UMSV Internship Office, provides social science-based internships for public policy students. The goal of the internship is to practice social science skill sets necessary for careers in social, economic, and political research in an organizational setting.
Generally, an internship offers students a chance to improve their skills in writing, verbal communication, research, technology, teamwork, and leadership. Internships provide the opportunity to sample a company or an industry to get a sense of what the work experience would be like. Importantly, personal development is a central aspect of that experience, leading to greater self-confidence, assertiveness, and essential work habits.
This experience meets learning criteria to reason critically about issues of social life; to develop the ability to interpret and evaluate data and information in a systematic fashion; and to employ a focused approach to listening, oral communication, observation, and analytic writing. Additionally, students develop greater cultural competence, become ethically engaged, and learn integrative reasoning skills (3 credits).
PBPL 460 RESEARCH PROJECT
The capstone course in public policy (PBPL 460) provides students with advanced discussion and practice of their sociology skill set. While this seminar is a cumulative course predicated on mastery of sociological skills throughout the entire program, we will nonetheless devote at least half of our time to reviewing and building on theoretical, methodological, and substantive challenges that you have encountered in earlier courses. This may seem redundant to students. However, our goal will be to provide new and advanced insights into the foundations of sociological knowledge. Learning is an iterative process, and returning to basic concepts and operations of the discipline allows us to advance beyond our initial rudimentary understanding.
The class will do so by developing a 25-page analytic project that extends a sociological content area that students have already begun at some point in their career at the University of Mount Saint Vincent. Presumably, each student will be an expert in their selected topic area. Since everyone will be at different stages in their expertise, one of the strategies of the class will be for students to collaborate with each other towards completion of their study by the end of the semester. We do so by learning about and critiquing each other’s projects (3 credits).
PHIL 320 SOCIAL AND POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY
RELS 430 CONTEMPORARY MORAL ISSUES*
This course is a theological and ethical investigation of selected moral problems of our time such as truth in government, violence, economic injustice, human trafficking, and racism. Student suggestions and discussion of additional moral issues will be considered (3 credits).
Prerequisite: RELS 208
PHIL 369: PHILOSOPHY OF SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
This course investigates social responsibility from a philosophical perspective. Among the themes treated in this course are marginalization, discrimination, genocide, anger, justice, moral obligation, human rights, love, service, and charity. Students will examine the connections between philosophical theory and social action and will explore their ethical obligations to others. Students will be required to participate in community service projects outside of class (3 credits).
Prerequisite: PHIL 110
SOC 301 SOCIAL PROBLEMS
This course focuses on the critical analysis of causes and impact of social problems using major theoretical approaches developed in sociology. Topics include poverty, the environment, corporate power, war, racism, and health care (3 credits).
SOC 302 RACE AND ETHNICITY
This course focuses on the history of racial and ethnic relations in the United States analyzed in terms of sociological theories, concepts, and research findings. The course is a critical study of patterns of intergroup relations including conflicts, discrimination, and ethnic and racial identity formation (3 credits).
SOC 304 GLOBALIZATION AND INEQUALITY
Despite greater levels of absolute wealth, social inequality in both the United States and throughout the world is more severe than it was 40 years ago. This course explores patterns of inequality in America, patterns of inequality among nations of the globe, and also examines how processes of globalization are tied to inequality in America and the world (3 credits).
SOC 321 SOCIAL POLICY
This intermediate/advanced course in social policy provides students with an extensive discussion of the socioeconomic and political dynamics underlying a polity’s social welfare. While public policy generally encompasses processes affecting all public goods, social policy is more narrowly directed towards processes relevant to people’s social needs, quality of life, living conditions, and well-being. Both public and social policy are diverse areas of scholarly and applied study, including but not limited to political science and government, economics, sociology, anthropology, public administration and management, organizations, and institutions. The goal of a sociology of social policy is to understand the socioeconomic and political processes behind its formulation and implementation, as well as to evaluate its consequences. This course builds on the theoretical foundations of public policy (SOC 260/PBPL 100). To further our understanding of this framework, SOC 321 provides an ongoing review of these foundational materials such as the stage model of policy-making, its critique and alternatives, rational choice theory, institutionalism and other topics, while teaching students how to apply that understanding to a range of social policy issues such as healthcare, immigration, criminal justice reform, and education (3 credits).
SOC 335 CULTURE, HEALTH, AND ILLNESS (WE)*
Culture, health, and illness is a hybrid field of study based in medical anthropology, intersecting medicine, sociology, economics, and political science. Medical anthropology focuses on themes such as the role of culture and society in shaping the phenomenology of illness; differences between traditional and biomedical health beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors; inequality, and alternative and complementary medicine, among other areas. While sociology explores this repertoire of topic areas, it emphasizes the social, political, and economic conditions underlying health and illness rather than explicit cultural differences. Sociological research explores questions related to health and illness; mortality and morbidity; health inequalities; poverty; reproductive health; the diffusion of infectious diseases; nutrition; environmental health; health policies and priorities; war and violence, and prevention. It encompasses research that is comparative, especially international public health/ global health (3 credits).
(C)* May be taken to meet Core Requirements
(WE)* Writing Emphasis