Courses & Requirements

This course is designed to provide students with a critical examination of the intellectual and theoretical foundations of public policy studies. The course examines the history and evolution of policy studies and the various theoretical approaches and analytical concepts used in policy research. An emphasis is placed on policy theory and literatures from political science and several different disciplines to illustrate how different perspectives underpin various policy approaches. 

This course provides students with an overview of the wide range of qualitative and quantitative research methods used in public policy research and policy analysis. Various policy research methods are compared in terms of their connection to different theoretical approaches, their strengths and weaknesses, how they are used in combination, and how they are employed to research different public policy issues. This course provides the foundation for students to develop their dissertation proposal. It may be team-taught and faculty members from different disciplines may be asked to make presentations on their research to highlight different research methods and interdisciplinary approaches to public policy research.

This course focuses on the various forms of quantitative research that may be used in the development and analysis of public policy, such as surveys, observational studies, experiments, and the statistical analysis of secondary data. Foundational issues such as research design, the relationship between theory and research, ethical practices, sampling, and measurement will also be addressed. Students will learn the basic techniques needed to implement different quantitative research methods, but the focus will be on developing research literacy and the skills needed to evaluate published research results.

This course focuses on the interface of public policy and public administration, particularly relations of the private, non-profit and third sectors; public sector reform and public policy; new theories and models of governance and their impact on public policy; and transformation of the policy process under different models of governance. The emphasis is on theories and research related to the policy process; policy design, policy instruments and implementation. 

This course provides advanced examination of policy challenges arising from global migration. A particular objective is situating Canada’s policy responses in a comparative context with other traditional countries of migration, as well as more recent countries of immigrant settlement. Attention will be devoted to analyzing the role of the state, markets and civil society in shaping migration-related policies. The role of research in policy development and analysis is a recurring course theme.  Topics of interest include the policy ramifications of immigration, settlement and diaspora related to such issues as: optimal population size, economic imperatives, multiculturalism, newcomer integration, dual citizenship, transnationalism and refugee admission.

This course takes a historical, comparative and critical approach to the study of social policy. The focus is on key theories and perspectives in social policy and the fluid boundaries between social policy, economic policy, health policy, environmental policy and justice policy underpinning interdisciplinary approaches to social policy research. Through an emphasis on the political economy of social welfare policy development at the local, national and international levels, the course provides students with an understanding of the evolution of social conditions and examines the influence of different policy ideas, institutions and interests on social policy development and change. This course also examines social capital, social cohesion, diversity and social justice movements. The emphasis is on defining and understanding the broad and inter-related field of social policy as a foundation for further research in a broad range of social policy areas.