• Offered by School of Politics and International Relations
  • ANU College ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences
  • Course subject Political Science
  • Areas of interest Political Sciences
  • Academic career UGRD
  • Course convener
    • Prof Ian McAllister
  • Mode of delivery In Person
  • Offered in Winter Session 2014
    See Future Offerings

Why do Australians vote the way they do? Why are young people more likely to support minor parties? What would happen if voting were not compulsory? How important is the environment to most people? Do Australians want the government to play a larger or smaller role in our lives? The answers to these questions have very important implications for Australian democracy. This course will examine how the dimensions of political behaviour and public opinion have been changing over time and the implications of this for the future of Australian politics.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Critically analyse academic surveys and public opinion polls.

2. Evaluate the contribution surveys and opinion polls makes to our understanding of Australian politics.

3. Critically assess and present arguments based on empirical evidence and theoretical models based on the voter behaviour literature.

4. Assess the most important post-1945 elections and the events and issues driving electoral outcomes.

5. Develop analytical and writing skills through the research essay and exam.

6. Discuss and reasses central ideas in collegical class environment.

Other Information

Expected Classes 2014:

Full day classes will run at the following dates and times, finishing with a half day on Friday 11 July:

  • Monday 30 June, 9:30am - 5pm
  • Wednesday 2 July, 9:30am - 5pm
  • Friday 4 July, 9:30am – 3.30pm
  • Monday 7 July, 9:30am - 5pm
  • Wednesday 9 July, 9:30am - 3pm
  • Friday 11 July, 9:30am - 1pm

How to enrol into a course offered in a non-standard session (Summer Session, Autumn Session, Winter Session, Spring Session):

  1. Complete an Enrolment Variation Form available on the following website: http://students.anu.edu.au/manage/vary.php.   
  2. You must include the Course Code, Class number and Semester/Session.
  3. If the course requires Convenor approval (Departmental consent), the Lecturer section must be signed by the appropriate Course Convenor prior to submitting the Form.
  4. Submit the Form in person to the CASS Student Office located in the Beryl Rawson Building 13, Ellery Crescent or online to students.cass@anu.edu.au.
  5. Please allow up to 3 weeks for processing, and submit your request as early as possible prior to the commencement of the relevant session.
  6. You are advised to check ISIS for the outcome of your request after this period.
  7. Please take note of the Overload Policy which may apply if you are enrolling in a non-standard session.

If you have questions, please contact the CASS Student Office at students.cass@anu.edu.au.


Indicative Assessment

Research Essay (40%)(2,000 words)

Exam (40%)(3 essay question responses)

Tutorial attendance/participation (10%)

Tutorial presentation (10%)

The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.

Workload

24 hours of lectures and 12 hours of tutorials.  The lectures and tutorials would be conducted over 10 working days. In addition to the ten-day block students would be expected to complete 30 hours of reading before the ten-day block and 30 hours during the ten-day block and 30 hours after the ten-day block.


This course will commence on 1 July and meet every other day.  Please see the Wattle site for details.

Requisite and Incompatibility

To enrol in this course you must have completed12 units of 1000 level POLS courses; or permission of the convenor

Prescribed Texts

A reading brick will be available.

Majors

Minors

Fees

Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.  

If you are a domestic graduate coursework or international student you will be required to pay tuition fees. Students continuing in their current program of study will have their tuition fees indexed annually from the year in which you commenced your program. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.

Student Contribution Band:
1
Unit value:
6 units

If you are an undergraduate student and have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). You can find your student contribution amount for each course at Fees.  Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.

Units EFTSL
6.00 0.12500
Domestic fee paying students
Year Fee Description
1994-2003 $1164
2014 $2478
2013 $2472
2012 $2472
2011 $2424
2010 $2358
2009 $2286
2008 $2286
2007 $2286
2006 $2286
2005 $2286
2004 $1926
International fee paying students
Year Fee
1994-2003 $2574
2014 $3246
2013 $3240
2012 $3240
2011 $3240
2010 $3240
2009 $3240
2008 $3240
2007 $3132
2006 $3132
2005 $3132
2004 $2916
Note: Please note that fee information is for current year only.

Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links

ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.

The list of offerings for future years is indicative only.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.

Winter Session

Class number Class start date Last day to enrol Census date Class end date Mode Of Delivery Class Summary
5656 30 Jun 2014 30 Jun 2014 11 Jul 2014 15 Aug 2014 In Person N/A

Responsible Officer: Registrar, Student Administration / Page Contact: Website Administrator / Frequently Asked Questions