• Offered by School of Politics and International Relations
  • ANU College ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences
  • Course subject Political Science
  • Areas of interest International Relations, Security Studies, Diplomacy, International Affairs, Politics
  • Academic career UGRD
  • Course convener
    • Dr Sean Burges
  • Mode of delivery In Person
  • Offered in First Semester 2016
    See Future Offerings
Foreign Policy Analysis: Understanding Global and Australian Foreign Policy Decision-Making (POLS3001)

This course will introduce students to the main techniques and theories for analyzing and understanding how governments make foreign policy decisions. It will be divided into two main interactive components. The first will be dedicated to surveying the leading theories on foreign policy decision-making to provide an avenue for addressing questions such as: What role do personalities play in the process? Does the bureaucracy have an impact? Where do questions of national identity and ambition fit in? How does the form of political regime – democratic or authoritarian – impact the decision-making process? What impact do external factors and structural constraints have on foreign policy decision-making? The second  component will emphasize participation and application of the theories through case studies that will be drawn from Australia’s diplomatic history as well as well-known international examples.

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. Explain different theories of foreign policy analysis
  2. Analyse strengths and weaknesses of different approaches to foreign policy analysis.
  3. Apply theories of foreign policy analysis to specific cases.
  4. Conduct research, think critically and develop academic writing styles to suit different purposes.
  5. Understand the issues and processes described and to relate them to current affairs and present-day issues of significance.

Indicative Assessment

Take-home exam – 2,500 words -- 40% [outcomes 1, 2]

Case-based research paper – 2,500 words -- 40% [outcome 1,3,4,5]

Oral case study group presentation – 20 mins - 10% [outcomes 3,4,5]

Tutorial participation -- 10% [outcomes 1,3,5]

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

26 hours of lecture 12 hours of tutorial and a further 7 hours of independent study each teaching week over the semester (total workload 130 hours).

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

Course reading brick and materials set out through Wattle site.

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. Tuition fees are indexed annually. 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
2016 $3054
International fee paying students
Year Fee
2016 $4368
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.

First Semester

Class number Class start date Last day to enrol Census date Class end date Mode Of Delivery Class Summary
2586 15 Feb 2016 26 Feb 2016 31 Mar 2016 27 May 2016 In Person N/A

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