Quantitative Methods in Political Science and International Relations provides students with a continuation of the principles of social science research design and empirical analysis that they were exposed to in their first-year courses. The course begins with a review of the role of research design, method, and methodology in the social sciences that draws on examples from both qualitative and quantitative political science and international relations. This discussion is complemented with an introduction to applied data analytics using a statistical software package. The skills, ways of thinking and techniques learned in this course will provide the necessary foundation for the more advanced application of social science research methodology used in the public and private sectors as well as the honours and graduate levels of study.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
- explain the complexity of contemporary politics from the perspective of solid research design and empirical analysis;
- apply a range of methodological approaches by which to analyse such issues;
- generate, explain, and visualise descriptive statistics and basic inferential statistics for political phenomena using a statistical software package; and
- apply conceptual and analytical tools to a political phenomenon at a higher level of study or in a professional working environment.
Indicative Assessment
- Assessment 1: Workshop activities (20) [LO 1,2,3,4]
- Assessment 2: Weekly quizzes (15 min. per week) (20) [LO 1,2,3,4]
- Assessment 3: Final exam (2 hrs.) (50) [LO 1,2,3,4]
- Participation (10) [LO 1,2,4]
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
130 hours of total student learning time made up from:a) 36 hours of contact over 12 weeks: 24 hours of lectures, and 12 hours of tutorials; and
b) 94 hours of independent student research, reading and writing.
Inherent Requirements
Not applicable
Requisite and Incompatibility
Prescribed Texts
There is no required textbook for this course.
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
Commonwealth Support (CSP) Students
If you 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). More information about your student contribution amount for each course at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 14
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are a domestic graduate coursework student with a Domestic Tuition Fee (DTF) place or international student you will be required to pay course tuition fees (see below). Course tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found 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 |
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.
