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Department of Politics and International Relations

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MPP Unit Descriptions
 
POL 801 – Public Policy Dissertation
Elective Unit
8 credit points
This unit is available only to students expressly invited by the Convenor of the MPP to undertake it. It will provide an opportunity to those students with demonstrated skills and capacity to conduct a major piece of research into some aspect of public policy. Needs to be completed within one semester.
(Semesters 1and 2, 2008)
 
POL 802 – Comparative Public Policy
Core Unit
4 credit points
The framework of public policy-making has become internationalised in recent years. This unit will look at different approaches for comparing policies, the institutions, international and domestic involved in these processes and the methods used to evaluate policy “borrowing” or policy “transfer”.
(Semester 1, 2008 )
 
POL 820 – Politics and Policy: Theory and Applications
Core Unit
4 credit points
This is one of the core units of the program and students should take it as early in their program as possible. The unit provides an introduction to the fundamental institutions, players and processes of the Australian political system and the institutions of public policy making and implementation. It examines approaches, with particular attention to the ‘policy cycle’ approach, to the making of public policy and tests them against accounts of their roles in the development of policy by ministers, public servants and policy activists.
(Semester 1, 2008)
 
POL 822 – Using Research
Core Unit
4 credit points
This unit aims to provide students with a critical users approach to techniques of research and analysis used in creating or evaluating public policy. It deals with the growing importance in policy making of the call for ‘evidence based policy’; the ethical dimensions to policy research; the place of values in research; the importance of extracting ‘researchable problems’ from social or political issues; the range of research methods available, their strengths and weaknesses; and some of the research issues involved in ‘policy transfer’
(Semester 2, 2008.
 
POL 826 – Gender and Policy
Elective Unit
4 credit points
This unit provides an examination of the crucial variable of gender in relation to public policy, where it is regarded as relevant and where it is not. It looks at attempts by women to shape public policy by becoming involved in the policy processes and some of the range of outcomes – from success in ‘girls and education’, apparent stalemate in equal employment opportunity, and the seemingly intractable problem of violence against women.
(Not offered in 2008)
 
POL 827 – Public Policy and International Law
Elective Unit
4 credit points
This unit examines the ways in which both customary and treaty based international law impacts directly and indirectly on public policy. It touches on the international law of the sea, the International Criminal Court, the laws of war, the obligations entailed in signing on to human rights treaties and covers the incorporation of international law into domestic law, giving rise to another ‘head of power’ under which the Commonwealth Parliament can legislate.
(Not offered in 2008)
 
POL 828 – Policy Making and Public Opinion
Elective Unit
4 credit points
This unit examines how policy makers in the political parties and the public service understand public opinion and how their decisions are thereby affected. It includes issues of democratic control and management power and draws on comparative evidence and argument.
(Not offered in 2008)
 
POL 831 – Political Parties and Policy
Elective Unit
4 credit points
This unit looks at the impact of elections, party politics and changes of government on the policy process. Case studies drawn from recent federal and state elections are used to look at election campaigns party policy formation and the transition to government.
( Semester 2, 2008)
 
POL 833 – Intergovernmental Relations

Elective Unit
4 credit points
A federal political system presents many additional problems and opportunities to policy makers. As more and more political entities (the EU for example) explore the advantages of federalism the variety of federal systems is expanding. This unit looks at theories of federalism, the history of Australian intergovernmental relations and uses case studies to explore recent changes in significant policy areas.
( Semester 2, 2008)
 
POL 835 – Internship Project

Elective Unit
4 credit points
Students require the express approval of the MPP Convenor to enrol in this unit.

Under this elective unit students complete a four to six week full time placement with an appropriate policy oriented organisation, undertaking work assigned by the organisation. Students will also be required to complete a report on their placement and locate their work within the broader context of public policy processes and the material they have covered in other MPP units.
(Semesters 1 and 2, 2008)
 
POL 836 – Accountability

Core unit
4 credit points

This unit provides an examination of the growing array of mechanisms (administrative law, ombudsmen, auditors-general, parliamentary committees, judicial review, ICAC, FOI, whistleblower protections) designed to hold public policy makers accountable and the problems that major changes to governing such as privatisation and contracting out cause for the effectiveness of these mechanisms.
(Semester 2, 2008)
 
POL 856 – Politics of Australian Communications Policy

Elective unit
4 credit points

This unit examines the politics underlying Australian communications and cultural policies: how government policies shape the media, including digital media, and the influence of different stakeholders on policy.
(Not offered in 2008)