Undergraduate - UnitATS3695 - Public policy

This unit entry is for students who completed this unit in 2015 only. For students planning to study the unit, please refer to the unit indexes in the the current edition of the Handbook. If you have any queries contact the managing faculty for your course or area of study.

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6 points, SCA Band 1, 0.125 EFTSL

Refer to the specific census and withdrawal dates for the semester(s) in which this unit is offered.

Level	Undergraduate
Faculty	Faculty of Arts
Organisational Unit	Politics and International Relations
Offered	Clayton First semester 2015 (Day)
Coordinator(s)	Dr Zareh Ghazarian

Synopsis

The unit examines the factors that shape public policy outcomes and the consequences (both deliberate and unintended) that result from particular policy choices. The unit focuses principally on liberal democracies and is divided into three sections. Section one traces the theoretical and normative debates associated with the state in the policy making process, including an examination of the evolution of the state. Section two explores the institutions and actors that are central to policy making process. The course concludes with an investigation of a number of key policy areas.

Outcomes

On successful completion of this subject students should:

Demonstrate an improved understanding of the complexities involved in the formulation and implementation of public policy;
Have gained an understanding of the role and influence of key players and institutions in the policy process;
Be able to link theory and practice;
Have developed the ability to present arguments (in oral and written form) relevant to the topic being analysed and debated.

Assessment

Within semester assessment: 100%

Workload requirements

Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled learning activities and independent study. A unit requires on average three/four hours of scheduled activities per week. Scheduled activities may include a combination of teacher directed learning, peer directed learning and online engagement.

Chief examiner(s)

Dr Zareh Ghazarian

This unit applies to the following area(s) of study

Politics

Prerequisites

Twelve credit points of second-year Arts units. It is highly recommended that students only take this unit after they have completed two gateway units in Politics.

Prohibitions

ATS2695