Reading courses
It often happens that one or more students have an interest in a topic that is not covered in a regularly offered seminar or that is not being offered in a convenient semester. In that case, students are free to arrange a “reading course" with an interested Politics faculty member. Reading courses are equivalent to regular courses and are recorded on the student's transcript. In order for a student to receive course credit for a reading course:
• Meeting
and work schedule must approximate fairly closely a regular graduate seminar
workload (2-3 hours per week, somewhat like a regular graduate seminar but
conducted in more of a tutorial mode). While there is more flexibility
regarding meeting times and assignments, the total must equal approximately 36
contact/meeting hours.
• Like a
regular course, a reading course must offer students the option of a long term
paper due at the end of the term or several short pieces due during the 12
weeks of the course.
• A
course syllabus must be submitted to the Director of Graduate Studies for
approval within the first two weeks of a term.