Document Type
Undergraduate Syllabus
Date
Spring 2021
School
Diplomacy
Course Number
DIPL 3115 / 7115
Course Description
This seminar-like course is focused on the Washington policy process in several dimensions: key actors, institutions and principles that influence the formation of US foreign policy and, more broadly, the conduct of U.S. foreign and domestic policy. With Washington as its laboratory and testing ground, the course will explore the growing number of players engaged in policymaking and the ever-expanding range of challenges faced in a changing domestic and world order. Topics will range from responding to a pandemic and economic crisis to addressing the nation’s challenges of polarization and racial division and injustice. The course will focus on the opportunities and constraints Washington policy makers encounter on a daily basis. It will explore the dynamic interaction between domestic and foreign policy in the aftermath of the consequential elections of November 2020.
The course to the extent possible will be conducted in seminar form based on discussions, reflections, debates and interactions between the seminar leader and the students. When possible, outside experts will be invited to address the class. Regrettably COVID-19 limits the ability for in-person meetings and visits to federal buildings, think tanks and other Washington institutions. On-line and virtual contacts will be encouraged.
One caveat: This syllabus is not set in stone, especially in a period of rapid developments on the domestic and international scenes. The seminar leader reserves the right to alter readings and assignments and discussion topics in response to emerging policy challenges and significant events.
Other than the required texts, all readings will be available online.
Recommended Citation
Walser, Ray PhD, "DIPL 3115 / 7115 The Washington Experience: Actors, Institutions and the Policy Process" (2021). Diplomacy Syllabi. 605.
https://scholarship.shu.edu/diplomacy-syllabi/605
