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Unit of study_
GOVT6316: The Politics of Policy Making
2025 unit information
This unit focuses on the nature of public policy and the processes by which it is produced. Relevant issues are common to all nation states, although they take specific forms in each individual country. First, the unit takes an overview of public policy - dealing with basic themes such as 'What is policy?' through to different approaches to understanding the policy process. These include policy cycles, rationality, interest groups, institutions, and socio-economic interests. Second, it maps out and examines the main components of public policy making: actors, institutions and policy instruments. Third, it focuses on aspects of policy-making processes which often attract a high level of attention from analysts. These include problem definition, agenda setting, decision-taking, policy implementation, policy evaluation and crisis policy-making. Fourth, it examines wider issues in terms of the state and who ultimately holds power over the making and shaping of public policy. Finally, it examines the 'bigger pictures' of long term policy trends, and the extent to which national policy making capacities and processes have been affected by globalisation. Assessments offer a large element of flexibility, allowing students to concentrate on areas of particular interest.
Unit details and rules
Managing faculty or University school:
Arts and Social Sciences
| Study level | Postgraduate |
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| Academic unit | Government and International Relations |
| Credit points | 6 |
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Prerequisites:
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None |
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Corequisites:
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None |
| Prohibitions:
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None |
| Assumed knowledge:
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None |
At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:
- LO1. demonstrate independent thinking and individual responsibility for learning
- LO2. understand processes of public policy making and implementation, focusing on a variety of advanced democracies, including relevant policy analysis concepts and theories as well as practical examples drawn from Australia and elsewhere
- LO3. understand policy process to serve as a foundation for further study in the MPP program and other GIR units/ courses, by offering a clear focus on public policies as a vital component of the wider discipline of government and international relations
- LO4. demonstrate critical and vocationally relevant analytic and communication skills.
Unit availability
This section lists the session, attendance modes and locations the unit is available in. There is a unit outline for each of the unit availabilities, which gives you information about the unit including assessment details and a schedule of weekly activities.
The outline is published 2 weeks before the first day of teaching. You can look at previous outlines for a guide to the details of a unit.
| Session | MoA ? | Location | Outline ? |
|---|---|---|---|
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Intensive May - June 2025
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Block mode | Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney |
Outline unavailable
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Semester 2 2025
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Normal evening | Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney |
Outline unavailable
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Modes of attendance (MoA)
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