Political Economy Spring 2026 Courses
GLOBAL 45 001 Survey of World History
Prof. Emily R. Gottreich
Tu, Th 2:00 pm – 3:29 pm
Evans 60
Class #: 24252
4 units
This course focuses on the history of global interaction, with a particular emphasis on the relationships between states and societies. Though it begins with a brief exploration of antiquity, it emphasizes world developments since the 15th century. The purpose of the course is to gain a better understanding of the rise and decline of states, empires, and international trading systems. Taking a panoramic view of the last 500 years, it explores the ways in which disparate places came closer together, even while it seeks to explain how those places maintained their own trajectories in the face of outside intervention.
GLOBAL 45 002 Survey of World History
Prof. Devin Thomas Leigh
M, W, F 1:00 pm – 1:59 pm
Physics Building 1
Class #: 31000
4 units
This course focuses on the history of global interaction, with a particular emphasis on the relationships between states and societies. Though it begins with a brief exploration of antiquity, it emphasizes world developments since the 15th century. The purpose of the course is to gain a better understanding of the rise and decline of states, empires, and international trading systems. Taking a panoramic view of the last 500 years, it explores the ways in which disparate places came closer together, even while it seeks to explain how those places maintained their own trajectories in the face of outside intervention.
POLECON 100 Classical Theories of Political Economy
Prof. Alan L. Karras
Tu, Th 9:30 am – 10:59 am
Morgan 101
Class #: 26605
4 units
One-semester lecture course offered each semester. In-depth analysis of the classical political economy literature, including such authors as Locke, Smith, Marx, Mills, and Weber to Veblen and Polanyi. Strong emphasis is placed on providing appropriate background for understanding the evolution of the literature that has emanated from the various social science disciplines which forms the basis of modern political economy.
POLECON 101 Contemporary Theories of Political Economy
Prof. Khalid Kadir
Tu, Th 11:00 am – 12:29 pm
Valley Life Sciences 2060
Class #: 26863
4 units
This course introduces students to theoretical works from prominent intellectual debates in 20th and 21st century political economy. It explores the dynamic relationships among politics, society, and markets, with a focus on how markets are politically and socially embedded. It applies theoretical frameworks to current policy issues, drawing from influential works in sociology, political science, economics, and history. It asks: What is the relationship between markets and societies, and what role should the government play in constructing this relationship?
POLECON 106 Intermediate Microeconomic Theory
Prof. Mario B. Muzzi
W 12:00 pm – 12:59 pm; F 11:00 am – 12:59 pm
Mulford 159
Class #: 24369
4 units
This course is designed as a comprehensive overview of intermediate microeconomic theory. It covers the basic supply and demand model. Topics include consumer choice, choice under uncertainty and information, demand theory, firm, production and cost theory, competitive market theory, imperfect competition, and market failure. The course is structured for majors in Political Economy and other non-economic social science majors.
POLECON 154 Global Trade and Finance
Prof. Mario B. Muzzi
W 8:00 am – 9:59 am; F 9:00 am – 9:59 am
Social Sciences Building 60
Class #: 26960
4 units
This is an interdisciplinary course in international trade and finance focused on the dynamic interaction between economics and politics in the global arena. The course provides students a systematic method of evaluating international economic policies, while developing critical thinking skills through case studies and critical analysis. More specifically, the course focuses on the impact of flows of trade, capital, and people across borders and the role played by: (1) states and their political actors, (2) non-governmental groups, e.g., multinational corporations and labor unions, and (3) domestic and international institutions that all establish the “rules of the game”, in shaping the global economy.
POLECON 157 The Political Economy of Finance
Prof. Robert D. Fannion
Tu, Th 5:00 pm – 6:29 pm
Haviland 12
Class #: 26904
4 units
This course examines the history, theory, and operation of the American financial system. Key questions we will consider include: What is money? What is finance? How did the financial system evolve historically in the American context? To answer these questions, we will first look to histories and then canonical theorizations before turning to the operation of money and the nuts-and-bolts of American financial markets. Finally, we examine the global financial crisis of 2008 and its aftermath in light of these considerations. The goal of this course is for students to develop a basic understanding of the historical development, theoretical underpinnings, and actual practice of the American financial system.
POLECON 160 Political Economy in Historical Context
Law, Nation and Empire in Britain and the United States
Prof. Richard Thomas Ashcroft
Th 2:00 pm – 4:59 pm
Wheeler 300
Class #: 27272
4 units
This course focuses specifically on the historical context and perspective of the relationship of politics and economics in modern societies. Students are guided through an interdisciplinary survey of the historical experience of peoples and places who have participated in the ongoing great transformation away from agricultural societies to the rise of the industrial state and onto post-industrialism. Each term provides a different perspective of this transformation.
POLECON 165 Power and Opportunity in American Capitalism
Prof. Crystal Chang Cohen
M 10:00 am – 11:59 am; W 10:00 am – 10:59 am
Social Sciences Building 118
Class #: 32012
4 units
This course examines how institutions, ideologies, and social actors have shaped political and economic opportunity in the United States from the colonial era to the present. Through interdisciplinary readings and collaborative projects, students explore how American capitalism has simultaneously opened and obstructed pathways to opportunity—especially for marginalized communities. The course interrogates the enduring effects of systemic discrimination on social mobility and highlights how communities have resisted exclusion and demanded change. Students will build skills in research, public speaking, teamwork, and critical analysis as they challenge dominant narratives and develop solutions to contemporary inequalities.
IAS C118 Introductory Applied Econometrics
Prof. Shifrah Aron-Dine
Tu, Th 9:30 am – 10:59 am
Genetics & Plant Bio 100
Class #: 22217
4 units
Formulation of a research hypothesis and definition of an empirical strategy. Regression analysis with cross-sectional and time-series data; econometric methods for the analysis of qualitative information; hypothesis testing. The techniques of statistical and econometric analysis are developed through applications to a set of case studies and real data in the fields of environmental, resource, and international development economics. Students learn the use of a statistical software for economic data analysis