Introduction to Comparative Politics

Course Type	Course Code	No. Of Credits
Discipline Core	NA	4

Course coordinator and team- Ekta Singh

Course Details:

Summary

The course is a Discipline Specific Core (DSC) for BA in Social Sciences (4^th semester) students. It introduces students to the field of comparative politics by familiarizing them with comparative methods and the interplay between formal and informal governance mechanisms. The course sheds light on the variability that characterizes the modern state in different settings, particularly the postcolonial setting and new citizenship claims. The diverse nature of political regimes and transitions will be focused upon. Contemporary forms of political mobilization such as populism will be discussed to enable students to make sense of the contemporary.

Objectives:

The overall objective of this course is to:

Introduce students to the basic concepts, principles, and methods of comparative politics
To familiarize students with the wide range of political institutions and the cultural context to be able to better appreciate and understand their own context.
To enable them to analyze contemporary political issues within the broader comparative field
To help students understand the contemporary better by understanding the interplay of political structure and political culture

Learning Outcomes: At the end of this course, students are expected to

to be able to comprehend the methods and relevance of comparative framework
to be able to locate and contextualize political developments and institutions within the larger comparative framework
to be able to discern broader trends and trajectories cross-nationally and the factors underpinning them
to have a more informed understanding of the contemporary.

Overall structure: This course is divided into five modules, and course delivery timeline is tabulated below:

Srl. No.	Name of the Module	Number of weeks
1.	Understanding Comparative Politics	2 weeks
2.	The State in a Comparative Framework	2 weeks
3.	Comparative Political Institutions	3 weeks
4.	Political Regimes and Transitions	2 weeks
5.	Political Mobilization: State and Non-State	3 weeks