Government and Public Administration 1 Government and Public Administration Course List Code Course Title Unit I. Ph.D. Programme (Full-time and Part-time) GPA 5070, 5080 Graduate Seminar I, II 3 each GPA 7010-7013 Directed Reading I, II, III, IV 6 each GPA 7020, 7021 Advanced Research I, II 6 each GPA 801T Ph.D. Dissertation Research 3 II. M.Phil. Programme (Full-time and Part-time) GPA 501T, 502T Thesis Preparation I, II 3 each GPA 5010 Aspects of Government 3 GPA 5020 Selected Topics in Public Administration 3 GPA 5030 Independent Research 3 GPA 5050 Principles and Methods of Research 3 GPA 5060 Quantitative Research 3 GPA 5070, 5080 Graduate Seminar I, II 3 each GPA 5130 Comparative Politics 3 GPA 5210 Public Policy Analysis 3 GPA 5215 Public Management 3 GPA 5225 International Relations 3 GPA 5235 Sino-American Relations 3 GPA 5245 Cross-Strait Relations 3 GPA 5260 Selected Issues in Hong Kong Studies 3 GPA 5280 Chinese Politics 3 GPA 5290 Contemporary Political Science 3 GPA 5310 China and the World 3 GPA 5320 Topics in Taiwan Studies 3 GPA 5330 Contemporary Chinese Political Thought 3 GPA 5340 Central-Local Relations in China 3 GPA 5350 Public Policy in China 3 GPA 5360 China s Political Economy in the Reform Era 3 GPA 600T Thesis Research 2 Course Description (Unless otherwise specified, all are 3-unit term courses.) GPA 501T, 502T Thesis Preparation I, II This is a course for students to research on background readings and also conduct preliminary fieldwork related to their theses. Students should come up with a research plan in consultation with their supervisors. Prerequisite of GPA 502T: GPA 501T.
2 Postgraduate Programmes of Study GPA 5010* Aspects of Government This course provides an in-depth analysis on selected contemporary issues in government, such as national unification, bureaucratic behaviour in Asia, disarmament, and future world political systems. Specific focus is given by the instructor in each instance. GPA 5020* Selected Topics in Public Administration This course provides an in-depth analysis on selected issues in public administration, such as accountability and control, decentralization and participation. There will be general discussions coupled with case studies and/or field trips to illuminate administrative realities in local situation. GPA 5030* Independent Research This course is designed to improve a student s skills in research. It covers critical review of literature, discussions of paradigm and research strategy with respect to specific topic or problems and research exercise. GPA 5050 Principles and Methods of Research This course serves to introduce students to the fundamental principles of scientific inquiry, major research methods, and the basic skills of quantitative research. Topics covered include: the conceptual foundation of research in social science, design and structure of research, modes of observations, and quantitative analysis of data. GPA 5060 Quantitative Research The course covers sampling, inferential statistics, and selected quantitative methods such as the survey method. GPA 5070, 5080 Graduate Seminar I, II This is a seminar for students to take turn to present their findings in thesis research, and to discuss and exchange ideas with teachers and other research students. Prerequisite of GPA 5080: GPA 5070. GPA 5130 Comparative Politics This course will address one or several linked problems and topics, such as elections, parties and the legislature, growth, equality participation, or instability, nationalism, state-building, and nation-building, labour politics, democratization, and the welfare state, trade policy/politics, transnational economic power, and state power, technology, bureaucracy, and political accountability, constitutionalism, the legislature and the court, mass media, public opinion, and democracy, and so on. * Students are allowed to take GPA 5010, 5020 and 5030 for more than once, and gain the units each time they pass the course. However, students cannot take these courses more than once in a single term.
Government and Public Administration 3 GPA 5210 Public Policy Analysis This course focuses on analysis of the concepts and theories of public decision-making and policy. Emphasis on policy process from problem identification through policy formulation, deliberation, adoption and implementation to evaluation will also be covered. GPA 5215 Public Management This course discusses various topics related to public management, such as the role of public management in contemporary states, the relationship between public management and political values. It will also introduce the background for the rise of the new public management reform and its philosophical and theoretical underpinnings. The reform content of various states will be discussed. Various managerial techniques such as strategic planning, re-engineering, performance measurement, total quality management, and so on, will be introduced. The limits and prospects of the reform will be assessed. GPA 5225 International Relations This course aims at in-depth studies of the field of international relations, covering various sub-fields such as international security, international political economy, and international ethics. It will also discuss other critical issues on the contemporary agenda of world politics, such as nuclear nonproliferation, globalization, human rights, and international regimes. Putting emphasis on theoretical issues, this course will encourage students to apply theories to analyse current development in world politics. GPA 5235 Sino-American Relations This course will review the historical development of Sino-American relations in the past several decades (for example, the origins of their confrontation in the 1950s, rapprochement in the 1970s, structural changes as the Cold War ended in the 1990s, etc.), examine the prominent issues occupying the current agenda (such as the Taiwan issue, human rights disputes, trade relations, arms control and nuclear nonproliferation, and many others), and explore into the factors that shape the change and continuity of the relationship. It combines conceptual inquires with empirical investigation, and aims to train the analytical ability of students toward understanding Sino-American relations. GPA 5245 Cross-Strait Relations This course focuses on the relations between mainland China and Taiwan. Topics discussed include national integration (as the trend toward Taiwan independence is growing while Beijing insists on reunification), nationalism and national identity, impacts of democratization (as Taiwan s democratization shapes the new Taiwanese identity while there is a resurgence of Chinese nationalism), economic interdependence (as cross-strait economic connections become critical to the economic development of both sides), the role of third party intervention (as the United States plays a critical part in the relationship), arms race and deterrence, and East Asian regional security and prosperity (as the potential of military conflict between the two sides persists).
4 Postgraduate Programmes of Study GPA 5260 Selected Issues in Hong Kong Studies This course provides in-depth analyses of selected issues or aspects of the Hong Kong society, mainly from political and administrative perspectives, e.g., government in business, district administration, citizens participation, new town management. GPA 5280 Chinese Politics This is an advanced course on Chinese politics and is designed to provide students with an opportunity to explore key issues concerning the politics of contemporary China. It surveys and evaluates recent literature and compares the case of China with other countries in transition. GPA 5290 Contemporary Political Science The objective of this course is to acquaint students with the state of the art in political science. The course will analyse recent developments of the discipline pertaining to its scope, methodology, theory and approach. Particular attention will be given to areas where debates and controversies have contributed to the development of knowledge in the field. The ethos, concerns and research concentration of the discipline will also be discussed. GPA 5310 China and the World This course is an in-depth study of PRC s foreign relations, aiming at examining the sources, concerns, processes, and major factors in the international conduct of China and inquiring into the dynamics of change of the role China plays in world affairs by looking at PRC s various bilateral and multilateral relations with other countries and international organizations. GPA 5320 Topics in Taiwan Studies This course will cover the development and current conditions of the democratic political system in Taiwan, including the Constitution of the ROC, government apparatus, party politics, the administrative and policy-making systems, foreign relations, and problems relating to the unification/independence debate. Emphasis is placed on the recent experience in democratization and its significance for mainland China and the territories of Hong Kong and Macau. GPA 5330 Contemporary Chinese Political Thought This course examines political thought in China with emphasis on the period from late Ch ing to the present, when China advanced from reaction and reflection to interaction and re-assertion in relation to the approach and expansion of Western influence. Introduction and analysis of thinkers and literature representing various stages of contemporary Chinese intellectual response and political development will also be covered. GPA 5340 Central-Local Relations in China This course examines the state of as well as the change in hierarchical relations between the central government and the various, especially provincial, levels of local governments. Among others, issues such as central control and coordination, local autonomy and localism,
Government and Public Administration 5 political and policy performance, representation and interest politics, disintegration and unified governance will be addressed. A host of conceptual frameworks or theories, such as state capacity, center-periphery approach, principal-agent model, centralization versus decentralization, the inter-governmental relations perspective, and neo-institutionalism, will be applied to shed light on the realities. GPA 5350 Public Policy in China This course is concerned with who gets what in Chinese politics. It begins with an introduction to analytical frameworks for the study of public policy. Students will then be informed about what policies the Chinese government pursues in a variety of key domestic areas, and why, and with what consequences. Depending on the expertise of the teacher and guest speakers, the policy areas studied may include economic reform, employment, taxation, social welfare, housing, education, civil rights, public order, environmental protection and so on. GPA 5360 China s Political Economy in the Reform Era This course introduces students to various approaches for understanding the political economy of China s reform. Specific issues that will be addressed include: the Maoist setting as constraints to reform; gradualism as the core characteristics of the post-mao reform; taken the interplay between political and economic factors in the reform; assessment of the result of the reform; and political explanation of the cause and result of the reform. GPA 600T Thesis Research 2 U This course focuses on the procedures and techniques, as well as substantial issues, pertaining to the write-up of a M.Phil. thesis under the guidance and supervision of a teacher. (For M.Phil. students only.) GPA 7010-7013 Directed Reading I, II, III, IV 6 U each The course is devoted to an extensive survey of major authors, as well as representative theories and researches, in the sub-disciplines of political science of recent eras, such as Political Theory, Comparative Politics, International Politics/Relations, Public Administration and Public Law. Under guidance and supervision of an instructor on a oneto-one basis, a student is required to compile bibliographies, and to make critical evaluation and original analysis of the selected areas. Written work is required. (For Ph.D. students only.) GPA 7020, 7021 Advanced Research I, II 6 U each Under the guidance and supervision of an instructor, a student is required to initiate and carry out an empirical research project, and to address the key issues and practical problems arising from the process of research, such as the selection and formulation of topics, research designs and strategies, concepts and theoretical frameworks, models and paradigms, and methodology and research materials. Written work is required. (For Ph.D. students only.)
6 Postgraduate Programmes of Study GPA 801T Ph.D. Dissertation Research This course focuses on the procedures and techniques, as well as substantial issues, pertaining to the write-up of a Ph.D. thesis under the guidance and supervision of a teacher. (For Ph.D. students only.) Study Scheme I. Ph.D. Programme (Full-time and Part-time) A. Applicable to students admitted in 2002-2003 and thereafter 1. Coursework Requirement Students are required to complete a minimum of 18 units of courses (excluding GPA 801T) for graduation. (i) Required Courses: First to Second Years of Attendance 6 units GPA 5070, 5080 Any 2 courses from GPA 7010, 7011, 7012, 12 units 7013, 7020, 7021 Total: 18 units (ii) GPA 801T After obtaining the status of Ph.D. candidature, students are required to take GPA 801T every term, until their dissertations are completed. 2. Comprehensive/Qualifying Examination Students shall select any two of the following fields for the qualifying examination: political theory, public administration, international relations, comparative politics, Greater China studies and public law. To pass the qualifying examination and attain candidature, students must successfully attempt either an exam paper on any two fields, or an exam paper on one field and one literature survey on another field. Students are required to take the qualifying examination within the first four months of the second year (for full-time students) or within the second year (for part-time students). Those without a research Master s degree and whose normative study period is 48 months (fulltime students) or 64 months (part-time students) may take their qualifying examination within the second year and the first four months of the third year of study respectively. Students who fail a subject in their first attempt may retake the exam or resubmit the literature survey once, and are required to do so within six months after failing the first attempt. 3. Ph.D. Thesis Students are required to submit a research thesis and to pass an oral examination for graduation. 4. Other Requirements (a) Students may be asked to take or audit certain courses to upgrade their basic knowledge according to the advice given by their general advisers. (b) Students will also be encouraged to participate in graduate seminars and graduate research workshops.
Government and Public Administration 7 (c) Students and candidates are expected to take part in colloquia arranged by the Division of GPA from time to time. (d) IT Proficiency Test. (Please refer to Student IT Competence.) (e) Complete an Improving Postgraduate Learning (IPL) course Observing Intellectual Property and Copyright Law during Research. (Applicable to students admitted in 2001-02 and thereafter.) B. Applicable to students admitted in 2001-02 and before 1. Coursework Requirement Students without a research Master s degree are required to complete a minimum of 12 units of courses (excluding GPA 801T) for graduation. (i) Required Courses: First to Second Years of Attendance 12 units Any 2 courses from GPA 7010, 7011, 7012, 7013, 7020, 7021 Total: 12 units (ii) GPA 801T After obtaining the status of Ph.D. candidature, students are required to take GPA 801T every term, until their dissertations are completed. 2. Comprehensive/Qualifying Examination (a) Qualifying Examination Students shall select any two of the following subject areas for the qualifying examination: political theory, public administration, comparative politics, international politics, public law. Students must meet this requirement either by passing the examination on any two of the above subject areas, or by passing the examination on one of the above subject areas and completing one literature survey on one other subject area. Full-time students will normally sit for the qualifying examination within two years after being admitted to the programme. Part-time students must do so within three years after admission. If students fail in any of the two papers in the first attempt, they may retake the examination or resubmit the literature survey once. The second attempt for full-time and part-time students must take place within one year after failing the first attempt. Upon satisfying the above requirements, students shall obtain the status of Ph.D. candidature. If students fail in the second attempt, they will be required to withdraw from the programme. (b) Dissertation Proposal A Ph.D. candidate is required to present a dissertation proposal to the Dissertation Committee within a year after becoming a candidate, and to attend an oral examination on this proposal before the Dissertation Committee. 3. Other Requirements (a) IT Proficiency Test. (Please refer to Student IT Competence.) (b) Complete an Improving Postgraduate Learning (IPL) course Observing Intellectual Property and Copyright Law during Research. (Applicable to students admitted in 2001-02 and thereafter.)
8 Postgraduate Programmes of Study 4. Remark For students admitted in 1998-99 and before, please consult the Division for programme requirements. II. M.Phil. Programme (Full-time and Part-time) 1. Coursework Requirement Students are required to complete a minimum of 21 units of courses (excluding GPA 600T) for graduation. (i) Required Courses: First Year of Attendance 12 units GPA 501T, 502T, 5050, 5290 Second Year of Attendance 6 units GPA 5070, 5080 (ii) Elective Courses: Any 3 units of courses to be chosen either from the 3 units course list of the M.Phil. programme or other courses offered by this Division or other Divisions. Total: 21 units (iii) GPA 600T Full-time and part-time students are required to take GPA 600T every term starting from the second and third years of attendance respectively, until their theses are completed. 2. M.Phil. Thesis Students are required to submit a research thesis and to pass an oral examiniation for graduation. 3. Other Requirements (a) IT Proficiency Test. (Please refer to Student IT Competence.) (b) Complete an Improving Postgraduate Learning (IPL) course Observing Intellectual Property and Copyright Law during Research. (Applicable to students admitted in 2001-02 and thereafter.) 4. Remark Students who have no background in government or public administration may be required to take more elective graduate or undergraduate courses in their first year of attendance. Such courses should be selected with the advice of the student s supervisor.