Academic management

POLITICAL SCIENCE is an elective subject for the Bachelor’s Degrees in Economics, and Management and Business Administration offered by the School of Economics and Business. It belongs to the module on Historical and Social Analysis.

The subject has an introductory character and provides basic knowledge on the concepts, theories and methodologies which are central to the political science perspective. The students will acquire an integrative view of the fundamental dynamics and dimensions of contemporary political systems, with a particular attention to Spanish and European societies.

POLITICAL SCIENCE does not demand specific skills or competencies apart from those relating to access to the Grade.

The subject is aimed at the development of the competencies which enhance the capabilities for analysis and synthesis, for critical and self-critical reasoning and learning and for fluent oral and written communication. The knowledge of the political science perspective will contribute to a better understanding and recognition of the democratic principles of equal treatment and opportunities in the development of contemporary societies.

More specifically, POLITICAL SCIENCE will provide a framework of knowledge and competencies which will facilitate the understanding of the political environment in which economical behaviour, actors and institutions are embedded.

As a result of the learning process, the student should acquire a set of concepts, theories and methodologies. Also, the student should be able to put into practice this knowledge to understand the political dimensions and dynamics of contemporary societies. Furthermore, the student should learn the basic characteristics which define Political Science as a scientific discipline and its field. Additionally, the student should be able to understand and interpret the political reality from a scientific perspective. 

GENERAL COMPETENCIES

CG1 - Capacity for analysis and synthesis.

CG2 - Learning capacity.

CG3 - Ability to communicate fluently orally and in writing in one's own language.

CG4 - Knowledge and understanding of other languages, mainly English.

CG8 - Ability to work in a team.

CG13 - Creative ability to find new ideas and solutions.

CG17 - Negotiation skills.

CG20 - Have ethical values and behaviors.

CG21 - Integrate democratic values and the culture of peace in the workplace.

CG22 - Integrate the principles of equal treatment and opportunities between women and men in the workplace.

CG23 - Integrate the principles of equal opportunities and universal accessibility of disabled people in the field of work. 

SPECIFIC COMPETENCES

CE1 - Know the legal and social realities in which the markets and the
Business.
CE5 - Understand the economic-institutional environment and its impact on decisions
business.
CE9 - Design the organizational structure of the company.
CE20 - Transmit information, ideas, problems and solutions in the field of management
business to both a specialized and non-specialized public

RA9.1: Know and identify how the different ways of materializing the
social preference within each economic system.
RA9.2: Understand and distinguish the economic phenomena of the present through the
knowledge of the economic evolution of the past.
RA9.3: Know how to relate and/or justify the creation of economic institutions in relation to the
developed economic policies.
RA9.4: Identify, relate and assess the historical processes of business creation of
according to the different legal and socio-economic frameworks in which they take place.
RA9.5: Know and understand the main theories on configuration and dynamics
of contemporary societies and their influence on the configuration of
Business.
RA9.6: Know and analyze the structure and functioning of systems and institutions
policies and their potential influence on economic and business activity.
RA9.7: Apply the sociological perspective to the critical understanding of the functioning of
firms and labor markets as social institutions.

The course programme of the subject is organized in 8 lessons:

1.    Politics and approaches in Political Science

2.    The Nation-state

3.    Institutions and structures

4.    Political actors

5.    Political processes

6.    Public policies

7.    Policy-making

8.    Globalization and the EU: beyond the nation-sate

The methodology of the subject corresponds to the criteria of curricula and teaching practice which are established in the European Higher Education Area. It combines work requiring attendance of the students, including lectures (with a theoretical focus), and  seminars (with a practical content). The work plan foresees activities either requiring attendance or not requiring it.

On the one hand, presential learning activities will have a total duration of 56 hours, according to the following distribution:

1) Lectures, with a theoretical focus (28 hours). These sessions will be held on a regular basis of one session per week. In the lectures, the professor will provide the basic theoretical concepts and the terminology of political science analysis. Also, the students will receive some fundamental notions for the understanding of the macro-processes and structures of political systems, with the aim of fostering their capacity of critical reflection.

2) Seminars, with a practical content (28 hours). These sessions will be also held on a regular basis of one session per week. They will require the active participation of the students in the exercises provided by the professor, aimed at complementing and reinforcing the theoretical contents of each unit. The seminars will require the utilization of different instruments of text analysis and techniques of qualitative and quantitative analysis of political phenomena which will the basis for the interpretative debate.

3) Evaluation sessions, with a duration of 4 hours on the dates specified by the official academic calendar.

On the other hand, non presential learning activities will have a total duration of 90 hours. This means that the academic activity which does not require students’ attendance constitutes 60% of the estimated total workload of the subject. Non presential learning activity includes individual work to be carried out by the student in order to prepare and revise the practical exercises provided in the Seminars, the preparation of working essays, the study and reading for the evaluation sessions and the use of the different bibliographic, audiovisual and electronic resources which are connected to the subject. Also, the preparation of the Seminars requires additional time for pre-reading and revising the materials of the practical exercises, namely texts, graphics and other data sets and information.

Evaluation of the subject will rely on different instruments. Those students following a continual evaluation procedure will be evaluated as follows:

1) Through a final written examination (60%)

2) Through participation in practical seminars and homework (40%)

Extraordinary examination sessions will maintain the same principles of evaluation of ordinary examination sessions.

The specific aspects on the procedure of evaluation of the subject are:

1) The final written Examination accounts up to a 60 per cent of the final mark, and will evaluate the student’s command of the theoretical aspects of the course programme, as well as the individual capacity to apply the practical contents of the subject as presented in Seminar sessions. It will take into account the students’ critical abilities, including the appropriate use of the terminology of the subject, and the order and consistency in the presentation of the written discourse.

2) Practical sessions and exercises require sustained and active participation of students and will represent 40% of the final grades. Students failing to attend more than three practical sessions will lose their right to continual evaluation.

An essay on one topic related to the course programme will be valued with 20% of final grades, and will be presented to the class, and debated.

The remaining 20% of final grades can be obtained by active participation in sessions and through the delivery of responses to practical exercises proposed by the course professor.

By virtue of the provisions of article 7 of the Regulation for the evaluation of learning outcomes and the competences acquired by students and in accordance with the teaching guide of the subject Political Science, the following criteria for differentiated evaluation are established for the students

1. The percentage distribution of the different activities programmed throughout the course will be similar to that of the rest of the students enrolled in ordinary or full-time dedication conditions, as included in section 6 of the Teaching Guide: evaluation of the learning of the students.

2. Students on a part-time basis may complete the program of the subject in a non-presential manner. To do this they must complete all the practical activities of the subject individually with the aim of being able to answer a question in the final exam related to classroom practices.

3. They must write the individual essay and present it in a timely manner following the instructions given by the teachers of the subject.

We remind you that the Code of Ethics of the University of Oviedo is in force and applicable, which you can access from the following link: https://www.uniovi.es/launiversidad/panoramica/codigoetico"".

Exceptionally, if health conditions so require, non-attendance assessment methods may be included. In this case, students will be informed of the changes made.

The students of the subject will have to use and consult on a regular basis a number of basic references in order to complement the theoretical and practical materials provided during the course. The orientation and contents of these references are coherent with the course programme of the subject. The basic reference for the course programme is:

Caramani, Daniele (2011) Comparative Politics, Oxford University Press.

This textbook, written by international experts, provides an authoritative an updated introduction to political science, and covers the key subject areas of comparative politics, including advanced industrial nations and developing regions. The Online Resource Centre that accompanies the book includes a wealth of research, learning and teaching materials:

• Comparative data sets for over 200 countries
• Web directory of data archives
• Country profiles
• Review questions and exercises
• Glossary

It is accessible at: www.oxfordtextbooks.co.uk/orc/caramani/

Additionally, the professor can propose additional complementary references to be consulted in relation to a particular unit of the course programme.

Finally, the subject requires knowledge of the most common computer instruments of quantitative and qualitative analysis and graphic representation, for the realization of classroom practices and course essays. Skills of written and oral presentation and of working with Word, PowerPoint, Excel (or similar software programmes) are expected.