Structure of the Program
Political Science and International Relations (PSIR) Programme lasts four years. All of the courses in first and second year are composed of must courses, while in the third and fourth years courses are made of a combination of must and elective courses. The content of the courses are listed below (You can reach to the course programme and/or website by clicking on the course names written in bold)
CURRICULUM
Click on the course code to see its Course description.
| FIRST YEAR | ||
|---|---|---|
| First Semester | ||
| PSIR 101 | Introduction to Sociology and Politics | (3-0) 3 |
| PSIR 105 | World History, 1453-1914 | (3-0) 3 |
| PSIR 111 | Study Skills in Social and Political Sciences | (3-0) 3 |
| ECO 101 | Microeconomics | (4-0) 4 |
| ENGL 101 | Development of English Reading and Writing | (4-0) 4 |
| GPC 100 | First Year on Campus Seminar | (0-2) 1 |
| TUR 101 | Turkish I * | (2-0) NC |
| Second Semester | ||
| PSIR 108 | Issues in Global Politics | (3-0) 3 |
| PSIR 110 | International History, 1914-1989 | (3-0) 3 |
| PSIR 112 | Statistics for Political Scientists | (3-0) 3 |
| ECO 102 | Macroeconomics | (4-0) 4 |
| CNG 100 | Introduction to IT & Applications | (2-0) NC |
| ENGL 102 | Development of English Reading and Writing II | (4-0) 4 |
| TUR 102 | Turkish II * | (2-0) NC |
| SECOND YEAR | ||
| Third Semester | ||
| PSIR 203 | History of Political Thought I | (3-0) 3 |
| PSIR 212 | Comparative Politics | (3-0) 3 |
| PSIR 218 | Political Sociology | (3-0) 3 |
| PSIR 237 | Principles of Law | (3-0) 3 |
| ENGL 211 | Academic Oral and Presentation Skills | (3-0) 3 |
| HST 201 | Principles of Kemal Atatürk I * | (2-0) NC |
| Fourth Semester | ||
| PSIR 202 | Constitutional Law | (3-0) 3 |
| PSIR 206 | History of Political Thought II | (3-0) 3 |
| PSIR 210 | Theories of International Relations | (3-0) 3 |
| PSIR 211 | Comparative Government | (3-0) 3 |
| PSIR 214 | War and Peace Studies | (3-0) 3 |
| HST 202 | Principles of Kemal Atatürk II * | (2-0) NC |
| THIRD YEAR | ||
| Fifth Semester | ||
| PSIR 303 | Public International Law | (3-0) 3 |
| PSIR 305 | International Political Economy | (3-0) 3 |
| ENGL 311 | Advanced Communication Skills | (3-0) 3 |
| E | Elective 1 | (3-0) 3 |
| E | Elective 2 | (3-0) 3 |
| Sixth Semester | ||
| PSIR 304 | International Organizations | (3-0) 3 |
| PSIR 309 | Research Methods for Political Science | (3-0) 3 |
| E | Elective 3 | (3-0) 3 |
| E | Elective 4 | (3-0) 3 |
| E | Elective 5 | (3-0) 3 |
| FOURTH YEAR | ||
| Seventh Semester | ||
| PSIR 401 | Contemporary Political Theory | (3-0) 3 |
| PSIR 403 | Contemporary Issues in Global Political Economy | (3-0) 3 |
| E | Elective 6 | (3-0) 3 |
| E | Elective 7 | (3-0) 3 |
| E | Elective 8 | (3-0) 3 |
| Eighth Semester | ||
| PSIR 400 | Graduation Project | (0-6) 3 |
| PSIR 404 | Contemporary Issues in War and Peace | (3-0) 3 |
| E | Elective 9 | (3-0) 3 |
| E | Elective 10 | (3-0) 3 |
| E | Elective 11 | (3-0) 3 |
Organisation of the program
- The PSIR programme is organized around three types of courses:
- Core or compulsory ('must') courses: all PSIR students must take these courses,
- Elective courses: all PSIR students take a number of electives from a range of options,
- Exchange courses: some students who study abroad or on exchange programmes are exempted from courses taken at other institutions or transfer their credits back to METU NCC.
'Irregular' students should consult with their student advisor and exchange students should consult with the programme co-ordinator regarding exemptions, variations to prerequisites, and transfer of credits, or any other individual circumstances. Some courses, both core and elective, are provided by programmes other than PSIR.
Replacement of PSIR 306 Processes of European Integration with PSIR 309 Research Methods for Political Science from 2019-2020 Academic Year Onwards
From the 2019-2020 academic year onwards PSIR 306 Processes of European Integration course will no longer be offered as a compulsory course, but will be offered as an elective. PSIR 309 Research Methods for Political Science course will replace PSIR 306 Processes of European Integration as a compulsory course.
- The students who have already taken and failed in PSIR 306 Processes of European Integration course will have the option of taking either of the above mentioned courses.
- In the case of taking PSIR 309 Research Methods for Political Science this couse will replace PSIR 306 Processes of European Integration course
- The students who have not taken PSIR 306 Processes of European Integration course before the 2019-2020 academic year will not be able to take it as a compulsory course but will be able to take it as an elective.
- Some courses, both core and elective, are provided by programmes other than PSIR.
Core courses, elective courses and course choice
- In order to graduate, students must take a minimum of 40 credit courses : 29 core ('must') courses and 11 elective courses.
- All PSIR credit courses are 3-credit courses. (Some courses provided by other programmes are 4 credit courses)
- All students must complete all core courses (compulsory).
- All first level courses are to be core courses.
- All second level courses are to be core courses.
- Third and fourth level courses must be taken according to the following rule :
- In addition to compulsory courses, students must take at least seven of their elective courses from the PSIR list. Of the remaining non-PSIR portion, a maximum of four courses may be taken from any other programme. The electives to be taken at METU Ankara during the summer school need to have prior approval of the PSIR co-ordinator. Otherwise they will not count. The only exception to the above mentioned rules is for the students who are taking a second language course and wants to take continuous courses of the same language.
Electives
- Students may select electives, in accordance with the rules above, from a list of elective courses which will be published each year. The range of PSIR electives hitherto offered in the programme have included the following :
- PSIR 306 Processes of European Integration
- PSIR 308 Gender and Politics
- PSIR 311 Nations and Nationalism
- PSIR 314 Political Economy of Turkey
- PSIR 316 Understanding Capitalism
- PSIR 320 International Human Rights
- PSIR 322 History of the Cyprus Conflict
- PSIR 323 Political Psychology
- PSIR 333 States and Societies in Central Asia
- PSIR 340 Politics in International Migration
- PSIR 341 Contemporary Social Theory
- PSIR 343 International Development
- PSIR 345 Turkish Foreign Policy
- PSIR 348 Public Opinion & International Relations
- PSIR 381 Development and the Developing World
- PSIR 409 Political and Economic Rise of China
- PSIR 413 Comparative Political Cultures : Greece, Turkey, Cyprus
- PSIR 415 Political Economy of Environment and Energy
- PSIR 416 Terrorism and Global Society
- PSIR 418 International Humanitarian Law
- PSIR 420 Politics and Society in Turkey
- PSIR 421 Transitional Justice
- PSIR 423 Historical Sociology and International Relations
- PSIR 424 Theories of Diplomacy
- PSIR 425 Ethics and International Relations
- PSIR 427 Approaches to State-Society Relations
- PSIR 428 Politics of Literature
- PSIR 429 International Politics of Oil
- PSIR 430 Imperialism & Making of the Modern Middle East
- PSIR 431 Law and Institutions of the European Union
- PSIR 451 Theories of Democracy
- PSIR 454 Ottoman Diplomacy and the European States System
- PSIR 463 Russian Foreign Policy
- PSIR 470 Turkey and the EC/EU
- PSIR 559 Politics and Society in Latin America