International Political Economy

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2016:

Total 170 hours

Admission to the Master of International Relations (MIR)

Previous knowledge of history and of other social sciences, especially political science, economics, international relations, or sociology is very desirable but not rquired.

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Description, Subject Objectives, Generic Skills and Assessment Requirements of this entry.The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison Unit website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

This subject provides students with a critical understanding of international political economy, exploring links between international politics and economics in historical and contemporary perspective. An advanced introduction to a range of competing theoretical and methodological approaches to the study of international political economy is provided. Dilemmas of global economic governance are explored in relation to debates surrounding the role of major inter-governmental institutions such as the World Trade Organisation, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the G20, and via examination of overlapping regimes of public and private power through which global systems of production, consumption, trade and finance are organised and governed. Key historical and contemporary debates are explored, including divisions between developed and developing countries, the management of global trade, investment money, finance and the environmental consequences of a growth-based world economy.

On completion of this subject students should:

• Develop a political and historical understanding of the major actors and events that have shaped the emergence of the contemporary international political economy;
• Develop comprehensive knowledge of the institutional regimes through which the international political economy is organised and governed;
• Strengthen skills in critically analysing competing empirical and theoretical claims regarding the consequences of contemporary globalisation;
• Develop skills in analysing and evaluating the design and operation of both public and private regimes of global economic governance.

• Written assessment of 3000 words (60%) due during the semester.
• 2-hour exam, equivalent to 2000 words (40%) scheduled during the examination period.

Hurdle requirement: Students must attend a minimum of 80% of classes in order to pass this subject. All pieces of written work must be submitted to pass this subject.

Required readings for this subject will be taken from a wide range of sources and made available online through the LMS.

Students new to the area may find one or more of the following texts helpful as primers:

• Jeffry Frieden and David Lake(ed), International Political Economy, 5th Edition, 2009
• Thomas Oatley, International Political Economy: Interest and Institutions in the Global Economy, Pearson, 4th Edition, 2011
• John Ravenhill (ed), Global Political Economy, Oxford University Press, 4th Edition, 2014
• Andrew Walter and Guatam Sen, Analyzing the Global Political Economy, Princeton University Press, 2009

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

On completion of this subject students should:

• be able to develop persuasive arguments on a given topic;
• be able to apply research skills and critical methods to a field of inquiry;
• be able to communicate oral and written arguments and ideas effectively;
• be able to develop cross-cultural understanding.

This subject is a core component of the Master of International Relations. It is also compulsory in the Master of International Politics 200-point program (teach-out), for those students who have not completed 166-401.