GSPP Courses

A critical review of differing schools of public policy thinking with respect to various issues, e.g., consumer protection, energy and resources, mental health and safety regulation.

Note: This course has discussion sections. Expand the table below to view all sections.

This course examines the public policy challenges posed by artificial intelligence (AI). This class offers an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the policy implications of AI. You will engage in key debates surrounding AI ethics and explore regulatory frameworks for AI, comparing national and international approaches to governance. The course assesses AI's role in exacerbating or mitigating inequalities. You will be challenged to consider how public policy can balance innovation with public safety, democratic values, and human rights. By the end…

This course introduces a range of economic phenomena that cannot be explained by standard, fully rational economic models, and explores implications for public policy. Why do we vote for social security despite the fact that it reduces our freedom to choose how we spend our money? What would happen to job seeking behavior if we cut off unemployment benefits in multiple steps? Why do fines work better than bonuses (except when they don't)? What kinds of policies should the Consumer…

This course examines the intersection between politics, security, and technology in the U.S. and across the globe. The course is divided into four parts: 1) Technology in Theory 2) Technology and War: A History; 3) Today's "Emerging" Technologies; and 4) Tomorrow's Technologies. The seminar considers work from international relations, economics, science and technology studies, law, as well as policy writing. Topics include: offset strategies, offense-defense balance theory, grey-zone competition, escalation, the economics of industrial policy, and innovation policy. Technologies considered include: robotics, autonomous…

This course is designed to provide a foundational comprehension of federal, state, and local legal systems in developing, defining, and limiting public policy. We will discuss the major legal frameworks that implicate public policy to gain an understanding of how policy is developed and implemented within federal, state and local governments. Students will explore the following main areas: 1) An introduction to the framework of the US Constitution, its amendments, the Constitutional functions of each branch of government, and evolving legal…

This course is cross-listed with PP 290 for graduate students.

This class is team-based and has limited enrollment by application only. This course is open to all UC Berkeley students, both graduate and undergraduate, and students from all departments on campus are encouraged to apply. Priority will be given to students who are pursuing an area of security studies as part of their degree and to those who are interested in pursuing a career in public service. Enrollment in this course is limited to 50 students. Completion of an enrollment application…

This interdisciplinary course focuses on work and workers, with particular attention to the way politics, law, and collective action shape how work is performed and compensated. The focus is primarily on the United States, but some attention is also given to conditions in other countries. The course looks broadly at factors that shape worker compensation, autonomy, and wellbeing, including worker struggles to gain power and influence conditions in the workplace and society. The class offers perspectives on the formation, internal…

Group study of a selected topic or topics in Public Policy. Meetings to be arranged.

Group study of a selected topic or topics in Public Policy. Meetings to be arranged.

Group study of a selected topic or topics in Public Policy. Meetings to be arranged.

Group study of a selected topic or topics in Public Policy. Meetings to be arranged.

Group study of a selected topic or topics in Public Policy. Meetings to be arranged.

Group study of a selected topic or topics in Public Policy. Meetings to be arranged.

Group study on selected public policy topics. Open to freshmen and sophomores.

This is the most up to date and accurate course description: This Berkeley Changemaker course is an introduction to social science research methods that center principles of equity and justice in the field of work and employment relations. It is based on the premise that the multiple crises that the country faces present an opportunity to understand root causes and reshape the economy for a fair, inclusive, and democratic society with the active participation of people who are typically excluded…

This introductory course will integrate various social science disciplines and apply these perspectives to problems of public policy. Throughout the academic term, students will apply knowledge of politics, economics, sociology, and quantitative methods in the analysis of increasingly complex problems.

This introductory course will integrate various social science disciplines and apply these perspectives to problems of public policy. Throughout the academic term, students will apply knowledge of politics, economics, sociology, and quantitative methods in the analysis of increasingly complex problems.

Each student will conduct thorough analysis on a major policy question. In this research, students will apply the interdisciplinary methods, approaches, and perspectives studied in the core curriculum.

Each student will conduct thorough analysis on a major policy question. In this research, students will apply the interdisciplinary methods, approaches, and perspectives studied in the core curriculum.

Each student will conduct thorough analysis on a major policy question. In this research, students will apply the interdisciplinary methods, approaches, and perspectives studied in the core curriculum.

Each student will conduct thorough analysis on a major policy question. In this research, students will apply the interdisciplinary methods, approaches, and perspectives studied in the core curriculum.

Each student will conduct thorough analysis on a major policy question. In this research, students will apply the interdisciplinary methods, approaches, and perspectives studied in the core curriculum.

Each student will conduct thorough analysis on a major policy question. In this research, students will apply the interdisciplinary methods, approaches, and perspectives studied in the core curriculum.

This is a Frontiers course.

Theories of microeconomic behavior of consumers, producers, and bureaucrats are developed and applied to specific policy areas. Ability to analyze the effects of alternative policy actions in terms of 1) the efficiency of resource allocation and 2) equity is stressed. Policy areas are selected to show a broad range of actual applications of theory and a variety of policy strategies.

Note: This course has discussion sections. Expand the table below to view all sections.

This is a Foundations course.

Theories of microeconomic behavior of consumers, producers, and bureaucrats are developed and applied to specific policy areas. Ability to analyze the effects of alternative policy actions in terms of 1) the efficiency of resource allocation and 2) equity is stressed. Policy areas are selected to show a broad range of actual applications of theory and a variety of policy strategies.

This is a Frontiers course.

An integrated course on the use of quantitative techniques in public policy analysis: computer modeling and simulation, linear programming and optimization, decision theory, and statistical and econometric analysis of policy-relevant data. The student develops a facility in distilling the policy relevance of numbers through an analysis of case studies and statistical data sets.

Note: This course has discussion sections. Expand the table below to view all sections.

This is a Foundations course.

This course covers intermediate quantitative methods for public policy analysis. The primary learning goals for the course are that students understand how to 1) implement and interpret linear regression; 2) distinguish correlation from causation; 3) code descriptive statistics, regressions, and data visualizations; and 4) engage in self-learning of additional methods depending on the student's research interests. We will also learn, in a mostly conceptual way, about more advanced linear models and 'quasi-experimental' research design such that students leave the course as effective consumers of…

Note: This course has discussion sections. Expand the table below to view all sections.

This course explores the intersection of technology and public policy. You will examine the impact of technology on society and how public policy can shape the development and use of technology. You will also delve into the ethical considerations surrounding technology, including privacy, security, and accessibility. By the end of the course, you will have a deeper understanding of how technology and public policy intersect and how you can use this knowledge to make a positive impact in the world.…

We will examine the nature and extent of poverty and inequality in the U.S., its causes and consequences, and the effects of government programs and policies. The first unit covers the measurement of poverty and inequality and reviews the evidence for the trends in the U.S. and other developed countries. The next unit covers the causes of poverty and inequality, particularly the influences of the labor market and education. The course also surveys the government policies and programs…

An examination of how organizations behave when faced with resource cutbacks. Particular attention will be paid to the political response of clientele groups and to the tensions between equity and efficiency in the management of decline.

Course examines current problems and issues in the field of public policy. Topics may vary from year to year and will be announced at the beginning of the semester. Open to students from other departments.

Course examines current problems and issues in the field of public policy. Topics may vary from year to year and will be announced at the beginning of the semester. Open to students from other departments.

Course examines current problems and issues in the field of public policy. Topics may vary from year to year and will be announced at the beginning of the semester. Open to students from other departments.

Course examines current problems and issues in the field of public policy. Topics may vary from year to year and will be announced at the beginning of the semester. Open to students from other departments.

Course examines current problems and issues in the field of public policy. Topics may vary from year to year and will be announced at the beginning of the semester. Open to students from other departments.

Course examines current problems and issues in the field of public policy. Topics may vary from year to year and will be announced at the beginning of the semester. Open to students from other departments.

This seminar applies policy thinking to the metropolitan political economy, emphasizing the practical demands of urban problem-solving. We will confront the ways in which "localism" complicates traditional policy analysis and our conceptions of equity & the public interest. The metro policy sphere will be covered from as many viewpoints as we can muster, including: voters & citizens; youth, families and the elderly; homeowners and renters; local workers and commuters; developers, environmentalists and community groups; public, nonprofit and private managers; power-regimes and the…

This course is cross-listed with PP 190 for undergraduate students.

This class is team-based and has limited enrollment by application only. This course is open to all UC Berkeley students, both graduate and undergraduate, and students from all departments on campus are encouraged to apply. Priority will be given to students who are pursuing an area of security studies as part of their degree and to those who are interested in pursuing a career in public service. Enrollment in this course is limited to 50 students. Completion of an enrollment application…

This course brings students together as a product team to apply data science and analytics skills to nonprofit and academic research projects. Students gain hands-on experience working with real-world data, using both foundational and advanced techniques-such as machine learning, data engineering, and online experiments-to generate actionable insights and solutions. Graduate students with backgrounds or interests in data science, along with select advanced undergraduates, will tackle challenges in predictive modeling, data visualization, and more. Through structured problem-solving and peer collaboration, this…

Discussion and analysis of dissertation research projects, including conceptual and methodological problems of designing and conducting public policy research.

Course examines current problems and issues in the field of public policy. Topics vary from year to year.

Course examines current problems and issues in the field of public policy. Topics vary from year to year.

By arrangement with faculty. Open only to qualified second-year graduate students working toward the M.P.P. degree.

By arrangement with faculty. Open only to qualified second-year graduate students working toward the M.P.P. degree.

By arrangement with faculty. Open only to qualified second-year graduate students working toward the M.P.P. degree.

By arrangement with faculty. Open only to qualified second-year graduate students working toward the M.P.P. degree.

By arrangement with faculty. Open only to qualified second-year graduate students working toward the M.P.P. degree.

By arrangement with faculty. Open only to qualified second-year graduate students working toward the M.P.P. degree.

The course will review the origins and evolution of nuclear energy, how it has been applied for both peaceful and military purposes, and the current and prospective challenges it presents. The purpose of the course is to educate students on the policy roots and technological foundations of nuclear energy and nuclear weapons so they are positioned to make original contributions to the field in their scholarly and professional careers.

The MPA Capstone Course is designed to enable each MPA student to write their Capstone Analytic Project, which will address a specific policy or programmatic challenge facing a real-world client. The weekly course meetings are structured to help students further hone their creativity, their analytic capacities and their writing and presentation skills as they develop the project through its various stages. Participants work closely together to learn from and help each other. Each student's final product, their CAP, is a…

Note: This course has discussion sections. Expand the table below to view all sections.

The MPA Capstone Course is designed to enable each MPA student to write their Capstone Analytic Project, which will address a specific policy or programmatic challenge facing a real-world client. The weekly course meetings are structured to help students further hone their creativity, their analytic capacities and their writing and presentation skills as they develop the project through its various stages. Participants work closely together to learn from and help each other. Each student's final product, their CAP, is a…

The MPA Capstone Course is designed to enable each MPA student to write their Capstone Analytic Project, which will address a specific policy or programmatic challenge facing a real-world client. The weekly course meetings are structured to help students further hone their creativity, their analytic capacities and their writing and presentation skills as they develop the project through its various stages. Participants work closely together to learn from and help each other. Each student's final product, their CAP, is a…

The MPA Capstone Course is designed to enable each MPA student to write their Capstone Analytic Project, which will address a specific policy or programmatic challenge facing a real-world client. The weekly course meetings are structured to help students further hone their creativity, their analytic capacities and their writing and presentation skills as they develop the project through its various stages. Participants work closely together to learn from and help each other. Each student's final product, their CAP, is a…

The MPA Capstone Course is designed to enable each MPA student to write their Capstone Analytic Project, which will address a specific policy or programmatic challenge facing a real-world client. The weekly course meetings are structured to help students further hone their creativity, their analytic capacities and their writing and presentation skills as they develop the project through its various stages. Participants work closely together to learn from and help each other. Each student's final product, their CAP, is a…

The MPA Capstone Course is designed to enable each MPA student to write their Capstone Analytic Project, which will address a specific policy or programmatic challenge facing a real-world client. The weekly course meetings are structured to help students further hone their creativity, their analytic capacities and their writing and presentation skills as they develop the project through its various stages. Participants work closely together to learn from and help each other. Each student's final product, their CAP, is a…

This is a 6 week course meeting during the weeks of January 26th-March 2nd. Opinion columns (op/eds) are a great way to get policy ideas and proposals into the political and social mainstream. Being at GSPP is a great advantage to the prospective op/ed writer--professors and students are writing policy-related, solution-oriented articles that make recommendations. Over the years I have drawn on the work of Hilary Hoynes, Rucker Johnson and Richard Rothstein, as well as my own research. You…

The Japan Policy, Culture and History is a student-led initiative that fosters collaboration and idea exchange between Goldman School of Public Policy students and academics, practitioners, and policymakers in Japan. Through Berkeley-based preparation and a Tokyo field component, students will engage issues central to both countries, including economic revitalization and productivity, technology and innovation policy, energy and climate transition, demographic change and aging, labor markets and migration, corporate governance, supply- chain resilience and trade, national security and regional strategy, disaster…

This course will be co-taught by Ed DeSeve and Rich Callahan. This course teaches applied agile public policy making and agile government implementation in national level cases across varied nations internationally, as well as specific California State cases serving 40 million residents. The course emphasizes analysis of case studies, developing program recommendations, and building public trust based on key practices of agile government, including organizational leadership, mission, evidence-informed solutions, metrics, customers journey, networks, cross-functional teams, innovation incentives, speed, persistence. The course…

Course Instructor: Micah Weinberg This course will be hybrid. This two credit evening course offered to graduate students focuses on how to usher a good policy proposal through the political process in order to cement it as a new law. After learning more about the democratic systems these activities will have to negotiate, the class will feature a series of external speakers who have engaged in successful advocacy across a range of different policy areas. The primary focus of the…

Course examines current problems and issues in the field of public affairs. Topics may vary from year to year and will be announced at the beginning of the semester.

This course develops the skills for managers, business leaders and people leaders to coach their people. Leaders who can coach have the ability to motivate and develop their employees by enabling them to develop themselves and unleash their full potential. The course covers fundamental coaching skills and a coaching model that leaders can apply to their day‐to‐day interactions with their team, direct reports, as well as their peers. Occasionally, the coaching skills can also be applied to situations…

This course will be Hybrid. Taught by the former Mayor of Oakland, CA, this course will explore how solving society's most complex challenges requires deep collaboration between government and the private and nonprofit sectors, and how cross-sector collaborations succeed in changing public systems and accelerating policy change. Students will leave equipped with practical tools to create and grow successful collaborations and learn through real-world case studies and guest speakers who are leading to change the pressing problems of our time.…

Course examines current problems and issues in the field of public affairs. Topics may vary from year to year and will be announced at the beginning of the semester.

Modernizing policy implementation requires that we substantively rethink how government does business. Beyond agency reform, "agile government" crafts new approaches toward project management, teambuilding, and problem-solving. Leading onward from our fall-module on the foundations of government innovation, this course amplifies the methods, processes, and design-based user-centric mindsets which bring agile governance to life. Students will forge their own learning-paths, expanding upon lessons from invited subject-matter experts. The course aims to galvanize students' creativity, intuition, and pragmatism, as they envision applying…

Three hours of synchronous lectures per week. This is a synchronous online course. The objective of this course is to improve negotiation skills and to increase the ability to resolve conflicts in a multitude of situations, including public policy disputes. Topics will include: distributive and integrative bargaining; preparation strategies; defense to ploys; power and perceptions; team and multi-party negotiations; political, legislative and regulatory negotiations; emotions and gender, email negotiations, handling difficult negotiators, impact of personality traits and public policy mediation.…

This course will be Hybrid. Demystifying Legislative Drafting: An Introduction to Crafting Laws provides background and practical experience in identifying, researching, analyzing, and drafting legislative measures. This is a skills-based experiential course for students to gain a background in drafting and amending legislative measures. The process of drafting legislation can feel daunting because it often addresses complex, public policy problems that are rooted in the law. This course offers valuable insight into the legislative drafting process and will empower students…

The MDP Capstone Experience aims to guide students to successfully complete their capstone (final project or master's thesis) milestone from the Master of Development Practice (MDP) program. The course aims to help students create an outstanding final project or master's thesis, and to provide an appropriate scaffolding. Students will reflect on their pedagogical and professional journey during the MDP program. One can expect to acquire research-related skills, such as writing a proposal, designing a research project, and writing a literature…

The MDP Capstone Experience aims to guide students to successfully complete their capstone (final project or master's thesis) milestone from the Master of Development Practice (MDP) program. The course aims to help students create an outstanding final project or master's thesis, and to provide an appropriate scaffolding. Students will reflect on their pedagogical and professional journey during the MDP program. One can expect to acquire research-related skills, such as writing a proposal, designing a research project, and writing a literature…

Both developing and developed countries living in evolving economies where new innovations introduce new industries and change the economies and lives of these populations. Sustainable development education, especially in professional schools, should provide students with understanding and tools to analyze the innovation process and the implementation of innovations by new supply chains. Understanding the processes that lead to innovation and then the design of supply chains requires theoretical and conceptual education as well as practical analysis of existing supply chains.…

Note: This course has discussion sections. Expand the table below to view all sections.

This course will introduce concepts in natural resource management. Segment 1 will cover basic modeling, techniques, and methodology in natural resource mamangement and sustainability. Segment 2 will address genetic resources and agriculture. Segment 3 will cover principles of natural resource management, namely water and air, in the development context. Segment 4 profides an overview of major concepts in the conservation of biodiversity. Students are expected to present research reports based on case studies.

This course is designed to introduce students to the basic concepts of estimation, prediction, and hypothesis testing. The course will focus on impact evaluation theory and methods and will explore the variety of tools available for rigorously measuring the impact of development programs on poverty.

Note: This course has discussion sections. Expand the table below to view all sections.

Law, Politics, and Policymaking will introduce students to principles of law, the mechanisms of politics, political economy, and policymaking delving into fundamentals of business, as well as environmental, international, and human rights law in the context of development. This course will provide students with insights into real-world contexts in which sustainable development practice takes place. It will consist of case studies of political economic and legal analysis.

This three-segment course starts with critical evaluation of literature and methods for communal natural resource management, followed by a segment that emphasizes leadership skills and conflict resolution approaches for development. The third segment will address issues of conflict and policymaking in a global context and provide the institutional perspective of development organizations and strategies.

Note: This course has discussion sections. Expand the table below to view all sections.

The focus of the course is on rigorous analysis of issues in development economics from a microeconomics lens. We take a threefold approach to each topic: we examine, in turn, theory, evidence, and policy. Yet the goal of the course is not simply to have you learn facts and theories about poor countries-instead, the goal is that you learn, hands-on, how economists approach problems of development. As such, the bulk of the course will be devoted to in-depth analysis of …

Note: This course has discussion sections. Expand the table below to view all sections.

This course will bridge the gap between development theory and its application by sharing the challenges that arise from: i) the implementation of projects and programs supported by international financing institutions like IFAD; and ii) the assessment of their impact. Since the mandate of IFAD is to focus on fighting rural poverty, the seminar will cover a range of topics regarding: i) sectoral/sub-sectoral domains such as rural development, natural resource management, and micro-finance; ii) vulnerable social groups such as…