Jeffrey L. Bernstein
Fall 2013
Eastern Michigan University
Political Science 695 – Research Seminar in Public Administration
Class meets Monday evenings, 6:00 P.M. to 7:40 P.M., EMU Livonia
Welcome to Political Science 695. I’m pleased you’ll be joining me this semester.
Let’s make it a great one!
How to Contact Me:
Office:
Office Hours:
E-mail:
601E Pray-Harrold, 487-6970 (direct) or 487-3113 (Political Science Department)
Mondays and Wednesdays, 10 A.M. – 12 P.M.;
Tuesdays 11:00 A.M. – 12:30 P.M.; and by appointment
jeffrey.bernstein@emich.edu
I’m usually not hard to find. I’m on e-mail all the time, and will try to check my voice mail at least once
a day. I’ll be available here in Livonia before class each night as well. I welcome visitors during office
hours – this is your time, and I enjoy the company and the chance to get to know you. If you’d like to
talk in person but my office hours don’t work for you, let me know and we can find a different time that
works for both of us. Please do not hesitate to be in touch if you have any concerns about the class, or if
you want to talk about other stuff.
Overview of the Class
Let’s keep this simple. The goal here is to get you to write exceptionally good capstones, and to get you
to finish them this semester. All the rest is commentary.
So, here’s some commentary. This class will basically be run in two ways:
1. First, you can consider this course to be made up of seven students doing independent study
projects with me. Since each of your projects are different, and each of you have particular
concerns for what you are doing, much of the course will consist of me working with the seven of
you. We’ll exchange a lot of e-mail, and have multiple individual conversations in person, and
by phone. Each of you are doing different things, and each of you have different things for which
you are seeking assistance. I will do my best to give you this individualized, differentiated
instruction.
2. Second, you can consider this course a form of group therapy. On the first night of class, I will
divide you into two project groups. These groups will alternate meeting on different weeks. This
group will be your primary support within the class. You will be sharing pieces of the capstone
with the group, and presenting your work-in-progress to the group. I hope you will be able to
count on the group for both substantive support, and moral support, as the project unfolds.
Many of you have heard me lament the number of MPA students who stall at the capstone stage. It is my
intention to stop that, right now. I will work hard to keep pushing you to finish. And I will work hard to
keep pushing you to do great work.
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Schedule
What follows is a schedule for the class. I reserve the right to make adjustments to the schedule as we are
moving along, in order to best meet your needs. In addition, I reserve the right to adjust the nature of
your interim assignments to reflect the nature of where each of you are with your projects at any given
time.
Week 1 – September 9, 2013
I am out of town this week, and class will not meet. The assignment has already been e-mailed to you.
Weeks 2 and 3 – September 16 and 23, 2013
During these two classes, the entire group will meet. We will discuss capstones in general, give each of
you an opportunity to present your work, and lay out our plans for the semester process.
Week 4 – September 30, 2013
Class will not meet in formal session this week. I am hoping you will use the time around this time to
meet with me one-on-one and discuss your capstones, and what your next steps are.
Weeks 5 and 6 – October 7 and 14, 2013
The plan for these weeks is to have you submit, and present, your literature review (broadly conceived).
Group A will meet on Week 5, and Group B on week 6.
Weeks 7 and 8 – October 21 and 28, 2013
The plan for these weeks is to have you submit, and present, your research design (broadly conceived).
Group A will meet on Week 7, and Group B on week 8.
Weeks 9 and 10 – November 4 and 11, 2013
The plan for these weeks is to have you submit, and present, your preliminary results (broadly conceived).
Group A will meet on Week 9, and Group B on week 10.
Weeks 11 and 12 – November 18 and 25, 2013
The plan for these weeks is to have you submit, and present, your results, and a first cut at conclusions
(broadly conceived). Group A will meet on Week 11, and Group B on week 12.
Weeks 13 and 14 – December 2 and 9, 2013
Let’s be flexible about these weeks and see where we end up. Let me ask Group A members to reserve
Week 13, and Group B members to reserve Week 14. We may end up meeting, or we may not. But
please hold the dates until further notice.
One Final Request
OK, we know what we’re doing here, and what the goal is. I request your flexibility as we move toward
the goal. Stick with me, let’s stay together, and let’s make things happen. I very much look forward to
sharing this experience with all of you.
Most importantly, I look forward to celebrating with you
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at your capstone defense later in December!!!!!!!