School of Liberal Arts

Departmental E-mail: igem100 [at] iupui [dot] edu

Departmental URL: liberalarts.iupui.edu/political_science/

Curriculum

Curriculum
Courses
Faculty

Graduate Certificate in Survey Research Program

The Graduate Certificate in Survey Research Program provides an interdisciplinary approach to survey research in both theory and application. It encompasses a scholarly introduction to sophisticated techniques in survey research and the opportunity for a student to tailor the program to fit within their other graduate work.

Survey research has expanded with acceleration in the past three decades. It is now widely used across a number of disciplines. For example, it is used by medical researchers and public health specialists in epidemiological studies, evaluation of public information campaigns, and to assess behavioral and attitudinal risks for disease and injury. It is used by public administrators, in fields such as urban planning and criminal justice to evaluate current programs, assess the impact of public safety campaigns, and assess citizen support for new developments in public facilities. Educational leaders use surveys or diverse activities including marketing strategies for higher education institutions and scheduling of class and transportation for elementary and secondary schools. Attorneys and legal professionals look at the impact of programs and activities on jury selection, perceptions of courtroom behavior, and trust/support for new and existing statutes. Business leaders are c onstantly monitoring the public’s attitudes and behaviors in regards to product development, customer satisfaction, marketing strategies, and even location of facilities. Not-for-profit agencies estimate the potential for enlisting volunteers, the potential for fundraising, and effectiveness of fundraising campaigns. Of course, beyond such applied uses, academicians in many disciplines use survey data to study a broad range of phenomena including financial risk-taking, voting behavior, family satisfaction, medical treatment preferences, and a host of other areas.
 
Although many people use survey data, few are trained in the twin goals of the certificate program—evaluation of the quality of survey data and the implementation of programs of survey research from data collection through analysis. The main objective of this program is to provide a graduate student with such training through an interdisciplinary approach to all aspects of survey research.

Students considering application to the certificate program are welcome in the classes (with prerequisites or instructor’s permission). Up to 9 credit hours earned as a graduate nondegree student or graduate degree student and approved by the program’s director may be applied toward the certificate upon admission to the program.

Course Requirements

The Survey Research Certificate Program consists of a total of 15 credit hours of course work at the 500-600 level. No more than 3 credit hours may be transferred from another institution and no undergraduate-level courses may be used toward the certificate. The certificate program consists of a graduate core curriculum of two courses and three courses that may come from a student’s regular graduate program and approved by the certificate’s three-person program committee, consisting of the director of the certificate program, a political science faculty member, and one other faculty member from the designated program faculty.

Required Core Courses (6 credits)

• POLS Y567 Survey Research: Approaches and Issues (3 cr.) An introductory seminar that will discuss all the key approaches, issues, and concepts in survey research, allowing students to identify more specific issues that may be examined in their elective courses. One element of the course will be hands-on introduction to the facilities and methods of the IU Public Opinion Laboratory.
• POLS Y590 Seminar in Survey Research (3 cr.) A capstone seminar designed to be taken as last course in certificate program and to examine current issues in the application of survey research to public policy. Students will share with students from a variety of disciplines their particular applications to increase interdisciplinary awareness of problems and prospects of survey research.

Electives (9 cr.)

Students will be required to complete 9 additional credit hours of course work chosen from a group of primary courses or alternates. This list of alternates is subject to approval by the program committee and substitutions may be approved by that committee. The list is designed to maximize the flexibility of an interdisciplinary field such as survey research. Courses are offered with varying regularity, but the curriculum is designed to allow each discipline to adapt its courses to fit students’ needs in its area.

• POLS Y575 Political Data Analysis I (3 cr.) Introduces students to quantitative research methods for studying politics, focusing on topics that are statistical in content or that must be addressed for statistics to make sense. Students who complete the course will achieve a level of statistical competency that will enable them to enroll in courses concerned with multivariate statistical techniques, and will acquire the basic skills of data analysis.

Alternates

• Public Affairs V506 Statistical Analysis for Effective Decision Making (3 cr.)
• Public Health S528 Mathematical Statistics (3 cr.)
• SOC R551 Sociological Research Methods (3 cr.)
• Or any other graduate course that includes inferential statistics through regression analysis and is accepted by the program committee.
• POLS Y576 Political Data Analysis II (3 cr.) Builds upon Y575 by familiarizing students with more advanced research methods, such as multiple regression analysis and techniques for dealing with categorical and limited dependent variables. Models to be covered include logit, probit, multinomial logit, ordered probit, duration models, and survival analysis. Attention will be directed at the application of these methods to political phenomena, policy applications, and the presentation of results.

Alternates

• Public Health P600 Epidemiological Research Methods (3 cr.)
• SOC R559 Intermediate Sociological Statistics( 3 cr.)
• Or any other graduate course that includes inferential statistics through regression analysis and is accepted by the program committee.
• POLS Y580 Research Methods (3 cr.) This course surveys the major techniques for investigating current political and policy problems. It emphasizes the relationship between theory and practice in understanding and conducting research. It will examine issues in field research essential to a full understanding of a research problem.

Alternates

• Health Administration H518 Statistical Methods for Health Services (3 cr.)
• Public Health P601 Advanced Epidemiology (3 cr.)
• SOC R551 Sociological Research Methods (3 cr.)
• SOC R663 Public Opinion: Research and Methods (3 cr.)
• Or any other graduate course that includes inferential statistics through regression analysis and is accepted by the program committee.
• Internship Option (3 cr.)

As an alternative to one of the electives, students may—with the approval of the program committee—substitute an internship experience for one of the elective courses. They will be required to work with an approved faculty member in completing a survey research project arising out of placement with an approved research organization(excluding the IUPUI Survey Research Center) involving a commitment of at least eight hours per week for one full semester. They would enroll for credit in Y585 Internship in Survey Research or a comparable internship course subject to approval by the program committee.