MIA Electives

Below is a list of Electives available.

Please note that not all electives will be offered in any one semester, and the elective details are subject to change without prior notice.

Politics International Relations and Law

  • PP5158 International Relations of Asia after World War I

    The course explores the connections among events in Asia as they have unfolded since the end of World War II and examines them in relation to contemporary issues. It assesses competing explanations for longstanding issues, including the Taiwan issue, division of the Korean peninsula, South China Sea dispute, and trajectory of regionalism. These issues are playing out amid a major power shift, not only as a consequence of China’s rise, but also with the emergence of Asia as a global agenda-setter. The course also examines the new threats to the region, from WMD proliferation to terrorism and competition for resources.

  • PP5181 State Fragility and Peacemaking

    Fragile and failed states pose unique problems to the international community. From the 1990s, wars in and among failed states have killed and displaced millions. In an increasingly interconnected world, internal insecurity fundamentally undermines international security. This module focuses on understanding the main drivers of state fragility and the impact on global security. In understanding the root causes and consequences of state fragility, students will work through appropriate and practical policy responses. The module draws on contemporary case studies of contested states and explores the issues through the lenses of political science, international relations, history, geography, sociology and public policy.

  • PP5182 Redesigning Models of Global Power Relations

    Economies succeed not just from generating ever improved domestic social outcomes, but also by navigating successfully their foreign relations. Nation states commit a dangerous error if they situate injudiciously in world order, not least with the current model of global power relations under ongoing stress. Against a background of conventional approaches, this module provides an economic perspective on rethinking world order. It asks what a rational world order is and investigates the role of smaller states in it. The course compares current reality to a rational world order, and analyzes how critical elements of such a new order might emerge.

  • PP5193 Asian International and Strategic Thought

    This module will introduce students to international and strategic thought in four Asian countries – China, India, Japan, and Singapore. As world power shifts towards Asia, it is vital to provide students with insights into how key Asian societies have thought about the nature of international life and how to deal with the threats and opportunities to their countries. Students will read key texts and thinkers, will make comparisons across the four sets of thinkers and will critically assess the relevance of the ideas they encounter for contemporary foreign and security policy.

  • PP5266 Global Health Policy and Issues

    This module gives an overview of global health policy and issues, with special focus on changing social, economic, technological and political conditions across the diverse countries and populations of Asia. It examines the roles and relationships among major players at the global level, and different approaches taken by various international organisations and national governments in tackling health and related problems. This module will examine global health trends and issues using a macro policy framework. Significant challenges in the organisation of global health programmes and the complexities involved in international cooperation will be analysed through selected case-studies. Topics on current issues will include:- population health and development, role of international health organizations, international aid and development assistance, emerging epidemics and disasters, cross-border health issues, migration of health human resources (brain drain), international trade in health services and the future of global health.

  • PP5273 Political Islam and Governance

    This module addresses the rise of political Islam and Islamism, and its impact on governance in the contemporary Muslim world. It aims to deepen our understanding regarding the inherent complexities of the Islamist movement and heighten our awareness of this new global political and policy issue. The module begins with a brief overview of rise of political Islam and Islamism and examines the potential reasons for its success. We then examine the impact of political Islam on governance in various Muslim countries. We will consider the different strategies embraced by states towards the Islamist movement – ranging from total exclusion to full incorporation into the governance structures. Finally, the module will consider the more transnational manifestations of these movements including those which are clearly more militant and politically violent, and question the resulting policy implications for the state.

International Security

  • PP5158 International Relations of Asia after World War I

    The course explores the connections among events in Asia as they have unfolded since the end of World War II and examines them in relation to contemporary issues. It assesses competing explanations for longstanding issues, including the Taiwan issue, division of the Korean peninsula, South China Sea dispute, and trajectory of regionalism. These issues are playing out amid a major power shift, not only as a consequence of China’s rise, but also with the emergence of Asia as a global agenda-setter. The course also examines the new threats to the region, from WMD proliferation to terrorism and competition for resources.

  • PP5181 State Fragility and Peacemaking

    Fragile and failed states pose unique problems to the international community. From the 1990s, wars in and among failed states have killed and displaced millions. In an increasingly interconnected world, internal insecurity fundamentally undermines international security. This module focuses on understanding the main drivers of state fragility and the impact on global security. In understanding the root causes and consequences of state fragility, students will work through appropriate and practical policy responses. The module draws on contemporary case studies of contested states and explores the issues through the lenses of political science, international relations, history, geography, sociology and public policy.

  • PP5182 Redesigning Models of Global Power Relations

    Economies succeed not just from generating ever improved domestic social outcomes, but also by navigating successfully their foreign relations. Nation states commit a dangerous error if they situate injudiciously in world order, not least with the current model of global power relations under ongoing stress. Against a background of conventional approaches, this module provides an economic perspective on rethinking world order. It asks what a rational world order is and investigates the role of smaller states in it. The course compares current reality to a rational world order, and analyzes how critical elements of such a new order might emerge.

  • PP5193 Asian International and Strategic Thought

    This module will introduce students to international and strategic thought in four Asian countries – China, India, Japan, and Singapore. As world power shifts towards Asia, it is vital to provide students with insights into how key Asian societies have thought about the nature of international life and how to deal with the threats and opportunities to their countries. Students will read key texts and thinkers, will make comparisons across the four sets of thinkers and will critically assess the relevance of the ideas they encounter for contemporary foreign and security policy.

  • PP5273 Political Islam and Governance

    This module addresses the rise of political Islam and Islamism, and its impact on governance in the contemporary Muslim world. It aims to deepen our understanding regarding the inherent complexities of the Islamist movement and heighten our awareness of this new global political and policy issue. The module begins with a brief overview of rise of political Islam and Islamism and examines the potential reasons for its success. We then examine the impact of political Islam on governance in various Muslim countries. We will consider the different strategies embraced by states towards the Islamist movement – ranging from total exclusion to full incorporation into the governance structures. Finally, the module will consider the more transnational manifestations of these movements including those which are clearly more militant and politically violent, and question the resulting policy implications for the state.

International Economics and Development

  • PP5176 China and the Global Economy

    In recent years, China has emerged as a major global economic power. Moreover, China has become increasingly integrated with the rest of the global economy. It is important to have a good understanding of China’s increasing importance to global economic growth. This course is intended to provide students with an intensive overview of China’s growing role in the global economy with focus on the interactions between China’s domestic economic reform and its cross-border trade and investment. The impact of China’s Belt and Road Initiative on both domestic economic growth and other developing, as well as developed economies are also discussed.

  • PP5180 Trade Policy and Global Value Chains

    The course links trade policy to global value chains (GVCs), which are the driving forces of 21st-century international trade. The first part addresses specific issues in trade policy, such as trade in goods and services, foreign direct investment, intellectual property rights, trade and standards, free trade agreements (FTAs), and the WTO. The second part focuses on GVCs. First it covers GVCs from economic and business perspectives, and examines how they work sectorally and geographically. Then it links GVCs to trade policy – at the national and sub-national levels, and how GVCs are covered in FTAs and the WTO.

  • PP5216 Economic Growth in Developing Asia

    The module provides a comprehensive view with rigorous comparative analyses that are essential for understanding the dynamics of economic growth in developing Asia. The module also introduces to students concepts and analytical frameworks that enhance their competence in policy analysis for the issues related to economic growth and competitiveness.

  • PP5234 Economics of Developing Countries

    The course introduces students to development topics from a micro-economic perspective. The course will lead the students to analyze roles of different economic entities in developing countries. Topics such as education, health, migration and fertility will be covered. The empirical focus of this course allows students to develop sufficient analytical skills to analyze policy problems for development related issues.

  • PP5236 Poverty, Inequality, and Public Policy

    The objective of this module is to get an understanding of what is poverty, how to measure poverty, who is poor, what causes poverty, and what are the policy responses to poverty alleviation. In addition, the module will also examine the concept of inequality and its interlinkages with poverty. The module will combine theory, measurement, and policy with an emphasis on policy examples from Asia. In addition to introducing students to mainstream conceptualizations of poverty and inequality such as pre-determined poverty lines and Gini index, this module will bring in contemporary and alternative paradigms such as multi-dimensional poverty, capability deprivation, and inequality of opportunity.

  • PP5247 International Economic Policy

    This course is an introduction to international economics and is conducted in two parts. The first part focuses on international finance theory and open economy macroeconomics policy while the second part deals with international trade theory and policy. The broad topics that will be examined include: theory of international trade and commercial policies; balance of payments accounting and its determinants; and the basics on foreign exchange. Extensive examples will be drawn from experiences of Asian economies.

  • PP5274 Financial Management for Policy Makers

    This course equips students with the fundamental concepts and techniques of financial management with a special focus on their applications and implications for policy making and public management. The main topics covered in this course include: Fundamental Concepts in Financial Management, which includes Time Value of Money, Interest Rates and Bond Rating, Risk and Rates of Return, and Capital Asset Pricing Model; Assessment of Business Performance Valuation of Bonds and Stocks; Capital Budgeting; Derivatives and Risk Management; Mergers and Acquisitions; Investment Strategy; Applications of financial management concepts and techniques to policy analysis and public management.

  • PP5279 Clusters and National Competitiveness

    This course explores the determinants of national and regional competitiveness from a bottom-up, microeconomic perspective. The course probes the ultimate determinants of a nation’s or region’s productivity, rooted in the strategies and operating practices of locally-based firms, the vitality of clusters, and the quality of the business environment in which competition takes place. The course examines both advanced and developing economies and addresses the competitiveness of nations and particular clusters. It also examines the role that economic coordination among neighboring countries plays in competitiveness. The course is concerned not only with government policy but also with the roles that firms, industry associations, universities, and other institutions play in competitiveness. In modern international competition, each of these institutions has an important role that is shifting. Moreover, the process of creating and sustaining an economic strategy for a nation or region is a daunting challenge. The course explores not only theory and policy, but also the organisational structures, institutional structures, and change processes required for sustained improvements in competitiveness.

  • PP5298 Singapore Development Experience

    This module provides a survey of Singapore’s practices in public management and policy development from a comparative perspective. We will focus on innovations in public sector governance as main contributing factors for Singapore’s strong economic growth in the last four decades, and discuss underlying principles and rationale for these innovations. The course consists of two parts. The first part of the course introduces to students key elements of public sector governance in Singapore, including governance structure, civil servant system, policy development, policy implementation, and financial management. The second part of the course examines Singapore’s experience in policy development and implementation in selected sectors such as health care, housing, water supply, land transport, industrial development, information technology and telecommunication.

Regional Studies: The Asia Pacific

  • PP5142 Liveable and Sustainable Cities – A Singapore Case-study

    An unprecedented level of urbanization is expected worldwide, presenting immense resource challenges as well as opportunities for cities. It is critical that the future city leaders learn from urban pioneers and case examples, to gain insights into the urban development challenges of cities, and to make informed decisions based on the principles and practice of dynamic urban governance. Singapore is an example of a very dense city that is also highly liveable. The module will therefore focus on Singapore, analysed through the lens on the Liveability Framework, and brought to life by experts in various fields of urban development.

  • PP5147 Asian Global Cities

    In today’s globalization, many of the policy challenges are becoming urban issues, especially in the rapidly urbanizing Asia. This module focuses on examining the new policy challenges and opportunities of Asian global cities that are increasingly strengthening their presence in the world. It studies a number of rising and transforming global cities in East, Southeast and South Asia, in order to understand their experiences of globalization and urban policy priorities. A number of key policy-related topics will be covered, including global urban networks, urban gateways, megaprojects, privatization, land governance, housing development, informal economy, and participatory development.

  • PP5150 Social Welfare in East Asia

    How is social welfare organised in East Asia? What are the unique strengths and vulnerabilities? This course examines the origins, structure, and performance of social welfare systems in Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, and Korea, and analyses their distinctiveness relative to the mature welfare states of Europe and other developed economies. Students will be trained to combine major theoretical perspectives such as developmentalism, neoliberalism, and welfare regimes with empirical understanding of country cases using a critical and comparative approach.

  • PP5158 International Relations of Asia after World War II

    The course explores the connections among events in Asia as they have unfolded since the end of World War II and examines them in relation to contemporary issues. It assesses competing explanations for longstanding issues, including the Taiwan issue, division of the Korean peninsula, South China Sea dispute, and trajectory of regionalism. These issues are playing out amid a major power shift, not only as a consequence of China’s rise, but also with the emergence of Asia as a global agenda-setter. The course also examines the new threats to the region, from WMD proliferation to terrorism and competition for resources.

  • PP5193 Asian International and Strategic Thought

    This module will introduce students to international and strategic thought in four Asian countries – China, India, Japan, and Singapore. As world power shifts towards Asia, it is vital to provide students with insights into how key Asian societies have thought about the nature of international life and how to deal with the threats and opportunities to their countries. Students will read key texts and thinkers, will make comparisons across the four sets of thinkers and will critically assess the relevance of the ideas they encounter for contemporary foreign and security policy.

  • PP5215 Changes in Singapore's Political Economy

    This course is an overview of opportunities taken and the strengths obtained in the changes of the political economy of Singapore. It will cover Singapore from an East India Company settlement to its status as a Straits Settlement colony and then as a colony by itself, full internal self-government, merger with Malaysia and now an independent republic. Topics covered include how the political economy of Singapore coped with changes in the region, new commodities in the hinterland, population movements, global ideology, national aspirations, international finance, multinational corporations and economic volatility.

  • PP5273 Political Islam and Governance

    This module addresses the rise of political Islam and Islamism, and its impact on governance in the contemporary Muslim world. It aims to deepen our understanding regarding the inherent complexities of the Islamist movement and heighten our awareness of this new global political and policy issue. The module begins with a brief overview of rise of political Islam and Islamism and examines the potential reasons for its success. We then examine the impact of political Islam on governance in various Muslim countries. We will consider the different strategies embraced by states towards the Islamist movement – ranging from total exclusion to full incorporation into the governance structures. Finally, the module will consider the more transnational manifestations of these movements including those which are clearly more militant and politically violent, and question the resulting policy implications for the state.

International Public Management and Leadership

  • PP5156 Moral Reasoning and Policy Communications

    This course discusses the fundamentals of logic, moral philosophy and the art of policy communications. It has a theoretical component in political and moral philosophy and a practical component in policy communications. It provides a foundation for the tool of moral reasoning, the processes of public decision-making and the criticaland analytical tools for public discourse.

  • PP5178 Leadership and Decision-making Skills

    This module is intended to examine the leadership and decision-making skills relevant to public policy formulation and implementation. It will be structured into 3 segments, namely: (a) the role and nature of leadership to public policy success; (b) the range of decision-making tools used in environmental analysis and the identification of the strategic objectives and policies, and (c)the role of behavioural economic insights and cognitive biases that public sector managers have to take into account in the choice and implementation of public policies. The approach will be multi-disciplinary, and Singapore’s experience will be used to illustrate the application of general analytical tools and approaches to public policy.

  • PP5184 Communications for Public Leadership

    Public policy is not just made. It must also be explained. To be effective in positions of authority, public leaders should be able not just to analyse policy, but to talk and write about it as well — to communicate succinctly and persuasively, to frame issues, and to grapple with the worlds of ideas and perceptions, all taking place within a fast-moving digital media environment. This course is designed to help future leaders improve their ability to speak and write in challenging situations, from winning over hostile audiences to giving TED-style talks and writing punchy op-eds suitable for publication in global media outlets. Having taken it, students will emerge with a deeper understanding of differing styles of communication in public life — and the ability to begin to develop their own. 

  • PP5209 Exercising Leadership

    This is a skills-based course that focuses on the interpersonal and intrapersonal dynamics that impact leadership. Participants are encouraged to clarify their own leadership direction and personal motives so they may make effective progress in pursuing their ambitions while avoiding typical areas of derailment. The classroom is used for both didactic learning, e.g., of diagnostic tools for analyzing interactions in case studies and in class, and for practicing new strategies of action. Other sources of learning include readings, lectures, plenary discussions, small group work, film, and cases provided by participants’ of their experience with leadership challenges.

  • PP5224 Value-Focused Negotiations

    This course considers theories and concepts in conflict and conflict resolution, and examines the processes of negotiation and mediation. It seeks to apply principles in conflict management and negotiation to specific case situations and cultural contexts. This course is experiential-based and students will have the opportunity to participate in negotiation and conflict management exercises, case discussions and practice sessions.

  • PP5276 Dialogue, Facilitation and Consensus Building

    This course builds on and expands the basic building blocks of skills and art developed in their first negotiation course. This course is divided into two sections. In the first section, students will be introduced to more advanced material relating to: (a) multi-party negotiations; (b) three-dimensional negotiation; (c) international and global negotiations; and (d) apparently intractable conflicts. These classes will occur over several weekends. In the second part of the course, students will be expected to delve into one particular context (regulatory, ethnic or identity-based, global treaty negotiations, etc…) of negotiation and/or conflict resolution in much more detail, producing a significant paper and presenting their findings to the class at the end of the semester.

Energy, Environment, Water

  • PP5179 Air and Water Pollution

    Clean air and water affect human welfare in many direct and indirect ways. However, an almost inadvertent outcome of societal aspirations and economic progress is polluted air and water. This trade-off is faced by every policymaker and this module draws on knowledge from environmental sciences, epidemiology, public health, environmental and development economics, public economics, and others fields to characterize this problem and study possible policy responses. Given the interdisciplinary nature of this topic, this is also a gateway class to more advanced learnings in environmental economics, cost-benefit analysis, program and impact evaluation.

  • PP5194 Natural Disasters and Climate Change

    This module is designed to provide students with a knowledge of natural disasters and climate change. It begins by establishing a link between climate-related disasters and human activity. It then considers the joint challenges of disaster risk reduction and management, and provides lessons for policy and investments. The module likewise examines the issue of climate change as an externality that can be addressed through policy tools geared towards mitigation and adaptation.

  • PP5257 Water Policy & Governance

    This module will provide a fundamental understanding of the root causes of current mismanagement of water at a massive scale, both in terms of quantity and quality, as well as in terms of economic, environmental and health implications. It will explore the direct interrelationships between water and population dynamics, urbanization, ruralisation, globalization, free trade, technological developments, economic growth and other similar issues. The course will assess the impacts and relevance of current global water policy dialogues on issues like poverty alleviation, environment conservation and regional income distribution. Issues like improper and inadequate water quality management in the entire developing world, management of transboundary and interstate rivers and lakes, economic instruments, legal frameworks and institutional arrangements will be considered. The roles of stakeholder participation, public-private partnerships and non-governmental organizations will be explored.

Enquiries

Aside from the comprehensive information on our admissions page, if you have any other queries or would like to receive a copy of our programme brochure, please submit your request via our query form. Alternatively, you may also speak to our admissions officers at +65 6516 8004.