Colloquium 333 - Lat Amer Pol Econ

This course is part of a new model of tutorials at Amherst designed to enable students to engage in substantive research with faculty.  The objective of the tutorial is to expose students to various aspects of academic research:  identify a researchable topic, master the relevant literature, develop a viable research design, learn to formulate causal arguments and address rival hypotheses, become comfortable with the academic practice of revising and resubmitting, etc.  Each student is free to choose his or her topic of inquiry, after close consultation with me and other participants.  Students are expected to work sometimes independently, other times in teams. We will meet frequently to discuss progress.  Some assignments will be common to the group as a whole, other assignments will be individualized, based on each student’s interests and skills.   At various points during the semester, students should also be prepared to share their work, orally or in writing, with everyone else in the course.  I too will share drafts of some of my work for discussion.  Final requirements will vary depending on the selected project and may include:  developing a thesis prospectus; writing a literature review; researching a topic in close collaboration with me; collecting, analyzing and presenting data.  This course is part of a new model of tutorials at Amherst designed to enable students to engage in substantive research with faculty. 

Open to sophomores and juniors. Preference will be given to students who have taken at least one course with me.  Limited to 6 students. Spring semester.  Professor Corrales.