The First Year Seminar introduces incoming students to the Politics Department by having core and affiliated faculty present their research to the incoming class. Readings will be assigned for each session, including some articles by the faculty who will be presenting. Faculty will discuss their work from a variety of perspectives; some might look across the arc of their careers, others may focus on a specific article, still others might situate their research within a larger debate. Each faculty member has been asked to present in whatever format they prefer. Over the course of the year, both method and content will be addressed. At the beginning, middle, and end of the course, we will hold reflective sessions without an external speaker present. During these sessions, we can draw together themes across the semester as well as reflect on subfield distinctions, research strategy, and emerging areas of research. Students will be asked to write two short papers. Paper topics will be crafted for each student via discussion with the professor on readings and issues that have emerged from the course.