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The course is a lab-style, collaborative faculty-student seminar on applied writing for publication in scholarly journals and public-facing outlets. It carries a substantive focus on the political economy of energy, with particular attention to writing that involves applications of statistical analysis.

No Prerequisites

1 - 4

Units

Optional

Grading

1, 2, 3

Passtime

None

Level Limit

Letters and science

College
MAHDAVI P
Paasha Mahdavi
4.4
18 reviews
AI predicted, based on past grading trends of the course and instructor, class info, and 127 other factors
Winter 2026 . Mahdavi P
ELLSN3814
F
09:30 AM - 10:45 AM
See All
18
4.4
POLS15 . Mahdavi P 3 Months Ago

just take comm 88 and petition it, save yourself the headache. this guy was actually cool PS 15 is just such a sucky weeder class.

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POLS15 . Mahdavi P 11 Months Ago

Prof Mahdavi is great. The course content is very theoretical in terms of statistics and can be quite daunting, but Mahdavi does a great job at making the tough concepts understandable. It is definitely a difficult course, and the readings could be confusing at times, but stick to Mahdavi's lectures, and you will do well!

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POLS15 . Mahdavi P 11 Months Ago

while the material might seem intimidating, literally just go to lecture. mahdavi does an amazing job at making it digestible and actually answers questions in a helpful way. u can tell he cares abt the class and his students well-being and learning. also a cutie, so it isn't hard to show up to class. highly recommend studying in groups

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POLS15 . Mahdavi P 11 Months Ago

Love professor mahdavi, you can tell hes really enthusiastic about teaching and is very knowledgable and a great lecturer. Plus he is fine asf.

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POLS15 . Mahdavi P 3 Years Ago

Prof. Mahdavi has extensive knowledge of Research Methods in Political science and offers great examples. Lectures are clear, especially for tough course content. Assignments include 4-5 coding problem sets - I strongly suggest you work with friends in the class - as well as a midterm and final. Keep up and pay attention and you will succeed.

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POLS15 . Mahdavi P 3 Years Ago

Professor Mahdavi seems to be the only political science professor at UCSB with any quantitative skills. The class is hard in terms of math for a political science class, but very easy if you have any prior understanding of basic statistics. Coding is in R studio and is pretty trivial.

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See all 18 reviews
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