MIT SHASS classes related to current social, political, and economic issues in the U.S.
See below for a list of MIT classes related to current social, political, and economic issues in the US. The classes are organized by department or program. Please refer to the official subject listings for updated schedules and locations.
Related links
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Mens et Manus America
Starr Forum Events | Center for International Studies
CLASSES
Anthropology | Browse subjects in course catalog
Introduction to Anthropology: Comparing Human Culture | 21A.00 |
How Culture Works | 21A.01 |
The Science of Race, Sex, and Gender | 21A.103 |
Memory, Culture and Forgetting | 21A.104 |
For Love and Money: Rethinking the Family | 21A.111 |
American Dream: Exploring Class in the US | 21A.120 |
Images of Asian Women: Dragon Ladies and Lotus Blossoms | 21A.141J |
Gender and Japanese Popular Culture | 21A.143J |
Food, Culture, and Politics | 21A.155 |
The Meaning of Life | 21A.157 |
Practicum in Global Health and Development | 21A.300 |
Disease and Health: Culture, Society, and Ethics | 21A.301 |
Dilemmas in Biomedical Ethics: Playing God or Doing Good? | 21A.302J |
Drugs, Politics, and Culture | 21A.305 |
Environmental Struggles | 21A.410 |
What Is Capitalism? | 21A.461 |
Technology and Culture | 21A.500J |
Language and Technology | 21A.503J |
Cultures of Computing | 21A.504 |
Magic, Science, and Religion | 21A.520 |
Comparative Media Studies / Writing | Browse CMS subjects / Writing subjects
Topics and Methods in 21st Century Journalism | 21W.737 |
Introduction to Media Studies | CMS.100 |
Media in Weimar & Nazi Germany | CMS.311 |
News and Participatory Media | MAS.700 |
Current Debates in Media | CMS.701 |
Economics | Browse subjects
Microeconomic Theory and Public Policy | 14.03 |
Intermediate Macroeconomics | 14.05 |
Financial Markets and the Macroeconomy | 14.07 |
Psychology and Economics | 14.13 |
Industrial Organization and Competitive Strategy | 14.20 |
Health Economics | 14.21 |
Economics of Incentives: Theory and Applications | 14.26 |
Public Finance and Public Policy | 14.41 |
Environmental Policy and Economics | 14.42 |
Energy Economics and Policy | 14.44J |
Innovation Policy and the Economy | 14.46 |
International Trade | 14.54 |
Labor Economics and Public Policy | 14.64 |
The Challenge of World Poverty | 14.73 |
Foundations of Development Policy | 14.74 |
Political Economy and Economic Development | 14.75 |
Global Studies and Languages | Browse subjects
Communicating Across Cultures | 21G.019 |
Global Africa: Creative Cultures | 21G.026/326 |
China in the News: The Untold Stories | 21G.038/194 |
Gender and Japanese Popular Culture | 21G.039J/591 |
Images of Asian Women: Dragon Ladies and Lotus Blossoms | 21G.048J |
Gender in Science, Technology, and Environment | 21G.057J |
Migration, Race and Ethnicity in a New Europe and Germany | 21G.058/418 |
Digital Media in Japan and Korean | 21G.067/597 |
Soviet and Post-Soviet Politics and Society: 1917 to the Present | 21G.086J |
Frenchness in an Era of Globalization | 21G.322J |
New Culture of Gender: Queer France | 21G.325J |
Topics in Medicine and Public Health in the Hispanic World | 21G.715 |
The Making of the Latin American City: Culture, Gender, and Citizenship | 21G.732 |
History | Browse subjects
American History since 1865 | 21H.102 |
Sexual and Gender Identities | 21H.108J |
Modern China: 1644 to the Present | 21H.152 |
Islam, the Middle East, and the West | 21H.160 |
The Middle East in the Twentieth Century | 21H.161 |
Libertarianism in History | 21H.181J |
Environment and History | 21H.185 |
Constitutional Law in U.S. History | 21H.227 |
The Black Radical Tradition | 21H.229 |
Frenchness in an Era of Globalization | 21H.242J |
Soviet and Post-Soviet Politics and Society: 1917 to Present | 21H.245J |
Race, Crime, and Citizenship in American Law | 21H.319 |
Business in China Since 1800 | 21H.350 |
The Ghetto: From Venice to Harlem | 21H.385 |
The War at Home: American Politics and Society in Wartime | 21H.213J |
Gender and the Law in U.S. History | 21H.320J |
Gender | 21H.983 |
Linguistics | Browse subjects
Black Matters: Introduction to Black Studies | 24.912J |
Language and Technology | 24.913J |
Music and Theater Arts | Browse subjects
Introduction to World Music | 21M.030 |
Jazz | 21M.226 |
Music of India | 21M.291 |
Music of Indonesia | 21M.292 |
Music of Africa | 21M.293 |
Popular Musics of the World | 21M.294 |
American Popular Music | 21M.295 |
MIT Balinese Gamelan | 21M.450 |
MIT Senegalese Drum Ensemble | 21M.460 |
Sport as Performance | 21M.690 |
China on Stage | 21M.700 |
New American Playwriting | 21M.715 |
Philosophy | Browse subjects
Moral Problems and the Good Life | 24.02 |
Good Food: The Ethics and Politics of Food | 24.03 |
Justice | 24.04J |
Philsophy of Religion | 24.05 |
Bioethics | 24.06J |
The Ethics of Climate Change | 24.07 |
Ethics | 24.231 |
Topics in Social Theory and Practice | 24.236 |
Feminist Thought | 24.237J |
Political Science | Browse subjects
Justice | 17.01J |
Introduction to Political Thought | 17.03 |
Modern Conceptions of Freedom | 17.04J |
International Political Economy | 17.115 |
Sustainability: Political Economy, Science, and Policy | 17.181 |
Introduction to American Political Process | 17.20 |
Congress and the American Political System: I | 17.251 |
Congress and the American Political System: II | 17.261 |
Electoral Politics, Public Opinion, and Democracy | 17.263 |
Democracy in America | 17.267 |
Race, Ethnicity, and American Politics | 17.269 |
The War at Home | 17.28J |
Making Public Policy | 17.30J |
Methods of Policy Analysis | 17.303J |
Science, Technology, and Public Policy | 17.309J |
Health Policy | 17.315 |
U.S. Social Policy | 17.317 |
Human Rights at Home and Abroad | 17.391J |
Environmental Law, Policy, and Economics: Pollution Prevention and Control |
17.393J |
Innovation Systems for Science, Technology, Energy, |
17.395J |
American Foreign Policy: Past, Present, and Future | 17.40 |
Introduction to International Relations | 17.41 |
Causes and Prevention of War | 17.42 |
International Relations Theory in the Cyber Age | 17.445 |
Cybersecurity | 17.447 |
The Politics of Nuclear Proliferation | 17.473 |
U.S. Military Power | 17.483 |
Introduction to Comparative Politics | 17.50 |
The Rise of Asia | 17.53 |
Introduction to Latin American Studies | 17.55J |
European Politics | 17.561 |
Israel: History, Politics, Culture and Identity | 17.565 |
Russia's Foreign Policy: Toward the Post-Soviet States and Beyond |
17.569 |
Soviet and Post-Soviet Politics and Society: 1917 to the Present | 17.57J |
Engineering Democratic Development in Africa | 17.571 |
Riots, Rebellions, Revolutions | 17.581 |
Game Theory and Political Theory | 17.811 |
Data and Politics | 17.831 |
Machine Learning and Data Science in Politics | 17.835 |
Martin Luther King, Jr. IAP Design Seminar (IAP only) | 17.922 |
Science Technology and Society | Browse subjects
Technology in American History | STS.001 |
Finance and Society | STS.002 |
Intersections: Science, Technology, and the World | STS.004 |
Bioethics | STS.006J |
Engineering Life: Biotechnology and Society | STS.011 |
Science in Action: Technologies and Controversies in Everyday Life | STS.012 |
Gender in Science, Technology, and Environment | STS.022J |
Making the Modern World: The Industrial Revolution in Global Perspective | STS.025J |
History of Manufacturing in America | STS.026 |
Energy, Environment, and Society | STS.032 |
People and the Planet: Environmental Histories and Engineering | STS.033J |
Science Communication: A Practical Guide | STS.034 |
African Americans in Science, Technology, and Medicine | STS.048 |
The Long War Against Cancer | STS.049 |
The History of MIT | STS.050 |
Language and Technology | STS.070J |
Technology and Culture | STS.075J |
Youth Political Participation | STS.080 |
Innovation Systems for Science, Technology, Energy, Manufacturing, and Health | STS.081J |
Science, Technology, and Public Policy | STS.082J |
Social Problems of Nuclear Energy | STS.084J |
Foundations of Information Policy | STS.085J |
Women's and Gender Studies | Browse subjects
Introduction to Women's and Gender Studies | WGS.101 |
Women and Global Activism in Media and Politics | WGS.109 |
Race and Identity in American Literature | WGS.140J |
International Women's Voices | WGS.141J |
Globalization: The Good, the Bad, and the In-Between | WGS.145J |
Gender, Health, and Society | WGS.151 |
Gender and Japanese Popular Culture | WGS.154J |
Gender and the Law in U.S. History | WGS.161J |
Black Matters: Introduction to Black Studies | WGS.190J |
New Culture of Gender: Queer France | WGS.233J |
Jane Austen | WGS.240J |
Dilemmas in Biomedical Ethics: Playing God or Doing Good? | WGS.271J |
Images of Asian Women: Dragon Ladies and Lotus Blossoms | WGS.274J |
Gender in Science, Technology, and the Environment | WGS.275J |
Feminist Thought | WGS.301J |