UGC NET Important Topics for Political Science

Unit Name

Important Topics

Political Theory

• Political Traditions (Postmodernism, Multiculturalism, Ecologism, Feminism, Marxism, Socialism, Conservatism, Liberalism)

• Concepts (Citizenship, Power, Democracy, Rights, Justice, Equality, Liberty)

Political Thought

• John Rawls

• Mao Zedong

• Frantz Fanon

• Hannah Arendt

• Gramsci

• Karl Marx

• John Stuart Mill

• Mary Wollstonecraft

• Hegel

• Rousseau

• Locke

• Hobbes

• Machiavelli

• Aristotle

• Plato

• Confucius

Indian Political Thought

• Deen Dayal Upadhyaya

• Jaya Prakash Narayan

• Ram Manohar Lohia

• Jawahar Lal Nehru

• Dr B R Ambedkar

• V D Savarkar

• Manabendra Nath Roy

• Muhammad Iqbal

• Periyar E V Ramasamy

• Sri Aurobindo

• M K Gandhi

• Rabindranath Tagore

• Swami Vivekananda

• Bal Gangadhar Tilak

• Pandita Ramabai

• Kabir

• Barani

• Aggannasutta

• Kautilya

• Dharamshashtra

Comparative Political Analysis

• Actor and Processes (Revolutions, NGOs and Civil Society Campaigns, New Social Movements, Social Movements, Interest Groups, Political Parties and Party System, Electoral Systems)

• Structures of Power (Democratic Elitism, Power Elites, Ruling Class)

• Development (Development and Democracy, World Systems Theory, Modernization, Dependency, Underdevelopment)

• Democratisation (Consolidation and Democratic Transition)

• Constitutions and Constitutionalism (Emergency Powers and Crisis of Constitutionalism, Judicial Independence and Liberal Constitutionalism, Rule of Law, Forms of Constitutions

• Political Regimes (Non-Democratic Regimes - Fascism, Totalitarianism, Military Dictatorship, Bureaucratic Authoritarianism, Patrimonialism), (Democratic Regimes - Electoral, Liberal and Majoritarian & Participatory)

• State Theory (Globalisation and Nation-States, Welfare State, Post-Colonial State, debate over the nature of the state in capitalist and socialist societies)

• Nationalism (European and Non-European)

• Colonialism and Decolonization (Anti-Colonial Struggles and Decolonization, Forms of Colonialism)

• Approaches (Comparative Methods, Political Economy and New Institutionalism, Political Culture, Institutional)

International Relations

• Contemporary Challenges (Culture and Identity Politics, Role of Religion, Poverty and Development, Migration and Refugees, Human Rights, Climate Changes and Environmental Concerns, International Terrorism)

• Regional Organisations (ASEAN, Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, African Union, European Union)

• Political Economy of IR (BRICS, G-20, WTO, North-South Dialogue, Global Governance and Bretton Woods System, Globalisation)

• United Nations (Aims, Objectives, International Criminal Court, International Law, Humanitarian Intervention, Peace and Development Perspectives, Structure and Evaluation of the Working of UN)

• Conflict and Peace (Conflict Transformation, Conflict Resolution, Deterrence, Weapons of Mass Destruction, Changing Nature of Warfare)

• Concepts (Security - Traditional and Non-Traditional, Sovereignty, Power, State System and Non-State Actors, State)

• Approaches to the Study of International Relations (Postmodernism, Feminism, Critical International Theory, Social Constructivism, Neorealism, Neoliberalism, Structural Marxism, Realism, Idealism

India’s Foreign Policy

• Contemporary Challenges

• India’s Negotiation Strategies in International Regimes

• India’s Relations with Neighbourhood

• India’s Engagement with Multipolar World

• India’s Relations with Major Powers

• Continuity and Change in India’s Foreign Policy

• Perspectives on India’s Foreign Policy

Political Institutions in India

• Constitutional and Statutory Bodies

• Local Government Institutions

• Electoral Process and Electoral Commission of India

• Federalism in India

• Executive and Legislature in the States

• Judiciary

• Union Parliament

• Union Executive

• Constitutionalism in India

• Philosophy of Constitution

• Constituent Assembly

• Making of the Indian Constitution

Political Processes in India

• Electoral Politics

• Ideology and Social Basis of Political Parties

• Gender and Politics in India

• Regionalisation of Indian Politics

• Civil Society Groups

• Social Movements

• Identity Politics

• Process of Globalisation

• State, Economy and Development

Public Administration

• Management by Objectives - Peter Drucker

• Managing Conflict in the Organisation - Mary Parker Follett

• Organisational Communication

• Managing the Organisation

• Theories and Principles of Organisation

• Public Administration and Theories and Concepts

• Public Administration

Governance and Public Policy in India

• Planning and Development

• Grassroots Governance

• Institutional Mechanisms for Good Governance

• Accountability and Control

Papers

Subject

Number of questions & marks

Paper 1

To assess the candidate's teaching and aptitude, there will be common questions for all the candidates.

50 Questions of 2 marks each

Paper 2

This paper will evaluate the candidates' knowledge and is based on the topic that the candidates chose.

100 Questions of 2 marks each

Type of Answer

Marks Allotted

Correct Answer

2 marks

No Answer

0 mark

Incorrect Answer

0 mark (No negative Marking)

Category

Minimum Marks (%) to be obtained in Political Science Paper

General

40%

40%

ST/SC/PWD/OBC

35%

35%

Book

Author

UGC NET/JRF/SET Political Science 

Ashutosh Roy

NTA-UGC-NET/JRF : Political Science (Paper I & II)

R. Gupta

NTA UGC NET Political Science Study Guide

Disha Publications

UGC NET Political Science Question Bank with Answers

RPH Editorial Board