ACQUIRED COMPETENCES: - That the students have demonstrated to possess and understand knowledge in an area of study that starts from the base of the general secondary education, and is usually found at a level that, while supported by advanced textbooks, also includes some aspects that imply knowledge coming from the vanguard of his field of study - That students know how to apply their knowledge to their work or vocation in a professional way and have the skills that are usually demonstrated through the elaboration and defense of arguments and the resolution of problems within their area of study - That students have the ability to gather and interpret relevant data (usually within their area of study) to make judgments that include a reflection on relevant issues of social, scientific or ethical nature - To demonstrate ability to organize and plan your work, making the right decisions based on the information available, gathering and interpreting relevant data to make judgments within your area of study - To be able to analyze the social and political reality following the scientific method, from a critical perspective and recognizing the plurality of theoretical-methodological perspectives of the fields of specialty and subdisciplines linked to Political Science - To know how to transfer the knowledge and skills acquired to face practical problems in the different areas in which professional opportunities are specified - To know the most important theoretical contributions and the principles that guide scientific research in the field of Social Sciences and know how to apply statistical methods and research techniques to produce, collect, analyze and interpret both quantitative and qualitative data LEARNING RESULTS: - The student will be able to collect data, produce information and use them to build reflections and judgments on the social and political reality - The student will know how to communicate to all types of audiences -specialized or not- problems and solutions that can be addressed from the Political Science as well as the knowledge and methodologies that are linked with this field of knowledge

1. The scientific knowledge of reality. The philosophical foundations of scientific research: ontology, epistemology, methodology and axiology. The scientific character of the Social Sciences 2. Discussions on the scientific method. Laws, hypotheses, models, theories and paradigms. Causality in the Social Sciences. Understanding, explanation and prediction. Objectivity and subjectivity 3. Methodology, methods and research techniques: concepts and types. Information sources. Methodological pluralism and triangulation 4. The research process (I). How to design an investigation based on the chosen epistemological and methodological premises. The identification of the object of study, the formulation of objectives, hypotheses and / or research questions. Cases and units of analysis 5. The research process (II). Determining information needs: what data is needed and what should be determined to make informed decisions. The search for prior knowledge: detection and treatment of secondary sources. Techniques and instruments for the collection of data. Fieldwork 6. The research process (III). Processing, analysis and interpretation of results. The development and presentation of conclusions in scientific research

The sections will be devoted to the development of the "practical logic" of how to write a research design paper in Political Science