Prof Torun Dewan

This course is compulsory on the MSc in Political Science (Political Science and Political Economy). This course is available on the MRes/PhD in Political Science, MSc in Political Science (Political Behaviour) and MSc in Public Policy and Administration. This course is available with permission as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit. This course uses controlled access as part of the course selection process. For information on controlled access courses, including eligibility, application processes, deadlines, and departmental contact details, please refer to the Controlled Access Courses webpage.

How to apply: To apply for a place on this course, please submit a short statement of no more than 200 words via LfY. Your statement should outline your reasons for applying and explain how the course will support your academic and/or career goals. If applicable, you should also demonstrate how you meet any pre-requisites listed in the course guide. If the course is compulsory for your programme, no written statement is required.

Priority for places on Government (GV) courses will be given first to students for whom the course is compulsory. Where applicable, priority will then be given to students on the Department of Government programmes listed in the ‘Availability’ section of the course guide, followed by students on other programmes listed in that section. Students on all other programmes will be considered next, where a course is available as an outside option. You should ensure that you meet any pre-requisites listed in the course guide before applying. Places on capped courses cannot be guaranteed. Where a course is oversubscribed, places will be allocated based on programme priority and the written statement.

Deadline for applications: The deadline for applications is 12:00 noon on Friday 25 September 2026. You can expect to be informed of the outcome of your application by 12:00 noon on Monday 28 September 2026. Any places remaining after this date will be allocated based on priority and written statement - up until course selection closes.

For queries contact: gov.msc@lse.ac.uk.

Students enrolled on the Political Science and Political Economy stream of the MSc in Political Science will be granted priority access as this is a compulsory course on the programme. Other postgraduates wanting to take the course (space permitting) require the permission of the teacher/s responsible.

Game theory provides a scientific approach to the study of social interactions which focusses on the strategic aspects of decision-making between two or more individuals or groups. This course will cover the basic elements of game theory and how they have been applied in the area of political science and political economy. The aim of the course is to provide a deeper understanding of game theoretic tools and to help you understand how these ideas have been developed and applied in the political science literature. The course will be divided into looking at static games where all players move simultaneously and the dynamic games where players move in sequence. We will also analyse simple settings where all information is known to all players (complete information) and then move to more complex settings where some information is not known to all players (incomplete information).

20 hours of lectures and 20 hours of seminars in the Autumn Term.

This course has a reading week in Week 6 of Autumn Term.

Mock exam in Autumn Term Week 11.

Problem sets weekly.

Weekly problem sets to be completed and discussed in class and a two-hour mock exam in Week 11 of AT.

The core text for the course is M J Osborne, An Introduction to Game Theory, Oxford University Press 2004.

Exam (50%), duration: 120 Minutes in the January exam period.

Problem sets (25%) in Autumn Term Week 6.

Problem sets (25%) in Winter Term Week 1.