The program on Political Economy and Global Social Change (PEGSC) is a specialization within the Graduate Program at the University of California, Riverside.  The specialization focuses on classical and contemporary political economy, social and revolutionary movements, political instability, such as civil wars and military coups d’état in the Post Soviet Era, and the historical development of social systems.

Political Economy includes the works of Karl Marx, Max Weber, and Karl Polanyi as well as contemporary research and theories in economic and political sociology and studies of transformations of modes of accumulation.  The emphasis in revolutions and social movements includes organizational instruments and strategies as well as the institutional contexts of struggles, along with underlying causes and consequences of rebellion.  The historical development of social systems includes comparative and historical sociology, social evolution and studies of global social change in deep contemporary perspective.
Our program brings together a diverse and exciting range of faculty interests: world cities, ethnic entrepreneurship, international migration, global democracy, global commodity chains, social movements, class analysis, civil society, public policy, workers’ cooperatives, and political violence across the world.  We provide unique opportunities for students to explore  cutting-edge theoretical, methodological, and substantive issues by breaking interdisciplinary boundaries.