Policy Review @Berkeley is a student-led, interdisciplinary journal designed for students of all academic disciplines to reflect on and write about the policy implications in their fields of interest. This journal’s mission is to make policy easily accessible and understandable for undergraduates from varying disciplines and personal backgrounds. The Policy Review @Berkeley DeCal course is designed to help students build academic writing, policy-making, and analysis skills through comprehensive writing and thought-provoking simulations.

Each semester, the Decal focuses on a certain theme. Following last issue’s theme of “the aftermath” in which students examined the process and consequences of making policy decisions with little preparation, we have decided to reflect on the changing role of media within policy over the course of the last few decades. From former President Trump’s notorious tweets to media output during the COVID-19 pandemic, we will reflect on the ways in which old and new media have shaped public policy.

You should develop a foundational policy making and policy analysis skills through interviews, simulations, and academic writing assignments. You should be able to engage with elementary policy analysis, learn basic policy research skills, strengthen their academic writing, interviewing and literature review skills, and build public policy journaling skills. Students in the past have gone on to become facilitators of this course themselves.

Enrollment is on a first come, first serve basis. Please come to the first class on Wednesday, February 9 at 6:30pm in Social Sciences Building 56 to receive an enrollment code for the course. Please fill out the linked interest form to receive more information about the first class!