This course aims to examine critically the major concepts and theories of public administration within a comparative framework. It compares the European model with those of other countries such as USA, China and other Asian countries. Case studies from those countries will be used in lectures, tutorials, and as research foci for students. Problems in the stages of policy formulation and implementation will be studied with emphasis on two major variables, the civil service and the legitimating ideology of the state concerned. Comparative policy formulation, implementation, ethics, problems, and politics-bureaucracy relations will be discussed with a specific reference to its application in the Hong Kong settings.