Political Science, B.S.

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Political Science Major

Concentration in Political Science
Concentration in Public Administration and Public Service

All requirements for political science majors are outlined below. In addition to the core of required courses, all students must complete course work in one of the two concentrations.

Core Curriculum Requirements (43-45 credits)

In College Core B , all majors in programs in the College of Humanities and Behavioral Sciences are required to pass a second course in Social and Behavioral Sciences; i.e., CHBS majors cannot fulfill College Core B requirements with a Health and Wellness course.

Required Departmental Core (12 credits)

Concentration (21-30 credits)

See below.

B.A./B.S. Requirements (6-12 Credits)

See below.

Electives

Students should consult with their academic advisors in selecting elective courses to complete 120 semester hours required for graduation.

Total Credits Needed for Degree 120

Concentrations

Concentration in Political Science (21 credits)

Students must complete one upper-level course (other than POSC 485 , POSC 488 , POSC 490 , or POSC 498 ) in each of the following areas: American Government (AG), Comparative Government (CG), International Relations (IR), and Political Theory (PT). In addition, students must complete either POSC 490 , Seminar, or POSC 491 - Scope and Methods in Political Science (PT) . The total hours earned in political science must be a minimum of 33.

Concentration in Public Administration and Public Service (30 credits)

Students must complete

and one of the following AG courses:

Note(s):

Students also complete one upper-level course (other than POSC 485 , POSC 488 , POSC 490 , or POSC 498 ) in each of the following areas: Comparative Government (CG), International Relations (IR), and Political Theory (PT). In addition, students must complete both POSC 490 , Seminar (preferably on a Public Administration topic, which may then be counted toward the 15 hours in the concentration field), and POSC 491 - Scope and Methods in Political Science (PT) . The total hours earned in political science must be a minimum of 42.

B.S. Requirements (6 credits)

Bachelor of Science requirements for political science majors consist of six semester hours chosen from the following:

Note(s):

Students should consult with their academic advisors to determine which degree option best suits their needs. The department strongly encourages students to take a foreign language, but also recognizes that there is no one program of study that is equally suited to every student. Regardless of whether students pursue the Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree, they are encouraged to include some of the above courses in their elective curricula.

Graduation Requirements

To graduate with a major in Political Science, a student must have a grade point average of 2.0 or higher in all courses taken with a POSC prefix.

Teaching Licensure

Students wishing to teach government at the secondary level should declare a social science major Social Science, B.A. and/or Social Science, B.S. ). To strengthen credentials as a government teacher, students should consider a double major in both social science and political science.