The Sequence of Courses In the Political Science Major
The Department of Political Science has taken great care to structure its courses to create an integrated learning experience for students. The knowledge and skills developed in certain courses are prerequisites for the additional skills acquired in upper level courses. The result is that political science graduates are ready to advance to the top graduate and law schools in the world or to begin careers in high levels of government and politics.
While the sequence suggested here is not entirely rigid (you may choose to switch courses within a given year or to take several of these courses in the same semester), care should be taken in enrolling for required courses in the major so that the following sequence is roughly followed.
Freshman Year Courses: POL 161: American National Government
POL 171: Introduction to Political Science
Sophomore Year Courses: POL 250: International Relations
POL 300: Political Science Methodology
Junior Year Courses: POL 315: Comparative Politics
POL 345: Public Policy-Making
POL 344: Public Administration*
Senior Year Courses: POL 468: Political Thought
POL 460: Senior Seminar
*POL 344 is required only for students seeking the B.S. degree.
The major requires 33 hours in Political Science courses. This means that B.S. students may take 9 hours in political science electives in addition to these requirements. B.A. students may take 12 hours in political science electives.