B.A. in Political Science Requirements
B.A. in Political Science Requirements
Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science :
Students must complete the general requirements of the College of Arts and Sciences and the required courses listed below.
Required Courses and Semester Credit
The following requirements apply to students who declare a Political Science major in fall 2016 and thereafter
12 credit hours total
| PSCI 1101 | Introduction to American Politics |
| PSCI 2012 | Introduction to Comparative Politics |
| PSCI 2223 | Introduction to International Relations |
| PSCI 2004 | Survey of Western Political Thought |
Required Lower Division Empirical Theory/Methodology course (3 credits)
| PSCI 2075 | Quantitative Research Methods |
Required Upper Division Empirical Theory/Methodology course – Choose one course listed here (3 credits), and please note PSCI 2075 is a required pre-requisite (minimum grade C-).
| PSCI 3105 | Designing Social Inquiry |
| PSCI 3205 | Research Workshop |
| PSCI 3155 | Survey Design and Analysis |
| PSCI 3225 | Strategy and Politics |
| PSCI 3075 | Applied Political Science Research |
One course in four of the six primary fields. (12 Credit Hours Total)
| American Politics | Course Ending in "1" |
| Comparative Politics | Course Ending in "2" |
| International Relations | Course Ending in "3" |
| Political Theory | Course Ending in "4" |
| Methodology | Course Ending in "5" |
| Public Policy | Course Ending in "6" |
Note that the course used to fulfill the Upper Division Empirical Theory and Research Methodology requirement (PSCI 3075, PSCI 3105, PSCI 3155, PSCI 3205 or PSCI 3225) can not also count towards the upper division distribution requirement for the Emperical Theory/Research Methodology field. To fill the Emperical Theory/Research Methodology field as part of the UD distribution requirement, an additional upper division course ending in "5" must be taken.
12 credit hours total.
| Upper Division | 9 Credit Hours |
| Upper or Lower Division | 3 Credit Hours |
Courses: Click here to be redirected to the Political Science Course lists for upcoming semesters
Total Hours in Political Science Courses: 42 Credit Hours
- No courses for the PSCI major may be taken pass/fail. Except for Spring 2020 courses that were taken as P/F
- A student must have a grade of C- or better in all 42 required hours in Political Science and a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or better in Political Science courses.
- No more than 45 credits in Political Science credit will count toward the Arts and Sciences graduations requirement of 120 credits (Core Curriculum) or 124 hours (College List). This may be exceeded by 6 credits (for a total of 51 credits), provided that the excess credits are taken in PSCI 4715 and PSCI 4725 (honors thesis credit). All P+ and P grades earned by students in Spring 2020 will count in credit totals, but neither will calculate in the term or cumulative GPA.
Note: For students who declared a Political Science major prior to Fall 2016 the requirement includes ancillary course ECON 2010 Microeconomics (4 credits), which must be completed with a grade of C- or better, instead of the required second methods course.