Departmental Information

POLITICAL SCIENCE (POL)

The Department of Political Science offers courses on the philosophies, processes, organizations, methods, and policies of government and related political institutions. These courses focus on government and politics in the United States and foreign countries and also on how governments of different nations relate to one another. Political science instruction is useful for pursuing careers in government, politics, law, business, education, journalism, and the media.

The major: The department is divided into six substantive areas or fields of study:

(1) American Political Institutions, (2) Political Behavior, (3) Law and Public Policy, (4) Political Theory, (5) Comparative Politics, and (6) International Relations. Undergraduate majors must take courses from five of these six areas.