A major in political science is designed to prepare students to be sophisticated citizens, ready to analyze and appreciate political life in the United States and around the world. Political science is the study of power and influence in society, especially as these concepts relate to issues of governance and behavior. Classes cover a wide variety of topics, including political parties and interest groups, voting behavior, political change and development, comparative political systems, international conflict and law, national security, public policy, constitutional law, and political philosophy. Students will also gain experience with a variety of techniques for analyzing data which stand them in good stead for a variety of careers.
Majors tend to seek employment in government service, education, business, journalism, or law.
This distribution of courses permits students to develop broad competence in political science and in-depth competence in one of the fields of the discipline. Students must complete a minimum of 12 credits in a CAS-related area such as anthropology, economics, history, or sociology, and 12 credits in a focused area of study approved by the department, such as Latin American studies, West European studies, etc. The department does not require a foreign language beyond the CAS requirements. However, students planning on graduate school in political science should check the requirements of the schools they are interested in. The required courses offer practical information and experience in addition to the more theoretical and analytical course work of the regular major.