Undergraduate Academic Programs
Graduate Academic Programs
International Exchange & Language Programs
General University Information
Course Listing
UM Home > Academic Bulletin > Undergraduate Academic Programs > Arts & Sciences > Political Science

Academic Bulletin

College of Arts & Sciences - Undergraduate

POLITICAL SCIENCE

Major | Minor | Honors

The Department of Political Science offers a wide selection of courses and activities adapted to the needs of students who contemplate careers in law, government, media, and public service at various levels. These courses will also benefit those in related vocations.

MAJOR

The major in the Department of Political Science consists of at least 30 credits for students enrolled in the College of Arts and Sciences; for those in the School of Business Administration, the major is at least 27 credits. Students in the School of Communication and Education may also major (double major) in Political Science (at least 30 credits). Six credits must be taken in departmental core courses, namely, POL 211 and 212. At least 21 of these must be taken in residence. The remaining credits must meet the following distributional requirements:

1) Six of the credits must come from the following designated courses:

Choose six (6) credits:
POL 510
Political Analysis
POL 522
Introduction to Graduate Public Administration
POL 531
Global Environmental Politics
POL 535
Courts as Political Institutions
POL 537
The Law and Politics of Sports
POL 540
Problems in American Foreign Policy
POL 541
Philosophy of Law
POL 542
American Constitutional Development
POL 543
Urban Politics
POL 544
Chinese Foreign Policy
POL 545
Environmental Policymaking
POL 546
Public Policy
POL 547
Congressional Representation
POL 551
Productivity in the Public and Non-Profit Sectors
POL 553
The Environmental Movement: Groups, Beliefs and Values
POL 554
Social Welfare Policy
POL 555
Total Quality Public Service Management: Achieving High Performance Government
POL 580
The Politics of Post-Communist Transitions
POL 581
Comparative Political Economy of Post-Industrial Democracies
POL 582
Political Economy of Latin American Development
POL 584
Contemporary Latin American Politics
POL 585
Political Movements in Latin America
POL 586
Conflict in the Middle East and Africa
POL 588
Politics in China
POL 591
Problems in International Politics and Organization
POL 592
International Political Economy
POL 593
International Relations of the Middle East
POL 595
North-South Relations

2) At least one course must be taken in three of the following four principal sub-fields of political science:

American Politics
Comparative Politics
International Relations
Public Administration, Policy, and Law.

These can include courses used to fulfill requirement number one above.

For the purposes of fulfilling these distribution requirements, subfields are defined as follows:

Choose one course from each of the four subfields to total four (4) courses:
American Politics
POL 314
Legislative Process
POL 315
American Presidency
POL 332
Politics and the Media
POL 334
Campaigns
POL 335
Local Government
POL 342
State and Local Government and Politics
POL 343
Government in Metropolitan Areas
POL 349
U. S. Defense Policy
POL 351
Public Opinion
POL 352
Political Parties and Pressure Groups
POL 510
Political Analysis
POL 520
Internship
POL 521
Public Affairs Internship
POL 535
Courts as Political Institutions
POL 543
Urban Politics
POL 547
Congressional Representation
POL 553
The Environmental Movement: Groups, Beliefs and Values
Comparative Politics
POL 380
Comparative Political Analysis
POL 381
European Governments and Politics
POL 382
Government and Politics of the Federal Republic of Germany
POL 383
Government and Politics of the United Kingdom
POL 384
Soviet and Russian Politics
POL 385
Politics and Society in Latin America
POL 387
Politics of the Middle East
POL 388
Politics of Israel
POL 531
Global Environmental Politics
POL 580
The Politics of Post-Communist Transitions
POL 581
Comparative Political Economy of Post-Industrial Democracies
POL 582
Political Economy of Latin American Development
POL 584
Contemporary Latin American Politics
POL 585
Political Movements in Latin America
POL 588
Politics in China
International Relations
POL 337
International Law
POL 345
The United States and Asia
POL 346
U.S. - Latin American Relations
POL 347
American Foreign Policy
POL 348
United States Relations with the Middle East
POL 349
U.S. Defense Policy
POL 391
Introduction to International Relations
POL 392
International Terrorism
POL 531
Global Environmental Politics
POL 540
Problems in American Foreign Policy
POL 544
Chinese Foreign Policy
POL 586
Conflict in the Middle East and Africa
POL 591
Problems in International Politics and Organization
POL 592
International Political Economy
POL 593
International Relations of the Middle East
POL 595
North-South Relations
Public Administration, Policy, and Law
POL 305
Introduction to Political Theory
POL 321
Public Policy and Administration
POL 322
Environmental Politics and Policy
POL 336
Politics of Crime
POL 337
International Law
POL 372
Introduction to Criminal Justice
POL 373
Constitutional Law I
POL 374
Constitutional Law II
POL 375
Supreme Court Issues
POL 376
Discrimination and the Law
POL 377
Constitutional Law III
POL 397
Policy for Urban Systems
POL 501
Budget and Financial Management and Administration
POL 521
Public Affairs Internship
POL 522
Introduction to Graduate Public Administration
POL 535
Courts as Political Institutions
POL 537
The Law and Politics of Sports
POL 541
Philosophy of Law
POL 542
American Constitutional Development
POL 545
Environmental Policymaking
POL 546
Public Policy
POL 551
Productivity in the Public and Non-Profit Sectors
POL 554
Social Welfare Policy
POL 555
Total Quality Public Service Management: Achieving High Performance Government

The following courses cannot be used to fulfill the 6-credit requirement at 500 level, although they do count toward the major and minor:

POL 501
Budget and Financial Management and Administration
POL 520
Internship
POL 521
Public Affairs Internship
POL 563
Senior Honors Thesis (I)
POL 564
Senior Honors Thesis (II)
POL 599
Directed Readings
NOTE: POL 213 does not count toward the major or minor.

Back to top

minor

The minor consists of at least 15 credits, at least nine (9) of which must be taken in residence.

To count toward a major or minor, each course must be completed with a grade of C- or higher, with an overall GPA of 2.0 or higher.

A special curriculum for students specializing in public administration enables them to complete the requirements for Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Public Administration in five years.

For graduate work in Political Science, see the Bulletin of the Graduate School. Courses at the 600 level are not open to undergraduates.

Back to top

HONORS

The Political Science Department participates in the General Honors and Departmental Honors Programs. Interested students are requested to contact the Department Chair for details about these programs.

UM Home
UM Home Academic Bulletin Home askUM Calendar myUM Site Map