The online Bachelor of Science in Political Science is a liberal arts program requiring 120 credits for completion. Admission to the major requires a grade of "C" or better in MATH 110 or MATH 140 and a grade of B or better in PLSC 309. These courses must be completed by the end of the semester during which the admission-to-major process occurs. A grade of "C" or better is required for all remaining courses in this major.
Courses
Course List — Bachelor of Science in Political Science
| Title | Abbreviation | Description | Credits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scientific Study of Politics | PLSC 010 | This course introduces students to both the scientific study of politics and the way that study advances our understanding of political actors, events, processes, and institutions. | 3 credits |
| Introduction to Political Research | PLSC 308 | Introduction to conceptualization, research design, and measurement in political research. Prerequisite: any 3 credits in political science |
3 credits |
| Quantitative Political Analysis | PLSC 309 | Data analysis and statistical applications in political research, including data processing, inferential statistics, contingency analysis, correlation and regression, and multivariate analysis. Prerequisite: any 3 credits in political science |
3 credits |
|
Introduction to Programming or Introduction to Programming Techniques |
CMPSC 101 or CMPSC 121 |
Fundamentals of computational thinking, including reasoning about problems at multiple levels of abstraction; and analyzing code for its behavior, efficiency, and correctness. or Design and implementation of algorithms. Structured programming. Problem-solving techniques. Introduction to a high-level language, including arrays, procedures, and recursion. Prerequisite: MATH 110 or prerequisite or concurrent MATH 140 |
3 credits |
|
Techniques of Calculus or Calculus With Analytic Geometry I |
MATH 110 or MATH 140 |
Functions, graphs, derivatives, integrals, techniques of differentiation and integration, exponentials, improper integrals, applications. Prerequisite: MATH 022 or MATH 40 or MATH 41 or satisfactory performance on the mathematics placement examination or Functions, limits; analytic geometry; derivatives, differentials, applications; integrals, applications. Prerequisite: MATH 22 and/or MATH 26 and satisfactory performance on the mathematics placement examination or MATH 40 or MATH 41 or satisfactory performance on the mathematics placement examination. |
4 credits |
| Title | Abbreviation | Description | Credits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Introduction to American National Government | PLSC 001 | Introduction to development and nature of American political culture, constitution/structural arrangements, electoral/policy processes; sources of conflict and consensus. | 3 credits |
| Introduction to Comparative Politics | PLSC 003 | Introduction to study of comparative government and politics: normative/empirical theories; government functions in modern societies; representative structures and processes. | 3 credits |
| Contemporary Political Ideologies | PLSC 007N | Critical analysis of contemporary political ideologies such as liberalism, conservatism, socialism, anarchism, fascism, feminism, and environmentalism. | 3 credits |
| International Relations | PLSC 014 | Characteristics of modern nation-states and forces governing their international relations; nationalism; imperialism; diplomacy; current problems of war and peace. | 3 credits |
| Introduction to Political Theory | PLSC 017N | Introduction to basic issues in political theory through analysis of selected major political thinkers. | 3 credits |
| Title | Abbreviation | Description | Credits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Analyzing of Public Policy in the American States | PLSC 404 | This course provides students with the tools to empirically evaluate policy proposals and outcomes in the American states. Prerequisite: PL SC 001, PL SC 309 (concurrent) |
3 credits |
| Analysis of Elections | PLSC 429 | The new politics, its technology, and the strategic perspectives that underlie it. Prerequisite: PL SC 001, PL SC 309 |
3 credits |
| Analysis of Public Opinion and Political Attitudes | PLSC 447 | This course engages students in the empirical study of public opinion. Prerequisite: PL SC 001, PL SC 309 |
3 credits |
| Empirical Legal Studies | PLSC 476 | This course engages students in the empirical study of law and the courts. Prerequisite: PL SC 001, PL SC 309 |
3 credits |
| Title | Abbreviation | Description | Credits |
|---|---|---|---|
|
International Political Economy |
PLSC 412 |
The transnational politics of trade, investment, aid, raw materials, and the environment; nation-states, multinational corporations, and the U.N. Prerequisite: ECON 102, ECON 104 or I B 303 |
3 credits |
| International Relations Theory | PLSC 418W | A survey of traditional and contemporary conceptual frameworks and theoretical approaches for the analysis of international relations. Prerequisite: PL SC 014 |
3 credits |
| The Politics of Terrorism | PLSC 439 | Analysis of political terrorism as a violent alternative for peaceful change and traditional warfare in the nuclear age. Prerequisite: CRIMJ 100 or PL SC 014 or permission of program |
3 credits |
| American Foreign Policy | PLSC 442 | Principles of American foreign policy; processes of policy formulation; roles of the President, Congress, the State Department, and other government agencies. Prerequisite: PL SC 014 |
3 credits |
|
Politics and Institutions of Latin-American Nations |
PLSC 456 | Social forces and processes, governmental institutions, foreign policies of major states of Latin America. Prerequisite: PL SC 003 or PL SC 20/200N |
3 credits |
|
International Relations of the Middle East |
PLSC 467 |
The international relations of the Middle East, stressing national security policies of regional and outside actors, and major contemporary conflicts. Prerequisite: PL SC 014 or HIST 181 |
3 credits |
| Politics and the Media | PL SC 468 | An examination of how politics and public policy affect and are shaped by the news media, as a political institution, in America. Prerequisite: PL SC 001 or PL SC 003 |
3 credits |
| American Constitutional Law | PLSC 471 | The origins of judicial review, landmark decisions of the Supreme Court, and their impact on the American form of government. Prerequisite: PL SC 001 |
3 credits |
| The American Legal Process | PLSC 472 | Analysis of the roles, procedures, and policies characterizing the American legal system. Prerequisite: PL SC 001 |
3 credits |
|
American Judicial Behavior |
PLSC 473 |
Analyzes behavior of judges and other participants in the legal process; examines how and why courts function as policymaking bodies. Prerequisite: PL SC 001 |
3 credits |
| Congress and the Presidency | PLSC 480W | Basic characteristics and processes of the national legislature and executive; roles and interaction of these institutions in the policy process. Prerequisite: PL SC 001 |
3 credits |
| Policy-Making and Evaluation | PLSC 490 | Advanced analysis of public policy, emphasizing policy evaluation and the factors that determine policy success and failure. Prerequisite: PL SC 001 |
3 credits |
| Title | Abbreviation | Description | Credits |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Strategy and Politics |
PLSC 410 |
Introduction to various methods of analyzing strategic behavior using social choice and game theories. Prerequisite: PL SC 001, PL SC 003, or PL SC 014 |
3 credits |
| Analysis of Variance | STAT 461 | Analysis of variance for single and multifactor designs; response surface methodology. Prerequisite: STAT 200 or PL SC 309 |
3 credits |
| Applied Regression Analysis | STAT 462 | Introduction to linear and multiple regression; correlation; choice of models, stepwise regression, nonlinear regression. Prerequisite: STAT 200 or PL SC 309 |
3 credits |
| Applied Time Series Analysis | STAT 463 | Identification of models for empirical data collected over time; use of models in forecasting. Prerequisite: STAT 462 |
3 credits |
| Survey Sampling | STAT 466 | Introduction to design and analysis of sample surveys, including questionnaire design, data collection, sampling methods, and ratio and regression estimation. Prerequisite: STAT 200 or PL SC 309 |
3 credits |
| Applied Statistics | STAT 500 |
Descriptive statistics, hypothesis testing, power, estimation, confidence intervals, regression, one- and 2-way ANOVA, Chi-square tests, diagnostics. Prerequisite: PLSC 309 and department and graduate school approval required. |
3 credits |
| Demographic Techniques | SOC 573 |
Models and measures of vital processes (fertility, mortality, migration) and their effects on growth and age structure of human populations. Prerequisite: PLSC 309 and department and graduate school approval required. |
3 credits |
| Data, GIS, and Applied Demography | APDEM 802 |
This course provides an overview of key demographic data sets, and promotes familiarity with, and appropriate use of, these data. Prerequisite: PLSC 309 and department and graduate school approval required. |
3 credits |
| Title | Description | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Capstone | Select 3 credits from LA 495, or PLSC 494, 496, 404, 429, 447, or 476 (Sem: 7–8) | 3 credits |
Supporting and Related Area Courses
Select 12 credits from a department-approved list of courses in the arts, humanities, languages, social and behavioral sciences, natural sciences, and related fields in consultation with your adviser. Students can take a range of courses across disciplines or concentrate their selection to complete a minor in a supporting field.* (Semesters 1–8)
| Subject | Course Numbers |
|---|---|
| Communication | COMM 403, 405, 409, 410 |
| Communication Arts and Sciences | CAS 404, 452, 455, 475 |
| Criminology 482 or Criminal Justice | CRIMJ 304, 435, 465 |
| Economics | all ECON courses at the 300-level and above |
| Geography | all GEOG courses at the 300-level and above |
| History | all HIST courses at the 400-level and above |
| Political Science | all PLSC courses at the 300-level and above |
| Psychology | all PSYCH courses at the 400-level and above |
| Sociology | all SOC courses at the 400-level and above |
| Information Science and Technology | IST 235, 250 |
* Courses used to satisfy Required or Supporting and Related Area requirements may not be double-counted as General Education or electives.
Course Availability
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