The Political Science BA Program: Academic Requirements

In addition to meeting general degree requirements, all political science majors must complete a minimum of nine courses with a grade of C or higher and an 8-credit senior project (40–45 credits total) as follows:

1. POL 1570/Introduction to U.S. Politics (3 credits; freshman year)
2. POL 2170/Political Theory I or
   POL 2180/Political Theory II (4 credits; sophomore year)
3. POL 3500/Research in Political Science (4 credits; junior year)
4. An economics course (4 credits)
5. Two courses in U.S. politics and law, 2000-level or above (6–8 credits)
6. Three courses in comparative politics and international relations, 2000-level or above (9–12 credits)
7. POL 4885 and 4890/Political Science Senior Seminar I and II (2 credits)
8. POL 4990/Senior Project (must be taken for two semesters; 8 credits)

Note: In addition, students are expected to take courses appropriate to their specific interests in political science in order to fulfill degree requirements for upper-level coursework.

Optional Concentrations
New and reinstated courses may be added to the lists in the following concentrations. Students should consult their advisor to determine whether a new or reinstated course counts toward a specific concentration.

Concentration 1: Islam and the Middle East (42–47 credits)
Political science majors who declare a concentration in Islam and the Middle East must fulfill requirements 1 through 8 listed above. In meeting requirement 6, students in this concentration select four courses from the following list:

POL 2105/Citizens Living Under Islamic Laws

POL 2115/Islam: Culture and Politics

POL 3240/Gender Politics and Islam

POL 3430/Politics of South Asia

POL 3740/The Middle East

Concentration 2: Human Rights (42–47 credits)
Political science majors who declare a concentration in human rights must fulfill requirements 1 through 8 listed above. In meeting requirements 5 and 6, students in this concentration select four courses from the following list:

POL 2080/Environmental Justice

POL 3235/Globalization, Development, and Poverty

POL 3245/Gender and Health: International Issues

POL 3307/Politics and Memoir

POL 3315/Constitutions and Rights: U.S. and China

POL 3361/Cuba, Latin America, and the U.S.

POL 3390/Democratization: Latin America

POL 3570/Human Rights

POL 3573/Human Rights and Literature

For updates during 2013–2015, please visit www.purchase.edu/
departments/AcademicPrograms/LAS/socsci/PoliticalScience/
AcademicRequirements.aspx.

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