Biology - Major in Biology Program

Required Courses:
Foundational Courses:
POL 101 Introduction to Political Science

This course provides an introduction to the discipline of Political Science. It provides an overview of the major fields within the discipline: American national government; international relations, comparative government, and political theory. Fulfills requirement: Civic Engagement. 3 credits.

POL 120 Law and Society

This course provides an overview of the ways law shapes societies under a variety of democratic and authoritarian systems of government. Democracies pride themselves on a legal system that provides stability and equality of opportuniy. Authoritarian systems likewise use the law to reshape society, often in arbitrary ways that punish certain groups systematically. Fulfills requirement: Civic Engagement. 3 credits.

POL 201 American Government

American government shapes much of our lives, yet is poorly understood. This course provides an introduction to the theory, practice, evolution and controversies of American government. Fulfills requirement: Civic Engagement. 3 credits.

POL 245 International Relations

This course uses the levels of analysis approach to understand international politics and theories in international relations to draw connections between concepts and world issues. Fulfills requirement: Critical Thinking through Writing. 3 credits.

POL 345 Philosophical Foundations of Politics

Students in this course study the development of Western political thought from Classical Greece to modern times, examining the conceptual evolution of citizenship, civic obligation, and the nature of justice and exploring the connection between moral and positive law in the western tradition. Prerequisite: Sophomore standing or permission of the instructor. 3 credits.

Methods Courses:
POL 370 Research Statistics in Political Science

Students will learn various qualitative and quantitative research methods in political science and how to write an empirical research design. Fulfills requirement: Quantitative Reasoning. Prerequisite: SOC 300. 3 credits. (This course is cross-listed with SOC 301)

SOC 300 Research Methods in Social Science

Experiential-based course covering fundamental concepts and problems in social science research. Topics include ethics or research on human behavior, design, measurement, sampling, and interviewing and questionnaire construction. There is an emphasis on four research methods: available data, survey research, experiments, and field research. Prerequisite: SOC 110 and 9 credits of Sociology at the 200-level or higher, or 6 credits of Political Science Courses at the 200-level or higher. 3 credits. (This course is cross-listed with CRJ 300)

Four courses from the following (with at least 1 course at or above the 300-level):

POL 210 Topics in Comparative Politics

This is an introduction to the study of comparative politics: the comparison of political systems in order to understand how and why these systems function differently. The course is built around three fundamental questions: What is comparative politics? What kinds of phenomena do we compare? What are the major theoretical approaches that guide our studies? We also examine distinctions between the "developing" and the "developed" worlds, and between authoritarian and democratic political regimes. The last half of the semester is devoted to the study of individual country case studies, with an emphasis on those in Africa, Latin America, Asia and the Middle East. Fulfills requirement: Social Scientific Inquiry,Human Diversity. This course satisfies a requirement of the College Honors program. Enrollment is open to all majors. 3 credits. (This course is cross-listed with HIS 253)

POL 259 State and Local Government

Under our federal system, state governments are the laboratories of democracy. This course explores the consitutional, political, and policy dynamics of state and local government, with special emphasis on Pennsylvania. 3 credits.

POL 265 Public Policy Analysis

The process of public policy making. This course provides an introduction to the policy process, focusing on the bureaucracy, legislators, special interest, nongovernmental organizations and other stakeholders who play a role in the public policy development and implementation. Prerequisite: POL 110 or permission of the instructor. 3 credits.

POL 275 Human Rights

This course develops an understanding of the practice of global human rights. This course is taught every other summer at Maastricht University in the Netherlands. 3 credits.

POL 290
POL 312 United States Foreign Policy

This course examines the domestic interests, values, and political institutions and international forces and pressures that shape the conduct of United States foreign policy. Fulfills requirement: Critical Thinking through Writing. Prerequisites: Sophomore standing or permission of the instructor. 3 credits.

POL 316 Civil Liberties and Civil Rights

This course uses key cases to study important doctrines established by the Supreme Court with regard to civil rights and civil liberties. Students will examine the Court's rulings concerning the establishment and free exercise of religion, protection of freedom of speech and of the press, privacy rights (abortion and sexual freedom), the rights of the accused in the criminal justice system, and the law governing racial or sexual discrimination. The course places particular emphasis on various forms of textual interpretation used by individual justices to apply the Constitution in deciding cases and writing opinions. Prerequisites: Sophomore standing or permission of the instructor. LAW 215 recommended. 3 credits. (This course is cross-listed with LAW 316)

POL 352 Introduction to Public Administration

This course focuses on the federal bureaucracy and the interrelationship between the three branches of government. The mission of governmental agencies are examined and the roles of various actors, such as political appointees, career professionals, civil servants, and others play in the management of the various federal agencies. The internal and external forces that drive the mission of the agencies are examined. 3 credits.

POL 380 European Union Simulation

This course offers an enriching, hands-on, interdisciplinary exploration of the dynamic processes of policy formation in the core institutions of the European Union. Near the end of the semester, students participate in the simulation in Washington D.C., organized by the Mid-Atlantic European Union Simulation Consortium (MEUSC). This experiential learning program endeavors to connect American students to EU policy makers and policy making in a unique way, utilizing the simulation experience to bridge the gap between the academic study of the EU and the actual political processes of the European Union. Students engage in discussions and debates about the EU that are current and topical in EU decision-making circles. A distinct theme is chosen as the focus of the simulation each year. Fulfills requirement: Immersive Experience. This course may be repeated for credit as topic changes. Prerequisite: Junior or senior standing. Course may be repeated for credit. This course satisfies a requirement of the College Honors program. Enrollment is open to all majors. 3 credits.

POL 390 Special Topics in Political Science

Topic announced at the time of registration. This course may be repeated for credit as topic changes. 3 credits.

POL 400 Internship

Field experience in a political science environment. Fulfills requirement: Immersive Experience. May be repeated for credit (up to 12 credits of internship may be counted toward the degree). Prerequisite: GPA of 2.50 in major and permission of department chair. Students taking more than six internship credits in politics please note: POL 400 may count for no more than two elective courses in the POL major. 1-12 credits.

POL 500 Independent Study

Independent study in Political Science. This course may be repeated for credit as topic changes. Requires completion of independent activity form to register. 1-3 credits.

POL 550 Advanced Research

Advanced Research. Fulfills requirement: Immersive Experience. This course may be repeated for credit as topic changes. Requires completion of independent activity form to register. 1-3 credits.