Political Science Major, Bachelor of Arts (BA)
The 72-credit major is designed for those with a more concentrated interest in government who do not wish to complete a structured minor or who may be interested in graduate study in political science.
There is an 82-credit Pre-law Option, within the 72-credit major, designed for students interested in law school or work as a paralegal.
Note: two years of a single high school world language or one year of a single college-level world language is required.
| Required Introductory Courses | ||
| POLI 100 | INTRODUCTION TO US POLITICS | 5 |
| POLI 202 | INTRODUCTION TO POLITICAL THEORY | 5 |
| POLI 203 | INTRODUCTION TO COMPARATIVE POLITICS | 5 |
| POLI 204 | INTRODUCTION TO INTERNATIONAL POLITICS | 5 |
| Required Disciplinary Core | ||
| POLI 300 | U.S. JUDICIAL PROCESS | 5 |
| or POLI 302 | CRIMINAL PROCEDURE | |
| POLI 313 | ANCIENT AND MEDIEVAL POLITICAL THOUGHT | 5 |
| or POLI 314 | MODERN WESTERN POLITICAL THOUGHT | |
| POLI 320 | INTERNATIONAL SYSTEMS | 5 |
| or POLI 321 | INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS | |
| or POLI 322 | INTERNATIONAL POLITICAL ECONOMY | |
| or POLI 323 | U.S. FOREIGN POLICY | |
| POLI 332 | THE U.S. PRESIDENCY | 5 |
| POLI 335 | U.S. CONGRESS | 5 |
| or POLI 336 | U.S. POLITICAL PARTIES AND ELECTIONS | |
| Required Senior Level Courses | ||
| POLI 490 | SENIOR CAPSTONE | 5 |
| POLI 493 | PORTFOLIO ASSESSMENT | 1-2 |
| Elective Requirements–choose two 300 level courses from two subfields and two 400 level courses below POLI 470 from two subfields | 20 | |
| Subfield Distribution Lists | ||
American Government and Politics | ||
| U.S. JUDICIAL PROCESS | ||
| CRIMINAL PROCEDURE | ||
| U.S. CIVIL RIGHTS AND LIBERTIES | ||
| JURISPRUDENCE | ||
| BASIC CONCEPTS OF CRIMINAL LAW | ||
| U.S. CONSTITUTIONAL SYSTEM | ||
| AMERICAN POLITICAL THOUGHT | ||
| FEDERALISM, STATE AND LOCAL POLITICS | ||
| THE U.S. PRESIDENCY | ||
| PUBLIC MANAGEMENT | ||
| U.S. CONGRESS | ||
| U.S. POLITICAL PARTIES AND ELECTIONS | ||
| STATE LEGISLATIVE POLITICS EXPERIENCE | ||
| MOCK TRIAL I | ||
| TOPICS IN AMERICAN POLITICS | ||
| MOCK TRIAL II | ||
International Relations/Comparative Politics | ||
| INTERNATIONAL SYSTEMS | ||
| INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS | ||
| INTERNATIONAL POLITICAL ECONOMY | ||
| U.S. FOREIGN POLICY | ||
| COMPARATIVE AND INTERNATIONAL WATER POLICY | ||
| EUROPEAN POLITICS | ||
| POLITICS OF DEVELOPMENT AND SUSTAINABILITY | ||
| POLITICS OF THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA | ||
| POLITICS OF SOUTH ASIA | ||
| TOPICS IN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND COMPARATIVE POLITICS | ||
Political Philosophy | ||
| JURISPRUDENCE | ||
| ANCIENT AND MEDIEVAL POLITICAL THOUGHT | ||
| MODERN WESTERN POLITICAL THOUGHT | ||
| AMERICAN POLITICAL THOUGHT | ||
| MARX AND MARXISM | ||
| NATIONS, NATIONALISM AND PATRIOTISM | ||
| TOPICS IN POLITICAL THEORY | ||
| Total Credits | 72 | |
Plan of Study
The following plan of study is for a student with zero credits. Individual students may have different factors such as: credit through transfer work, Advanced Placement, Running Start, or any other type of college-level coursework that requires an individual plan.
Courses may be offered in different terms and not all courses are offered every term, checking the academic schedule is paramount in keeping an individual plan current. There may be some courses that have required prerequisites not listed in the plan, review the course descriptions for information. Students should connect with an advisor to ensure they are on track to graduate.
All Undergraduate students are required to meet the Undergraduate Degree Requirements.
This major requires the completion of the World Language requirement. Students pursuing a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree must complete two years of a single language in high school or one year of a single language in college.
| First Year | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall Quarter | Credits | Winter Quarter | Credits | Spring Quarter | Credits |
| ENGL 101 | 5 | ENGL 201 | 5 | MATH 107 | 5 |
| POLI 100 (Social Science BACR 1) | 5 | POLI 202 (Social Science BACR 2) | 5 | POLI 203 (Global Studies - graduation requirement) | 5 |
| Humanities & Arts BACR 11 | 5 | Humanities & Arts BACR 21 | 5 | Natural Science BACR 11 | 5 |
| 15 | 15 | 15 | |||
| Second Year | |||||
| Fall Quarter | Credits | Winter Quarter | Credits | Spring Quarter | Credits |
| POLI 204 | 5 | POLI 300 or 302 | 5 | Political Science Elective2 | 5 |
| Political Science Elective2 | 5 | POLI 313 or 314 | 5 | Diversity - graduation requirement1 | 5 |
| Natural Science BACR 21 | 5 | Political Science Elective2 | 5 | Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective | 5 |
| 15 | 15 | 15 | |||
| Third Year | |||||
| Fall Quarter | Credits | Winter Quarter | Credits | Spring Quarter | Credits |
| POLI 335 or 336 | 5 | POLI 332 | 5 | POLI 320, 321, 322, or 323 | 5 |
| Political Science Elective2 | 5 | Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective | 5 | Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective | 5 |
| Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective | 5 | Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective | 5 | Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective | 5 |
| 15 | 15 | 15 | |||
| Fourth Year | |||||
| Fall Quarter | Credits | Winter Quarter | Credits | Spring Quarter | Credits |
| POLI 493 | 2 | Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective | 5 | POLI 490 (Senior Capstone - graduation requirement) | 5 |
| Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective | 5 | Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective | 5 | Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective | 5 |
| Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective | 5 | Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective | 5 | Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective | 5 |
| Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective | 3 | ||||
| 15 | 15 | 15 | |||
| Total Credits 180 | |||||
- 1
University Graduation Requirements (UGR) and Breadth Area Course Requirements (BACR) courses may be less than 5 credits and additional credits may be required to reach the required 180 total credits needed to graduate. Students should connect with an advisor to ensure they are on track to graduate.
- 2
Elective Requirements–choose two 300 level courses from two subfields and two 400 level courses below POLI 470 from two subfields.
University Competencies and Proficiencies
English
Quantitative and Symbolic Reasoning
Placement and Clearance
Prior Learning/Sources of Credit AP, CLEP, IB
General Education Requirements (GER)
- Minimum Credits—180 cumulative credit hours
- 60 upper-division credits (300 level or above)
- 45 credits in residence (attendance) at Eastern, with at least 15 upper-division credits in major in residence at Eastern
- Minimum Cumulative GPA ≥2.0
Breadth Area Core Requirements (BACR)
Humanities and Arts
Natural Sciences
Social Sciences
University Graduation Requirements (UGR)
Diversity Course List
World Language (for Bachelor of Arts)
Global Studies Course List
Minor or Certificate
Senior Capstone Course List
Application for Graduation (use EagleNET) must be made at least two terms in advance of the term you expect to graduate (undergraduate and post-baccalaureate).
Use the Catalog Archives to determine two important catalog years.
Requirements in Degree Works are based on these two catalog years:
- The catalog in effect at the student's first term of current matriculation is used to determine BACR (Breadth Area Credit Requirements) and UGR (Undergraduate Graduation Requirements).
- The catalog in effect at the time the student declares a major or minor is used to determine the program requirements.
Students who earn a BA in Political Science from EWU should be able to:
- analyze the values that underlie different forms of governments;
- appraise political issues;
- communicate about politics clearly and professionally;
- critique foundational issues embedded in political questions;
- explain how socioeconomic diversity plays a role in political affairs.