Programs and Courses in Political Science

Programs and Courses in
Political Science

The department offers courses of instruction in all major topical areas of political science. Among them are American politics and government (including public law), comparative politics and government, political theory, and international relations.

The department organizes an annual Model European Union simulation that involves student delegations from 14 other American colleges and many European Universities; it also encourages participation of political science majors at the Harvard Model United Nations. In addition, the department also offers a number of Off-campus programs.

The Department of Political Science offers courses to meet a variety of student educational needs and graduation requirements.

Major in Political Science (Requirements Checklist)

The political science academic major program requires a total of 36 credits, distributed as follows:

Fifteen credits in the following required courses:

PLS 111	International Relations
PLS 112	Comparative Politics
PLS 113	American Politics
PLS 203	Political Thought
PLS 303	Political Science Research Methods

Twenty-four credits in upper-division political science courses, including at least one in each of the four subfields of Political Science (American, International, Comparative and Political Philosophy) and at least three credits in upper-division political science courses.

Every political science major must have a faculty advisor who must be consulted at least once each semester.
Political science majors are advised to take the following courses outside the department:

ECN 202	Principles of Macro Economics
CMC 312	Argumentation and Debate
ENL 305	Advanced Composition
PHL 202	Logic
	or
PHL 104	Practical Reasoning
CSC 120	Introduction to Computer Science

Minor in Political Science (Requirements Checklist)

The political science academic minor program requires 18 credits in political science courses. Students select two courses from PLS 111, 112, 113, & 203 and then take four upper division (300/400 level) courses. Every political science minor must have a faculty advisor who must be consulted at least once each semester.

Pre-law Preparation

Students preparing to enter law school may do so through any of SUNY Brockport's many academic major programs, provided that their undergraduate program is broad and liberal in the classic sense. More important than specific subject matter, according to law educators, is the development of skills and habits conducive to legal reasoning. The college has put together a special pre-law program to prepare students for law school.

For more information, contact:
Dr. Mark Chadsey
mchadsey@brockport.edu
Department of Political Science and International Studies
Faculty Office Building 228
(585) 395-2584