Program Overview
The major in political science requires 30 credit hours in POL courses. 21 of those credits must be completed in residence.
Curriculum Requirements
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Departmental Core Courses 1 | ||
| POL 201 | Introduction to American National Government | 3 |
| POL 202 | Introduction to Comparative Politics | 3 |
| POL 203 | Introduction to International Relations | 3 |
| Select a minimum of six credit hours of 500-level seminar courses offered by the University of Miami 2 | 6 | |
| Select a minimum of one course above the 200-level in three of the following five principal sub-fields of political science 3 | 9 | |
American Politics: | ||
| American Political Thought | ||
| Conspiracy Theories and the Public | ||
| The Constitution | ||
| Legislative Processes | ||
| American Presidency | ||
| Race and Ethnic Politics in the U.S. | ||
| Crime and Punishment: Implicit Bias in the Justice System | ||
| Hot Topics in the Criminal Justice System | ||
| Mass Media and Politics | ||
| Campaigns | ||
| Democracy in Action: Local Government Simulation | ||
| State Government and Politics | ||
| Government in Metropolitan Areas | ||
| Gender and Politics | ||
| U.S. Defense Policy | ||
| Public Opinion | ||
| Political Parties | ||
| Interest Groups and Lobbying | ||
| The CIA and the World of Intelligence | ||
| Special Topics in American Politics | ||
| Transfer Credit In American Politics | ||
| The Election | ||
| Latino Politics | ||
| Immigration Reform and the 2014 Election | ||
| Politics of Civil Rights | ||
| Biology and Politics | ||
| Media Content Analysis | ||
| Advanced Seminar on Electoral Behavior | ||
| Conducting U.S. Elections | ||
| Intelligence and National Security Decision Making | ||
| U.S. Health Care Crisis: Politics and Policies | ||
| Congressional Representation | ||
| Civic Participation and Democracy | ||
| Advanced Seminar on American Politics | ||
| The Environmental Movement: Groups, Beliefs and Values | ||
| Activism | ||
| LGBTI Politics | ||
| Urban Politics | ||
| Special Topics in American Politics (American Politics) | ||
Comparative Politics | ||
| Refugees and Migrants | ||
| Politics of Globalism | ||
| Global Warming, Politics and the European Union | ||
| Gender and Politics | ||
| Social Movements | ||
| Global Energy Politics | ||
| African Politics | ||
| South East Asian Politics | ||
| West European Politics (Previous Title: European Politics and Government) | ||
| Government and Politics of the Federal Republic of Germany | ||
| Postcommunist Russian Politics | ||
| Politics and Society in Latin America | ||
| Democratic Consolidation | ||
| Politics of the Middle East | ||
| Politics of Israel | ||
| Special Topics in Comparative Politics | ||
| Transfer Credit in Comparative Politics | ||
| Comparative Public Policy and Administration | ||
| Comparative Political Institutions | ||
| Global Environmental Politics | ||
| Art and Politics in Paris | ||
| Activism | ||
| LGBTI Politics | ||
| Sex, Babies, and the State | ||
| The Politics of Civil- Military Relations | ||
| The politics of post-communist transactions | ||
| Ethnicity, Nationalism and Secession | ||
| Comparative Political Economy of Post-Industrial Democracies | ||
| International Development Policy | ||
| Contemporary Latin American Politics | ||
| Politics in China | ||
| Special Topics in Comparative Politics (Comparative Politics) | ||
International Relations | ||
| Politics of Globalism | ||
| Global Warming, Politics and the European Union | ||
| International Law and Organizations | ||
| Civil Wars | ||
| Nationalism, Ethnicity, and Political Conflict | ||
| The United States and Asia | ||
| U.S.-Latin American Relations | ||
| American Foreign Policy | ||
| United States Relations with the Middle East | ||
| U.S. Defense Policy | ||
| International Cooperation | ||
| The CIA and the World of Intelligence | ||
| Theories and Debates in International Relations | ||
| International Organizations | ||
| Ending Wars and Building Peace | ||
| The Historical Roots of American Imperialism | ||
| Global Energy Politics | ||
| Special Topics in International Relations | ||
| International Terrorism | ||
| Transfer Credits in International Relations | ||
| Latino Politics | ||
| Immigration Reform and the 2014 Election | ||
| Security in the Arabian Peninsula | ||
| Intelligence and National Security Decision Making | ||
| Global Environmental Politics | ||
| Chinese Foreign Policy | ||
| International Organizations | ||
| Ending Wars and Building Peace | ||
| The World Before European Domination | ||
| Uniting States in International Perspective | ||
| The Politics of Civil- Military Relations | ||
| On Violence: The Politics of Extremes | ||
| Security in South Asia: The Conflicts of Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India | ||
| Energy and Security in Eurasia | ||
| The politics of post-communist transactions | ||
| Post-Communist Russian Foreign Policy | ||
| Conflict in the Middle East and Africa | ||
| Illicit Trade in the Global Economy | ||
| International Security | ||
| International Political Economy | ||
| International Relations of the Middle East | ||
| European Security | ||
| Special Topics in International Relations | ||
Public Administration, Policy, and Law | ||
| Scope and Methods of Political Science | ||
| Economics for Politics and Public Administration | ||
| Politics of the Administrative Process | ||
| Politics of Growth Management | ||
| Introduction to Public Policy | ||
| Environmental Politics and Policy | ||
| Democracy in Action: Local Government Simulation | ||
| International Law and Organizations | ||
| Municipal Modernization in the 21st Century | ||
| Collaborative Governance | ||
| Introduction to Criminal Justice | ||
| Constitutional Law I | ||
| Constitutional Law II | ||
| Special Topics in Public Administration, Policy, and Law | ||
| Transfer Credit in Public Administration, Policy, and Law | ||
| Latino Politics | ||
| Budget and Financial Management and Administration | ||
| Organizational Dynamics and Management | ||
| Equity and Diversity in Public Administration | ||
| Issues in Judicial Pol. | ||
| Introduction to Graduate Public Administration | ||
| Problems in Public and Non-Profit Management | ||
| Non-Profit Organizations: Law, Policy, and Management | ||
| Comparative Public Policy and Administration | ||
| Administrative Law | ||
| Courts and Controversy | ||
| Applied Policy Analysis | ||
| U.S. Health Care Crisis: Politics and Policies | ||
| Microeconomics for Public Policy | ||
| Human Resource Management in Public Service | ||
| Philosophy of Law | ||
| Environmental Policy Making | ||
| Public Policy Process and Implementation | ||
| Energy Policy: Technology, Politics, and Society | ||
| Productivity in the Public and Non-Profit Sectors | ||
| Total Quality Public Service Management: Achieving High Performance Government | ||
| Politics and Ethics | ||
| Ethical and Managerial Issues in Government, Business, and Non-Profit Organizations | ||
| From Electronic Government to Digital Governance | ||
| Public Program Evaluation | ||
| Government and Business | ||
| Special Topics in Public Administration, Policy, and Law | ||
Political Theory and Methods | ||
| Scope and Methods of Political Science | ||
| The Science and Practice of Political Research | ||
| Political Fiction and Film | ||
| Introduction to Political Theory | ||
| Positive Political Theory | ||
| Political Ideologies | ||
| American Political Thought | ||
| God, Science, and Politics | ||
| Conspiracy Theories and the Public | ||
| Politics, Society and Popular Culture | ||
| Special Topics in Political Theory and Methods | ||
| Transfer Credit in Political Theory and Methods | ||
| From Plato Through Rawls | ||
| Statistics for Politics and Public Administration | ||
| Advanced Political Analysis | ||
| Models of Politics | ||
| Popular Culture and Politics | ||
| Media Content Analysis | ||
| Experiments in Political Science | ||
| Introductory Statistical Methods in Political Science | ||
| Advanced Statistical Methods in Political Science | ||
| Introduction to Game Theory for Political Science | ||
| Philosophy of Law | ||
| Special Topics in Political Theory and Methods | ||
| POL Electives (300-level or higher) | 6 | |
| General Education Requirements | ||
| Written Communication Skills: | ||
| WRS 105 | First-Year Writing I | 3 |
| WRS 106 | First-Year Writing II | 3 |
| or ENG 106 | Writing About Literature and Culture | |
| Quantitative Skills: | ||
| MTH 113 | Finite Mathematics # | 3 |
| Areas of Knowledge: | ||
| Arts and Humanities Cognate | 9 | |
| People & Society Cognate (9 credits) (fulfilled through the major) | ||
| STEM Cognate 4 | 9 | |
| Additional Requirements | ||
| Language Requirement | 3-9 | |
| Minor Requirement | 15 | |
| Electives | 39 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 120 | |
- 1
Students who complete INS 101 with a grade of C- or better will be given credit for POL 203.
- 2
This includes any 500-level seminar offered by the Department of Political Science or cross-listed with Political Science. The following 500 level courses are not seminars and do not fulfill this requirement: POL 520, POL 521, POL 563, POL 564, POL 589, POL 590.
- 3
Please note that some courses cover more than one sub-field. Students may not, however, use a single class to fulfill multiple sub-field requirements.
- 4
Please note that for the Natural Science Area of Knowledge Requirement degree candidates must earn at least 3 credit hours in the Natural Sciences. Departments offering these courses include Anthropology (only APY 203), Biology, Chemistry, Ecosystem Science and Policy (only ECS 111, ECS 112, ECS 202), Geography (only GEG 120), Geological Sciences, Marine Sciences (except MSC 313, MSC 314), Physical Sciences, and Physics. These credit hours may double count with any other requirement.
- *
All majors must complete a quiz for graduating seniors (to be used for assessment purposes) during their last semester of coursework.
- **
To satisfy the Advanced Writing & Communication proficiency requirement, students majoring in political science must complete at least one of the four required writing-intensive courses in the Department of Political Science.
- ***
A student may only share (i.e., "double count") maximally 6 credits between majors and minors offered by the Department of Political Science.
- ****
To count toward the major, each course must be completed with a grade of C- or above, with an overall GPA of 2.0 or above.
- #
The Quantitative Skills Proficiency Requirement helps students learn to use quantitative skills and tools to solve problems, including the interpretation, manipulation, and application of quantitative data. Students fulfill this requirement by completing either a Department of Mathematics course numbered MTH 108 Precalculus Mathematics II or higher, MTH 113 Finite Mathematics (recommended for non-STEM majors), or a statistics course approved by the student’s college/school and the University Curriculum Committee in consultation with appropriate academic units.
Suggested Plan of Study
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credit Hours | |
| POL 201 | Introduction to American National Government | 3 |
| POL 202 | Introduction to Comparative Politics | 3 |
| MTH 113 | Finite Mathematics | 3 |
| WRS 105 | First-Year Writing I | 3 |
| Arts and Humanities Cognate | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| POL 203 | Introduction to International Relations | 3 |
| WRS 106 | First-Year Writing II | 3 |
| Arts and Humanities Cognate | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| STEM Cognate | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Second Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| American Politics Course | 3 | |
| Language Course | 3 | |
| Arts and Humanities Cognate | 3 | |
| STEM Cognate | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| Comparative Politics Course | 3 | |
| Language Course | 3 | |
| STEM Cognate | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Third Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| 500 Level POL Seminar Course 1 | 3 | |
| International Relations Course | 3 | |
| Language Course | 3 | |
| Minor Course | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| 500 Level POL Seminar Course 1 | 3 | |
| POL Elective (300 Level or Higher) | 3 | |
| Minor Course | 3 | |
| Minor Course | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Fourth Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| POL Elective (300 Level or Higher) | 3 | |
| Minor Course | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| Elective | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 120 | |
Mission
The Department of Political Science (POL) is a community of scholars and students seeking a deeper understanding of politics, and fosters a commitment to lifelong learning, intellectual growth, and civic responsibility. POL is dedicated to helping students develop analytical abilities, communication skills, and the awareness of political processes in a complex global society. We provide students with rigorous training in the field of political science, and exposure to new knowledge through empirical social science research.
Goals
Political science majors gain an understanding of American political and legal life, the workings of other countries’ political and economic systems, the relations among countries in the international arena, and key concepts in both political philosophy and social science methodology.
Student Learning Outcomes
- Students will develop knowledge of key political science concepts.
- Students will develop the ability to analyze evidence and draw reasoned conclusions.
- Students will develop the ability to communicate clearly in written form.
