Goucher College 2011-2012 Undergraduate Catalogue

Apr 23, 2024

Goucher College 2011-2012 Undergraduate Catalogue PLEASE NOTE: This is an archived catalog. Programs are subject to change each academic year.

Political Science Major

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The major places considerable emphasis on the relation between politics in theory and politics in action. The subject matter is arranged into four basic fields: political theory, American politics and public policy, comparative politics, and international politics. Introductory courses are built around themes of citizenship (PSC 111 –Introduction to Political Thought and PSC 113 -Introduction to American Politics) and nationalism (PSC 114 –Introduction to International Relations, and PSC 112 –Introduction to Comparative Politics). Students will be required to take one introductory course based on each theme. Majors (and minors) will need to bear in mind early on in their degree that some advanced courses may have prerequisites that are specific to each of the subfields. For instance, an advanced course in political theory may require that the student had taken the introductory course in citizenship in the political theory stream. Courses are also offered in constitutional law, women in politics, urban and ethnic politics, and state and local politics. All majors are required to complete an internship, for at least three credits, in politics and public policy. The internship may be either domestic or international in focus and may be taken for a letter grade only. The major requires 36 credits of course work.

Courses required for the political science major include:

Students must choose one course from each of the following four sub-fields:

American Politics and Public Policy

Comparative Politics

International Relations

Political Theory

Note:

* See writing proficiency requirements

** Students who have taken PSC 101 or 102 (but not both) are required to take an introductory course in a sub-field not covered by the previously required 101 or 102. In other words, a student who has taken PSC 101 can meet the new requirements by completing PSC 113 (American) or PSC 112 (Comparative).

Students must take four additional elective courses.

All courses listed in the four sub-fields above are eligible for elective credit, as are the following:

Note:

Students must ensure that they have taken at least three courses at the 300 level, one of which must be PSC 316 .

Writing Proficiency in the Majors

The asterisks indicate those courses that may be taken to achieve writing proficiency in the major, according to the following policies:

Students wishing to achieve writing proficiency in those courses must identify themselves to the professor by the end of the second week of classes.
Writing proficiency shall be judged on the basis of at least 20 pages of writing over the course of the semester. Students are required to submit first drafts of papers as well as the revised version(s), and they are encouraged to use the Writing Center.
Writing proficiency requires the achievement of at least a B- grade for the written work.
Writing proficiency in the major should be achieved by the spring semester of the junior year. Writing proficiency may also be achieved with permission of the instructor in any 200- or 300-level course as long as the requirements detailed above are met.

Honors in the Majors

Students wishing to pursue honors in political science or international relations must have a GPA of 3.5 in the major and an overall GPA of 3.25. By April 15 of their junior year, they must submit to the chair of the department a proposal outlining their thesis project and naming the proposed thesis director. Upon approval, the student must enroll in a two-semester (eight-credit) senior thesis course (PSC 450 ). One-semester projects are not eligible for honors. At the end of the fall semester, the thesis adviser will determine whether the project has sufficiently progressed to warrant continuation of the pursuit of honors. If not, the student may receive a grade of pass/no pass for those credits. No later than three weeks before the end of the spring semester of the senior year, the student will defend the thesis before a committee of at least three faculty members, a majority of whom are members of the department. The recommendation of the thesis committee will be brought to the department chair. The full department must approve all candidates for honors.