If you major in political science as an undergraduate at SLU, you will grapple with some of the most important social justice problems of our time, from racism and poverty at home to war, persistent underdevelopment and oppression abroad.
SLU offers three variations of a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science:
- A general B.A. that allows you to pick courses that fit your particular interests.
- A concentration in international affairs that permits you to study topics such as economic development, international security and political change around the world.
- A concentration in public law that focuses on law and courts, and the relationship of both to larger issues of justice, social change and democracy.
- A concentration in public policy that examined the practical application of knowledge to governance and social problems.
SLU also offers a major in international studies, an interdisciplinary program that allows students to take courses in anthropology, economics, foreign language, history, political science and a number of other disciplines.
Minors
The department also offers four interdisciplinary minors, including Asian studies, Foreign Service, political journalism, and global and local social justice.
The political science minor allows students either to take courses that sample the discipline of political science or that concentrate in a particular subfield.
Undergraduate Opportunities
As an undergraduate student in the political science department, you'll have access to many distinctive opportunities.
- Co-curricular activities like the Atlas program or election watch parties help students become engaged citizens.
- Internships in local and national government, non-profit and community organizations, and law offices give students the skills they need to effect change in their own communities.
- Students interested in law can choose to concentrate in public law, have many opportunities for internships, and benefit from assistance in law school applications from Morgan Hazelton, Ph.D., our department specialist in law and judicial politics.
- There are distinctive interdisciplinary programs at SLU in many areas of the world, including Middle East Studies and Russian Area Studies.
- Students can study abroad at our sister campus in Madrid or at many other locations worldwide.
- Class sizes are small. Students can expect individualized attention from their professors and also have the opportunity to conduct research, either assisting professors with their research or writing an honors thesis.
- Undergraduates can start taking graduate classes before they earn their B.A. and quickly finish an M.A. as part of our accelerated M.A. program.