Explore the dynamics of power & policy
Political Science Degree
The political science degree program offers students a comprehensive understanding of political systems, governance, public policies, and the dynamic forces shaping our world. Whether you aspire to work in government, law, international relations, public administration, or advocacy, AU’s program equips you with the knowledge and skills to influence and lead in a rapidly changing global landscape.
Future leaders are getting prepared, right here.
Understand the world, influence the future. Begin your journey with a political science degree.
The political science degree requires foundational courses, research methods, and an option to concentrate on international, comparative, or American politics. Students are expected to successfully complete the foundational classes before attempting upper-division coursework. Our curriculum begins with required foundational courses that students should complete by the end of the sophomore year:
- Introduction to Politics
- American National Government
- Political Science Research Methods
- Statistics
Political science degree students complete their studies with a senior capstone course designed to help them synthesize the knowledge and skills they developed in earlier coursework. According to a 2005 study, this structured curriculum places our program in the top 18.1% of political science programs at smaller colleges and universities in the Midwest.
Lead with knowledge, inspire action and change.
Dr. Frank’s enthusiasm for political science shines through in the classroom. He is an example of the types of professors we have at AU who will mentor you in the political science degree program.
EXPLORE THE POLITICAL SCIENCE DEGREE PROGRAM
Along with in-depth courses, students have the opportunity for hands-on learning. Depending on students’ professional career goals, internship experiences at all levels of government or in the legal profession provide invaluable opportunities to learn and become involved in the daily operations of these organizations.
AU’s political science degree graduates move on to a law school or an MBA program, join the U.S. Foreign Service or other government agencies, work at museums and national parks, serve in the mission field, or teach overseas.
Degree Options
- The political science degree combines foundational courses in American politics, international relations, comparative politics, political theory, and the law.
- The political science/philosophy/economics major integrates an economics curriculum with traditional political science courses and offers concentrations in international political economy, domestic policy, and economic problems.
Minor: The political science minor is an excellent complement to various majors, including business, Christian ministries, communications, global studies, history, the sciences, and social work. The legal studies minor is excellent preparation for law school, combining courses from various disciplines to create a pre-law curriculum.
Classes
- American National Government
- Political Science Research Methods
- Political Behavior
- American Foreign Policy
- View the complete course listing.
Careers Pathways
- Activist or Advocate
- State Legislator
- Immigration Officer
- Attorney
Get More With Your Degree
To complement your political science coursework, you should consider completing a minor or second major in one or more of the following:
- Global studies
- History
- Computer science
- Economics
- Foreign languages
- Information systems
- Journalism
- Math
- Nonprofit leadership
- Peace and conflict transformation
- Philosophy
- Public relations
- Psychology
- Sociology
- Speech communication
- Statistics
- Women’s studies
Coupling courses in political thought and philosophy with the political economy major will produce the equivalent of a philosophy, politics, and economics (PPE) major. Be sure you meet regularly with your political science program advisor, who will help you identify the opportunities most relevant to your career and determine how best to incorporate them into your schedule.
SKILLS DEVELOMENT
AU’s political science degree curriculum is designed to help you develop a number of skills that are important to employers. The best way to develop your proficiency with a skill is to use it repeatedly. That’s why you’ll have opportunities to apply these skills in all your political science courses rather than encountering them only once.
Analysis
Few political science programs require their majors to complete research methods and statistics courses. Ours does. You’ll learn best practices for visualizing quantitative information, creating tables and figures to incorporate into your writing and briefings, and discussing the meaning of data you encounter. You’ll learn how to read, understand, and brief an audience on statistical work. After the statistics course, you’ll be asked to do your quantitative research in upper-division courses. These skills are compensated at a premium in an increasingly big-data world.
Critical Thinking
Political science is theory-driven, meaning it looks for general explanations, like why nations go to war, rather than particular ones, like why the U.S. entered WWI. Because we focus on theory, you’ll constantly be developing your ability to think in the abstract and apply your knowledge to new cases, such as explaining why Barack Obama was re-elected in 2012 or predicting the outcome of the 2014 congressional elections. You’ll also learn how to evaluate claims made by politicians and pundits so you can reach well-supported positions on important policy issues.
Social Media
We understand the growing importance of social media in the information economy, so you’ll learn how to use Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+ in a professional manner and how to build a personal brand that’s attractive to potential employers. You start by setting up a professional Twitter account and learning the basics in Introduction to Politics. When you’re in Senior Seminar, you’ll be engaged with experts across the globe who work in your area of interest. In between, you’ll be using social media in every political science class. As an example of the work you’ll be doing, check out the Twitter hashtag #AUPOSC.
Research
The ability to find quality information quickly is a skill that’s essential in today’s economy, so you need to be able to do more than library research. That’s why we’ll help you develop information literacy—the ability to use technology to efficiently locate the information that is needed and to evaluate its quality. You’ll be familiar with a wide range of primary sources of economic, demographic, and political data in both the domestic and international arenas, because you’ll be using them regularly for your briefings, research, and projects.
Writing
Our majors write a lot. They’ll tell you that no program on campus requires more writing than ours. And you’ll do more than learn how to write a traditional research paper. You’ll also write policy memos, briefing memos, position papers, blog posts, and news analyses. You’ll be able to hone your writing skills for a professional audience through our policy practicum or internships. In Senior Seminar, you’ll collect your best work in an electronic portfolio and make it available to potential employers.
Speaking
Our majors routinely present oral briefings of research or reading they’ve done. Beginning in the sophomore year, you’ll develop your ability to present complex information in a concise and understandable fashion. In your introductory speech class, you’ll probably deliver three speeches. Our majors will brief their peers or an external audience 12-15 times in an ordinary semester. You’ll get good at briefing.
Teamwork
Employers place a high value on people who can work effectively on a team. Not only will you learn best practices for effective teamwork, you’ll also have multiple opportunities to use them. You’ll work in teams for in-class activities, briefings, projects—even exams. And you’ll have additional opportunities if you participate in Model UN, College Republicans, College Democrats, or Pi Sigma Alpha.
Technical
You’ll develop proficiency with Excel, PowerPoint, Word, Google Docs, R, Zotero, and Hootsuite. You’ll also be encouraged to use a variety of productivity tools important to employers, including Google Calendar, Evernote, Dropbox, and task managers. And you’ll be using all of these by the end of your sophomore year.
Meet our faculty during your campus visit.
_ Department of History & Political Science
Dr. Brian Richard Dirck
Professor of History
Dr. Michael Frank
Professor of Political Science
Dr. David Thomas Murphy
Professor of History
Dr. Jaye Lee Rogers
Chair, Department of History and Political Science; Professor of History
Dr. Connor J. S. Sutton
Assistant Professor of International Relations and National Security
The Anderson You
You have unique interests and skills that set you apart. Explore the free My College Career Quiz to receive a personalized list of majors selected just for you. We’ve taken out the guessing work. Come find the Anderson you.