芝加哥洛約拉大學(xué)

To graduate with a major in Political Science, students must complete 33 hours of course work (11 courses) in the department or through transfer or advanced placement credit. All majors are required to take PLSC 100, 101 and 102, plus one upper-division (200- or 300-level) course from each of the discipline's four subfields: American Politics, Comparative Politics, International Relations and Political Theory. The remaining four courses are elective and may be taken in any of the discipline's four subfields. Students who register for 6 hours of internship credit (PLSC 370) may count 3 hours as one of the elective courses required for the major and 3 hours as one of the general university graduation requirements. Students must earn a grade of C- or better in a course for it to count toward the major.

Learning Outcomes and Professional Success

The BA in Political Science is designed to achieve the following learning outcomes:

Provide students with an in-depth understanding of four foundational areas in the discipline of Political Science:

• American Politics, including U.S. institutions and political processes.
• Comparative Politics of various regions of the world, such as Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East.
• International Relations, most notably the impact of globalization on international affairs, and how it relates to U.S. foreign policy.
• Political Theory, or the study of political philosophy ranging from Ancient to Modern and Contemporary political thought.
• Provide students more broadly with an in-depth understanding of political institutions and processes in the United States and abroad.
• Challenge students to think critically about various dilemmas, including achieving justice, in political life.
• Enhance the ability of students to express their thoughts in writing (all upper division Political Science classes include a significant writing component).
• Prepare majors for purposeful careers in politics, government, international affairs, law, the non-profit world, journalism, business, education, social services, and other professions.
• Prepare majors for further graduate or professional study at professional schools and institutions of higher learning, both in the U.S. and abroad.

We as a Political Science department also encourage our students to take advantage of additional learning opportunities through numerous Political Science-sponsored programs that will enhance learning outcomes:

• Obtain professional experience through our Chicago-based internship program that places students in host offices throughout Chicago during the fall, spring, and summer sessions, including participating in an internship class where you share your experiences with other student interns.
• Obtain professional experience through our Washington DC-based internship program, in which students spend either the fall or spring semester in Washington DC interning and taking classes full-time at Loyola’s new Washington DC center with Loyola faculty and under the guidance of a Loyola Resident Director.
• Acquire unique experience through semester-long programs, most notably the department's Model United Nations (spring semester), Mock Trial (spring semester), and Moot Court (fall semester) programs, each of which involves national competitions and a semester-long class.
• Acquire advanced methodological training, most notably through the Political Science “Political Numbers” class that satisfies the Quantitative Knowledge requirement of the Core Curriculum for Political Science students.