The General Degree Requirements
The Common Core (9 hours)
All students wishing to earn a BA in political science must complete a nine-hour (3 course) common core. These courses are:
- POL 2103 Elements of Political Science (see the most recent syllabus)
- POL 2013 Information Management in Political Science (see the most recent syllabus)
- POL 4993 Democratic Governance (see the most recent syllabus)
Students should take POL 2103 ("Elements") and POL 2013 ("Info Management") as soon as they can; the department recommends that these courses be completed by the end of the sophomore year. "Elements" introduces students to the field of political science -- its substantive topics and styles of thinking. "Info Management" introduces students to some basic statistical techniques, computer skills, and principles of research design for the study of politics. For transfer students, particularly those coming from two-year community colleges, taking these courses by the end of the sophomore year simply isn’t possible. Still, take them as soon as you can.
POL 4993 ("Democratic Governance", or simply "DG") is the department’s Capstone Course for all seniors. In this course, students must complete a substantial (35-page) research paper, in addition to other course requirements. To qualify for enrollment, students must be seniors, meaning that they have earned at least 90 credit hours towards their degrees.
POL 4993 ("DG") is not an easy course. Students should budget their time and enrollments accordingly. In the past, students who have not performed well in "DG" have had to repeat it, and more than once. Try not to be one of these students!
Subfields (9 hours)
In addition to this nine-hour common core, students must take a further nine hours in one of the following "subfields" of political science.
- American Politics (see description)
- International Relations (see description)
- Law and Legal Studies (see description)
- Public Administration (see description)
Political Science Electives (18 hours)
Students must also take eighteen hours of political science electives. Depending upon which subfield a student chooses, these electives can come from one of the other subfields, or from the general political science curriculum. Students are free to take what they like, though they should keep in mind that they must earn at least fifteen political science credit hours in upper division 3000 and 4000 courses. For a list of the department’s current course offerings, click here.
Other Electives (18 hours)
Finally, students earning a political science degree must complete a further eighteen hours of electives, not necessarily in the political science department. Indeed, the department encourages students to select courses from history, economics, geography, sociology, communication, or the humanities. Keep in mind that, in addition to 15 hours of upper division courses in the major, students must take an additional 25 hours of upper division courses, in political science or elsewhere, for a total of 40 hours in order to graduate.
Language Requirement (0-8 hours)
As with other liberal arts degrees, political science students must complete two semesters of a foreign language, or demonstrate the equivalent language proficiency through their high school records or CLEP test.
The bottom line: For all degrees, students must have a minimum of 124 credit hours—earned through courses taken at UCO, from transfer credits, or other credits. Of those credit hours, political science students must take, at a bare minimum, 36 hours of political science classes to graduate.
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