Please Note: The program requirements listed below are for students entering in the catalog year 2012-2013.  Students who entered in previous catalog years should refer to the program requirement sheets in the Advising area of MyWheelock. Students entering in future years should follow the requirements in that catalog year.

The Political Science and Global Studies major introduces students to American politics, comparative and international politics, and the impact of globalization on rich and poor nations. Courses will explore topics as varied as the politics of sex trafficking, the struggle for global human rights, the relationship between food and power, working with refuges, and international movements for economic, gender, racial, and environmental justice. Students explore important historical and cultural trends, political institutions, and emerging political and social issues. The interdisciplinary major seeks to understand the complex relations among states as well as the historical roots of contemporary political forces and problems. The major provides students with an international and multicultural lens that complements professional preparation.

Requirements/36-credit option

AST 140 Introduction to American Government (4 credits)

Global Perspectives (select one)* (4 credits) 

• PGS 101 Issues in Globalization
• HDA 226/PGS 226 Perspectives on Global Health
• PGS 2XX Women and Globalization

American History (select one)* (4 credits) 

• HIS 165 America through the Civil War
• HIS 167 America since the Civil War
• HIS 245 Women in America
• AST 220 Coming to America
• AST 257 Race in America
• HDA 2XX Native American People and Culture

Intermediate Course (select one)* (4 credits) 

• PGS 260 Food and Globalization
• AST 256 Gender and Politics
• PGS 2XX Comparative Politics

Advanced Course (select one)* (4 credits)

• AST 403 Senior Seminar in American Studies
• PSG 410 Internship in Political Science and Global Studies

* Courses used to meet this requirement may not be counted toward the individualized focus area.

Individualized Focus Area (16 credits)

In selecting their electives, students will work with an advisor to develop an area of study.  The wide range of courses offered allows students to create a coherent focus around themes, topics, periods or debates within political science and global studies.

Students must complete at least one intermediate course and one advanced course.

Introductory Courses (4 credits)
Select One (all courses listed are 4 credits)

AST 140 Media and Race in American Society
AST 160 American Identities
COM XXX Exporting Culture
COM 150 Communication, Persuasion, and Propaganda
HDA 120 Cultural Anthropology
HDS 106 Sociology of Minority Groups
HDS 103 Women, Culture and Society
HIS 151 Women, Work and Family in Modern Europe
HIS 165 America through the Civil War
HIS 167 America since the Civil War
HIS 194 Europe in the Age of Discovery
PGS 101 Issues in Globalization
PGS 1XX Women and Globalization
PGS XXX Politics of Democracy, Law and Justice
PHL 150 World Religions

Intermediate Courses (4-8 credits)
Select one or two. (All courses listed are 4 credits)

AST 215 Political and Social Change in America
AST 260 American Presidential Idol
AST 265 Gender and Politics
AST/HDA 225 Anthropology of American Men
AST 220 Coming to America
AST 257 Race in America
COM 250 Apocalyptic America
COM 265 The African Diaspora Speaks
HDA226/PSG226 Perspectives on Global Health
HDA2XX Native American People and Culture
HIS 208 Twentieth Century European History
HIS 215 Africa and Its Global Encounters
HIS 245 Women in America
HIS 235 America and the World
HIS 260 The Sixties
LIT 230 African American Women Writers
LIT 245 Native American Literature
PSG XXX Food and Globalization
PSG2XX Comparative Politics
PSG2XX Working with Refugees
PSGXXX The Politics of Sex Trafficking
PHL 205 Philosophies of Social Justice

Advanced Courses (4-8 credits)
Select at least one. (All courses listed are 4 credits)

COM440 Media for Social Change
COM 265 African Diaspora Speaks
AST 350/HDA 350 Globalization and Human Rights
HDS322 Feminist Theories
HIS414 Social History of America's Working People
PSG XXX Politics of Nonprofits
PSG XXX Money, Capitalism and Politics

Political Science and Global Studies major Without Professional Major/40 credits

Students opting to major in Political Science and Global Studies without a second major should follow the requirements for the 36-credit major as listed above and add the following, for a total of 40 credits:

Select One:

• An additional advanced course in Political Science and Global Studies
• An internship
• An independent study to enrich your individualized focus