Political Science, B.A.

The Political Science Program is housed within the Department of Global Humanities. Both a major and minor in Political Science are offered. Political science examines the origins, uses, justification, and distribution of power in society, as well as the relationship between power and other social “goods” such as wealth, rights, and liberties. Political science can be both empirical and normative. When empirical, it investigates how and why power, wealth, and rights are distributed as they are in the real world. When normative, political science explores how they ought to be distributed. Politics, in short, is about how societies are governed, how competing ideas about what is best for society are articulated and resolved, and how decisions in one part of the world affect other parts of the world. As part of a liberal arts education, the study of politics helps students develop critical thinking, research, analytical and communicative skills. It enables them to understand ideas and practices of citizenship, social justice, and human values. Political science prepares students for graduate studies as well as for a wide range of careers, including those in teaching, law, government, public service, public policy and administration, foreign and military service, business, international organizations, NGOs and the nonprofit sector, interest-group advocacy, and journalism.

Contact Information

historypolitics@css.edu