什么是政治学?

政治学涉及对政府的博天堂官方网站, 政治, 还有法律, 规则, 以及影响政治权威本质的价值观. 好吧，但它到底是关于什么的? Well you learn about how governments operate, both in the US and around the world. You learn how governments come to pursue certain policies, 政府政策如何影响人民, 以及人民如何影响政府. Thus you learn how and why things change in this political realm.

政治学课程分为6个子领域:

• American Government: The study of US government, political institutions, and behavior

• 公共管理: The study of how government bureaucracies work to carry out laws and policies

• Comparative Politics: The study of governments in different countries and regions of the world

• 国际关系: The study of global political organizations, 状态如何相互作用, 以及全球政策问题.

• Public 法律: The study of the US constitution and the legal system.

• 政治理论: The study of the major theories and ideologies of 政治 from antiquity to the present time.

政治学专业要求:

A 政治科学 Major requires 33 hours of political science coursework (usually 11 courses)
其中三门课程(9小时)是入门级课程:

* POLS 110美国政府简介
* POLS 290 Intro to Political Inquiry (ideally taken in the sophomore year)
* ONE MORE 100-level class--Take EITHER POLS 171 Intro to Comparative Politics OR POLS 172 Intro to 国际关系 (only one will count towards the required 33 hours)

The other 8 classes (24 hours) must be 300 or 400 level courses.
我们希望你有一些广度, so we ask that you take at least one course in 3 of the 6 areas listed (American Government, 比较政府, 国际关系, 政治理论, 公共管理, 及公法). We also want you to have some depth of knowledge within one area, so we ask that you take at least 3 courses within one of those areas.
It is my experience that almost nobody has a problem satisfying these breadth and depth requirements. 要避免的主要错误:

在线查看课程目录

辅修政治学的要求:

A 政治科学 minor requires 21 hours of coursework (usually 7 courses)

* pol在100-200水平(6小时)
* pol在300-400级(15小时)

No more than nine hours of POLS 496 will count toward the minor.

主修政治学我能做什么?

B. A. in political science provides students with a broad understanding of government, 政治, 以及公共和国际事务. It strengthens writing, speaking, and critical thinking skills that are essential for most careers. 具体的职业链接见上面的链接头. Possibilities after the BA degree 政治学 include:

• 为政府工作
• 法学院或博天堂官方网站生院
• Working for a research center (think tank) on political issues
  
• 和平队
• 公共及国际事务
• 新闻/报告
• 为利益团体工作
• 私营机构工作
• 还有很多其他的 . . .
  

博天堂官方网站生院

Many of our political science majors go on for advanced degrees in 法律, 公共管理, 业务, 政治科学. This provides them with more applied training and a degree which allows them to advance further in their chosen field. The Master of 公共管理 (MPA) degree is designed to provide professional education to students who wish to prepare themselves for administrative careers and leadership positions in government. While the majority of graduates may take positions in local, 状态, 以及各国政府, the degree program can also lead to service in other organizations associated with governmental affairs, 比如私人基金会, 非营利服务机构, 政治利益集团, 以及其他社区机构. 博天堂官方网站生s have also taken positions in the private sector. The MPA usually takes 2 years to complete, and most programs include an internship requirement. For more information on BGSU's MPA degree, see our MPA homepage.

法律

法律 programs generally take 3 years of school beyond the B. A. Admission to law school is usually based on your grades (GPA), and your score on the LSAT test which is usually taken in the senior year before applying to law schools. 培养写作能力的本科课程, speaking and critical thinking/problem solving will help you to succeed on the LSAT and in law school. One can major or minor in any field and still gain admission into law school. Our department offers several courses in the public law area (constitutional law, 行政法, constitutional law advocacy) which provide students with a basic understanding of the major cases and legal concepts are covered in law school. For this reason, many pre-law students choose to major or minor in political science. 其他有用的专业和辅修专业包括英语, 哲学, Legal 博天堂官方网站 经济学 业务 (especially for those interested in corporate law)  and 社会学.

文学硕士/博士.D. 政治学

Advanced degrees in the general area of Politics have many different names depending on the school. Most Masters programs take 2 years, though some one year programs are available. 学位名称可能是公共政策硕士, 公共事务硕士, 政治管理硕士, 国际事务硕士, 政府管理硕士, 或政治学硕士. 文学硕士是一个普通的政治学学位, often with a specialty in one of the core areas of political science. Ph值.D. typically leads to a career as a professor or professional researcher. Ph值.D. typically takes between 6-7 years to complete and includes coursework, comprehensive exams and the completion of a book length dissertation. 学生 who are uncertain about whether they want to pursue this degree may opt to enter a Masters degree program in political science and then transfer (or continue at the same institution) for the Ph.D. 如果这个职业对你有吸引力, we recommend that you talk personally with as many political science faculty members as possible in order to learn about the field and decide which schools to apply to.