About Political Science/ Criminal Justice:

The Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science/ Criminal Justice is the perfect program for students interested in law enforcement or administration, probation or parole, homeland security, or intelligence. Some students also opt to go into advocacy programs for victim rights, at-risk populations, or juveniles. Some graduates pursue graduate school or attend law school.

Students interested in Political Science/ Criminal Justice have a wide variety of options to obtain their bachelor of science degree.  Each track requires a number of hands-on training courses in the career field: 

• The first option is to begin the academic career with an associate degree in Criminal Justice Technology from Summit College or another approved institution. (Track 1)
• Other students choose to go directly into the Political Science program, but are required to take some Criminal Justice Technology coursework to result in a minor in Criminal Justice Technology (Track 2)
• Students may also take 12 credits of specialized CJ technology courses and earn a minimum of 3.0 GPA in those courses. (Track 3)

 Degree Requirements:

Required:

3700:100 Government and Politics in the U.S.
3700:201 Introduction to Political Research
3700:361 Politics of the Criminal Justice System

Criminal Justice Core (Choose FOUR)

3700:334 Law, Mediation, and Violence (3)
3700:335 Law and Society (3)
3700:403 Media, Crime, and Public Opinion (3)
3700:437 Government versus Organized Crime (3)
3700:450 Administering Prisons, Probation, and Parole (3)
3700:461 Supreme Court and Constitutional Law (3)
3700:462 Supreme Court and Civil Liberties (3)
3700:480 Policy Problems: Criminal Justice (3)
3700:481 Challenges of Police Work (3)
3700:482 Criminal Justice Topics: Current Issues (3)
3700:483 Constitutional Problems of Criminal Justice (3)

Required:

3700:395 Internship: Government & Politics

(Students are required to take a minimum 2 credit internship.  No more than 4 credits of internship may be applied toward the 30 credits required in Political Science)

Advanced Political Science (Choose TWO)

3700:336 Homeland Security Policy and Process (3)
3700:337 Terrorism: Perpetrators, Politics, and Response (3)
3700:339 Terrorism and the Constitution (3)
3700:341 The American Congress (3)
3700:350 The American Presidency (3)
3700:351 Inside the White House (3)           
3700:360 Judicial Process (3)
3700:370 Public Administration: Concepts and Practice (3)
3700:402 Politics and the Media (3)
3700:443 Political Scandals (3)
3700:474 Political Opinion, Behavior, and Electoral Politics (3)
3700:475 American Interest Groups (3)
3700:476 American Political Parties (3)

Foreign Culture (Minimum of SIX credits required)

• Student must maintain a 2.2 average overall, and a 2.2 average in Political Science.
• The student must complete all General Education requirements. (3450:135 Math for Liberal Arts, 3450:145 College Algebra, a higher math or 3470:260 Basic Statistics is required). If a University College or Summit College student pursuing the Associate Degree completes 2020:151, 152, & 153 Elements of Mathematics I, II, III (2.0 crs. ea) prior to transferring to Arts & Sciences, then the students will have met the General Studies mathematics requirement (3.0 credits) and the Arts & Sciences mathematics requirement. This applies ONLY to those students who choose to do the entire Associate’s Degree.
•  Students entering after Fall 1994 are required to take eight credits of Natural Science including at least two courses, one of which must be a lab. (Prior to Fall 1994 students were required to take 6 credits.) Although a lab chemistry course is preferred, it is not required. The 2840:100 Basic Chemistry course indicated in the two-year Criminal Justice degree can be counted toward the 8 credits of Natural Science required by General Studies if the student was coded as a Summit College student and was pursuing a bona fide two-year Associate Degree or an established "Step-Up" program of study in which Basic Chemistry is required at the time the course was taken and completed. At least one chemistry course (3150:100, Chemistry and Society, any other 3150 Chemistry course, or the 2840:100 Basic Chemistry course, with the above restrictions) must be included in the Natural Science credits for students receiving the Associate Degree.
• The student must complete at least 47 credit hours of 300 or 400 level courses EXCLUDING General Education courses and workshops. 
• Each student must complete at least 6 hours of coursework that will introduce a foreign culture. Such courses shall be selected by the student with the approval of his advisor in the Department of Political Science.  Those who wish to work in communities with large Spanish-speaking populations should consider taking one or more years of instruction in the Spanish language; those students interested in foreign affairs, intelligence, and international security should consider taking Arabic.
• 128 Total Credits Required. Students should be aware that 128 is the minimum number of credit hours required for this degree. Many students exceed this minimum number.

To download a pdf of this track (students accepted into College of Arts and Sciences during/before Spring 2011, please click here.)

To download a pdf of this track (students accepted into College of Arts and Sciences during/ after Summer 2011, please click here.)