Political Science (B.A.)
Request InformationThe political science major prepares students for careers in electoral or interest group politics, political and public policy consulting, the civil service, and the diplomatic corps, whether in the United States or abroad, and for careers or graduate study in any of the vast array of public- and private-sector fields that require a broad liberal arts education and the analytical and communication skills that the political science major provides, such as journalism, business, or education.
The major also prepares students for graduate study in political science or public policy, and for law school, as well as for a lifetime of citizenship in a politically complex and increasingly globalized world. For more information about career opportunities for political science majors, see Careers and the Study of Political Science: A Guide for Undergraduates, which is available at SNHU's Shapiro Library or through the American Political Science Association.
- Major Requirements
- Semester In Washington, D.C.
- New Hampshire Presidential Primary
- Political Science Faculty
B.A./B.S. Core
Liberal Arts Core
(Courses are 3 credits unless otherwise noted)
POL 210 American Politics
POL 211 International Relations
POL 213 Comparative Politics
POL 214 Political Theory
MAT 245 Statistics for the Social Sciences
Choose eighteen credits of the following:
POL 301 The U.S. As a World Power
POL 302 Globalization, Community, and Culture
POL 305 State and Local Government
POL 306 The American Legal Tradition
POL 316 Legal Reasoning and the Judicial Process
POL 319 US Environmental Law and Politics
POL 322 Development and the Environment
POL 329 International Environmental Law and Negotiation
POL 349 Comp Environ Law/Sustainable Development
POL 362 The American Presidency
POL 410A Semester in D.C./Pol Sci Field Trip (12 credits)
POL 410B Sem in D.C./Pol Sci Seminar
POL 413A Sem in Washington, D.C./Pre-Law Field Experience (12 credits)
POL 413B Sem in Wash, DC: Pre-Law Seminar
Graduation Requirements
SNHU 101 First Year Seminar: Foundations in Critical Thinking
Free Electives
Beginning in their junior year, political science majors may elect to spend a semester in the nation's capital as a student in SNHU's Semester in Washington, D.C., program. The Semester in Washington, D.C., program promotes learning by doing among SNHU political science majors and minors and other SNHU students through for-credit internships and academic seminars hosted by The Washington Center in Washington, D.C. The Washington Center is an independent, not-for-profit organization that since 1975 has provided internship programs and academic seminars to college students from throughout the United States and around the world, and is affiliated with more than 850 colleges and universities nationwide. The Washington Center provides students with housing and places them in internships appropriate to their interests. For more information, see the course descriptions for POL 410A through 413A and POL 410B through 413B, Paul Barresi (Political Science Chair) and The Washington Center.
Southern New Hampshire University's location in the largest city of the state with the first-in-the-nation presidential primary offers political science majors a unique opportunity to observe and participate in presidential politics at the grass-roots level. In POL 312, which is offered during the height of the New Hampshire presidential primary season, students not only study presidential politics at the grass-roots level, but acquire hands-on experience as interns with presidential campaigns.For more information about the New Hampshire presidential primary, see The New Hampshire Political Library
Southern New Hampshire University programs are accredited by:
- Accreditation Commission for Programs in Hospitality Administration
- American Culinary Federation Educational Institute
- Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs
- European Council for Business Education
- New England Association of Schools and Colleges
- New Hampshire Postsecondary Education Commission
- New Hampshire State Department of Education for Teacher Certification
- North American Society for Sport Management