The Department of Political Science at Kent State University offers a four-year program in political science leading to the Bachelor of Arts degree. Qualified undergraduate students can also pursue graduate programs leading to the Master of Arts and Master of Public Administration while completing their Bachelor of Arts.
Program Requirements
All students pursuing bachelor's degrees at Kent State must take a series of liberal education requirements. Political Science majors take courses in the areas of English composition, mathematics and critical reasoning, foreign language, humanities, fine arts, social sciences and basic sciences.
The political science major consists of 36 semester hours of study. All students take the following courses:
* American Politics
* Comparative Politics
* Political Economy
* Political Methods
* Political Thought
* Public Policy
* World Politics
Students then take five additional upper-division courses in political science, including a writing-intensive Seminar in Political Science. Upper-division work is generally concentrated in one of three submajor areas:
* American Politics
* International Relations/Comparative Politics
* Public Policy
A Registration Request form should be completed and turned in to the department by students wishing to enroll in a writing-intensive Seminar in Political Science.
Special Departmental Programs
The Applied Public Policy Learning Experience
Applied Public Policy Learning Experience (APPLE) is the Department's freshman and sophomore learning community. It offers academic and service-learning for freshmen and sophomores who want real-world experience with public policy and public service.
Columbus Program in Intergovernmental Issues
Each fall the Department of Political Science and the Alumni Office sponsor the Columbus Program in Intergovernmental Issues. Qualified Kent State University juniors and seniors spend the fall semester in Columbus, Ohio, where they participate in internships, attend briefings by state and local political leaders and do research on public policy issues. Students earn up to 15 hours during the semester.
Washington Program in National Issues
Each spring, the political science department and the Alumni Office sponsor the Washington Program in National Issues. Qualified Kent State University juniors or seniors spend the spring semester in Washington D.C., where they participate in an internship, as well as attend numerous briefings and engage in individualized research. Students earn up to 16 hours during the semester.
Scholarship and Award Opportunities
Mona Fletcher Award
Each year the Political Science Department recognizes the graduating senior with the highest overall grade point average for the Mona Fletcher Award.
Davey Scholarship
The Davey Scholarship, a part of Kent State University Founders Program, provides a four-year scholarship of nearly $10,000 to an incoming high school student who attends Kent State to major in political science. Information about this scholarship can be found by viewing the Student Financial Aid Office Web site at http://www.sfa.kent.edu.
Dubetz Scholarship
The Dubetz Scholarship is offered annually to an outstanding senior student majoring in political science.
Special scholarships are available for the Columbus and Washington programs.
Career Opportunities
Although political science is within the liberal arts tradition and therefore does not have a vocational focus, a wide variety of career opportunities are available for the political science major. The department's focus on service-learning and internships through APPLE, the Washington Program and the Columbus Program opens many doors to immediate employment in a wide range of jobs including work with legislative offices, executive departments, interest groups and governmental relations firms. Some choose legal careers by the way of law school, while still others pursue careers in public service in the United States or abroad. Some political science majors pursue a scholarly career by completing M.A., M.P.A., and Ph.D. programs. Many graduates go into the private sector, while others opt for careers in journalism, labor relations or social work. A growing number of students choose to follow a career in international business by combining work in political science and international relations. This route requires language competence and experience in foreign countries, and generally involves graduate work in some field of international business. You can obtain from your advisor or from the director of undergraduate studies a useful pamphlet titled Political Science: An Ideal Liberal Arts Major, which discusses career opportunities for political science majors.