Getting good advice is crucial to successfully completing your undergraduate degree. Here are some suggestions for getting advice on courses and requirements.
If you decide you want to major or minor in political science, please make an appointment to meet with an academic advisor in the College of Arts and Sciences to begin this process. You can make an appointment in person at 105 Bowman Hall or schedule an appointment online at http://as.kent.edu. The advisor will provide you with information about your general college requirements and give you the forms and requirement sheets necessary to declare your major or minor.
Your next step is to take both forms to the Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of Political Science this semester, Dr. Trudy Steuernagel. (NOTE: Dr. Yantek is on sabbatical during fall 2007. Dr. Steuernagel is serving as the Director of Undergraduate Studies in his stead this semester.) Although the Director of Undergraduate Studies should be your first contact as you seek advising concerning matters related to political science coursework and degree requirements, you generally will find it desirable to obtain advice concerning your course of study from the faculty advisor to whom you have been assigned. Usually, the Director of Undergraduate Studies will allow you to select your own advisor, if there is someone to whom you wish to be assigned. If not, the Director will attempt to place you with a faculty member who teaches in the area of political science that you are most interested in studying.
It is a good idea to stay in at least occasional contact with your advisor, and definitely so during course scheduling. Faculty enjoy their contact with students--particularly with majors and minors--and so you should feel free to drop in during office hours whenever you feel the need. In addition to consulting members of the faculty, important information for planning your course of study can be found in the Undergraduate Catalog that you received when you first enrolled at KSU.
Remember: while University, major, and minor requirements change every so often, you are bound only by those requirements listed in your copy of the Catalog--i.e., the catalog for the year you were admitted to Kent State. The online Schedule of Classes, published each semester by the Registrar's office, is another important source of information concerning course offerings.
Finally, the Political Science Department each semester—in time for pre-registration—makes available a detailed list of course descriptions for the coming semester. Included in the list is information for each course that will be offered the following semester, covering such concerns as: time, place, and instructor for the course; topics to be covered in each particular section of the course; examinations and writing assignments required; and books to be used in the course. These course descriptions are a valuable resource as you consider which courses to take. If you are enrolled in a political science course, your instructor should hand out course descriptions in class prior to your time for pre-registration. If you are unable to obtain course descriptions in class, feel free to drop by the departmental offices (302 Bowman), where plenty of extra copies are available.
For additional information during Fall 2007 contact Dr. Steuernagel:
e-mail: tsteuern@kent.edu
office: 302 Bowman Hall, office #19
Beginning spring semester (mid-January 2008) contact Dr. Thom Yantek:
e-mail: tyantek@kent.edu
office: 302 Bowman Hall, office #24