Goals and Mission of the Department
The primary objectives of the Department are to:
1. Create an academic environment that promotes the intellectual and professional development of students and faculty;
2. Develop and maintain a commitment to scholarly activity in research, graduate education, and undergraduate education that is commensurate with the goals and mission of a public university;
3. Provide programs for all students that meet the educational and technological demands of the disciplines represented in the Department;
- Help students gain critical awareness of the ways in which people organize political communities to pursue order, justice, and virtue.
- Offer a B.A. program in political science that provides both a survey of political institutions and processes within governments and societies and a set of analytical skills to promote employment and quality of life.
- Offer a B.A. program in political science that provides both a survey of political institutions and processes within governments and societies and a set of analytical skills to promote employment and quality of life.
- Offer internship programs in Columbus and Washington, D.C., that combine specialized, policy-related coursework and exposure to government agencies along with practical experience in a professional setting.
- Offer an M.A. program that trains students for teaching, research, and public service and that provides opportunities for programmatic research and the building of analytical skills in quantitative and qualitative techniques that are applicable to both professional and academic development.
- Offer a Ph.D. program that prepares students for teaching, research and public service. Knowledge and skills in analysis are developed through core and elective courses that build analytic skills in quantitative and qualitative techniques along with detailed knowledge of theoretical traditions and concepts.
- Offer an MPA program that seeks to increase the management capacity of governmental and not-for-profit agencies through courses that focus on training in specific managerial competencies as well as a broader professional approach to public administration concerns and institution building.
- Offer courses for students in related academic disciplines and professional fields that provide a necessary base for their career goals.
4. Provide the public with service commensurate with an academic unit focusing on political science and public policy. Service to the University and to the general public unifies and clarifies the role of the Department and is valued within the College and the University.
Implicit in these objectives is our responsibility as teachers, which includes but is not limited to, educating undergraduate and graduate students and providing continuing education while promoting and clarifying the role and philosophy of education.
A strong commitment to research means creating and maintaining a significant intellectual environment and achieving our broader commitments to the advancement of knowledge and service to the public.