Program Requirements

  • Total Units Required: 39 units with a C or better; 18-27 of the total units must be at the 3000 or 4000 level

Required Courses

  • 18 units from required foundation courses
    • Intro to Political Science: POLSCI 1000 American Politics; POLSCI 1100 Introduction to Comparative Politics; POLSCI 1200 International Politics; or POLSCI 1300 Introduction to Political Theory (Note: Students scoring a 4 or 5 on AP US Government and Politics or AP Comparative Government and Politics may place out of the introductory requirement and replace it with a 3000- or 4000-level Political Science course in the subfield related to the AP course.)
    • Intro to Environmental Policy: POLSCI 2000 Introduction to Environmental Policy
    • Natural Science on Environment: BIOL 2150 Introduction to Environmental Biology; BIOL 3810 Introduction to Ecology; or EEPS 2020 Introduction to Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Science
    • Research Methods: POLSCI 2400 Data Science for Politics or POLSCI 3630 Quantitative Political Methodology
    • Policy Analysis: POLSCI 4043 Public Policy Analysis, Assessment and Practical Wisdom or POLSCI 3692 The Politics of Public Policy 
    • Normative: POLSCI 3313 Theories of Social Justice; POLSCI 4070 Global Justice;  or PHIL 2080 Introduction to Environmental Ethics

Elective Courses

  • 15 units of 3000- or 4000-level electives with an environmental focus (from a preapproved list or by petition in advance), 6 units of which must be in Political Science or count toward Political Science requirements

Capstone

Additional Information

Senior Thesis

The department encourages students to pursue independent research by working toward a senior thesis. Students admitted to this program work closely with a faculty advisor for a full calendar year, beginning at the end of their junior year. Students writing a senior thesis receive 6 units of credit for two semesters of work by enrolling in POLSCI 4900 Senior Thesis Research. This credit counts toward the capstone requirement. Although there is no grade point average requirement for writing a senior thesis, an application is required. For more information, contact the department office. All majors may apply.

To qualify to write a senior thesis, students must do the following:

  • Complete the methodology course requirement by the fall of their junior year (all majors are strongly urged to complete this requirement during their sophomore year).
  • Complete POLSCI 4905 Research Design and Methods prior to their senior year.
  • Apply during their junior year for admission into the program.

Senior Honors

There are two tracks for graduating with Latin Honors: honors by thesis and honors by coursework. For either track, students must complete POLSCI 4905 Research Design and Methods during their junior year.

To graduate with Latin Honors by thesis, students must also successfully complete a senior thesis project and meet a GPA requirement set by the College of Arts & Sciences.

To graduate with Latin Honors by coursework, students must also complete an additional 9 credits that are at the 3000 level or higher (for a total of 39 credits in the major), write a paper that is 10 pages or longer in a course (that is not POLSCI 4905 Research Design and Methods) at the 4000 or 5000 level, and meet a GPA requirement set by the College of Arts & Sciences.

For more information about the application process, please visit the Senior Thesis & Latin Honors Program page of the Department of Political Science website.

Limitations

No more than 6 units from the following may count toward the major: study abroad, summer school, WashU Continuing & Professional Studies, or transfer credit.

No more than 6 units from the following may count toward the major: internship, directed reading, directed research, or teaching practicum.

Visit the Political Science page
for additional information about this program.

Contact Info

Phone:314-935-5810
Email:polisci@wustl.edu
Website:http://polisci.wustl.edu