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Political Science Major Requirements

As a student of political science at The College of New Jersey, you will be acquainted with both national and global perspectives with courses in American, Comparative, and International Politics, as well as Political Theory. Additionally, students in our Department develop an excellent foundation in economics, law, and quantitative methods which they can later apply hands-on through our extensive internship program.

Fifteen total course units are required for the Political Science major, including 12 course units in the Political Science core. Transfer students are required to take half of the 12 course units in the Political Science core at TCNJ. Once they are enrolled at TCNJ, majors may not take core POL courses at a two-year institution. Students who have taken the AP exams for American Government and Politics or for Comparative Politics will receive credit towards the major by earning a 5. Students should be careful not to repeat AP courses or courses taken elsewhere here at TCNJ because you cannot be credited twice. Click here for a printable Program Planner.

 

 

New Core Major Requirements

FOR STUDENTS WHO JOINED THE PROGRAM AFTER JUNE 2019

Requirement Courses
Correlate Courses STA 115
ECO 101
ECO 102
Political Science Breadth Distribution POL 110: American Government
POL 130: International Relations
POL 150: Comparative Politics
1 Political Theory Course
Research Core Sequence POL 200: Typically taken sophomore year
POL 390: Typically taken junior year, POL 200 is a pre-requisite
POL 498: Typically taken senior year, POL 390 is a pre-requisite
Electives 5 POL courses
Upper Division Requirements 5 of 12 POL courses must be at a 300 or 400 level
Pre-requisites 300 and 400 level classes generally require completion of the subfield survey course (POL 110, 130 or 150)

 

New Political Science Major Four Year Program Planner

FOR STUDENTS WHO JOINED THE PROGRAM AFTER JUNE 2019

Year Course Title Course Unit(s)
First Year/Freshman
FYS First-Year Seminar 1 course unit
HSS 99/Orientation to Humanities and Social Sciences 0 course units
POL 110/American Government* 1 course unit
POL 130/International Relations or POL 150/Comparative Politics 1 course unit
Quantitative Reasoning (Including STA 115) 1 course unit
FYW 102/Academic Writing (if not exempted)** 1 course unit
Foreign Language (if not exempted)** 2 course units
Second Year/Sophomore
POL 200/Political Analysis 1 course unit
POL 130/International Relations or POL 150/Comparative Politics 1 course unit
POL Electives 1 course unit
Liberal Learning courses (including foreign language, if needed, and economics) 2-3 course units
Electives 2-3 course units
Third Year/Junior
POL 390/Tutorial in Political Science 1 course unit
POL Electives 3 course units
Liberal Learning courses 1-2 course units
Electives 2-4 course units
Fourth Year/Senior
POL 498/Seminar in Political Science 1 course unit
POL Electives 2 course units
Electives 4-5 course units

 

 

 

Core Major Requirements

FOR STUDENTS WHO JOINED THE PROGRAM IN OR PRIOR TO THE SPRING SEMESTER 2019

Requirement Courses Year Typically Completed
Correlate Courses STA 115: Statistics
ECO 101: Microeconomics
ECO 102: Macroeconomics
First Year/Sophomore
Foundation Course POL 110: American Government or
POL 230: International Relations (currently POL 130)
First Year
Quantitative Methods & Research Design POL 200: Political Analysis Sophomore
Junior Tutorial POL 390: Tutorial in Political Science Junior
Senior Seminar POL 498: Seminar in Political Science Senior
Field Distribution Breadth Requirement 1 course in:
- American Politics
- Comparative Politics
- International Relations
- Political Theory
Variable
POL Electives 4 course units Variable
Level Requirement 8 courses (of 12) must be at 300-400 level Variable

 

Political Science Major Four Year Program Planner

FOR STUDENTS WHO JOINED THE PROGRAM IN OR PRIOR TO THE SPRING SEMESTER 2019

Year Course Title Course Unit(s)
First Year/Freshman
FSP First Seminar 1 course unit
HSS 99/Orientation to Humanities and Social Sciences 0 course units
POL 110/American Government * 1 course unit
POL 230/International Relations or POL 150/Comparative Politics 1 course unit
Quantitative Reasoning (including STA 115) 1 course unit
WR 102/Academic Writing (if not exempted)** 1 course unit
Foreign Language (if not exempted) ** 2 course units
Other Liberal Learning courses 0-2 course units
Second Year/Sophomore
POL 200/Political Analysis 1 course unit
POL 230/International Relations or POL 150/Comparative Politics 1 course unit
ECO 101/Microeconomics or ECO 102/Macroeconomics 1 course unit
Liberal Learning courses (including foreign language, if needed, and economics) 2-3 course units
POL Electives 1-2 course units
Electives 2-3 course units
Third Year/Junior
POL 390/Tutorial in Political Science 1 course unit
POL Electives 3 course units
Liberal Learning courses 1-2 course units
Electives 2-4 course units
Fourth Year/Senior
POL 498/Seminar in Political Science 1 course unit
POL Electives 2 course units
Electives 4-5 course units

 

*Students who have taken a course in American politics or government prior to TCNJ should take POL 150, POL 130/230, or POL 250 instead.

**It is recommended that students exempted from these courses take other liberal learning courses. Note: Chinese 151/152 and Japanese 151/152 are intensive courses and carry two course units of credit each. Students should take this into account when planning a normal four-course semester.

The following courses may be counted toward one of the field requirements if deemed appropriate by the designation of Dr. Chartock, Department Chair: POL 370, POL 390, POL 391, POL 498.

Students may take STA 215 instead of STA 115.

The following courses are pre-approved substitutes for the designated POL course: PHL 240 for POL 275; ECO 231 or SOC 302 for POL 200. These other courses may have pre-requisites controlled by their home department.