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Undergraduate Bulletin College of Arts and Sciences
Department of Philosophy

Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Political Science

Students on Summer 2018, Fall 2018, or Spring 2019 requirements PHILPOLSBA
The Interdepartmental Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Political Science allows students to study both disciplines within a single major, addressing foundational issues relating to political life, ethics, and the law. Students develop skill in identifying and critically evaluating arguments, thinking clearly and independently, writing analytically, and applying principles of logic, while acquiring the tools and knowledge to understand the theory and practice of government and politics, both in the U.S. and internationally.

Requirements

The major requires at least 42 credit hours, including the requirements listed below.
  1. Philosophy Courses. 18 credit hours, with no more than one 100-level course counting toward the minimum and with at least 12 credit hours in 300–499 level courses.
    1. Ethics and value theory. At least one (1) course:
      • PHIL-P 242 Applied Ethics
      • PHIL-P 246 Introduction to Philosophy and Art
      • PHIL-P 332 Feminism and Value
      • PHIL-P 340 Classics in Ethics
      • PHIL-P 342 Problems of Ethics
      • PHIL-P 343 Classics in Social and Political Philosophy
      • PHIL-P 345 Problems in Social and Political Philosophy
      • PHIL-P 346 Classics in Philosophy of Art
      • PHIL-P 347 Contemporary Controversies in Philosophy of Art
      • PHIL-P 375 Philosophy of Law
      • PHIL-P 393 Biomedical Ethics
    2. History of philosophy. At least one (1) course:
      • PHIL-P 201 Ancient Greek Philosophy
      • PHIL-P 205 Modern Jewish Philosophy
      • PHIL-P 211 Early Modern Philosophy
      • PHIL-P 301 Medieval Philosophy
      • PHIL-P 304 19th Century Philosophy
      • PHIL-P 305 Topics in the Philosophy of Judaism
      • PHIL-P 319 American Pragmatism
      • PHIL-P 328 Philosophies of India
      • PHIL-P 330 Marxist Philosophy
      • PHIL-P 335 Phenomenology and Existentialism
      • PHIL-P 374 Early Chinese Philosophy
    3. Epistemology and metaphysics. At least one (1) course:
      • PHIL-P 310 Topics in Metaphysics
      • PHIL-P 312 Topics in the Theory of Knowledge
      • PHIL-P 320 Philosophy of Language
      • PHIL-P 360 Philosophy of Mind
      • PHIL-P 366 Philosophy of Action
    4. Logic. At least one (1) course:
      • PHIL-P 150 Elementary Logic
      • PHIL-P 250 Introductory Symbolic Logic
  2. Political Science Courses. 18 credit hours, with no more than one 100-level course counting toward the minimum and with at least 12 credit hours in courses at the 300–499 level including:
    1. American Politics and Public Policy. At least one (1) course:
      • POLS-P 301 Health Policy and Politics in the United States
      • POLS-Y 301 Political Parties and Interest Groups
      • POLS-Y 302 Public Bureaucracy in Modern Society
      • POLS-Y 303 Formation of Public Policy in the United States
      • POLS-Y 304 Constitutional Law
      • POLS-Y 305 Constitutional Rights and Liberties
      • POLS-Y 306 State Politics in the United States
      • POLS-Y 307 Indiana State Government and Politics
      • POLS-Y 308 Urban Politics
      • POLS-Y 311 Democracy and National Security
      • POLS-Y 313 Environmental Policy
      • POLS-Y 315 Political Psychology and Socialization
      • POLS-Y 316 Public Opinion and Political Participation
      • POLS-Y 317 Voting, Elections, and Public Opinion
      • POLS-Y 318 The American Presidency
      • POLS-Y 319 The United States Congress
      • POLS-Y 320 Judicial Politics
      • POLS-Y 321 The Media and Politics
      • POLS-Y 324 Gender and Politics
      • POLS-Y 325 African American Politics
      • POLS-Y 326 American Social Welfare Policy
      • POLS-Y 329 Racial and Ethnic Politics in the United States
      • POLS-Y 394 Public Policy Analysis
    2. Comparative Politics and International Relations. At least one (1) course:
      • POLS-P 302 The Politics of Economic Crisis and Reform
      • POLS-P 303 Challenges of Democracy
      • POLS-Y 332 Russian Politics
      • POLS-Y 333 Chinese Politics
      • POLS-Y 334 Japanese Politics
      • POLS-Y 335 Western European Politics
      • POLS-Y 336 South East Asian Political Systems
      • POLS-Y 337 Latin American Politics
      • POLS-Y 338 African Politics
      • POLS-Y 339 Middle Eastern Politics
      • POLS-Y 340 East European Politics
      • POLS-Y 341 Authoritarian Regimes
      • POLS-Y 342 Human Rights and State Repression
      • POLS-Y 343 The Politics of International Development
      • POLS-Y 344 Civil Wars
      • POLS-Y 345 Comparative Revolutions
      • POLS-Y 346 Politics in the Developing World
      • POLS-Y 347 German Politics
      • POLS-Y 348 The Politics of Genocide
      • POLS-Y 350 Politics of the European Union
      • POLS-Y 351 Political Simulations
      • POLS-Y 352 The Holocaust and Politics
      • POLS-Y 353 The Politics of Gender and Sexuality
      • POLS-Y 356 South Asian Politics
      • POLS-Y 360 United States Foreign Policy
      • POLS-Y 361 Contemporary Theories of International Politics
      • POLS-Y 362 International Politics of Selected Regions
      • POLS-Y 363 Comparative Foreign Policy
      • POLS-Y 364 International Organization: Political and Security Aspects
      • POLS-Y 366 Current Foreign Policy Problems
      • POLS-Y 367 International Law
      • POLS-Y 368 Russian and Soviet Foreign Policy
      • POLS-Y 372 The Analysis of International Politics
      • POLS-Y 374 International Organization
      • POLS-Y 375 War and International Conflict
      • POLS-Y 376 International Political Economy
      • POLS-Y 399 Politics of the United Nations
      • POLS-Y 407 Problems in Comparative Politics
    3. Political Theory and Methodology. At least two (2) courses:
      • POLS-Y 379 Ethics and Public Policy
      • POLS-Y 381 Classical Political Thought
      • POLS-Y 382 Modern Political Thought
      • POLS-Y 383 Foundations of American Political Thought
      • POLS-Y 384 Developments in American Political Thought
      • POLS-Y 386 African American Political Thought
      • POLS-Y 388 Marxist Theory
      • POLS-Y 395 Quantitative Political Analysis
      • POLS-Y 405 Models and Theories of Political Decision Making
      • POLS-Y 406 Problems in Political Philosophy
    4. Seminar. One (1) course:
      • POLS-Y 490 Senior Seminar in Political Science
  3. Major GPA, Hours, and Minimum Grade Requirements.
    1. At least 18 credit hours in the major must be completed in courses taken through the Indiana University Bloomington campus or an IU-administered or IU co-sponsored Overseas Study program.
    2. At least 18 credit hours in the major must be completed at the 300–499 level.
    3. Except for the GPA requirement, a grade of C- or higher is required for a course to count toward a requirement in the major.
    4. A GPA of at least 2.000 for all courses taken in the major—including those where a grade lower than C- is earned—is required.
    5. Exceptions to major requirements may be made with the approval of the department's Director of Undergraduate Studies, subject to final approval by the College of Arts and Sciences.