Political Science Learning Outcomes

At the completion of this major students will

• Have developed a mature political imagination which includes an ability to envision what constitutes an important political question/issue and to understand the various ways in which a political scientist might address such a question/issue.
• Have mastered essential facts relevant and necessary to the study of global political life. This involves a working knowledge of the key actors, structures, institutions and historical dynamics that constitute the contemporary political order. It also includes a broad familiarity with the historical roots of that order.
• Be able to think critically, analytically and rigorously about the world of politics.
• Have an informed sense of the historical dimension of the various political issues, developments, trends, theories and forms of inquiry relevant to the students’ interests.
• Have an enlightened understanding of the multicultural nature of global (but especially American) political life.
• Be able to convey information, analyze results and persuasively argue, in both written and oral form, clearly and effectively.
• Be able to conduct sound and rigorous social inquiry using a variety of methodologies and techniques.
• Be able to compete successfully for placement in graduate programs or employment relevant to the field of study.

Direct Measures of Student Learning

• Capstone Course
• Senior Thesis
• Oral defense of Senior Thesis
• Internship supervisor evaluations
• Symposium Presentations
• Annual departmental review of graded assignments and exams and samples of student writing
• Performance on exams

Indirect Measures of Student Learning

• Admission rates into graduate programs
• Alumni and employer satisfaction
• End-of-course student evaluation forms