CODE	NAME	DESCRIPTION
PLSC 220	Introduction to American Government	Basic roles, structures, and functions of American political institutions and introduction to American political process.
PLSC 240	Introduction to Comparative Government	Concepts, approaches, classifications, and models useful in comparing political structures and processes. Political systems characteristic of countries with different cultures and levels of economic development.
PLSC 250	Introduction to International Relations	Framework for analyzing contemporary international system: goals of nation-states and other actors; how such actors attempt to achieve their goals; and some forces that help or hinder attainment of goals.
PLSC 260	Introduction to Public Policy	Contemporary social and economic problems in America, public policies adopted or proposed to deal with them, and ways of analyzing those problems and policies.
PLSC 270	Social Science Inquiry	Introduction to the process of social science research and inquiry. Includes instruction on forming a research question, preparing a literature review, developing a research design, and undertaking analysis using selected quantitative or qualitative...
PLSC 279	Selected Topics	May be repeated for credit when topic varies.
PLSC 310	Statesmanship	(See Leadership Studies 378.)
PLSC 311	Classical Political Thought	Enduring basic issues in political theory studied through writings of Plato, Aristotle and other thinkers from ancient Greece through the Renaissance.
PLSC 312	Modern Political Theory	Ideas of major political philosophers from the 17th, 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries, such as Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Burke, Hegel, Marx, Tocqueville, and J. S. Mill.
PLSC 315	American Political Theory	Political thought in America from colonial times to present with an emphasis on issues relating to liberty, equality, federalism, community, and national purpose.
PLSC 323	Money, Politics and Prisons	The connections between the economy, politics, and the prison system in the United States are important for understanding concepts of justice in a democracy. Explores links between privatization of prisons, political incentives, and theories of justi...
PLSC 325	Racial Politics	Comparative examination of the history, problems and political role of minority groups in the U.S., with a concentration on the African-American political experience.
PLSC 326	United States Congress	Organization and functions of American Congress.
PLSC 327	The American Presidency	Political leadership in American political system from perspective of chief executive. Particular attention to expansion and use of presidential power.
PLSC 328	American Political Parties	Examines American political parties as organizations and their role in elections, government, and public policy. Also explores how parties have changed over time and the causes and effects of growing party polarization.
PLSC 329	Campaigns and Elections	Analysis of institutions and process of American electoral system and behavior of American electorate.
PLSC 330	Creation of the American Republic	Examines principles and practice of leadership within political context of the founding of the American Republic from 1776 through 1788. Primary focus will be on day-to-day work of the Constitutional Convention and the subsequent debates over ratific...
PLSC 331	Constitutional Law	Role of United States Supreme Court in American politics studied through examination of landmark constitutional decisions pertaining to distribution of governmental powers.
PLSC 333	Civil Rights and Civil Liberties	Analysis of contemporary legal status and interpretation of constitutional rights and liberties. Emphasis on landmark Supreme Court decisions involving various provisions of the Bill of Rights and the Fourteenth Amendment.
PLSC 336	SCOTUS & Criminal Procedure	This course critically analyzes the Supreme Court’s interpretation and application surrounding the constitutional rights of the criminally accused in our American legal system. Emphasis on landmark Supreme Court decisions involving the Fourth, Fifth,...
PLSC 337	The American Legal System	Analysis of structure, processes, and personnel of American legal system. Emphasis on decision making of private parties, judges, juries, and attorneys in context of civil litigation and criminal prosecution.
PLSC 338	Critical Race Theory	This course introduces students to critical race theory, an intellectual movement that considers why the liberal legal tradition and law address structural and institutional racism.
PLSC 339	Jurisprudence and Contemporary American Politics	Explores basic questions about the nature and function of law as an instrument of state power that are deeply interconnected with a wide range of political and legal problems.
PLSC 342	Politics of the Middle East and North Africa	This course covers the politics of the Middle East and North Africa region. This includes topics such as oil and climate change, authoritarian regimes, civil war and sectarian conflicts, and Muslim societies.
PLSC 343	Politics of Asia	Study of historical, cultural, and social forces shaping contemporary politics of Asia. Comparative survey of major political systems and critical examination of key issues. Attempts to link Asian studies with mainstream political science.
PLSC 344	Europe Today	An examination of political, social, and economic developments in Europe (both western and east-central) since World War II. Topics include European integration and the development of the European Union institutions, postcommunist transitions and the...
PLSC 345	Politics of Contemporary China	Study of China’s political system and policies in the reform era. Topics include party and state institutions, policies of reform, and politics on China’s periphery. Implications for social relationships, national identity, popular culture, and moral...
PLSC 348	Politics of Africa	Comparative study of state formation, nation-building, political economy, social structure/movements, selected regions and countries in Africa.
PLSC 349	Politics of Latin America and the Caribbean	Influence of historical, social, and cultural forces on contemporary politics of Latin America and the Caribbean. Effects of social structure and underdevelopment on processes of democratization, institution building, national integration, and econom...
PLSC 350	American Foreign Policy	Analyzes the traditions, processes, substance, and goals of American foreign policy, in addition to exploring national security and defense policy, foreign economic policy, international diplomacy, and foreign policy ethics.
PLSC 351	Globalization	Analysis of the political, economic, and socio-cultural dimensions of globalization. Considers how globalization has affected the nation state, interstate relations, and the democratization and development of countries around the world. Students will...
PLSC 353	International Security	Investigates international issues that threaten the security and prosperity of societies and individuals in the modern world. Issues include global terrorism, human slavery and trafficking, genocide, civil wars and insurgencies, and the proliferation...
PLSC 356	International Political Economy	Politics, processes, and institutions underlying contemporary global economic interdependence, with special focus on international trade, finance, and assistance; alternative theoretical models for understanding these events, processes, and instituti...
PLSC 359	Global Governance	Analyzes themes and selected topics in global governance. It explores how state and nonstate actors work together to confront and solve contemporary transnational challenges. (Same as International Studies 359)
PLSC 360	International Development Policy	Assistance policies of wealthy nations and multilateral organizations, development policies and problems of poor or underdeveloped nations, and dynamics of economic, political, environmental, and cultural transactions.
PLSC 361	The Politics of Social Welfare	Study of the development and effectiveness of programs in the United States that seek to promote economic equality and alleviate need. A focus on programs for both the poor and the middle class.
PLSC 362	Environmental Law and Policy	Examines legal aspects, both regulations and case law, of environmental policy. Central issues are whether legal responses (1) effectively address the needs of the parties most affected; (2) properly weigh such facts as economic efficiency, protectio...
PLSC 365	U.S. Healthcare Policy and Politics	Examination of political and economic evolution of the American healthcare system: doctors, hospitals, managed care, Medicare, Medicaid, health insurance, public health, epidemiology, mental health, pediatric health, tort reform, and psychopharmacolo...
PLSC 366	Poverty and Political Voice	Examines how well our nations antipoverty policies alleviate the hardships faced by residents of these communities and assesses the ability of the poor to mobilize for effective social change in their communities. Includes a required community-based...
PLSC 367	Black Politics and Policy	This course examines how federal and state laws and policies affect Black people in the United States. Emphasis will be given to current controversial policies.
PLSC 379	Selected Topics	Examples include comparative public-policy, constitutional politics, political terrorism, and public policy decision making. May be repeated for credit when topic varies.
PLSC 388	Individual Internship	No more than 1.5 units of internship in any one department and 3.5 units of internship overall may be counted toward required degree units.
PLSC 390	Independent Study	No Description Set
PLSC 395	Legislative Internship	Combines weekly seminar on the state legislative process with work as assistant to a state legislator, government agency, interest group, or press during session of the Virginia General Assembly.
PLSC 400	Senior Seminar	Reading and research focusing on important topics in political science. Both topics and instructors change from semester to semester.
PLSC 406	Summer Undergraduate Research	Documentation of the work of students who receive summer fellowships to conduct research [or produce a creative arts project] in the summer. The work must take place over a minimum of 6 weeks, the student must engage in the project full-time (at leas...
PLSC 490	Research Prospectus	Independent study devoted to the preparation of a research prospectus for the honors thesis. The prospectus is completed under the direction of the students intended thesis advisor. Department approval required.
PLSC 491	Honors Independent Research and Writing	Reading and research toward an honors thesis.
PLSC 492	Honors Independent Research and Writing II	Reading and research toward an honors thesis.

Political Science