Students interested in pursuing the M.A. in political science normally should have at least 9 undergraduate semester hours in political science or the equivalent. When this is lacking, a student may be required to make up deficiencies by enrolling in and successfully completing designated courses, by auditing designated courses, or by engaging in supervised reading without graduate credit.
Check departmental information for any additional requirements.
Of the minimum 36 semester hours of graduate credit required for the degree, at least 9 semester hours are to be taken in one of the subfields of political science and at least 6 semester hours have to be taken in a second subfield of political science. In addition, POLS 602 and POLS 603 are required and at least 3 semester hours of POLS 690. PSPA 661 is required for study in the field of public administration leading to the M.A. degree. A maximum of 3 semester hours of POLS 690 may be counted toward the 36 semester hour minimum. No more than 3 semester hours in courses outside the department may be applied to the degree.
Students may apply 3 semester hours to the writing of a thesis. If a thesis is to be written the student must register for a minimum of 3 semester hours of POLS 699, Thesis (1-6). Students not writing a thesis must submit and successfully defend two research papers prepared in graduate courses, one in the student’s primary field and the other outside it. Prior to submission to the department for this purpose, each paper must be approved for such submission by the instructor for the course in which it was written. An oral comprehensive examination is required upon completion of all course work, or during the last term of study.
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