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  • Political Science Minor

Contact the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences

Email:
sbs.dean​@nau.edu
Call:
928-523-2672
Get application information
For more information on minors in politics and international affairs, please visit the Department of Politics and International Affairs website.


Political Science, Minor

The addition of a Political Science minor can, along with your major, prepare you for a career in a diverse range of job opportunities or graduate work. You'll be offered courses that focus possibilities for, and obstacles to, democratic governance.

You can also follow your interests with internships that provide education by experience. Political Science students have interned with legislators in the U.S. Congress and Arizona Legislature; federal agencies including the National Park Service, Environmental Protection Agency, and FBI; foreign and international bodies such as the United Nations and the German Parliament; and interest groups that include the Sierra Club, Grand Canyon Trust, and Friends of Flagstaff's Future.

This minor is a useful companion to many degrees, including business, government, women's and gender studies, education, public health, environmental studies, military science, etc.

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Requirements Accordion Open

University Requirements

  • A minor is earned in conjunction with a bachelor's degree.

    To receive a minor (18 to 24 units) at Northern Arizona University, you must complete a planned group of courses from one or more subject matter areas with a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.0. At least 12 units of the minor must be unique to that minor and not applied to any other minor.

Overview Accordion Closed

Overview

In addition to University Requirements:

  • Complete individual plan requirements.

Please note that students may be able to use some courses to meet more than one requirement. Contact your advisor for details.

No more than 50% of the units used to satisfy minor requirements may be used to satisfy major requirements.

Minimum Units for Completion21
Major GPA2.0
Fieldwork Experience/InternshipOptional

Purpose Statement

The addition of a Political Science minor can, along with your major, prepare you for a career in a diverse range of job opportunities or graduate work.  Students gain background and experience in the forces shaping political outcomes, and learn about the role and impact of the US in the domestic and international system.  Students also gain critical writing, reading, and thinking skills.  You can also follow your interests with internships that provide education by experience. Political Science students have interned with legislators in the U.S. Congress and Arizona Legislature; federal agencies including the National Park Service, Environmental Protection Agency, and FBI; foreign and international bodies such as the United Nations and the German Parliament; and interest groups that include the Sierra Club, Grand Canyon Trust, and Friends of Flagstaff's Future.
 
Students can choose from a wide range of courses within the Politics and International Affairs Department.  You'll be offered a variety of courses that focus on possibilities for, and obstacles to, democratic governance.


Student Learning Outcomes

  • Identify and use salient political science concepts and analytical method to evaluate current public policies, political actors’ behavior, political events, and institutional arrangements within a diverse world.
  • Evaluate the strengths and limitations of a variety of significant analytical approaches used in political science.
  • Analyze, synthesize and evaluate the interconnectedness and interdependence of the human experience.
  • Demonstrate an ability to apply the discussion to policy and “real world” applications.
  • Critically reflect upon the nature and consequences of diversity (e.g. race, gender, class, ethnicity, religion, culture, nation), and develop an understanding of how this diversity both alters and is altered in a world characterized by increasing global interaction.

Details Accordion Closed

Details

Minor Requirements
  • Take the following 21 units with a Grade of "C" or better in each course:

    • POS 100 (3 units)
    • Select from: POS 110, POS 120, POS 224, POS 250, POS 254 (6 units)
    • Additional units in upper-division POS courses selected with your minor advisor’s approval (12 units)
  • Be aware that some courses may have prerequisites that you must also take. For prerequisite information click on the course or see your advisor.
     

Availability Accordion Closed

Campus Availability

  • Flagstaff

College of Social and Behavioral Sciences
Location
Room 200 Building 65
Raul H. Castro Building
5 East McConnell Drive
Flagstaff, AZ 86011
Mailing Address
PO Box 15700
Flagstaff, AZ 86011
Contact Form
Email
sbs.dean@nau.edu
Phone
928-523-2672
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