Department of Political Science, College of Social and Applied Human Sciences

The Department of Political Science offers courses in the following areas: Political Thought; Canadian Politics; Public Policy, Governance, and Law; Comparative Politics; and International Relations and Global Studies. The Department of Political Science also participates in several interdisciplinary programs, including Criminal Justice and Public Policy, International Development Studies, Environmental Governance, and European Studies.

The Department of Political Science offers an academic advising service for students in Political Science.

Students are encouraged to consult with the faculty advisor for either of these programs about course selection, substitution of courses offered by other departments, or other matters.

Major Requirements (Honours)

This is a major within the degree: Bachelor of Arts.

A minimum of 9.00 credits is required, including:

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
POLS*1150	Understanding Politics	0.50
POLS*2300	Canadian Government and Politics	0.50
POLS*2650	Political Inquiry and Research Methods	0.50
POLS*3650	Quantitative Methods of Data Analysis	0.50
PHIL*2280	Key Concepts in Political Philosophy	0.50
or POLS*2000	Political Theory
Select 0.50 credits from the following:
IDEV*2000	Decolonizing Development	0.50
POLS*2100	Comparative Politics	0.50
POLS*2200	International Relations	0.50
Select 0.50 credits from the following:
POLS*2150	Gender and Politics	0.50
POLS*2230	Public Policy	0.50
POLS*2250	Public Administration and Governance	0.50
POLS*2350	Law from a Political Science Perspective	0.50
At least 0.50 credits at the 3000 level in three of the five fields in the department		1.50
1.50 credits at the 4000 level 1,2		1.50
2.50 additional credits from courses in Political Science. 2		2.50

¹

Must include one course from the 1.00 credit-weighted research and writing intensive seminar courses or the two courses which comprise the POLS*4970 Honours Political Science Research I/POLS*4980 Honours Political Science Research II Honours Thesis sequence.

²

A maximum of 2.00 credits at the 4000 level may be counted towards a major in Political Science.

Choices for fulfillment of prerequisites for 4000 level courses (see course descriptions for corresponding requirements):

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Political Thought
POLS*3230	Modern Political Thought	0.50
POLS*3710	Gender, Sexuality and Law	0.50
Canadian Politics
HIST*3160	Canada: Political & Policy History	0.50
POLS*3050	Canadian Campaigns and Elections	0.50
POLS*3130	Law, Politics and Judicial Process	0.50
POLS*3140	Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms	0.50
POLS*3210	The Constitution and Canadian Federalism	0.50
POLS*3270	Local Government in Ontario	0.50
POLS*3340	Indigenous Politics in Canada	0.50
POLS*3470	Business-Government Relations in Canada	0.50
Public Policy, Governance and Law
POLS*3130	Law, Politics and Judicial Process	0.50
POLS*3140	Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms	0.50
POLS*3210	The Constitution and Canadian Federalism	0.50
POLS*3250	Public Policy: Challenges and Prospects	0.50
POLS*3300	Governing Criminal Justice	0.50
POLS*3350	Comparative Law and Courts	0.50
POLS*3370	Environmental Politics and Governance	0.50
POLS*3440	Corruption, Scandal and Political Ethics	0.50
POLS*3470	Business-Government Relations in Canada	0.50
POLS*3670	Comparative Public Policy	0.50
POLS*3710	Gender, Sexuality and Law	0.50
Comparative Politics
POLS*3000	Politics of Africa	0.50
POLS*3060	Politics of the Middle East and North Africa	0.50
POLS*3080	Politics of Latin America	0.50
POLS*3160	Global Gender Justice	0.50
POLS*3320	Politics of Aid and Development	0.50
POLS*3350	Comparative Law and Courts	0.50
POLS*3410	U.S. Politics and Government	0.50
POLS*3440	Corruption, Scandal and Political Ethics	0.50
POLS*3450	European Governments and Politics	0.50
POLS*3670	Comparative Public Policy	0.50
POLS*3890	Government and Politics of India	0.50
POLS*3920	Politics of China	0.50
International Relations and Global Studies
POLS*3020	International Law and Organizations	0.50
POLS*3160	Global Gender Justice	0.50
POLS*3320	Politics of Aid and Development	0.50
POLS*3490	Conflict and Conflict Resolution	0.50
POLS*3790	International Political Economy	0.50

4000 level courses that fulfill the writing and research intensive course requirement:

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
POLS*4020	Global Law and Courts	1.00
POLS*4050	Advanced Topics in Law and Politics	1.00
POLS*4070	Courts and Parliament	1.00
POLS*4090	Seminar in Digital Politics	1.00
POLS*4100	Women, Justice and Public Policy	1.00
POLS*4110	Criminal Justice Policy and Law	1.00
POLS*4140	Conceptions of Canada	1.00
POLS*4160	Multi-Level Governance in Canada	1.00
POLS*4170	Global Environmental Politics	1.00
POLS*4200	International Political Economy	1.00
POLS*4250	Topics in Public Management	1.00
POLS*4260	Topics in Public Policy	1.00
POLS*4300	Human Rights, Ethics, and Development	1.00
POLS*4340	Nationalism, State-building and Identity	1.00
POLS*4710	Topics in Comparative Politics	1.00
POLS*4720	Topics in International Relations	1.00
POLS*4730	International Relations of the Middle East	1.00
POLS*4740	Advanced Topics in Rights and Liberties	1.00
POLS*4900	Special Topics Seminar in Political Science	1.00

Students interested in pursuing graduate or professional studies related to Political Science are encouraged to consider taking the POLS*4970 Honours Political Science Research I/POLS*4980 Honours Political Science Research II Honours Thesis sequence. Interested students must obtain instructor consent in order to register for this option.

Co-op Requirements (Honours)

This is a major within the degree: Bachelor of Arts.

The Co-op program in Political Science is a four and a half year program, including three work terms. Students must follow the academic work schedule as outlined below (also found on the Co-operative Education website: https://www.recruitguelph.ca/cecs/). 

Academic and Co-op Work Term Schedule

Co-op Information

Year	Fall	Winter	Summer
1	Academic Semester 1	Academic Semester 2	Off
2	Academic Semester 3 COOP*1100	Academic Semester 4	COOP*1000 Work Term I
3	COOP*2000 Work Term II	Academic Semester 5	Academic Semester 6
4	Academic Semester 7	COOP*3000 Work Term III	Off
5	Academic Semester 8	N/A	N/A

Please refer to the Co-operative Education program policy with respect to work term performance grading, work term report grading and program completion requirements.

For additional program information students should consult with their Co-op Co-ordinator and Co-op Faculty Advisor, listed on the Co-operative Education web site.

Credit Summary

(21.50 Total Credits)

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Required Core Courses		9.00
Humanities credits from at least two areas (BA distribution requirement)		1.50
Social Science credit outside of POLS (BA distribution requirement)		0.50
Natural Science credits (BA distribution requirement)		1.00
Electives		8.00
Co-op Work Terms		1.50
Total Credits		21.5

Recommended Program Sequence

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Semester 1 - Fall
POLS*1150	Understanding Politics	0.50
2.00 electives 2		2.00
Semester 2 - Winter
2.50 electives 2		2.50
Summer Semester
No academic semester or work term
Semester 3 - Fall
COOP*1100	Introduction to Co-operative Education	0.00
Semester 3 or 4 - Fall or Winter
POLS*2300	Canadian Government and Politics	0.50
POLS*2650	Political Inquiry and Research Methods	0.50
PHIL*2280	Key Concepts in Political Philosophy	0.50
or POLS*2000	Political Theory
Select 0.50 credits from the following:
IDEV*2000	Decolonizing Development	0.50
POLS*2100	Comparative Politics	0.50
POLS*2200	International Relations	0.50
Select 0.50 credits from the following:
POLS*2150	Gender and Politics	0.50
POLS*2230	Public Policy	0.50
POLS*2250	Public Administration and Governance	0.50
POLS*2350	Law from a Political Science Perspective	0.50
2.50 electives 2		2.50
Summer Semester
COOP*1000	Co-op Work Term I	0.50
Fall Semester
COOP*2000	Co-op Work Term II	0.50
Semester 5 - Winter
POLS*3650	Quantitative Methods of Data Analysis	0.50
1.50 POLS restricted electives		1.50
0.50 electives		0.50
Semester 6 - Summer
Select 1.00 credits from the following:
POLS*3130	Law, Politics and Judicial Process	0.50
POLS*3140	Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms	0.50
POLS*3320	Politics of Aid and Development	0.50
POLS*3370	Environmental Politics and Governance	0.50
POLS*3210	The Constitution and Canadian Federalism (DE)	0.50
POLS*3300	Governing Criminal Justice (DE)	0.50
1.50 electives, which may include the following:
POLS*3850	Experiential Learning in Political Science 3	0.50
POLS*3960	Selected Topics in Political Science 3	0.50
Semester 7 - Fall and Semester 8 - Fall
A minimum of 1.50 and a maximum of 2.00 credits of 4000-level POLS courses are required in semesters 7 and 8. 4
Option A
1.50 POLS credits 4000-level		1.50
1.50 POLS electives		1.50
2.00 electives		2.00
Option B
2.00 POLS credits 4000-level		2.00
1.00 POLS electives		1.00
2.00 electives		2.00
Winter Semester (Year 4)
COOP*3000	Co-op Work Term III	0.50
Summer Semester (Year 4)
No academic semester or work term

²

These may include electives required to complete the Humanities, Social Science, Natural and Mathematical Science distribution requirements, or POLS restricted electives.

³

POLS*3850 Experiential Learning in Political Science and POLS*3960 Selected Topics in Political Science are subject to faculty availability and departmental approval.

⁴

At least 1.00 credits must come from either a 1.00 credit fourth-year seminar or the Honours Thesis sequence (POLS*4970 Honours Political Science Research I and POLS*4980 Honours Political Science Research II).

Restricted Electives

1. At least 0.50 credits at the 3000 level in three of the five fields in the department (see field lists below).

   Course List

   Code	Title	Credits
   Political Thought
   POLS*3230	Modern Political Thought	0.50
   POLS*3710	Gender, Sexuality and Law	0.50
   Canadian Politics
   HIST*3160	Canada: Political & Policy History	0.50
   POLS*3050	Canadian Campaigns and Elections	0.50
   POLS*3130	Law, Politics and Judicial Process	0.50
   POLS*3140	Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms	0.50
   POLS*3210	The Constitution and Canadian Federalism	0.50
   POLS*3270	Local Government in Ontario	0.50
   POLS*3340	Indigenous Politics in Canada	0.50
   POLS*3470	Business-Government Relations in Canada	0.50
   Public Policy, Governance and Law
   POLS*3130	Law, Politics and Judicial Process	0.50
   POLS*3140	Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms	0.50
   POLS*3210	The Constitution and Canadian Federalism	0.50
   POLS*3250	Public Policy: Challenges and Prospects	0.50
   POLS*3300	Governing Criminal Justice	0.50
   POLS*3350	Comparative Law and Courts	0.50
   POLS*3370	Environmental Politics and Governance	0.50
   POLS*3440	Corruption, Scandal and Political Ethics	0.50
   POLS*3470	Business-Government Relations in Canada	0.50
   POLS*3670	Comparative Public Policy	0.50
   POLS*3710	Gender, Sexuality and Law	0.50
   Comparative Politics
   POLS*3000	Politics of Africa	0.50
   POLS*3060	Politics of the Middle East and North Africa	0.50
   POLS*3080	Politics of Latin America	0.50
   POLS*3160	Global Gender Justice	0.50
   POLS*3320	Politics of Aid and Development	0.50
   POLS*3350	Comparative Law and Courts	0.50
   POLS*3410	U.S. Politics and Government	0.50
   POLS*3440	Corruption, Scandal and Political Ethics	0.50
   POLS*3450	European Governments and Politics	0.50
   POLS*3670	Comparative Public Policy	0.50
   POLS*3890	Government and Politics of India	0.50
   POLS*3920	Politics of China	0.50
   International Relations and Global Studies
   POLS*3020	International Law and Organizations	0.50
   POLS*3160	Global Gender Justice	0.50
   POLS*3320	Politics of Aid and Development	0.50
   POLS*3490	Conflict and Conflict Resolution	0.50
   POLS*3790	International Political Economy	0.50

2. 1.50 credits at the 4000 level, two of which must include either one course from the 1.00 credit-weighted research and writing intensive seminar courses or two courses which comprise the POLS*4970 Honours Political Science Research I/POLS*4980 Honours Political Science Research II Honours Thesis sequence. A maximum of 2.00 credits at the 4000 level may be counted towards a major in Political Science. 
   
   4000 level courses that fulfill the Honours writing and research intensive course requirement:

   Course List

   Code	Title	Credits
   POLS*4020	Global Law and Courts	1.00
   POLS*4050	Advanced Topics in Law and Politics	1.00
   POLS*4070	Courts and Parliament	1.00
   POLS*4090	Seminar in Digital Politics	1.00
   POLS*4100	Women, Justice and Public Policy	1.00
   POLS*4110	Criminal Justice Policy and Law	1.00
   POLS*4140	Conceptions of Canada	1.00
   POLS*4160	Multi-Level Governance in Canada	1.00
   POLS*4170	Global Environmental Politics	1.00
   POLS*4200	International Political Economy	1.00
   POLS*4250	Topics in Public Management	1.00
   POLS*4260	Topics in Public Policy	1.00
   POLS*4300	Human Rights, Ethics, and Development	1.00
   POLS*4340	Nationalism, State-building and Identity	1.00
   POLS*4710	Topics in Comparative Politics	1.00
   POLS*4720	Topics in International Relations	1.00
   POLS*4730	International Relations of the Middle East	1.00
   POLS*4740	Advanced Topics in Rights and Liberties	1.00
   POLS*4900	Special Topics Seminar in Political Science	1.00

   Note: Students interested in pursuing graduate or professional studies related to Political Science are encouraged to consider taking the POLS*4970 Honours Political Science Research I/POLS*4980 Honours Political Science Research II Honours Thesis sequence. Interested students must obtain instructor consent in order to register for this option.
3. An additional 2.50 credits from courses in Political Science. Note: If 2.00 credits of 4000 level POLS courses are being completed then only an additional 2.00 credits from courses in Political Science are required.

Minor Requirements (Honours)

This minor cannot be combined with a major in Political Science.

A minimum of 5.00 credits is required, including:

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
POLS*1150	Understanding Politics	0.50
POLS*2300	Canadian Government and Politics	0.50
POLS*2650	Political Inquiry and Research Methods	0.50
PHIL*2280	Key Concepts in Political Philosophy	0.50
or POLS*2000	Political Theory
Select 0.50 credits from the following:
IDEV*2000	Decolonizing Development	0.50
POLS*2100	Comparative Politics	0.50
POLS*2200	International Relations	0.50
Select 0.50 credits from the following:
POLS*2150	Gender and Politics	0.50
POLS*2230	Public Policy	0.50
POLS*2250	Public Administration and Governance	0.50
POLS*2350	Law from a Political Science Perspective	0.50
1.00 credits from Political Science at 3000-level or above
1.00 additional credits from courses in Political Science

Area of Concentration Requirements (General)

This is an area of concentration within the degree: Bachelor of Arts.

A minimum of 5.00 credits is required, including:

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
POLS*1150	Understanding Politics	0.50
POLS*2300	Canadian Government and Politics	0.50
PHIL*2280	Key Concepts in Political Philosophy	0.50
or POLS*2000	Political Theory
Select 0.50 credits from the following:
IDEV*2000	Decolonizing Development	0.50
POLS*2100	Comparative Politics	0.50
POLS*2200	International Relations	0.50
Select 0.50 credits from the following:
POLS*2150	Gender and Politics	0.50
POLS*2230	Public Policy	0.50
POLS*2250	Public Administration and Governance	0.50
POLS*2350	Law from a Political Science Perspective	0.50
2.50 additional credits, at least 1.50 of which must be at the 3000 level or above.		2.50