2024-2025

Political Science, Minor

Department of Politics and International Affairs

College of Social and Behavioral Sciences

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.

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

    To receive a minor (18 - 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.

In addition to University Requirements:

  • Complete individual plan requirements.

Students may be able to use some courses to meet more than one requirement. Contact your advisor for details.

No more than fifty percent of the units used to satisfy minor requirements may be used to satisfy major requirements.

Minimum Units for Completion 21
Major GPA 2.0
Fieldwork Experience/Internship Optional

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.

Minor Requirements

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

Additional Information

  • Be aware that some courses may have prerequisites that you must also successfully complete. For prerequisite information, click on the course or see your advisor.