Political Science, Public Administration Concentration, B.S.

Department of Political Science
615-898-2708
Stephen Morris, program coordinator
Stephen.Morris@mtsu.edu

Students majoring in Political Science can choose a general focus or a concentration in either Public Administration or Pre-law.

The Pre-law concentration is designed for the student who plans to attend law school. A combination of core political science courses and courses in related disciplines has been found to provide a sound background for law school. Some law schools will not accept any professional or technical courses as part of their minimum requirement. It is essential that the student consult with his or her advisor in instances where such courses will be taken.

The concentration in Pre-law requires 36 semester hours of work, including

Required Courses

Core (18 hours)

PS 1005 - American Government and Politics 3 credit hours (formerly PS 2010)
PS 1010 - Foundations of Government 3 credit hours
PS 3001 - Research Methods in Political Science 3 credit hours (formerly PS 4000)
PS 3250 - Public Administration 3 credit hours
PS 4290 - Public Service Internship 1 to 12 credit hours (must select a minimum of 3 hours)
PS 4800 - Senior Seminar 3 credit hours

Choose two from each of the following groups:

Group one (6 hours)

PS 3440 - Governmental Budgeting and Finance Administration 3 credit hours
PS 4590 - Administrative Law 3 credit hours
PS 4630 - Personnel Management 3 credit hours

Group two (6 hours)

PS 2020 - State and Local Government 3 credit hours
PS 2440 - Law and the Legal System 3 credit hours
PS 3160 - American Public Policy 3 credit hours
PS 3400 - Municipal Government 3 credit hours
PS 3490 - Alternative Dispute Resolution 3 credit hours
PS 4120 - Tennessee Government 3 credit hours
PS 4830 - Advanced Studies in Public Administration 3 credit hours

Subfields (6 hours)

Choose two from the following subfields:

American Government
Comparative Government
International Relations
Political Theory

Cognate (18 hours)

This cognate takes the place of one minor (18 hours). Complete six of the following courses in consultation with advisor.

ACTG 3020 - Managerial Accounting 3 credit hours
BCEN 4680 - Diversity in the Workplace 3 credit hours
COMM 3220 - Small Group Communication 3 credit hours
ECON 2410 - Principles of Economics, Macroeconomics 3 credit hours
ECON 2420 - Principles of Economics, Microeconomics 3 credit hours
ECON 4390 - Employee Benefits 3 credit hours
ECON 4420 - Labor and Human Resource Economics 3 credit hours
ECON 4510 - Unions and Collective Bargaining 3 credit hours
MGMT 3610 - Principles of Management 3 credit hours
MGMT 4200 - Leadership in Organizations 3 credit hours
MGMT 4680 - Organization Behavior 3 credit hours
LEAD 3010 - Leadership Theories and Practices 3 credit hours
ORCO 3240 - Introduction to Organizational Communication 3 credit hours
ORCO 3250 - Organizational Communication in Communities 3 credit hours
ORCO 3500 - Strategic Communication in Organizations 3 credit hours
ORCO 3650 - Conflict and Organizations 3 credit hours
PSY 4380 - Group Dynamics 3 credit hours

Curriculum: Political Science, Public Administration

Curricular listings include General Education requirements in Communication, History, Humanities and/or Fine Arts, Mathematics, Natural Sciences, and Social/Behavioral Sciences categories.

Freshman

ENGL 1010 - Expository Writing 3 credit hours (Comm)
ENGL 1020 - Research and Argumentative Writing 3 credit hours (Comm)
PS 1005 - American Government and Politics 3 credit hours
PS 1010 - Foundations of Government 3 credit hours (Soc/Beh Sci)
Mathematics 3 credit hours
Humanities and/or Fine Arts 3 credit hours
Natural Sciences (2 prefixes) 8 credit hours
Social/Behavior Sciences 3 credit hours
General elective 3 credit hours

Subtotal: 32 Hours

Sophomore

ENGL 2020 - Themes in Literature and Culture 3 credit hours (Hum/FA) OR
ENGL 2030 - The Experience of Literature 3 credit hours (Hum/FA) OR
HUM 2610 - Foreign Literature in Translation 3 credit hours (Hum/FA)
COMM 2200 - Fundamentals of Communication 3 credit hours (Comm)
PS 3001 - Research Methods in Political Science 3 credit hours
PS 3250 - Public Administration 3 credit hours
Humanities and/or Fine Arts 3 credit hours
Minor course 3 credit hours
PS 3440 - Governmental Budgeting and Finance Administration 3 credit hours OR
PS 4590 - Administrative Law 3 credit hours OR
PS 4630 - Personnel Management 3 credit hours
PS 2020 - State and Local Government 3 credit hours OR
PS 2440 - Law and the Legal System 3 credit hours OR
PS 3160 - American Public Policy 3 credit hours OR
PS 3400 - Municipal Government 3 credit hours OR
PS 3490 - Alternative Dispute Resolution 3 credit hours OR
PS 4120 - Tennessee Government 3 credit hours OR
PS 4830 - Advanced Studies in Public Administration 3 credit hours
Choose 6 hours from:
HIST 2010 - Survey of United States History I 3 credit hours OR
HIST 2020 - Survey of United States History II 3 credit hours OR
HIST 2030 - Tennessee History 3 credit hours

Subtotal: 30 Hours

Junior

PS 4290 - Public Service Internship 1 to 12 credit hours (3 credit hours required)
PA cognate 9 credit hours
PS elective 3 credit hours
Minor courses 9 credit hours
General elective 3 credit hours
PS 3440 - Governmental Budgeting and Finance Administration 3 credit hours OR
PS 4590 - Administrative Law 3 credit hours OR
PS 4630 - Personnel Management 3 credit hours

Subtotal: 30 Hours

Senior

PS 4800 - Senior Seminar 3 credit hours
PS elective 3 credit hours
Minor courses 6 credit hours
General electives 4 credit hours
PA cognate 9 credit hours
PS 2020 - State and Local Government 3 credit hours OR
PS 2440 - Law and the Legal System 3 credit hours OR
PS 3160 - American Public Policy 3 credit hours OR
PS 3400 - Municipal Government 3 credit hours OR
PS 3490 - Alternative Dispute Resolution 3 credit hours OR
PS 4120 - Tennessee Government 3 credit hours OR
PS 4830 - Advanced Studies in Public Administration 3 credit hours

Political Science, Public Administration Concentration, B.S.

Required Courses

Core (18 hours)

Choose two from each of the following groups:

Group one (6 hours)

Group two (6 hours)

Subfields (6 hours)

Cognate (18 hours)

Curriculum: Political Science, Public Administration

Freshman

Subtotal: 32 Hours

Sophomore

Subtotal: 30 Hours

Junior

Subtotal: 30 Hours

Senior

Subtotal: 28 Hours

Total hours in program: 120