Dec 11, 2025

2023-2024 Undergraduate Catalog

2023-2024 Undergraduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Political Science, Teacher Licensure, B.S.

Political Science and International Relations

Students who want to teach government in high school should minor in Secondary Education; complete 12 hours of history (may include General Education requirements); minor in History (highly recommended), Economics, or Geography; and take 36 hours in political science. These must include PS 1005 , PS 1010 , PS 3210 , PS 3220 ; three of the following: PS 3050 , PS 3060 , PS 3330 , PS 3370 ; one of the following: PS 4230 , PS 4700 (highly recommended), PS 4920 , PS 4930 ; and 12 hours PS electives. Students must also complete additional teacher licensure requirements including COMM 2200 and either HIST 1010 , HIST 1020 , HIST 1110 , or HIST 1120 .

Students seeking an add-on endorsement in Government must take PS 1005 , PS 1010 , PS 3210 , PS 3220 , and three of the following courses: PS 3050 , PS 3060 , PS 3330 , PS 3370 , PS 4700 (highly recommended), or PS 4920 .

Please see Secondary Education Minor for minor requirements and additional information.

Academic Map

Following is a printable, suggested four-year schedule of courses:

Political Science, Teacher Licensure, B.S., Academic Map

Degree Requirements

General Education	41 hours
Major Requirements	36 hours*
History Requirements	18 hours*
Secondary Education Minor	30 hours
Electives	0-4 hours
TOTAL	120-125 hours

*This program requires courses that can also fulfill requirements of the General Education curriculum. If courses for this program are also used to fulfill General Education requirements, the program of study may be completed in 120 hours.

General Education (41 hours)

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

The following courses required by the program meet General Education requirements:

PS 1005 or PS 1010 (Soc/Beh Sci)
HIST 1010 , HIST 1020 , HIST 1110 , or HIST 1120 (Hum/FA)
COMM 2200 (Comm)

Major Requirements (36 hours)

PS 1005 - Introduction to American Politics 3 credit hours
PS 1010 - Introduction to Global Politics 3 credit hours
PS 3210 - International Relations 3 credit hours
PS 3220 - Comparative Politics 3 credit hours
Choose 3 courses from:
PS 3050 - The U.S. Presidency 3 credit hours OR
PS 3060 - The U.S. Congress 3 credit hours OR
PS 3330 - Political Parties 3 credit hours OR
PS 3370 - American Constitutional Law I: Government Powers 3 credit hours
Choose 1 course from the following:
PS 4230 - Classical Political Theory 3 credit hours OR
PS 4700 - American Political Thought 3 credit hours OR
PS 4920 - Modern Political Theory 3 credit hours OR
PS 4930 - Introduction to Contemporary Political Philosophy 3 credit hours

Political Science electives (12 hours)

Licensure Requirement (18 hours)

HIST 1010 - Survey Western Civilization I 3 credit hours OR
HIST 1020 - Survey Western Civilization II 3 credit hours OR
HIST 1110 - Survey World Civilization I 3 credit hours OR
HIST 1120 - Survey World Civilization II 3 credit hours
COMM 2200 - Fundamentals of Communication 3 credit hours
Upper-division European 3 credit hours
Upper-division Global 3 credit hours
Upper-division United States 3 credit hours
Upper-division HIST elective 3 credit hours

Secondary Education Minor (30 hours)

See Secondary Education Minor for further information.

Electives (0-4 hours)

Curriculum: Political Science Teacher Licensure

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 - Introduction to American Politics 3 credit hours
PS 1010 - Introduction to Global Politics 3 credit hours (Soc/Beh Sci)
Mathematics 3 credit hours
Humanities and/or Fine Arts 3 credit hours
General elective 3 credit hours
Natural Sciences 4 credit hours
Social/Behavioral Sciences 3 credit hours
HIST 1010 - Survey Western Civilization I 3 credit hours (Hum/FA) OR
HIST 1020 - Survey Western Civilization II 3 credit hours (Hum/FA) OR
HIST 1110 - Survey World Civilization I 3 credit hours (Hum/FA) OR
HIST 1120 - Survey World Civilization II 3 credit hours (Hum/FA)

Subtotal: 31 Hours

Sophomore

COMM 2200 - Fundamentals of Communication 3 credit hours (Comm)
PS 3210 - International Relations 3 credit hours
PS 3220 - Comparative Politics 3 credit hours
YOED 2500 - Planning and Assessment 3 credit hours
Elective 1 credit hour (PHED activity rec.)
Natural Sciences 4 credit hours
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 - World Literatures 3 credit hours (Hum/FA)
PS 4230 - Classical Political Theory 3 credit hours OR
PS 4700 - American Political Thought 3 credit hours OR
PS 4920 - Modern Political Theory 3 credit hours OR
PS 4930 - Introduction to Contemporary Political Philosophy 3 credit hours
PS 3050 - The U.S. Presidency 3 credit hours OR
PS 3060 - The U.S. Congress 3 credit hours OR
PS 3330 - Political Parties 3 credit hours OR
PS 3370 - American Constitutional Law I: Government Powers 3 credit hours
Choose 6 hours from:
HIST 2010 - Survey of United States History I 3 credit hours
HIST 2020 - Survey of United States History II 3 credit hours
HIST 2030 - Tennessee History 3 credit hours
HIST 2040 - Survey African American History I 3 credit hours
HIST 2050 - Survey African American History II 3 credit hours

Subtotal: 32 Hours

Junior

YOED 3000 - Classroom Management 3 credit hours
YOED 3300 - Problem-Based Instructional Strategies 3 credit hours
PS electives 6 credit hours
HIST upper-division Global 3 credit hours
HIST upper-division U.S. 3 credit hours
HIST upper-division European 3 credit hours
HIST upper-division elective 3 credit hours
Choose 6 hours from:
PS 3050 - The U.S. Presidency 3 credit hours OR
PS 3060 - The U.S. Congress 3 credit hours OR
PS 3330 - Political Parties 3 credit hours OR
PS 3370 - American Constitutional Law I: Government Powers 3 credit hours

Subtotal: 30 Hours

Senior

YOED 4030 - Residency I: Grades 7-12 9 credit hours
YOED 4400 - Residency II 12 credit hours
PS electives 6 credit hours