Political and Global Affairs, Pre-Law Concentration, B.S.

Political and Global Affairs
615-898-2708
Robb McDaniel, program coordinator
pga@mtsu.edu

The Department of Political and Global Affairs offers the Bachelor of Arts and the Bachelor of Science degrees in each of its majors. Students majoring in Political and Global Affairs can choose a general focus or a concentration in International Relations, Public Policy and Management, or Pre-law.

The Pre-law concentration is designed for students who plan 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 toward their minimum requirements. It is essential that students consult with an advisor before taking such courses.

Academic Map

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

Political and Global Affairs, Pre-Law, B.S., Academic Map

Degree Requirements

True Blue Core (TBC)	41 hours
Major Requirements	42 hours*
Political and Global Affairs Core	15 hours
Methods	3 hours
Pre-Law Concentration	24 hours
Pre-Law Cognate	18 hours*
Minor	15-18 hours
Electives	1-13 hours
TOTAL	120 hours

*This program requires courses that can also fulfill requirements of the True Blue Core curriculum. If program requirements are also used to fulfill True Blue Core requirements, the number of elective hours will increase.

True Blue Core (41 hours)

True Blue Core (TBC) requirements (shown in curricular listings below) include courses in the Foundational Skills areas of Written Communication (WC), Information Literacy (Info Lit), Non-Written Communication (NWC), and Quantitative Literacy (Quant Lit). Knowledge Domains include Human Society and Social Relationships (HSSR), Scientific Literacy (Sci Lit), Creativity and Cultural Expression (CCE), and History and Civic Learning (HCL), which include Discovery and Explorations categories. Students must choose at least one course from each Discovery category.

The following courses required by the program meet True Blue Core requirements:

6 credit hours from GEOG 2000 , PS 1005 , or PS 1010 (HSSR)
3 credit hours from PS 1015 (CCE)

Major Requirements (42 hours)

The major in Political and Global Affairs requires a 2.0 GPA.

Pre-Law Cognate (18 hours)

Students should complete the following courses in consultation with an advisor. This cognate takes the place of one 18-hour minor. The same course cannot be used for both major and cognate.

PS 1015 - Introduction to Political Theory 3 credit hours
Choose 15 credit hours (5 courses) from the following:
CJA 3250 - Criminal Law 3 credit hours
COMM 4650 - History and Theory of Rhetoric 3 credit hours
PHIL 2110 - Elementary Logic and Critical Thinking 3 credit hours
PHIL 3150 - Ethics 3 credit hours
PLEG 3010 - Litigation 3 credit hours
PLEG 3420 - Torts 3 credit hours
PS 3010 - Women’s Rights in American Law 3 credit hours
PS 3370 - American Constitutional Law I: Government Powers 3 credit hours
PS 3380 - American Constitutional Law II: Civil Liberties and Civil Rights 3 credit hours
PS 3490 - Alternative Dispute Resolution 3 credit hours
PS 3530 - Legal Writing and Research 3 credit hours
PS 4015 - Topics in Law and Courts 3 credit hours
PS 4040 - Pre-Law Internship 3 credit hours
PS 4290 - Public Service Internship 1 to 12 credit hours (3 credit hours required)
PS 4560 - Identity and the Law 3 credit hours
PS 4590 - Administrative Law 3 credit hours
PS 4600 - Environmental Law 3 credit hours
RS 4130 - Religion and Law 3 credit hours

Minor (15-18 hours)

Electives (1-13 hours)

Curriculum: Political Science, Pre-Law

Freshman

Written Communication 3 credit hours
Information Literacy 3 credit hours
Quantitative Literacy 3 credit hours
Scientific Literacy 8 credit hours
Creativity and Cultural Expression 3 credit hours
Human Society and Social Relationships/General elective 6 credit hours
PS 1005 - Introduction to American Politics 3 credit hours (HSSR)
PS 1010 - Introduction to Global Politics 3 credit hours (HSSR)

Subtotal: 32 hours

Sophomore

GEOG 2000 - Introduction to Regional Geography 3 credit hours (HSSR)
PGA 2000 - Professional Development in Political and Global Affairs 3 credit hours
PS 1015 - Introduction to Political Theory 3 credit hours (CCE)
PS 2440 - Law and the Legal System 3 credit hours
Creativity and Cultural Expression Literature 3 credit hours
Non-Written Communication 3 credit hours
Creativity and Cultural Expression/General elective 3 credit hours
History and Civic Learning 6 credit hours
Minor course 3 credit hours

Subtotal: 30 hours

Junior

PS 3360 - Law and Policy 3 credit hours
PS 3370 - American Constitutional Law I: Government Powers 3 credit hours OR
PS 3380 - American Constitutional Law II: Civil Liberties and Civil Rights 3 credit hours
Pre-Law Concentration elective 12 credit hours
Pre-Law Cognate elective 6 credit hours
Minor courses 6 credit hours

Subtotal: 30 hours

Senior

PGA 4800 - Senior Seminar 3 credit hours
Pre-Law Concentration electives 6 credit hours
Pre-Law Cognate electives 9 credit hours
Minor course 6 credit hours
Minor course/General elective 3 credit hours
General elective 1 credit hour

Political and Global Affairs, Pre-Law Concentration, B.S.

Academic Map

Degree Requirements

True Blue Core (41 hours)

Major Requirements (42 hours)

Political and Global Affairs Core (15 hours)

Methods (3 hours)

Pre-Law Concentration (24 hours)

Pre-Law Cognate (18 hours)

Minor (15-18 hours)

Electives (1-13 hours)

Curriculum: Political Science, Pre-Law

Freshman

Subtotal: 32 hours

Sophomore

Subtotal: 30 hours

Junior

Subtotal: 30 hours

Senior

Subtotal: 28 hours