The Political Science major is intended to give students a broad understanding of political concepts, political institutions, political behavior and political processes.

Students who earn a B.A. in Political Science at UC Davis will be able to:

• identify and explain key behavioral and institutional characteristics of political systems, including those within countries and the international political order;
• understand and assess systematic forces that underlie political processes in the United States and abroad;
• analyze and critically assess political theories and concepts, including theories developed both in the history of political philosophy and in contemporary social scientific approaches;
• employ scholarly standards to assess the quality of political science research;
• effectively write about political systems, processes and theories in a rigorous manner.

• POL Major Requirements
• Download the Political Science Major Checklist
• Student Learning Objectives
• Lower-division coursework includes contemporary political science and the historical foundations of modern politics. In upper-division courses, students are exposed to a broad range of topics encompassing political theory, American government and institutions, public law, and international relations and comparative political systems.
• Three-year Major Plan
• Most students complete the curriculum in the traditional four years. Students who seek an accelerated path to graduation may wish to examine our sample three-year graduation path.
  Download the Political Science Major 3 Year Plan