Major Requirements
- Credit Hours: Students are required to complete a minimum of 68 credit hours in POLS at the graduate level. Up to 12 credits of 400 level coursework can be taken with permission from the Director of Graduate Studies. The number of credit hours may vary depending on number of semesters in residence and number of research hours.
- Grade Point Average: Students must earn a minimum overall GPA of 2.75 and a minimum GPA of 3.00 in coursework applied to their graduate program, with a minimum grade of B- in POLS 600, 601, 602, and 603. Students will have a maximum of two attempts to earn the required B- minimum grade in these four courses.
- Areas of Emphasis: The PhD Program offers four areas of emphasis: American Politics, Comparative Politics, International Politics, and Public Policy. Students must complete two areas of emphasis. Students may not choose both Comparative Politics and International Politics as areas of emphasis.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| CORE COURSES: | 14 | |
| Introduction to Political Research | ||
| Quantitative Political Analysis | ||
| Advanced Quantitative Methods | ||
| Advanced Quantitative Analysis | ||
| Graduate Seminar * | ||
| AREAS OF EMPHASIS: ** | 24 | |
| Complete two areas of emphasis. Students may not choose both Comparative Politics and International Politics as areas of emphasis. *** | ||
| POLITICAL SCIENCE ELECTIVES: | 6 | |
Any POLS courses at the 400 level or above. **** | ||
| RESEARCH: ***** | 24 | |
| Research | ||
| Total Hours | 68 | |
- *
Students must register for one credit of POLS 796 for each semester they are in residence. Total number of POLS 796 hours may vary.
- **
Total number of credit hours required to fulfill the areas of emphasis requirement may vary.
- ***
Credit hours from a single course may not be counted toward the credit hour requirements for more than one area of emphasis.
- ****
POLS courses excluding coursework used to satisfy another requirement, POLS 703 Internship, POLS 790, POLS 796 and POLS 797.
- *****
Students are expected to be involved in research throughout their graduate career, and enrollment in POLS 797, should reflect this activity. Students must complete at least 24 hours, however most students complete more than 70 credit hours of research.
Areas of Emphasis Offered:
American Politics Area of Emphasis
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| American Politics Electives | 12 | |
| Select four of the following courses (others approved by Director of Graduate Studies): | ||
| Racial & Ethnic Politics | ||
| Seminar: American Politics and Policy | ||
| Judicial Politics, Policy and Law | ||
| American Construction and Political Development | ||
| The American Presidency | ||
| Congress | ||
| Total Hours | 12 | |
Comparative Politics Area of Emphasis
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Comparative Politics Electives | 12 | |
| Select four of the following courses (others approved by Director of Graduate Studies): | ||
| Comparative Politics | ||
| Comparative Political Institutions | ||
| Comparative Public Policy | ||
| Contentious Politics | ||
| Total Hours | 12 | |
International Politics Area of Emphasis
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Course | ||
| POLS 560 | International Theory and Policy | 3 |
| International Relations Electives | 3 | |
| Select one of the following courses (others approved by Director of Graduate Studies): | ||
| International Political Economy | ||
| Comparative Foreign Policy | ||
| National Security Policy | ||
| Foreign Policy Decision Making | ||
| Comparative Politics Electives | 9 | |
| Select three of the following courses (others approved by Director of Graduate Studies): | ||
| Comparative Politics | ||
| Comparative Political Institutions | ||
| Comparative Public Policy | ||
| Contentious Politics | ||
| Total Hours | 15 | |
Public Policy Area of Emphasis
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Public Policy Electives | 12 | |
| Select four of the following courses (others approved by Director of Graduate Studies): | ||
| Policy Analysis | ||
| Politics of Agenda Setting | ||
| Comparative Public Policy | ||
| Seminar: Policy Implementation | ||
| Judicial Politics, Policy and Law | ||
| Total Hours | 12 | |
Major Learning Outcomes
Ph.D. in Political Science
Students earning a Ph.D. in Political Science will be able to:
- Demonstrate basic substantive knowledge of the institutions, political actors, and relevant processes in state, national, and international political systems, particularly as they apply to students’ areas of emphasis.
- Effectively communicate knowledge of major policy issues in state, national, and international affairs and convey the importance of the uncertainties, trade-offs, and institutional/bureaucratic contexts of problems confronting governments.
- Evaluate potential explanations of political phenomena in a way that considers alternative explanatory perspectives across the major theoretical schools of thought in the political science literature.
- Carry out systematic empirical research in political science, including articulating a theoretical question, constructing a rigorous research design, and analyzing data or cases using appropriate methodological approaches.
- Clearly articulate the potential policy implications of research findings in political science and how those findings relate to larger practical, political, and ethical questions faced by West Virginia, the nation, and communities worldwide.
- Demonstrate fluency with professional norms and processes in the academic discipline of political science that enhance doctoral students’ ability to effectively present work at professional conferences, publish original research, navigate the academic job market or advance in their careers.
- Engage with and respond to scholarly criticism of their original research in appropriate ways, as demonstrated through successful prospectus and dissertation defenses and/or revision of manuscripts prepared for potential publication in scholarly outlets.
- Effectively teach political science courses at the post-secondary level while demonstrating the ability to design high-quality syllabi, lectures, classroom activities, assignments, and instruments of evaluation.