Courses offered within the Department of Government and Politics are designed to provide students with the analytical skills necessary to evaluate political issues and to function effectively in a political environment. The Department's specific objectives include preparing students for careers in the civil or foreign service, for positions of political or administrative responsibility in the public or private sectors, for careers in the field of education, or for further study as graduate or law students.

The Department's undergraduate curriculum meets these objectives, offering a variety of courses divided into four subfields:

• American Government, with an emphasis on political institutions and public law
   
• International Relations and Comparative Politics, with an emphasis on area studies
   
• Political Theory, with offerings in classical, modern, and contemporary thought; and Public Administration and Public Service,The curriculum includes research methods and quantitative analysis courses. In addition, undergraduate senior seminars (required of all our majors) involve students in semester-long research projects