The program in political science is designed to provide a comprehensive introduction to the discipline, viewed as a set of specific strategies for understanding political life. These strategies—which include conceptual, historical, structural, institutional, and behavioral approaches—are considered in the light of their theoretical presuppositions and in terms of their respective research approaches. The emphasis is less on learning the facts of politics than on being able to recognize, evaluate, and use intelligently the intellectual tools of the discipline.
Specifically, the curriculum is designed to provide:
- A basic understanding of the modes of inquiry in political science. The department’s requirements and the structure of the introductory courses reflect a strong and continuing commitment to this goal. All majors are required to take two of the four empirical introductory courses: Introduction to Global Politics, Political Economy, International Relations, and American Politics & Public Policy. Majors are also required to take at least one Political Theory course.
- Research opportunities. Students are required to explore quantitative and qualitative techniques of data collection and analysis, which they can then use in senior thesis. These efforts may be facilitated by the college’s excellent data resources, including our access to the vast data archives of the Inter-University Consortium for Social and Political Research.
- Specialized knowledge in particular facets of politics. This is provided by the department’s upper-level course offerings across four subfields (Comparative Politics, International Relations, American Politics & Public Policy, Political Theory) and by the senior thesis experience.
Students have found that Reed’s political science program prepares them for careers in academia, government, law, nonprofit and nongovernmental organizations, and other fields. Further information is available from the Center for Life Beyond Reed.