Major/Minor and other Departmental Requirements

Major Requirements

Students entering St. Lawrence with an interest in government and politics are strongly advised to enroll in two of the 100-level core courses (103, 105, 108, including at least one that is designated as Writing Intensive) during their first year. They should also seek early advising from a government faculty member. Students may complete the stand-alone government major or elect a major that combines government courses with courses in African studies, Asian studies, Canadian studies or environmental studies. Students may also choose to combine government courses with a minor program in African studies, Asian studies, Canadian studies, Caribbean and Latin American studies, European studies or gender studies. For further information on these programs, visit their respective web sites.

The major in government requires the completion of nine units distributed as follows:

  • Core Courses (4) Government majors must complete the introductory course for each of the four disciplinary sub-fields: American Politics (103), Comparative Politics (105), International Politics (108) and Political Theory (206). One of the three 100-level courses MUST be designated writing-intensive and should be completed before the end of the sophomore year. These four introductory courses must be taken in residence on the St. Lawrence campus, meaning students who have received credit for the AP American Government or Comparative Government Exams must still enroll in GOVT 103 and 105 at SLU (though the credit they earned for these AP courses will still count toward their overall credits for graduation).
     
  • Research Seminar (1) During the sophomore or junior year, ideally after completion of the writing-intensive course, majors will take one of the government Research Seminars (290, 291, 292, or 293). Students may take only one research seminar.
     
  • Elective Courses (4) The remaining four units may be earned through a selection of elective courses. At least one of the electives must be a 300/4000-level course taken on campus. Students may count up to one unit of internship coursework and one unit of independent study toward the elective requirements. Students who complete the two course SYE: Honors Thesis may not also use an internship or an independent study course to meet the major requirements, though such courses will count toward the units required for graduation. No more than two of the elective courses may be taken off-campus.

A major may elect no more than four out of nine units for the major in any one sub-field of the discipline. The academic work of transfer students in political science is evaluated upon entry into the department for determination of credit. In no case may a transfer student majoring in government take fewer than five government courses at St. Lawrence.

Government Combined Majors

Minor Requirements

The minor in government requires the completion of five units distributed as follows:

  • Core Courses (2) Government minors must complete two of the following introductory courses: American Politics (103), Comparative Politics (105), International Politics (108) and Political Theory (206). These courses must be taken in residence on the St. Lawrence campus.
     
  • Research Seminar (1) During the sophomore or junior year, minors will take the government Research Seminar (290, 291, 292, or 293).
     
  • Elective Courses (2) The remaining two units may be earned through a selection of upper-level (i.e. non-introductory) elective courses. The department will credit one upper-level government course taken in a St. Lawrence sponsored off-campus program. Internships in government do not count as courses toward the minor.

How to Declare Government as a Major or Minor

1) Have an advisor within the Government Department: Government Faculty

2) Complete the Major/Minor Declaration Form: https://student.stlawu.edu/portal/status