2025-2026 Undergraduate Catalog Major in Political Science, Accelerated Sequence Degree offered: B.A. or B.S.

Major Requirements

Minimum required credit hours: 40

Take 1 of the following courses

Take 1 of the following experiential or applied courses

A minimum of 3 credit hours is required.

Take 6 (18 credit hours) additional Political Science electives

It is recommended to take 12 credit hours of 400-level electives. Please consult with your academic advisor. 

Notes

  • A maximum 6 hours of POL 398a01, IDS 398a02 and LGS 398a20 may count toward major.

  • An instructional component must be included in experiential or applied learning experiences. A study abroad or away experience can be substituted for this requirement if there is an instructional component. Substitutions will be approved by the Department Advisor and Chairperson.

  • Accelerated master 's degree (AMD) programs offer high achieving students the opportunity to complete their bachelor 's degree and master 's degree in a faster time frame than each degree separately. Students will take both graduate and undergraduate classes when they have junior or senior status and seamlessly transition into their master 's degree program. Students admitted into an accelerated master 's degree program may count a maximum of twelve (12) hours or 33% of course work (whichever is higher) towards both the bachelor 's degree and master 's degree. The coursework requires approval of the academic advisor.

  • Students must complete at least one graduate course as an undergraduate to be considered in the accelerated master’s degree program. If the student does not complete at least one graduate course, or chooses to withdraw from the accelerated program, they will be placed back in their original degree program.

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Graduation Requirements

These are general requirements for all students. Students may apply for and receive two bachelor's degrees at the same time. Refer to the Academic Policies and Practices section of the catalog for details.

  • 120 minimum total credit hours
  • A minimum of 40 of the 120 total hours must be senior college hours (200-300 level courses)
  • AMALI requirement (certain courses in General Education and/or major may fulfill the AMALI requirement)
  • IDEAS (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access in U.S. Society) requirement (certain courses in General Education and/or major may fulfill the IDEAS requirement)
  • Students completing a Bachelor of Science degree must complete a B.S. - Science, Math, & Technology degree requirement (beyond the General Education requirements) 
  • Students completing a Bachelor of Arts degree must complete a B.A. - world language degree requirement: LAN/FRE/GER/SPA/ITA/JPN/POR 115 (or equivalent) 
  • Some majors complete other types of degrees that do not include additional graduation requirements. For example, the Bachelor of Science in Education (B.S. in Ed.) or the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (B.S.N.). 

Specific Program Requirements

General Education Requirements

There are three ways to complete general education requirements for Illinois State University. These three general education programs have different requirements and affect only certain types of students.

  1. The first way is to complete Illinois State University's General Education Program (see below for details).
  2. The second way is to complete the Illinois Transferable General Education Core Curriculum available through the Illinois Articulation Initiative (IAI) (see below for details).
  3. The third way is to complete a baccalaureate-oriented Associates Degree (A.A. or A.S.) from a regionally accredited post-secondary institution. For those transferring from an Illinois college or university, the A.S. degree must include the complete IAI General Education Core Curriculum (GECC) or the student must complete the GECC to fulfill Illinois State’s General Education requirement.

Illinois State University's General Education Program

The complete General Education Program consists of 13 courses (39 semester hours). Because of laboratory or recitation requirements, some courses are listed as four or five credit hours in this catalog. All four or five hours will be credited toward graduation requirements, but only three hours will be credited in General Education for these courses. Depending on their major, students may be exempted from one General Education category (maximum of one course) because of disciplinary expertise gained in their major.

Program requirements that also fulfill General Education Program Requirements

 

Illinois Articulation Initiative for Transfer Students

To be eligible for IAI, at least one transfer course must have been articulated to an IAI core requirement. Refer to the Undergraduate Catalog for a complete list of IAI courses and policies. The Illinois Transferable General Education Core curriculum consists of 12 to 13 courses (37 to 41 hours of credit) within a five-category designation.

Program requirements that also fulfill IAI Program Requirements

  • POL 106 - Social & Behavioral Science
  • POL 140 - Social & Behavioral Science
  • POL 151 - Social & Behavioral Science