Political Science, with specializations in General Political Science, International Relations, Middle East Politics, Political Economy and Public and International Law (B.A.)

For all Political Science students:

General Electives

Students may use 15 hours of elective credit to minor in a discipline of their choice. Minoring is optional. Courses taken as collateral requirements may count towards the minor.

Students have the choice to use the 15 elective credits in Political Science (or 12-15 elective credits if they had to take POLS 2003  to fulfill their concentration requirements) to obtain a BA in Political Science in:

1. General field in Political Science
2. Specialization in International Relations
3. Specialization in Middle East Politics
4. Specialization in Political Economy
5. Specialization in Public and International Law

Students opting for a double specialization are encouraged to take a combination of courses from the two specializations rather than limiting themselves to History courses required for one of the specializations.

1. Requirements for the General Political Science field:

Students must take four or five Political Science courses, one of which must be a major capstone.

Collateral Requirements (6 credits)
General Electives (29 credits)

2. Requirements for the Specialization in International Relations

To specialize in International Relations, Political Science majors must, as a minimum, take the following courses:

Requirements:

• POLS 409/4609 - Seminar: International Organization (3 cr.)
• POLS 410/4610 - Global Security (3 cr.)  
• POLS 411/4611 - Contemporary Foreign Policies (3 cr.)
• POLS 000/4608 - Critical Approaches to International Relations and the Global South (3 cr.)  

Options:

To further their understanding in this specialization, students have the option to take a number of recommended courses including:

• POLS 405/4605 - International Politics of the Middle East (3 cr.)  
• POLS 414/4614 - Egyptian Foreign Policy (3 cr.)
• POLS 415/4615 - U.S. Foreign Policy (3 cr.)
• POLS 440/4640 - Seminar: Special Topics in International Relations for Undergraduates (3 cr.)

Collateral Requirements (6 credits)

• ECON 201/2021 - Introduction to Macroeconomics (3 cr.)

One additional history course chosen from among the following:

• HIST 202/2502 - History of Modern American Civilization (3 cr.)
• HIST 308/3406 - Europe in the Age of Reason (3 cr.)
• HIST 356/3214 - State and Society in the Middle East, 1906-present (3 cr.)
• HIST 401/4588 - Selected Topics in the History of the United States (3 cr.)

• (when approved by POLS department)

• HIST 402/4488 - Selected Topics in European History (3 cr.)

• (when approved by POLS department)

• HIST 462/4288 - Selected Topics in the History of the Modern Middle East (3 cr.)

HIST 247/2204 - The Making of the Modern Arab World (3 cr.)  
HIST 250/2301 - Colonial and Postcolonial Africa (3 cr.)  
HIST 333/3208 - Zionism and Modern Judaism (3 cr.)  
HIST 357/3288 - Selected topics in Middle East History (3 cr.)   (when approved by POLS Dept.)
HIST 331/3207 - History of Palestine/Israel (3 cr.)  
HIST 350/3302 - Violence, War, and Conflict in Modern Africa (3 cr.)  
POLS 308/3408 - Comparative Politics of the Middle East (3 cr.)  
HIST 412/4290 - Selected Topics in Modern Egyptian History (3 cr.)   (when approved by the Pols Dept.)
HIST 430/4107 - The Environment in World History (3 cr.)  
HIST 435/4216 - Social and Political History of Modern Cairo (3 cr.)  
HIST 440/4217 - Colonialism and Imperialism in the Middle East and South Asia (3 cr.)  
HIST 454/4219 - Modern Movements in Islam (3 cr.)  
HIST 405/4188 - Selected Topics in World History (3 cr.)   (when approved by POLS Dept.)
HIST 000/4224 - Egypt in the Modern World Market (3 cr.)  
HIST 450/4303 - Global Capitalism and Africa: An Economic History (3 cr.)  

3. Requirements for the Specialization in Middle East Politics

To specialize in Middle East Politics, Political Science majors must, as a minimum, take the following three courses:

4. Requirements for the Specialization in Political Economy

To specialize in Political Economy, Political Science majors must, as a minimum, take the following courses:

5. Requirements for the Specialization in Public & International Law

To specialize in Public and International Law, Political Science majors must, as a minimum, take the following three courses:

Requirements:
POLS 472/4372 - International Law in the Middle East (3 cr.)  
POLS 475/4375 - Introduction to Egyptian and Islamic Law (3 cr.)  
POLS 478/4378 - Introduction to International Human Rights Law (3 cr.)  

Options:

To further their understanding in this specialization, students have the option to take a number of elective courses in public and international law that may be offered by the political science department or the law department.

Note: Registration in graduate courses offered by the law department may require the approval of the department and/or the instructor.

Dual Degree Option in Political Science (B.A.) and International Human Rights Law (M.A.)

The Dual Degree option combines a BA in Political Science and an MA in International Human Rights Law. It is a dual degree, creating a synergy between the existing BA in Political Science and the existing MA in International Human Rights Law.

The dual degree option enables good students to prepare for a postgraduate degree while completing the requirements for the BA in Political Science. Non-law students who achieve a MA Degree under the auspices of the Law Department at AUC qualify for better jobs in Egypt or abroad, or pursue a legal education at prestigious law schools in the United States and elsewhere. The MA degree also provides students with the necessary expertise in international human rights law and with the intellectual, analytical and communication tools needed to intervene critically and effectively in the global policy debates confronting their societies as policy makers, academics, activists and international civil servants.

By the end of the sixth semester of the political science BA at AUC, and after successfully completing POLS 4371 , the student has to declare her/his intention to pursue the Dual Degree by submitting a graduate admission application. The student should follow the application procedures for graduate studies. Admission decisions will be made by the Law Department’s Admission Committee. Successful applicants will be admitted pending the fulfillment of two conditions: i) finishing the requirements of their undergraduate degrees with at least B (GPA 3); and ii) obtaining an average of at least a B+ (GPA of at least 3.3) across the three cross-listed ‘Dual Degree’ Law courses. Places are limited.

Students enrolled in the dual degree will receive a political science BA degree certificate upon the completion of their undergraduate course requirements. Many students feel the need to work in parallel to the pursuit of an MA degree. We believe that students who fulfill the POLS BA requirement should not be denied the opportunity to do so.

Under this structure, dual-degree students will be required to take three 400-level courses that are cross-listed under LAW and POLS. These three “Dual Degree” cross-listed courses (see below) will count for credit towards both the BA in Political Science and under the MA in International Human Rights Law.

The three ‘Dual Degree’ Law courses to be offered to undergraduates in the Political Science Department are the following: (a)

Tentative Plan for Full-time Students

SEMESTER VI (POLS undergraduate program)

LAW/

SEMESTER VII (POLS undergraduate program)

LAW/

SEMESTER VIII (POLS undergraduate program)

LAW/

SEMESTER IX (MA IHRL program)
LAW 511/5211 - International Humanitarian Law (3 cr.)  * (1 out of 3 starred courses required)

SEMESTER X (MA IHRL program)
LAW 000/5221 - Law and Patriarchy (3 cr.)  
LAW Electives**

SEMESTER XI (MA IHRL program)

** Lists of LAW elective courses will be provided to students in the program prior to registration for each semester.