Villanova students in the College of Arts and Sciences usually choose their major during their sophomore year. As a sophomore, you are completing most of your core requirements and are now choosing a field in which you will gain an expertise.
Once you choose Political Science as your major, you will be assigned an advisor who will assist you during the registration process each semester. In addition to meeting with your advisor, we encourage you to visit with faculty with whom you have studied to discuss your interest in politics as well as your future plans.
We also encourage you to attend lectures, roundtable discussions, and other events the Department sponsors during the academic year. These events enrich the intellectual life of the major.
What a Political Science Major Will Do
- It will prepare you for graduate professional training.
- It will provide you with the knowledge and skills needed to be a politically engaged citizen-leader.
- It will prepare you for a career of your choice.
Why Political Science?
Today, no less than in the past, it is essential for citizens in a democracy to be educated about the political system in which they live, and to know how that system relates to other governments and international issues.
The study of political science:
- helps to develop your reasoning and analytical skills.
- builds competence in oral and written expression.
- helps in the acquisition of skills in doing research, data analysis and computer-usage.
It remains true, as Aristotle wrote long ago, that politics is the "queen of the sciences." You have good reasons to be considering the challenging, enjoyable major in political science that we offer you at Villanova.
You will learn:
- About political leaders
- How governments make decisions,
the policies that result from those decisions - How governments respond to societal and international conflicts
- Why people develop their attitudes about various political issues, their preferences among candidates
- How groups attempt to influence governments
- How governments ought to be constituted and how they can best serve their people.
