The realm of public policy encompasses virtually all aspects of contemporary society—economic development, financial markets, health care, education, poverty, crime, the environment, technology, national security, and immigration. These complex and often connected issues increasingly demand a rich and sophisticated understanding of the actions of governmental institutions and the motivations of political actors and other stakeholders in a global political environment. Businesses, nonprofit and non-governmental organizations, interest groups, academic and legal experts, and the public at large all play a role in shaping public policy priorities, implementation of public policies, and the evaluation of policy outcomes.

A major in Public Policy prepares students for work in all types of organizations and sectors of the job market: federal, state, and local governments; nonprofit organizations; and private-sector corporations.

For further information about degree requirement policies and guidelines, see the Degree Requirements page.

Major Requirements

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
Required Courses
GLS 230	Politics and Public Policy	3
GLS 405	Seminar in Government	3
GLS 422	Internship in Government	3
One GLS course not otherwise required		3
Select two to four courses numbered GLS 200 to 499		6 to 12
Select up to two additional electives from the following courses:		0 to 6
EC 225	Intermediate Macroeconomics
EC 282	Introduction to Econometrics
EC 321	International Economic Growth and Development
EC 333	Economics of the European Union
EC 341	Urban and Regional Economics
EC 346	Environmental Economics
EC 370	Behavioral and Experimental Economics
EC 376	Economics of Regulation and Antitrust
EC 441	Monetary Economics
LA 101	Law and Society
LA 102	Environmental Law
LA 104	Gender and the Law
LA 105	Race and the Law
LA 106	Laws that Oppress and Empower: Disability and LGBTQ+ Rights
LA 108	Moot Court
MA 309	Game Theory
NAS 318	Global Health Challenges
NAS 352	Science of Environmental Policy
SO 225	Drugs and Society
SO 241	Race and Racism in the United States
SO 242	Social Problems
SO 244	Deviance and Social Control
SO 292	Sociology of Native American Peoples
Total Credits		24

General Degree Requirements

Foundations for Success (15 Credits)

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
FDS 100	Falcon Discovery Seminar	3
Communications and Writing
Select one from:
EMS 101	Critical Reading and Writing	3
or EMS 101L	Critical Reading and Writing with Lab
or EMS 102	Critical Reading and Writing for ESOL
or EMS 102L	Critical Reading and Writing for ESOL with Lab
And one from:
EMS 104	Multimodal Communication	3
or EMS 105	Multimodal Communication for ESOL
Information Technology
CS 100	Solving Business Problems with Information Technology	3
Mathematical Sciences
Select one from:
MA 105	Mathematical Foundations for Business	3
or MA 105L	Mathematical Foundations for Business with Lab
or MA 107	Applied Calculus for Business
or MA 107L	Applied Calculus for Business with Lab
or MA 131	Calculus I
or MA 131L	Calculus I with Lab
Total Credits		15

Context and Perspectives (18 Credits)

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
Students must take six courses, one in each category of Context and Perspectives:
Culture, Change, and Behavior
Globalization
Institutions and Power
Race, Gender, and Inequality
Scientific Inquiry
Values, Ethics, and Society
Total Credits		18

Business Dynamics/Business Administration Minor (18 Credits)

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
All courses are required:
AC 115	Introduction to Financial Reporting and Analysis	3
EC 111	Principles of Microeconomics	3
FI 118	Introduction to Finance	3
LA 100	Business Law	3
MG 116	Human Dynamics in Organizations	3
ST 113	Business Statistics	3
Total Credits		18

Communication Intensive

All students are required to take a three-credit course designated as a Communication Intensive. This requirement can be met within a variety of course subjects in both Arts & Sciences and Business. Communication Intensive courses are designated with a "CI" in the course schedule. Transfer students with a minimum of 30 credits will be waived from the Communication Intensive requirement.

Please note that certain majors have an additional three-credit Communication Intensive built into their major requirements, separate from the general CI requirement.

Additional Requirements

Modern Language Requirement (6 Credits)

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
Two Modern Language courses (must be two semesters of the same language, regardless of proficiency level)		6
Total Credits		6

Unrestricted Electives (39 Credits)

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
Select 13 elective courses		39
Total Credits		39

Total: 120 Credits