Political Science major will now be offered online

Tuesday, June 16, 2015

The Department of Political Science within the University of Iowa College of Liberal Arts & Sciences will now offer the Political Science major online for the first time. While students have been able to enroll in related courses online for a number of years, the option to complete the Bachelor of Arts online is a new option for the department.

Requirements for the online Political Science BA are identical to those for the on-campus program of study. In order to declare a political science major for online completion, students must first have completed 60 semester hours with a 2.50 cumulative GPA. This requirement can also be fulfilled by a completed Associate’s degree with a 2.00 cumulative GPA from an Iowa community college (or Black Hawk College in Illinois).

Students who plan to complete the BA online but do not yet meet the declaration requirements can declare an interest in political science once they have earned at least 24 semester hours. Emphasis areas for the major will not be offered in the online program.

The degree is awarded by the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, and the program title on diplomas and transcripts will appear identical to the Political Science BA earned on-campus.

For questions about requirements and related issues, contact the Department of Political Science.

The University of Iowa College of Liberal Arts and Sciences offers about 70 majors across the humanities; fine, performing and literary arts; natural and mathematical sciences; social and behavioral sciences; and communication disciplines. About 15,000 undergraduate and nearly 2,000 graduate students study each year in the college’s 37 departments, led by faculty at the forefront of teaching and research in their disciplines. The college teaches all Iowa undergraduates through the college's general education program, CLAS CORE. About 80 percent of all Iowa undergraduates begin their academic journey in CLAS. The college confers about 60 percent of the university's bachelor's degrees each academic year.