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Political Science

Political science is for those interested in learning about and working in the complex world of politics. Political science is a liberal arts discipline which students may select as their primary focus or pursue in conjunction with other fields of study, such as humanities or sociology. Students learn to navigate the national and global political arena and understand the role politics play in society and the past, present, and future of humankind.

Political science classes provide a solid foundation for students planning to transfer to a four-year university to pursue a bachelor’s degree. It is also beneficial to those seeking personal or professional enrichment. Students will gain a broad breadth of knowledge and critical thinking skills which can be applied to multiple fields of study and employment.

Graduates with a political science education may enter the fields of politics, public relations, international affairs, law, public administration, or teaching. Many political science students participate in debate or mock trial during their time at SCC.

SCC offers political science classes covering national and international affairs. These include Intro to Political Science, Comparative Government, Introduction to Global Issues, American Government, International Relations, Political Philosophy, and Islam and the West: Theater of Cooperation and Conflict. As with all departments, classes may change depending on interest and availability.

Political science skills and knowledge can be applied to a broad range of professional fields in the States and abroad.

Spokane Community College believes that you should graduate with the knowledge, skills, and abilities that further your educational goals, increasing your value in the workforce and contributing to a vibrant community.
 
Our AA-DTA degree program learning outcomes align to our five College-Wide Key Literacies.

Applied Content Literacy
Students will develop knowledge, skills, and abilities in all transfer distribution areas or program elements/areas. Students will build a foundation of information relevant to their program or focus of study while increasing knowledge and competency in their chosen field.

Communication Literacy
Students will develop the ability to create meaning and make connections between themselves and their audience, incorporating awareness of the social nature of communication, including, but not limited to, the impact of ethnicity, age, culture, gender, sexual orientation, and ability on communication styles and results. Students will learn to listen, read, speak, and write effectively using a variety of mediums and modalities.

Information Literacy
Students will develop knowledge and abilities allowing them to identify, locate, and evaluate information pertaining to the problem under consideration. Students will learn how to responsibly research, use, share, and produce accurate, relevant information gleaned through skilled research methods.

Intercultural Literacy
Students will develop an intersectional understanding of modern social realities, which will help enable effective participation and communication in cross-cultural professional, academic, and social settings. This may include, but is not limited to, biological sex, gender identity, socio-economic status, race, sexual orientation, religion, country and culture of origin, and political stance.

Quantitative Literacy
Students will develop and expand the ability to understand numeric information through the gathering, examination, modeling, manipulation, analysis, interpretation, and representation of quantitative and/or scientific data.

Breaking Ground on Your Pathway


Plan Your Courses

Meet with our counselors to customize this plan just for you. You can also search the quarterly schedule for class days and times.

Prepare for College-level Math

Math placement is required for this program. If your math placement is below MATH& 146, you’ll need to take the following sequence of courses, starting from the level you placed into:
AE 48 → MATH 87 → MATH 88 → MATH& 146

Placement

English placement is not required for this program.

Associate in Arts (AA) is the community college degree designed to transfer to most bachelor's of arts degrees at all public and many private Washington four-year institutions. A candidate for the AA-DTA degree must complete 90 quarter credits in academic courses numbered 100 and above with a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.0 and meet specific distribution requirements.

Program Map for

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Choose program map:

Total Program Credits: 93


Program Courses

First Quarter

Course ID
Course Title
Credits
ENGL&101
English Composition I  
5
GUID 102
Strategies for Success  
3
MATH&146
Introduction to Statistics  
5
POLS&202
United States Government  
5
Total Credits
 
18

Second Quarter

Course ID
Course Title
Credits
ENGL&102
Composition II  
5
POLS 102
Comparative Government  
5
PSYC&100
General Psychology  
5
Total Credits
 
15

Third Quarter

Course ID
Course Title
Credits
CMST 227
Intercultural Communication  
5
POLS&203
International Relations  
5
 
Lab Science Electives  
5
Total Credits
 
15
Lab Science Electives: Choose 5 credits Lab Science Electives: Choose 5 credits  
ASTR&101
Intro to Astronomy  
5
ENVS&101
Intro to Env Science  
5
GEOL&101
Intro Physical Geology  
5
PHYS 100
Introductory Physics  
5

Fourth Quarter

Course ID
Course Title
Credits
POLS&101
Introduction to Political Science  
5
 
Foreign Language 1 Electives   1
5
 
Science 1 Electives   2
5
Total Credits
 
15
Foreign Language 1 Electives: Choose 5 credits Foreign Language 1 Electives: Choose 5 credits  
ASL& 121
Am Sign Language I  
5
FRCH&121
French I  
5
SPAN&121
Spanish I  
5

Fifth Quarter

Course ID
Course Title
Credits
HUM 107
Introduction to Cultural Studies  
5
 
Foreign Language 2 Electives   3
5
 
Health/PE Group A Electives   4
3
 
Health/PE Group B Electives   5
2
Total Credits
 
15
Foreign Language 2 Electives: Choose 5 credits Foreign Language 2 Electives: Choose 5 credits  
ASL& 122
Am Sign Language II  
5
FRCH&122
French II  
5
SPAN&122
Spanish II  
5

Sixth Quarter

Course ID
Course Title
Credits
ECON 100
Fundamentals of Economics  
5
 
Foreign Language 3 Electives   6
5
 
Science 2 Electives   2
5
Total Credits
 
15
Foreign Language 3 Electives: Choose 5 credits Foreign Language 3 Electives: Choose 5 credits  
ASL& 123
Am Sign Language III  
5
FRCH&123
French III  
5
SPAN&123
Spanish III  
5

Foreign Language 1 Electives   1

Course ID
Course Title
Credits
ASL& 121
Am Sign Language I  
5
FRCH&121
French I  
5
SPAN&121
Spanish I  
5

Foreign Language 2 Electives   3

Course ID
Course Title
Credits
ASL& 122
Am Sign Language II  
5
FRCH&122
French II  
5
SPAN&122
Spanish II  
5

Foreign Language 3 Electives   6

Course ID
Course Title
Credits
ASL& 123
Am Sign Language III  
5
FRCH&123
French III  
5
SPAN&123
Spanish III  
5

Health/PE Group A Electives   4

Course ID
Course Title
Credits

Health/PE Group B Electives   5

Course ID
Course Title
Credits

Lab Science Electives  

Course ID
Course Title
Credits
ASTR&101
Intro to Astronomy  
5
ENVS&101
Intro to Env Science  
5
GEOL&101
Intro Physical Geology  
5
PHYS 100
Introductory Physics  
5

Science 1 Electives   2

Course ID
Course Title
Credits

Science 2 Electives   2

Course ID
Course Title
Credits
1 SPAN, FREN, or ASL & 121 if you haven’t completed two years of foreign language in high school OR another course from the Humanities Distribution list in a discipline not already taken
2 Recommended: Any ASTR, ENVS, GEOL, PHYS, NUTRI, or OCEA in a subject you haven’t already taken. Can be lab or non-lab.
3 SPAN, FREN, or ASL & 122 if you haven’t completed two years of foreign language in high school OR POLS 125 if not already taken
4 Any three-credit course from Health/PE Group A
5 Any two-credit activity course from Group B
6 SPAN, FREN, or ASL& 123 if you haven’t completed 2 years of foreign language in high school OR SOC& 101

Estimated costs for completing this program

 
WA Resident
Non-Resident
International
Tuition
$ 9,733
$ 11,570
$ 22,036
Books
$ 1,081
$ 1,081
$ 1,081
Course Fees
$ 5
$ 5
$ 5
Institutional Fees
$ 672
$ 672
$ 3,195
Total Costs
$ 11,491
$ 13,328
$ 26,317

Costs for completing a degree or certificate can vary. For more information about costs, visit our How Much Does it Cost? page.

Have a question? Let's hear it.

Michael Buckley

Social Sciences & Humanities Department Chair
Michael.Buckley@scc.spokane.edu
509-533-8845