Students planning to major in political science will find a program offering a wide range of courses, covering a rich variety of sub-fields and interests. (Examples include judicial politics, mass behavior, political institutions both home and abroad, international conflict, political methodology, and state and local government.) Those courses are organized into a flexible set of requirements, allowing students to pursue opportunities both inside our program (such as internships or independent research) or outside of it (such as certificates, minors, or second majors).

Although all of our faculty are dedicated to working with and helping undergraduate students, two administrators in particular are readily available to advise undergrads: the Director of Undergraduate Studies and the Internship Director.

A university education truly worth the name must do more than prepare students for a job or a career. It must broaden their understanding of the world, of themselves, of their role in society, and of the ideals and aspirations which have motivated human thought and action throughout the ages. It must help individuals use their acquired knowledge to grow in maturity as they take responsibility for their lives by establishing their own individual goals and developing the habit of lifelong learning. Our major contributes to this process of student development.

The Political Science major does not bear the full burden of that mission, though. Rather, the broad goals of the University of Kentucky's general education program, called UK Core, recognize that a university education is more than simply learning a set of skills in a specific area in preparation for a job or career. Additional requirements contribute to the effort to help students become global citizens.  Putting the UK Core and A&S requirements together with the requirements of the Political Science major sets students up to put their acquired knowledge into action, to engage in critical thinking and problem solving, and to develop life-long learning habits.