Politics, Law and Philosophy Minor

An interdisciplinary program, the Politics, Law, and Philosophy Minor enables students to focus on the law from a variety of disciplines, including political science, philosophy, history, criminology, and economics.  In addition, the minor provides a sound foundation for the law school experience and gives students and faculty the chance to talk regularly about the law school application process.  The minor does not attempt to reproduce for students the specific studies of the law they will pursue once they begin law school.  Rather, the minor provides students with an interdisciplinary context within which they can more fully appreciate and understand the law as a discipline.  The minor therefore requires students to take a selection of challenging courses outside their own major.  In addition, the minor offers students rigorous preparation in analytic and writing skills.  Developing such skills through a challenging course of study should be useful to students as they prepare to take the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT), when they begin their study of the law and again when they begin their practice of law.

Required Courses (2 course units):

  • PHL 120: Introduction to Logic
  • ECO 101: Principles of Microeconomics

Note:  PHL 220:  Metalogic usually requires PHL 120: Introduction to Logic, as a prerequisite.  However, for qualified students, Metalogic may be substituted in place of Introduction to Logic without having taken PHL 120 with the permission of instructor.

Options Courses (3 course units):

  • Only one course can be double counted toward a major.
  • No more than two courses can be from the same department.
  • At least two courses must be at the 300 or 400 level.

Business Classes

  • BUS 200: Legal and Regulatory Environment of Business
  • BUS 300: Law for Business
  • BUS 325: Employment Law
  • BUS 360: International Business Law
  • ECO 365: Economics of the Law – Prerequisite: ECO 101
  • MGT 385: Business Ethics & Corporate – Prerequisite: Sophomore

Criminology Classes

  • CRI 201: Courts and Judicial Processes
  • CRI 203: Applied Criminal Procedure
  • CRI 300: Crimes and Offenses
  • Prerequisite for all CRI classes listed: CRI 100

Philosophy Classes

  • PHL 135: Contemporary Moral Issues
  • PHL 275: Philosophy of Law – Prerequisite: 1 PHL Course or Sophomore Standing or Permission
  • PHL 375: Law and Ethics – Prerequisite: 1 PHL Course

Political Science Classes

  • POL 320: Constitutional Law
  • POL 321: Civil Liberties
  • POL 323: Law and Society
  • POL 337: International Law
  • POL 345: Human Rights in International Relations (cross listed with INT 300)
  • POL 365: Origins of the United States Constitution (cross listed with HIS 365)

Other Classes

  • HIS 365: Topics in North American and United States History (when cross listed with POL 365)
  • INT 300: Human Rights in International Relations (when cross listed with POL 345)
  • JPW 308: Media Law – Prerequisite: JPW 208 or permission of instructor
  • NUR 300: Legal Challenges in Health Care
  • PHL 430: Advanced Ethics – Prerequisite: 1 PHL Course
  • POL 390: Tutorial – Moot Court