Political Science: Pre-Law, BA

Requirements for Students Matriculating in or before Academic Year 2024-2025. Learn more about University Academic Regulation 3.1.

Minimum Overall Grade Point Average: 2.00
Total Hours: 120 

General Education Requirements
English Composition
See Academic Regulation 3.5
ENGL 1113Composition I3
or ENGL 1313 Critical Analysis and Writing I
ENGL 1213Composition II3
or ENGL 1413 Critical Analysis and Writing II
or ENGL 3323 Technical Writing
American History & Government
HIST 1103Survey of American History3
or HIST 1483 American History to 1865 (H)
or HIST 1493 American History Since 1865 (DH)
POLS 1113American Government3
Analytical & Quantitative Thought (A)
MATH or STAT course designated (A)3
Humanities (H)
Courses designated (H)6
Natural Sciences (N)
Must include one Laboratory Science (L) course.
Courses designated (N) with one (L)6
Social & Behavioral Sciences (S)
SPCH 2713Introduction to Speech Communication (S)3
or SPCH 3733 Elements of Persuasion (S)
Additional General Education
Courses designated (A), (H), (N), or (S)10
Hours Subtotal40
Diversity (D) & International Dimension (I)
May be completed in any part of the degree plan.
At least one Diversity (D) course
At least one International Dimension (I) course
College/Departmental Requirements
First Year Seminar
(Transfer students with 15 hours exempt)1
Arts & Humanities
(See note 2.a.)9
Natural & Mathematical Sciences
PHIL 1313Logic and Critical Thinking (A)3
or PHIL 3003 Symbolic Logic (A)
(See note 2.b.)
Foreign Languages
(See note 3.)9
Non-Western Studies
(See note 2.d.)
Upper-Division General Education
6 hours outside major department
(See note 2.c.)
Hours Subtotal22
Major Requirements
Minimum GPA 2.50 with a minimum grade of "C" in each course.
A minimum of 30 hours POLS (24 hours must be upper-division).
Requirements:
POLS 2013Introduction to International Relations (S)3
or POLS 2113 Introduction to Comparative Politics (IS)
POLS 2023The Individual And The Law3
POLS 2213Fundamentals of Political Science3
POLS 3103Introduction to Political Inquiry3
POLS 3983Courts and Judicial Process (S)3
POLS 3993Legal Research And Analysis3
POLS 4353Administrative Law3
or POLS 4980 Advanced Topics in Public Law
POLS 4963U.S. Constitution: Civil Rights and Civil Liberties3
POLS 4973U.S. Constitution: Separation of Powers3
POLS 4903Senior Capstone Seminar3
9 hours of any upper-division POLS9
9 hours of upper-division Pre-Law courses from:9
Agricultural Law
American Indian Sovereignty (D)
Crime, Law and American Culture (S)
Legal and Regulatory Environment of Business
Symbolic Logic (A)
Ethical Theory (H)
Philosophy of Law (H)
Administrative Law
Advanced Topics in Public Law
Psychology and Law
Sociology of Law
Elements of Persuasion (S)
Nonverbal Communication (S)
Hours Subtotal48
Electives10
May need to include 6 hours upper-division general education outside major department (see note 2.c.).
Hours Subtotal10
Total Hours120

Other Requirements

  • See the College of Arts and Sciences Requirements.
  • Minimum 2.0 GPA in all POLS courses.
  • Upper-Division Credit: Total hours must include at least 40 hours in courses numbered 3000 or above.

College of Arts and Sciences Requirements

  1. Hours in One Department: For B.A. and B.S. degrees, no more than 54 hours in one department may be required to meet degree requirements. Courses used to satisfy the General Education English Composition, U.S. History, American Government, and Mathematics or Statistics requirements will not count toward the 54-hour maximum required from one department.
  2. A&S College/Departmental Requirements
    1. Arts and Humanities are defined as any course carrying an (H) designation or courses from AMST, ART, DANC, ENGL (except ENGL 3323 Technical Writing) HIST, MUSI, PHIL (except PHIL 1313 Logic and Critical Thinking (A), PHIL 3003 Symbolic Logic (A) and PHIL 4003 Mathematical Logic and Computability), REL, TH, and foreign languages.
    2. Natural and Mathematical Sciences are defined as any course from the following prefixes: ASTR, BIOC, BIOL, CHEM, CS (except CS 4883 Social Issues in Computing), GEOL, MATH, MICR, PBIO, PHYS, and STAT; or courses from other departments that carry an (A) or (N) general education designation.
    3. Six upper-division hours are required from General Education or any CAS courses outside the student’s major department. This requirement may be satisfied by courses also used to satisfy any part of a student’s degree program (i.e., in General Education, College Departmental Requirements, Major Requirements or Electives).
    4. Non-Western Studies Requirement for B.A. and B.F.A.; One course in Non-Western Studies (N.W.). This requirement may be satisfied by courses also used to satisfy any part of a student's degree program (i.e., in General Education, College Departmental Requirements, Major Requirements or Electives).
    5. The College of Arts & Sciences requires a minimum 2.0 GPA in all major requirements and a minimum 2.0 GPA in all major-prefix courses applied to the degree.
  3. Foreign Language Proficiency
    1. The foreign language requirement for the B.A. may be satisfied by 9 hours college credit in the same language, which must include 3 hours at the 2000-level, or equivalent proficiency (e.g., passing an advanced standing examination; TOEFL exam; presenting a high school transcript which demonstrates the high school was primarily conducted in a language other than English; etc.). Computer Science courses may not be used to satisfy this requirement. Currently Arabic and Mvskoke are not offered at the 2000-level at OSU.
    2. The foreign language requirement for the B.S., B.M. and B.F.A. may be satisfied by presenting a high school transcript which demonstrates two years of study of a single foreign language (passing grades at second-year level of study). It may also be satisfied by 6 hours college credit in the same language, which must include language courses 1713 and 1813, or equivalent proficiency (e.g., passing an advanced standing examination; TOEFL exam; presenting a high school transcript which demonstrates the high school was primarily conducted in a language other than English; etc.). Computer Science courses may not be used to satisfy this requirement.
    3. In addition to a. and b., students pursuing teacher certification must meet novice-high foreign language proficiency by presenting a high school transcript which demonstrates two years of study of a single foreign language with no grade below B. Or, students may complete 3 hours college credit in a single language with no grade below C (or pass an advanced standing examination, College Level Examination Program (CLEP) exam, or Oral Proficiency Interview developed by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages, equivalent to 3 hours of college credit.) Or, students may meet the requirement by transfer of documentation of meeting the foreign language competency from one of the teacher education programs in the State of Oklahoma approved by the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education.
  4. Exclusions. Courses with ATHL or LEIS prefixes and leisure activity courses may not be used for degree credit.

Additional State/OSU Requirements

  • At least: 60 hours at a four-year institution; 30 hours completed at OSU; 15 of the final 30 or 50% of the upper-division hours in the major field completed at OSU.
  • Limit of: one-half of major course requirements as transfer work; one-fourth of hours earned by correspondence; 8 transfer correspondence hours.
  • Students will be held responsible for degree requirements in effect at the time of matriculation and any changes that are made, so long as these changes do not result in semester credit hours being added or do not delay graduation.
  • Degrees that follow this plan must be completed by the end of Summer 2030.

Finish in Four Plan of Study

The plan below is an example of how students can successfully complete degree requirements in four years. This suggested class schedule plan may be used as a guide and can be adjusted based on individual needs. Students are required to meet with an academic advisor prior to enrollment each semester to plan their class schedule, and students are ultimately responsible for completing all degree requirements.

Plan of Study Grid
Freshman
FallHours
MATH 1483
Mathematical Functions and Their Uses (A)
or Applications of Modern Mathematics (A)
or College Algebra (A)
or Elementary Statistics (A)
or Elementary Statistics for the Social Sciences (A)
3
POLS 1113 American Government 3
General Education courses 8
 Hours14
Spring
POLS 2013
Introduction to International Relations (S)
or Introduction to Comparative Politics (IS)
3
General Education courses 13
 Hours16
Sophomore
Fall
POLS 2213 Fundamentals of Political Science 3
1713 First Semester Foreign Language 3
General Education courses 9
 Hours15
Spring
POLS 3103 Introduction to Political Inquiry 3
1813 Second Semester Foreign Language 3
College and Elective courses 9
 Hours15
Junior
Fall
2000-level Foreign Language 3
Major, College, and Elective courses 12
 Hours15
Spring
Major, College, and Elective courses 15
 Hours15
Senior
Fall
Major, College, and Elective courses 15
 Hours15
Spring
POLS 4903 Senior Capstone Seminar 3
Major, College, and Elective courses 12
 Hours15
 Total Hours120