Social Sciences

Bachelor of Arts Programs in Social Science

BA Social Science

Criminal Justice Program

Political Science Program

Related Programs

Bachelor of Arts in Public Affairs includes political science as one of its components and allows students the flexibility to pursue administrative or leadership positions in governmental and non-profit agencies.

 

As the only college in southwest Washington to offer a bachelor's degree in Social Sciences, WSU Vancouver balances the research emphasis of a large university with the commitment to teaching of a small liberal arts college.The Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences provides a series of options for students who wish to investigate the nature of society and how its structures and institutions affect individuals, groups, and communities.

The Social Science major requires the completion of 39 semester credits - 21 of which must be upper division. The minimum GPA for course work in the major is 2.0.

Students can organize the course work in one of two ways:

  • They can either work in two complimentary areas (psychology and sociology, for example), earning a minimum of 24 credits in one, and at least 15 credits in the other.
  • Or, students can combine three closely related areas, earning at least 9 credits in each of the three areas. A student could, for instance, combine courses from criminal justice, political science, and sociology. This is only one of the many possible combinations.

Students concentrate their work in the disciplines of Anthropology, History, Political Science, Psychology, and Sociology. They can also emphasize an interdisciplinary area such as Digital Technology and Culture, Criminal Justice, Personnel Psychology and Human Resource Management, Public Affairs and Policy, or Women's Studies.

Students complement the courses in their major concentration with courses from at least one other area in the social sciences, humanities, or business. With the direction of an academic advisor, students can shape programs of study that can be used as preparation for a variety of careers or graduate study.

 

Criminal Justice

Criminal justice studies the problem of crime, its causes, and its control. Students receive a broad-based and multi-disciplinary education. The curriculum focuses on the organization, processes, and policies of the criminal justice system and covers theories of crime and social control; research and evaluation skills in policy analysis; and issues in organization and management.

The Criminal Justice program offers a policy-focused curriculum which provides students with broad exposure in the social sciences preferred by governmental and private agencies. The program of study prepares students for positions in the criminal justice system (e.g., law enforcement, courts, corrections, probation, and parole, and juvenile justice programs), other government agencies (e.g., policy planning, crime research, and investigation), and private sector. Students who wish to go on to graduate education or law school have found the criminal justice courses to be useful and relevant preparation. Students who pursue courses in criminal justice are prepared to think critically about criminal justice policies, to articulate and solve legal problems, and to write professionally and creatively about legal and criminal justice issues.

Program Requirements 

The Criminal Justice Program is available as either a major or a minor concentration within the Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences degree program.

Major Concentration: Requires 24 semester credits of criminal justice course work, 15 credits of which must be upper-division (courses with a numerical designation of 300 or above).

Minor Concentration: Involves taking at least 15 credits of criminal justice course work, 6 of which must be upper-division.

Certified or Formal Minor: Requires the successful completion of a minimum of 18 semester hours of criminal justice course work, nine of which must be upper-division. Criminal Justice 320 and 330 are required courses for the formal minor.

In addition to the required number of credits in criminal justice as a major or minor concentration, students must satisfy the University general education requirements and the requirements for the College of Liberal Arts.

 

Political Science

The Political Science program at WSU Vancouver may be taken as either a major or minor concentration within the Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences degree program. A major involves taking 24 credits, 15 of which must be upper division classes (courses with a numeral designation of 300 or above). A minor involves taking 15 credits, six of which must be upper division. The program is tailored to meet each student's individual needs and career aspirations.

Participation in the program involves studying such topics as public law, public policy and administration, and comparative and international politics. In addition to academic course work, the Political Science program offers internships in many government agencies.