Courses
The Department of Political Science offers a series of core courses that teach you how to think like a political scientist and equip you with the tools to study specialized topics in the field. The courses listed below are a recent sampling of the courses that are offered in each undergraduate area.
Please visit Class Search for our full range of courses.
Political science at Notre Dame has allowed me to challenge my own thinking and consider more deeply how the world around us works. From classes like the U.S. Congress and Media & Politics, I've really enjoyed seeing how the United States political system is run and operated. The faculty in the department are dedicated to educating us from a variety of perspectives and are receptive to challenging ideas and viewpoints.
– Andrew Ryan, Class of 2026
Recent electives:
American Politics
Course Attribute: POAM; Course Number: XX001-199
POLS 30005: The United States Congress
POLS 30024: Media and Politics
POLS 30028: Religion in American Politics
POLS 30035: Race/Ethnicity and American Politics
POLS 30039: Black Politics in Multiracial America
POLS 30045: Politics of Inequality in America
POLS 30063: Constitutional Criminal Law and Procedure
POLS 30021: Women and American Politics
POLS 30022: Public Opinion and Political Behavior
POLS 30034 Latinos in U.S. Politics
POLS 30048: Politics of Public Policy
POLS 30073: Constitutional Law: Powers and Institutions
POLS 30077: Free Speech
International Relations
Course Attribute: POIR; Course Number: XX200-399
POLS 30201: United States Foreign Policy
POLS 30266: Political Economy of Globalization
POLS 30321: Global Environmental Policies
POLS 30202: States, Power, and Global Government
POLS 30206: Politics of the United Nations
POLS 30210: U.S. National Security Policymaking
POLS 30281 The China Challenge: Guns, Trade, and Confucius
POLS 30304: The Science and Strategy of Nuclear War
POLS 30364: States, Markets, and Development
Comparative Politics
Course Attribute: POCP; Course Number XX400-599
POLS 30401: Latin American Politics
POLS 30407: Dictatorship, Democracy, and War in Latin America
POLS 30485: Comparative Courts and the Rule of Law
POLS 30415: The Rise and Fall of Democracies and Dictatorships
POLS 30421: European Politics
POLS 30441: Middle-East Politics
POLS 30460: Globalization in Africa and the U.S.
POLS 30470: Global Asia: Political, Economic, and Social Transformation in the Chinese Century
POLS 30553: The Political Economy of East Asian Development
POLS 40491: Solutions: Science, Politics, and Saving the Planet
POLS 40490: Sustainability: Principles and Practices
POLS 40505: Cities, States, and Global Governance
Political Theory
Course Attribute: POTH; Course Number XX600-799
POLS 30665: Constitutionalism, Law, and Politics: American Constitutionalism
POLS 30700; Democracy and Virtue?
POLS 30705: Why the Church?
POLS 30707: Citizenship & Constitutional Government Core Texts: Modern Constitutionalism POLS 30627; War and Peace in Modern Political Thought
POLS 30630: Decolonial Theories