Bachelor of Arts in Political Science – POLS Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT) Roadmap
This is a sample pathway for students who transfer to San Francisco State University in the current Bulletin year with an AA-T in Political Science. At least three units in the major (PLSI 200) and all lower-division GE requirements have been satisfied. Additional units in the major may have been satisfied. Check with a major advisor about the most appropriate course sequence. Degree completion guaranteed in 60 units; see the Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT) section for more information.
To Do at SF State:
Enough total units to reach 120 minimum for graduation; 30 units minimum at the upper-division level; to include the following:
University-Wide Requirements: 9–12 units
- American Institutions (0-3 units): US History requirement if not completed prior to transfer. Please note: the US Government and California State and Local Government requirements were completed as part of the AA-T.
- Upper-division GE areas B, C, and D (9 units): Courses required for the major may double-count if approved for UD GE.
- Students entering this major with the AA-T in Political Science are not required to fulfill SF State Studies requirements.
- Complementary Studies: consult with a department advisor on how transfer units and SF State units can be applied to ensure degree completion within 60 units.
Political Science Major: 26–42 Units
PLSI 200 met in transfer.
- Core (6-16 units): PLSI 250, PLSI 275, PLSI 302GW, PLSI 303, and PLSI 304 if not met in transfer
- Breadth requirement (9-12 units): One upper-division course from three of four sub-fields. Note: PLSI courses are three or four units.
- Electives (7-11 units): Up to 4 upper-division units from areas outside of PLSI may be used with the consent of a major advisor.
- Senior Seminar: Culminating Experience (3-4 units)
University Electives: 9 or More Units
Depends on course choices made at the community college, how transferred units are applied to the requirements above, and course choices at SF State - some courses may meet more than one requirement, e.g., in both UD GE and the major.
| First Semester | Units | |
|---|---|---|
| PLSI 250 | Comparative Politics (Major Core) | 3 |
or University Elective if requirement met in transfer |
||
| PLSI 302 | Political Science Writing Workshop (Major Core) | 1 |
| PLSI 302GW | Writing for Political Science - GWAR (Major Core) | 3 |
| PLSI 303 | Fundamentals of Political Science (Major Core) | 2 |
| US History | 3 | |
or University Elective if US History met before transfer |
||
| GE Area UD-B: Upper-Division Physical and/or Life Sciences | 3 | |
| Units | 15 | |
| Second Semester | ||
| PLSI 275 | Introduction to Political Theory | 3 |
or University Elective if requirement met in transfer |
||
| Breadth Requirement - Take Two 1 | 6-8 | |
| GE Area UD-C: Upper-Division Arts and/or Humanities | 3 | |
| University Elective | 3 | |
| Units | 15-17 | |
| Third Semester | ||
| PLSI 304 | Scientific Inquiry in Political Science (Major Core) | 4 |
| Breadth Requirement 1 | 3-4 | |
| Major Elective 2 | 3-4 | |
| University Elective - Take Two | 5 | |
| Units | 15-17 | |
| Fourth Semester | ||
| Major Elective 2 | 3-4 | |
| Culminating Experience 3 | 3-4 | |
| GE Area UD-D: Upper-Division Social Sciences | 3 | |
| University Elective - Take Two | 6 | |
| Units | 15-17 | |
| Total Units | 60-66 | |
- 1
Breadth Requirement (9-12 units)
Upper-division Political Science courses selected to include at least one course in three of the four sub-fields. Students can also take extra courses from the breadth and seminar areas as an elective as well as other upper-division PLSI courses not listed below.
American Politics
PLSI 400/P A 400 Introduction to Public Policy in the U.S. (3 units)
PLSI 460 Topics in American Politics (4 units)*
PLSI 461 Voting Behavior, Campaigns, and Elections (4 units)
PLSI 462 Applied Public Opinion Research (4 units)
PLSI 463 The Politics of Immigration in the United States (4 units) (AERM, SJ)
PLSI 464 Race and American Politics (4 units) (UD-D, AERM, SJ)
PLSI 467 Politics and Community Organizing (4 units)
PLSI 468 Women and American Politics (4 units)
PLSI 469 Women's Political Movements in the United States (4 units)
PLSI 470/SXS 470/WGS 470 The Politics of Sex and Reproduction (4 units)
PLSI 472 Civic and Political Engagement (4 units)
PLSI 473 California Politics and Government (4 units) (CSLG, SJ)
PLSI 475/USP 485 San Francisco Political Issues (4 units)
PLSI 476 The American Presidency (4 units)
PLSI 477 Congress and the Presidency (4 units)
PLSI 479 The United States Congress (4 units)
PLSI 512/USP 512 Urban Politics and Community Power (4 units)
PLSI 603/USP 603 Public Service Internships (3 units)
& PLSI 604/USP 604 Internship Seminar (1 unit)Comparative Politics
PLSI 307/I R 307 Qualitative Methods in Political Science and International Relations (4 units)
PLSI 403 Cases in Comparative Politics (4 units) (GP, SJ)
PLSI 404/I R 404 Politics of China (4 units) (UD-D, GP)
PLSI 407/I R 407 Politics of Russia (4 units) (UD-D, GP)
PLSI 408/LTNS 670 Mexican Politics and Society (3 units) (UD-D, AERM, GP, SJ)
PLSI 411/I R 411 East Asian Politics (4 units) (UD-D, GP)
PLSI 412/I R 412 South Asian Politics (4 units) (GP)
PLSI 416/I R 416 Ethnicity and Nationalism (4 units) (UD-D, GP)
PLSI 418 Political Transitions in East & Southeast Asia (4 units)
PLSI 419 Comparative Political Economy (4 units) (UD-D, GP)
PLSI 422/I R 422 Law and Courts in Comparative Perspective (4 units) (GP)
PLSI 423 Video Games, Politics, and The State (4 units)
PLSI 424/I R 424/SOC 424 Social Movements (4 units)
PLSI 425/I R 425 Imagining Power in the Middle East (4 units) (GP)
PLSI 459/I R 459 Refugees in Global Perspective (4 units) (UD-C, AERM, GP)Political Theory
PLSI 309 Methods and Approaches in Political Theory (4 units)
PLSI 351 Political Theory: The Classical Tradition (4 units)
PLSI 352 Political Theory: Reformation to Nineteenth Century (4 units)
PLSI 354 Politics, the Environment, and Social Change (4 units) (UD-D, ES, SJ)
PLSI 355/PHIL 355 Politics and Ethics of the Consumer Society (3 units) (UD-D, ES, SJ)
PLSI 356 Political Theories of Neoliberalism (4 units)
PLSI 360 Development of American Political Thought (4 units)
PLSI 371 Marxist Political Theory (4 units)
PLSI 372/HUM 372/I R 372 Critical Political Theory (4 units)
PLSI 381 Political Theories of Sexuality (4 units) (UD-D, SJ)
PLSI 382 Politics and Literature (4 units)
PLSI 386/CST 300 Introduction to Critical Social Thought (3 units) (UD-D, SJ)
PLSI 388 Politics and the Popular (4 units) (UD-D, SJ)
PLSI 389 Latin American Revolutionary Societies (4 units)
PLSI 392 Latin American Political Thought (4 units)
PLSI 393 Anarchist Political Theory (4 units) (UD-D, SJ)
PLSI 394/LABR 394 Political Theories of Work, Labor, and Free Time (4 units)
PLSI 396/I R 357 Fascism and Communism in Europe (4 units) (UD-D, GP, SJ)Public Law
PLSI 308 Research and Writing for Public Law (4 units)
PLSI 478 Judicial Process (4 units) (SJ)
PLSI 481 Race and Public Law (4 units)
PLSI 552 Individual Rights and the Constitution (4 units) (SJ)
PLSI 553 Legal Issues (4 units)
PLSI 554 Separation of Powers and Federalism (4 units)
PLSI 555 Moot Court (4 units)**
PLSI 556 Constitutional Law: First Amendment (4 units)
PLSI 557 Constitutional Law: The Fourteenth Amendment (4 units)
PLSI 561 Jurisprudence (4 units)
PLSI 562 Jurisprudence Writing Workshop (3 units)
PLSI 610 Judicial and Legal Internship (3 units)
&PLSI 611 Judicial and Legal Internship Seminar (1 unit)- 2
Electives (7-11 Units)
Select enough Political Science courses (PLSI prefix) to reach a total of 42 units for the major. No more than 3 units of major electives can come from lower-division coursework. With permission of a major advisor, up to 4 units of courses from closely related departments may be used as electives.
PLSI 100 Understanding Politics (3 units) (D1, SJ)
PLSI 105 Principles of Government and Politics (3 units)
PLSI 106 Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy: Introduction to Political Economy (3 units) (D1, SJ)
PLSI 150/PHIL 150 Contemporary Moral/Political Issues (3 units) (C2, SJ)
PLSI 216 The 2024 Presidential Election: Issues and Analysis (2 units)
PLSI 318 Modern Citizenship: Pundits, Podcasts, and Political Know-How in the 21st Century (2 units)
PLSI 320 Political Issues (2 units)
PLSI 321/I R 321 Development and Foreign Policy: Africa (4 units)
PLSI 322/I R 322 Policy Analysis: The Latin American Cases (4 units) (UD-GP, SJ)
PLSI 325/I R 325 Chinese Foreign Policy (4 units)
PLSI 342/I R 342 Modern Conflict: Cyber Warfare, Food Security, and Crises in the International System (4 units)
PLSI 362/I R 362/C J 362 The Making of US Foreign Policy (4 units) (GP)
PLSI 373 Essentials of California Politics (1 units) (CSLG)
PLSI 395 Political Theories of Pedagogy and Community Activism (3 units) (SJ)
PLSI 421/FR 421 Social Movements in the Francophone World (3 units) (GP)
PLSI 430/JS 430/I R 430 Israeli Democracy: Politics, Institutions, and Society (3 units) (UD-D, GP)
PLSI 492/USP 492 Research Methods (4 units)
PLSI 493/USP 493 Data Analysis (4 units)
PLSI 500/LABR 500 Labor and Government (3 units)
PLSI 514/GER 514/HIST 514/I R 514 Political Violence and Terrorism in German History, Film, and Visual Media (3 units)
PLSI 544/I R 544 Women in the World (4 units) (UD-D, GP, SJ)
PLSI 560/USP 560 Urban Poverty and Policy (4 units) (UD-D, SJ)
PLSI 570/USP 570/LABR 570 Urban Health Policy (3 units)
PLSI 580/USP 580 Housing Policy and Planning (3 units) (UD-D, AERM, GP, SJ)
PLSI 685 Projects in the Teaching of Political Science (1-4 units)
PLSI 699 Independent Study (1-4 units)- 3
Culminating Experience (3-4 units)
PLSI 602 Seminar: Politics As Story (3 units)
PLSI 605 Seminar: Student's Choice Empirical Research Project (4 units)
PLSI 606 Senior Seminar in American Politics (3 units)
PLSI 607 Senior Seminar in Comparative Politics (3 units)
PLSI 608 Senior Seminar in Political Theory (3 units)
PLSI 609 Senior Seminar in Public Law (3 units)
PLSI 613 Senior Seminar: The Politics of Harry Potter (3 units)
PLSI 614 Seminar: Politics of Reproduction (3 units)
- *
PLSI 460 is a variable topic course and may be taken more than once for credit. If taken more than once, any additional semesters count towards the Political Science Electives.
- **
Moot Court (PLSI 555) may be repeated once for credit, but only 4 units may be applied to the Breadth requirement.