Washington College

The Political Science Department has dynamic, hard-working faculty who are top experts in their fields. Members of the department have written award-winning books and academic articles on topics as diverse as the influence of the Christian Right on school board elections, criminal defendants' rights to counsel in the courtroom, Japan's military and defense strategies, post-war politics in El Salvador, and women's political behavior in Congress, school boards, and as clergy. Moreover, the news media and government frequently seek out our faculty for briefings and interviews about their respective fields.

Our faculty are innovators in the classroom and offer a wide variety of courses. In addition to the standard lecture format, political science faculty sometimes use "hands-on" approaches in the classroom. Students in the Legislative Process, for instance, become members of Congress for a few weeks as part of mock congressional committees. Students in Comparative Peace Processes role-play as negotiators and parties in conflict to resolve tenuous issues, such as past accountability for war crimes and setting terms for peace talks. Students in Law and Society have the option of riding along with local police or attending criminal trials to see the criminal justice system in action. Students are expected to be active participants in our classes, as our small class sizes foster close relationships with faculty and fellow classmates.

The Political Science Department believes that learning does not stop in the classroom, which is why we sponsor both formal and informal internship opportunities. Students can earn course credit as interns with the Maryland General Assembly, the British Parliament, or as part of a delegation team to the Model UN. Political Science students can also spend an entire semester as interns for political organizations or the United States Government for full course credit through the Washington Center. Students can also arrange for individual internship opportunities with faculty for summer internship credit. We strongly encourage our students to study abroad.

The Political Science Department works closely with the Goldstein Program in Public Affairs, which sponsors exciting events that bring notable speakers to campus, including political leaders, scholars, and journalists. The Goldstein Program also gives many of our best students the ability to attend conferences in Washington or at military service academies such as West Point.

Washington College is closely located to the nation's capital as well as Annapolis, the Maryland state capital, and political science classes make frequent use of this location through field trips, in addition to field trips elsewhere (such as the United Nations in New York). Students can also utilize the rich government and academic resources found in these areas as well as seek out opportunities for internships and chances to volunteer for political parties or campaigns during election season.