Overview
The Bachelor of Arts in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics is designed for high achieving students who desire to broadly study the liberal arts. This program combines what have historically been called the “ruling disciplines” because they are viewed as essential skills for those in positions of civic leadership. Because the study of these fields is designed to teach students ethical and prudential thinking, civic knowledge and understanding, and practical economic insights, this degree prepares students for graduate study in theology, business, and law, as well as more traditional liberal arts fields such as government, history, and philosophy. The program requires students to develop both a foundational knowledge of statistics and to study a foreign language.
In addition to the core curriculum (44 hours), students take sixty hours of work in their major, which includes twelve (12) hours of foreign language, twenty-one (21) hours of required courses, and twenty-seven (27) hours of electives in politics, philosophy, and economics. There are eighteen (18) free elective hours that provide room for a minor.
Degree Requirements
Core Curriculum
Required Courses
Communication
Choose one from the list below.
Literature
Choose one from the list below.
Fine Arts
Choose one from the list below.
Civic Awareness
Choose one from the list below.
| HIST-2310 | United States History to 1865 | 3 |
| HIST-2320 | United States History Since 1865 | 3 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 44 |
Major Requirements
Required Courses
Philosophy Electives
Choose three courses from the list below.
Political Science Electives
Choose three courses from the list below.
Economics Electives
Choose three courses from the list below.
| Total Free Elective Requirements |
18 |
| Total Degree Requirements |
122 |
Plan of Study
The Plan of Study indicated below is simply a suggested course sequence. All students will have a varied schedule based on any transfer work, matriculation, or course offering that may occur.
Freshman Year - Fall
Freshman Year - Spring
| CHPL-1023 | Chapel | 0 |
| PALS-1000 | Performing Arts and Lecture Series | 0 |
| ENGL-1320 | Composition and Literature | 3 |
| MATH-1330 | Probability and Statistics | 3 |
| PLSC-2310 | American National Government | 3 |
-
| Civic Awareness Core Class | 3 |
-
| Foreign Language | 3 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 15 |
Sophomore Year - Fall
| CHPL-1023 | Chapel | 0 |
| PALS-1000 | Performing Arts and Lecture Series | 0 |
| CHST-1301 | Engaging the Biblical Narrative | 3 |
| PSYC-2310 | Introduction to Psychology | 3 |
| ECON-2310 | Principles of Macroeconomics | 3 |
| PLSC-2350 | Introduction to International Relations | 3 |
-
| Foreign Language | 3 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 15 |
Sophomore Year - Spring
| CHPL-1023 | Chapel | 0 |
| PALS-1000 | Performing Arts and Lecture Series | 0 |
| CHST-1302 | Integrating a Biblical Worldview | 3 |
-
| Communication course | 3 |
-
| Literature course | 3 |
-
| Foreign Language | 3 |
-
| PPE Elective | 3 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 15 |
Junior Year - Fall
| CHPL-1023 | Chapel | 0 |
| BIOL-1310 | Scientific Inquiry in a Living World | 3 |
-
| Free Elective | 3 |
-
| Free Elective | 3 |
-
| PPE Elective | 3 |
-
| PPE Elective | 3 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 15 |
Junior Year - Spring
| CHPL-1023 | Chapel | 0 |
| CHST-1201 | Interpreting the Biblical Text | 2 |
| PHSC-1430 | Scientific Inquiry in a Physical World | 4 |
-
| PPE Elective | 3 |
-
| PPE Elective | 3 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 15 |
Senior Year - Fall
| CHPL-1023 | Chapel | 0 |
| PLSC-3389 | Research Methods | 3 |
-
| PPE Elective | 3 |
-
| PPE Elective | 3 |
-
| Fine Arts Core Course | 3 |
-
| Free Elective | 3 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 15 |
Senior Year - Spring
| PLSC-4395 | Senior Seminar | 3 |
-
| PPE Elective | 3 |
-
| PPE Elective | 3 |
-
| Free Elective | 3 |
-
| Free Elective | 3 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 15 |
Mission Statement and Outcomes
Outcomes
1) Students will be able to explain and design concrete empirical research questions in fundamental societal issues of political order, justice, wealth and poverty, globalization, freedom, ideology, voting, economic forces
2) Students will be able to explain how economic systems are structured and evaluate how they contribute to a flourishing society
3) Students will be able to critically discuss significant intellectual traditions, thinkers, or schools in the history of economic, political, and/or ethical thought
4) Students will be able to analyze contemporary public policy from the perspectives of philosophy, political science, and/or economics.
5) Students will be able to compare a Christian Worldview and Philosophic orientation with competing ideas about social, economic, or philosophic order.