Paragraph 1: Aspects of a Political Science major that do fit elements of an enriched major – added on to 

Looking at the course requirements and learning outcomes of a Political Science major, there seem to be many areas that correspond to Boyer’s idea of an enriched major. There was great emphasis on understanding the complexities of political questioning that explain why those questions are even being raised. I think that this element goes along with an enriched major in terms of how Boyer states that it should encourage students “not only to explore a field in-depth but also to help them put their field of special study in perspective.” Much like we have discussed in class with Scheuer, Ungar, and our guest faculty member Professor DeWolfe, gaining context and a deeper understanding of whatever major you are in will only help broaden your skills in the end. Within the categories that Boyer lays out as essential qualities of an enriched major; history and tradition, social and economic implications, and ethical and moral, I saw aspects of each expressed clearly within the Political Science major. There are courses aimed at exploring geopolitical influences, family, and religion for history and traditions while developing “skills to use historical events to understand political issues, developments, and trends.” Social/economic and ethical/moral implications are also highlighted in economies, human rights, and power dynamics. 

Moving into specific areas within the categories Boyer lays out these three categories as essential to an enriched major “What is the history and tradition of the field to be examined? What are the social and economic implications to be understood? What are the ethical and moral issues to be confronted”. At first glance, these criteria aren’t clearly expressed through the learning outcomes and required courses, however, looking deeper into the course descriptions for the requirements opens up a whole new perspective into Political Science. With broad titles like “Intro to American Politics 101” the integrated materials Boyer puts forth seems hard to recognize, yet for just this one example of an introductory level course we see that its primary goal is to “…raise the questions, “What is democracy?” and “How closely does American politics conform to democratic ideals?”. Moving high up to the 300-400 level courses, courses are more specialized and maybe geared towards addressing specific aspects of what seems to correlate to Boyers idea of social/economic and well as ethical and moral. For example in the course Education Law 319, the description states it will “explore how politics affect education law, since public schools as public institutions, supported by taxpayers’ dollars, essentially become political foci.”.  This course meets both a general idea of a liberal arts curriculum, as we’ve seen stated previously by Ungar and Scheuer, that it broadens the student’s depth in a subject that creates an environment for critical thinking and analysis but it also identifies social ramifications of the law and urges students to understand connections between the real world and academic endeavors. 

The overarching theme within Political Science seems to draw from many different viewpoints of how to ask questions, why they are important, and what we as students can gain as insight into the political world around us. Boyer’s elements of an enriched major certainly seem prominent throughout both learning outcomes and required course material.

Paragraph 2: Aspects of a Political Science major that does not fit elements of an enriched major – added on to 

Boyer’s argument about his idea of an enriched major expresses that certain aspects of educational endeavors have no place in a college atmosphere. However, for most of its goals and curriculum, political science seems to match Boyer’s characteristics of an enriched major. Nevertheless, some do lean towards a more career-oriented path. For example, one of the most prominent learning outcomes listed is “to be able to compete successfully for placement into graduate programs or employment.” This example of career-centeredness for a Political Science major to Boyer may insinuate that the underlying goal is to know how to “play the game” so to speak, and be able to ensure a spot at a prestigious graduate program or edge out other people for a job. Within Boyer’s work, he describes how there is an increasing amount of tension between career and technical majors and more traditional liberal arts majors; in the case of Political Science, which would lean more towards liberal arts, it may be more of an inward tension. One way to think about the emphasis on job readiness is that compared to a degree like English. While an English major can prepare students for a multitude of careers, it tends not to focus on them within the course structure. In contrast, there are a few careers that seem to be implied when majoring in Political Science. For instance, there are many career options listed on the Political Science homepage, such as Lawyer, Policy Expert, Elected Offical, Teacher, etc. Compared to the broad and sometimes vague career options of an English major or interdisciplinary humanities major, to Boyer, a Political Science major can fall under a more career-driven major. 

Within individual required course material and their descriptions I feel that depending on a student’s goal, Political Science courses could feel very skewed towards the pre-law realm or preparations for a political career. In my case, I will benefit greatly from exposure to legal ideologies and reasoning prior to law school. Nonetheless, I could understand how someone pursuing this degree with a career in journalism or public relations might not need to go as in-depth to courses such as Constitutional Law. The skills and knowledge being taught could be interpreted as only pertaining to someone who wants to be a lawyer or politician. Perhaps this isn’t a bad thing though, it offers a perspective into the minds of our countries legal system which in part deals with a lot of attorneys. Boyer’s argument that majors that are too vocational lose sight of the liberal arts methodology of education, but with all the exposure and expertise students have obtained from a liberal arts education, at the end of the day, most people in society need to translate those into a career. I understand Boyer’s point that it can’t neglect or diminish the extremely beneficial skills acquired from critical thinking and inquiry, strong communication skills, and broadened viewpoints yet I feel a balance must be achieved.