COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
POLITICAL SCIENCE DEPARTMENT
POLS 1301: American
Government (formerly POLS 1311 and 1312)
Major political federal institutions: executive,
legislative, judicial and independent agencies; functions and characteristics of American political system, its
environment, legal framework, electoral process, political parties and pressure
groups, and policy outputs.
POLS 1302: State
Government (formerly POLS 1311 and 1312)
Major political Texas institutions: executive,
legislative, judicial and independent agencies; functions and characteristics of Texas political system, its
environment, legal framework, electoral process, political parties and pressure
groups, and policy outputs.
POLS 23X1: Law School
Preparation and Intro to Legal System
Basics of US legal system;
preparation for students for the Law School Admission Test (LSAT); guidance on
how to decide where to apply to law school; helps students understand why they
want to go to law school; introduces the theory of legal education.
POLS 2310: Legal Process
(formerly POLS 4310)
Origins of law, structure,
and functions of judiciary as participant in political process;
interrelationships with executive and legislative branches; crime and legal
process.
Prerequisites: POLS 1301 and 1302 or consent of instructor.
POLS 23X2: Mock Trial I
(Introduction to Mock Trial)
Basics of trial procedure
through the use of simulations and mock trials. Students will read texts and
discuss trial procedure and selected readings on the structure and procedures
of trial courts. The main goal of the course is to impart the fundamentals
necessary for successful participation in intercollegiate mock trial
competition and to lay the groundwork for more advanced study in law school.
The majority of class time in the second half of the course will be spent in
"hands on" practice of these techniques in mock trials.
Prerequisites: POLS 1301, POLS 1302, and POLS
23X1 or consent of instructor.
POLS 3302: American
Parties and Law
Legal analysis of the
development of American political parties; survey of party structures, problems
and methods of political leaders; voting laws, election laws, campaign laws;
and growth and development of pressure groups.
POLS 3325: Research
Methods
Introduction
to the tools necessary for conducting research, including information literacy,
critical thinking, effective writing
style, and understanding of elementary statistical techniques. Emphasis on
skills such as problem solving, debating, understanding tables printed in
newspapers, and evaluating the validity and reliability of information reported
in the media.
POLS 43X6: Special Topics
in Law
(Civil Rights and Civil Liberties,
Civil Litigation, Estates/Trusts, Family/Gender Issues, Probate Law, Contracts,
Employment Law, Tort Law,etc). Course topics vary.
POLS 43X3: Mock Trial II
(Advanced Mock Trial)
Review of trial procedure
through the use of simulations and mock trials. Students will read texts and
discuss trial procedure and selected readings on the structure and procedures
of trial courts. The main goal of the course is to impart the fundamentals
necessary for successful participation in intercollegiate mock trial
competition and to lay the groundwork for more advanced study in law school.
The majority of class time in the second half of the course will be spent in
"hands on" practice of these techniques in mock trials.
Prerequisites: POLS 1301, POLS 1302, POLS
23X1, and POLS 23X2 or consent of instructor.
POLS 4301: Constitutional
Law I
Examination of
constitutional law developed through case study. Focuses on legal policies as
determined through the course system and implemented with national and state
legislation. Cases emphasize commerce and civil law.
Prerequisites: POLS 1301
and 1302 or consent of instructor.
POLS 4302: Constitutional
Law II
Examination of
constitutional law developed through case study. Focuses on legal policies as
determined through the court system and implemented with national and state
legislation. Cases emphasize criminal and civil rights law.
Prerequisites: POLS
1301 and 1302 or consent of instructor.
POLS 4350: International
Relations and Law
Analysis of the
international system, policy formulation process and selected problems on the
international scene. Topics may include military conflicts, aid, conflict,
resolution, environment and space.
Prerequisites: POLS 1301 and 1302 or consent of instructor.
POLS 4351: Environmental
Policy and Law
Current environmental
acts, regulations, and laws examined with emphasis on federal regulations and
laws. Examination of environmental processes and beliefs through which public
demands are generated and incorporated into policy.
Prerequisites: POLS 1301 and 1302 or consent of instructor.
POLS 4360: Latino Politics
and the Law (formerly Mexican-American Politics in the Southwest)
Overview and analysis of Mexican Americans and the
political movement in the southwest. Examination of political history, changes,
and development. Topics include civil rights law and policy, voting and redistricting,
education, the judicial system, and affirmative action.
POLS 4361: Latin American
Politics
Addresses
the conditions in various Latin American countries that lead to their forms of
government, culture, society, and nature of political and economic development.
Special topics include comparative legal systems, transition and consolidation
of democracy, and the role of political culture, the state, interest groups,
class structure, and political institutions.
POLS 4XX8: Senior Seminar
in Legal Studies
A capstone course for
pre-law senior students that explores and summarizes selected areas of
government, law and the public arena. This course may be team taught.
Prerequisites: POLS 1301, POLS 1302, and
POLS 23X2 or consent of instructor.
POLS 43XX: Internship
(formerly POLS 5316 Practicum)
Directed studies while
interning in a degree-associated workplace.
Prerequisites: Advanced standing,
minimum grade point average of 3.0 or consent of instructor.
Our Lady of the Lake University is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees. Contact the Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia 30033-4097 or call 404-679-4500 for questions about the accreditation of Our Lady of the Lake University.