Political Science

Collection Development Policy: Department of Political Science

Subject Librarian: Scott Opasik

Purpose of Policy: The collection development policy for Sociology & Anthropology guides the development and management of the Sociology collection.

Program Description

Courses offered by the department introduce students to the study of government and politics, including an understanding of public affairs, different political systems, and political ideas. This program intends to educate citizens who can think critically about politics and its place in their lives and in society; to provide a general liberal arts education for students continuing on to a wide variety of careers, including public service; and to help prepare those students who choose to continue on to graduate school or law school.

Through their coursework, students also come to understand some of the ways in which political scientists study politics; and learn to express themselves cogently in writing and orally. The department seeks to achieve these goals through its instructional program: a master’s degree, three graduate certificates, a major, a minor, and the political science courses taken by students majoring in other disciplines as part of the general education requirement.

Areas of Established Specialization

• American Politics
• International Relations
• Urban Affairs
• State and Local Politics
• Comparative Politics
• History of Political Thought
• Political Theory
• Public Affairs
• Public Management
• Political Geography and Geopolitics

Changes in User Population for Most Recent Five Years

• More online courses, leading to more students in online courses
• Increased demand for variations on eTexts and instruction on gathering reliable online information and judging sources

New and Expanding Areas of Interest

• Civic Engagement
• Corporate Citizenship
• Digital Technology and Politics

Degrees Offered

• B.A. in Political Science
• Pre-law
• Paralegal Studies Certificate
• Master of Public Affairs
• Public Affairs Graduate Certificate

Clientele

The primary clientele are the undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, and staff of the Department of Political Science. Members of the Michiana community may also use the collection.

Number of faculty: 6 FTE (2018)

Number of majors: 60 PoliSci, 15 pre-law (2018)

Number of graduate students: 35

Scope and Collection Guidelines

The Political Science collection consists of works written for the basic through advanced undergraduate level and graduate level and for basic faculty research.

Formats Collected

Scholarly monographs, serials, collections of essays, conference proceedings, videos, and electronic resources are extensively collected.

Formats Excluded

Pamphlets, newsletters, article reprints, and required textbooks. Popular and/or journalistic monographs about social issues are selectively collected.

Language

The collection is primarily in English.

Geographic Coverage

All geographic areas are covered. Preference is given to materials relating to the region (Michiana, northern Indiana, and Midwest) for titles with a geographic focus.

Chronological Periods Collected

Priority is given to current publications. Older imprints are collected selectively, usually as replacements for classic works, or upon request.

Subject Emphases

See areas of established specialization.

Current Collecting Priorities

See new and expanding areas of interest.

Subjects Collected Selectively

None

Reference

Reference material for Political Science is selected by the Political Science subject librarian following the general subject parameters of the collection policy.

Interdisciplinary Considerations

Due to the highly interdisciplinary nature of Political Science and Public Affairs, materials are also occasionally selected in the areas of education, criminal justice, social work, history, philosophy, economics, and statistics.

Location

Political Science materials are housed in the Schurz Library. Works specifically about the discipline of Political Science are classified in the J schedule of the Library of Congress system. Law materials are classified in the K schedule, while nonprofit management (an option track for the graduate program) is most often located in HD. Political science materials often have significant overlap with social sciences, which are classified within the H range.

Political Science Call #Areas:

Law Call #Areas:

Social Sciences Call #Areas with Overlap: