Public Policy

Coordinator:

JOHN CASKEY (Economics)
Cathy Wareham (Administrative Assistant)

Committee:

Erin Todd Bronchetti (Economics)
Ellen Magenheim (Economics)
Carol Nackenoff (Political Science)
Keith Reeves (Political Science)
Lynne Schofield (Mathematics and Statistics)
Lisa Smulyan (Educational Studies)
Richard Valelly (Political Science)
Robert Weinberg (History)

The minor in public policy enables students to combine work in several departments toward both critical and practical understanding of public policy issues, including those in the realm of social welfare, health, energy, environment, food and agriculture, and national and global security. These issues may be within domestic, foreign, or international governmental domains. Courses in the minor encompass the development, formulation, implementation, and evaluation of policy.

Note: The faculty of the Public Policy Program and the Curriculum Committee have determined that policy-related courses and internships have become so ingrained in the College’s curriculum that the interdisciplinary program has become redundant. Current students, through the class of 2016, will be able to pursue a minor in public policy. After that time, students may continue to take all of the same courses through the economics, educational studies, engineering, history, mathematics and statistics, and political science departments, but the public policy minor will no longer be offered. Internships related to public policy will continue to be supported by the College, even after the program ends.

The Academic Program

The minor in public policy may be taken together with a course major in any field or as a minor in the Honors Program. At a minimum, the minor consists of six credits and an internship. The program of each minor should be worked out in consultation with the coordinator of the Public Policy Program and approved by the coordinator, preferably at the same time as majors in the Course and Honors Programs are planned.

The public policy minor consists of 6 credits of work. Basic academic requirements for the minor cover three areas: (1) economic analysis, (2) political analysis, and (3) quantitative analysis. These may each be met by taking one course or seminar in each of the three categories; courses that fulfill these requirements are listed below.

In addition to these three preparatory or prerequisite courses, three credits must be taken from among the policy-oriented courses listed below. With the approval of the Public Policy coordinator, other courses, whether taken at Swarthmore or other colleges and universities, that have a substantial focus on public policy analysis can also count for Public Policy credit. If a student takes a two-credit seminar to fulfill a Public Policy requirement, only one credit of the seminar can be counted toward the requirement. Please note that seminars are limited in size and that most departments give priority to departmental majors and minors, so Public Policy minors might not be admitted. In addition, students should take into account course prerequisites when planning the minor program.

Some students may wish to focus their public policy studies heavily in a particular field, e.g. urban policy, food studies, poverty, health, or transportation. This is encouraged for students who have such specific interests.

Internship

Some direct experience or practical responsibility in the field, through work in a public, private, or voluntary agency, is required for graduation with a minor in public policy. Normally, students will hold internships between their junior and senior years. The internship program is supervised by the coordinator of the Program. Planning for the internship should begin six to eight months before the time it might commence. Students should keep the Program coordinator informed of their internship plans and, if needed, seek his or her advice in finding an appropriate internship.

Funding for an internship is sometimes provided by the agency in which a person serves. Frequently, however, students require support to cover their travel and maintenance costs during the eight to ten weeks of a summer internship. For students who are minors, the College can generally provide support, up to a specified limit, to help fund the internship. Other possible sources of support for an internship include the James H. Scheuer Summer Internships in Environmental and Population Studies, the J. Roland Pennock Fellowships in Public Affairs, the Joel Dean Awards, the Sam Hayes III Research Grant, the Lippincott Peace Fellowships, and the David G. Smith Internship in Health and Social Policy. Information on each of these sources can be obtained in the Public Policy Program Office, 105 Trotter.

Thesis / Culminating Exercise

Students who are honors minors in Public Policy must write a senior thesis for one of their policy credits. Frequently, but not always, the thesis is related to the internship and/or a student’s focus of study. Students writing a thesis should register for PPOL 097 in the fall of their senior year.

Honors Minor Option

Students construct an honors minor in public policy by combining the one-credit thesis with a related course or seminar. Policy work examined as a minor should meet three criteria: first, the thesis and the associated coursework should fit together in some fashion that is coherent and examinable; second, the honors minor preparation must meet the College requirement that the work be in a discipline outside the student’s major department; and third, each student must have his/her proposed preparation approved by the Public Policy Program coordinator who may consult with the Public Policy Committee.

For more information on the public policy minor, internships, theses and related topics, talk with the coordinator of the program.

Areas of Policy Focus

As noted above, some students may wish to focus their substantive work in policy heavily in a particular field. Given the size and interests of the faculty, not every area of public policy is well represented within the College’s curriculum and faculty. But generally students can fulfill even highly specialized interests within the tri-College community or by taking courses at the University of Pennsylvania. Courses that fulfill the public policy foundation requirements in political analysis, economic analysis, and quantitative analysis as well as other courses that count toward the program are listed subsequently. As noted above, students can petition the program coordinator to have appropriate courses that are not listed below count toward the minor.

Foundation Requirements

Political Analysis Courses

POLS 002.&nbsp;American Politics or
equivalent policy analysis in political science
POLS 003.&nbsp;Introduction to Comparative Political Systems
POLS 004.&nbsp;International Politics

Economic Analysis Courses

Quantitative Analysis Courses

Partial List of Courses and Seminars Eligible for Public Policy Credit

Note:

Course descriptions can be found in each department’s course listings in this catalog.

* Note: Seminars are limited in size, departmental majors and minors are often given registration priority, so public policy minors may not be admitted.