Double Major
Public Policy is an interdisciplinary social science major designed to provide students with the theoretical perspective, analytical skill and substantive knowledge needed to respond to major domestic and global policy problems. A major in Public Policy is often combined with another major, or a minor, in a related area or professional school, for instance, Business Administration, Economics, Education, Environment and Ecology, Global Studies, Journalism and Media, Peace, War, and Defense, Philosophy, Politics and Economics, Political Science, or Social and Economic Justice.
Double-Counting Guidelines
Courses that fulfill requirements for a major or minor may be double-counted, applied to a second major or minor, with the following general limitation: more than half, not merely half, of the courses and course credit hours taken in each major/minor must be exclusive to that major/minor.
In a 10-course major, for example, at least 6 courses, and at least 51 percent of the credit hours, should be counted exclusively in that major and should not double-count even if cross-listed with courses in a student’s second major or a minor. Some majors may further restrict double-counting courses. Students who are pursuing two majors and a minor, or two minors and a major, may, in principle, use a single course to satisfy requirements in all three areas of study, provided that more than half, not merely half, of the courses and course credit hours taken in each major/minor are exclusive to that major/minor.
Business Administration
The BS in Business Administration is offered to undergraduates and is a program of study that provides students with a thorough grounding in all areas of business and a broad introduction to the liberal arts. The Kenan–Flagler undergraduate experience is distinctive because the school offers a global perspective relevant to the needs of business today. Students develop critical analytical skills and engage world-renowned faculty and international business leaders. They benefit from expert coaches who’ll guide them in developing collaborative leadership skills for building and working on teams, managing projects and inspiring others to follow. The business administration program is considered a broad-based, general management degree, and the Kenan–Flagler Business School encourages breadth in both the business curriculum and in the continuation of study in fine arts, humanities, and natural and social sciences.
Economics
Economics is commonly defined as the study of how society allocates scarce resources to satisfy unlimited wants. Majoring in Economics comprises a large area of inquiry into the problems and structure of the economic segment of society. The curriculum provides the opportunity to achieve one or more of the following objectives: general education for intelligent citizenship with special emphasis on understanding the principles and problems of modern economic life, preparation for private employment, preparation for government employment, preparation for graduate programs in economics, business administration, international studies, law, health and hospital administration, city planning, public policy, and other fields.
Environment and Ecology
The Curriculum for the Environment and Ecology is a multidisciplinary degree program that seeks to foster an understanding and appreciation of ecological systems and future environmental problems. The BA in Environmental Studies is offered to undergraduates. It is appropriate for students wanting rigorous preparation in the methods of the social sciences and humanities needed to understand how society affects the environment, how it organizes itself to respond to environmental problems and how understanding of the environment is created and transmitted through culture. The degree focuses on the social, political, economic and cultural forces that guide society’s role in both causing and solving environmental problems, and on the role of society in perturbing environmental systems.
Global Studies
The Curriculum in Global Studies offers undergraduates the opportunity to develop an appreciation for and fuller understanding of the global issues within the context of a diverse, flexible, interdisciplinary curriculum. Courses deal with topics as diverse as the global impact of nineteenth century European colonialism, globalization and economic change, migration and diasporas, environment and human rights, global health and human reproduction, global and local social movements, and technology and patterns of cultural transmission. Such an integrated learning environment includes courses in modern foreign languages, enabling the student to develop the ability to interact and learn in a foreign environment. Courses in a thematic concentration allowing the student a framework for developing critical questioning and reasoning skills, and courses with a regional focus, encouraging students to develop a fuller awareness of the ways in which global forces shape and transform regional political, economic and cultural change.
Journalism and Media
In the Hussman School of Journalism and Media, students learn the skills they need to succeed in the new media environment, whether they pursue careers in journalism, advertising, public relations or other communications fields. The journalism curriculum is for students who want to broadcast, report, write, photograph, and present news and information to better inform society. These students learn techniques and theories to conceptualize information within the context of an independent press designed to create an informed public able to govern itself.
Peace, War, and Defense
The Curriculum in Peace, War, and Defense provides undergraduates with a range of approaches to the fundamental issues of human conflict and national and global security and defense. The curriculum prepares majors for graduate work in several of the humanities and social sciences, for a variety of professional schools, and for a range of employment. The strength of the curriculum is its broad interdisciplinary perspective combined with its depth of focus on topics that span the range of human experience across time and national boundaries, from science and technology to ethics and public policy.
Philosophy, Politics, & Economics
The PPE Program trains students to look beyond the borders of academic disciplines by offering an integrated study of philosophy, politics, and economics. The separation of the social sciences allowed the disciplines to narrow their fields of investigation and, as a consequence, to develop specific tools for their particular domains. In our highly interconnected world, however, this separation stands in the way of people developing the sort of comprehensive understanding that is demanded by the social, economic, and political problems that we face. The PPE program gives students a chance to re-integrate the study of philosophy, politics, and economics in a fruitful way.
Political Science
The Department of Political Science is concerned with the description and explanation of political ideas, institutions, processes, policies, and behavior, both in the United States and in other countries. The undergraduate program provides students with a basic knowledge of the political and economic relationships that exist among nations, international agencies, and governmental and nongovernmental organizations. It also introduces students to the role that traditions of thought and political ideologies have played in shaping our understanding of politics in the past and today. The undergraduate major is designed to provide a broad understanding of political ideas, institutions, and issues as a central element of a general education, a basic knowledge of the governmental process as preparation for those considering a career in public service as well as for active and informed citizenship, preprofessional training for students planning to enter law school, and a foundation in political science for those contemplating specialization at the graduate level.