Minor in Politics, Law, and Social Thought
Program Learning Outcomes for the Minor in Politics, Law, and Social Thought
Upon completing the minor in Politics, Law, and Social Thought, students will be able to:
- Understand and convey the main traditions of political, legal, and social thought as they appear in specific contexts.
- Analyze and evaluate complex texts in political, legal, and social thought through close reading and interpretation.
- Communicate ideas in written, visual, and/or oral form about political, legal, and social thought.
Requirements for the Minor in Politics, Law, and Social Thought
Students pursuing the minor in Politics, Law, and Social Thought must complete:
- A minimum of 6 courses (18 credit hours) to satisfy minor requirements.
- A minimum of 4 courses (12 credit hours) taken at the 300-level or above.
- A maximum of 2 courses (6 credit hours) from study abroad or transfer credit. For additional program guidelines regarding transfer credit, see the Policies tab.
- A maximum of 2 courses (6 credit hours) from the same subject code (i.e., GERM, HIST, etc.) may be used to meet the Elective Requirements.
The courses listed below satisfy the requirements for this minor. In certain instances, courses not on this official list may be substituted upon approval of the minor’s academic advisor or, where applicable, the Program Director. (Course substitutions must be formally applied and entered into Degree Works by the minor's Official Certifier). Students and their academic advisors should identify and clearly document the courses to be taken.
Summary
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Total Credit Hours Required for the Minor in Politics, Law, and Social Thought | 18 | |
Minor Requirements
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Core Requirement | ||
| Select 1 course from the following: | 3 | |
| SOCIAL AND POLITICAL THOUGHT IN 19TH CENTURY EUROPE | ||
| PRE-MODERN POLITICAL THOUGHT FROM CICERO TO LOCKE | ||
| LATIN AMERICAN POLITICAL THOUGHT: IDENTITY, LIBERATION, MODERNITY | ||
| SOCIAL AND POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY OF THE SIXTIES | ||
| MODERN POLITICAL THOUGHT: MACHIAVELLI TO RAWLS | ||
| CONTEMPORARY POLITICAL THEORY: RESISTANCE AND SOCIAL TRANSFORMATION | ||
| DEMOCRACY AND POLITICAL THEORY IN ANCIENT GREECE | ||
| AMERICAN CONSTITUTIONAL LAW: STRUCTURES AND POWERS | ||
| Elective Requirements | ||
| Select 5 courses from the Elective Requirements (see course list below) 1 | 15 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 18 | |
Footnotes and Additional Information
| 1 | Students may use a maximum of 3 credit hours of independent study coursework to fulfill Elective Requirements. See the minor advisor for more information. |
Course Lists to Satisfy Requirements
Elective Requirements
To complete the Politics, Law, and Social Thought minor, students must complete a total of 5 elective courses (15 credit hours) from the following Rice departmental course offerings. If a student takes more than 1 course from the Core Requirement list, that extra course may be used toward the Elective Requirements. Ultimately no more than 2 courses (6 credit hours) from the same subject code (i.e., GERM, HIST, etc.) may be used to meet the Elective Requirements for the minor.1
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Anthropology | ||
| ANTH 309 | GLOBAL CULTURES | 3 |
| ANTH 317 | REVOLUTIONS AND UTOPIAS | 3 |
| ANTH 322 | GLOBAL IM/MOBILITIES: BORDERS, MIGRATION, AND CITIZENSHIP | 3 |
| ANTH 326 | LAW, POWER AND CULTURE | 3 |
| ANTH 327 | CULTURES OF DEMOCRACY AND AUTOCRACY | 3 |
| ANTH 340 | NEOLIBERALISM AND GLOBALIZATION | 3 |
| ANTH 351 | CULTURES OF NATIONALISM | 3 |
| ANTH 372 | CULTURES OF CAPITALISM | 3 |
| ANTH 429 | ACTIVISM AND SOCIAL MOVEMENTS | 3 |
| ANTH 430 | WHEN HUMAN RIGHTS FAIL: THE ANTHROPOLOGY OF HUMAN RIGHTS | 3 |
| Art History | ||
| HART 389 | JUSTICE AND CINEMA | 3 |
| Asian Studies | ||
| ASIA 377 / POLI 377 | CHINESE POLITICS IN COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE | 3 |
| Economics | ||
| ECON 239 | LAW AND ECONOMICS | 3 |
| Environmental Studies | ||
| ENST 406 / CEVE 406 | INTRODUCTION TO ENVIRONMENTAL LAW | 3 |
| History | ||
| HIST 237 | RADICAL MOVEMENTS IN THE AMERICAS | 3 |
| HIST 305 | READING HISTORIES OF WORK | 3 |
| HIST 332 | AMERICAN LEGAL HISTORY, 1863 TO THE PRESENT | 3 |
| HIST 340 / SWGS 345 | HISTORY OF FEMINISM | 3 |
| HIST 359 | THE UNITED STATES IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY WORLD | 3 |
| HIST 373 | SOCIAL AND POLITICAL THOUGHT IN 19TH CENTURY EUROPE | 3 |
| HIST 387 | THE UNITED STATES IN THE WORLD: AGE OF EMPIRE AND REVOLUTION | 3 |
| HIST 388 | POLITICS, LAW, AND GLOBALIZATION | 3 |
| HIST 392 | PRE-MODERN POLITICAL THOUGHT FROM CICERO TO LOCKE | 3 |
| HIST 405 | DEMOCRACY AND CAPITALISM: THE HISTORICAL DEBATE FROM MARX TO TRUMP | 3 |
| HIST 412 | EMPIRE AND INTERNATIONAL LAW | 3 |
| HIST 423 | AMERICAN RADICALS AND REFORMERS | 3 |
| HIST 426 | DISABILITY AND U.S. LAW | 3 |
| HIST 449 | LAW IN THE DIGITAL WORLD | 3 |
| HIST 455 | THE HISTORY OF HUMAN RIGHTS | 3 |
| HIST 457 | FOUR MODERN REVOLUTIONS: 1776, 1789, 1917, 1989 | 3 |
| Humanities | ||
| HUMA 122 | WHO SHOULD VOTE? A BIG QUESTIONS COURSE | 3 |
| HUMA 315 | COMMUNICATION LAW | 3 |
| Linguistics | ||
| LING 331 | LINGUISTICS FOR LEGAL PURPOSES | 3 |
| Modern and Classical Languages, Literatures, and Cultures | ||
| FREN 324 / POLI 324 / RELI 476 | FROM DECOLONIZATION TO GLOBALIZATION | 3 |
| FREN 453 | IMMIGRATION AND CITIZENSHIP IN CONTEMPORARY FRANCE | 3 |
| GERM 333 | NIETZSCHE: PHILOSOPHY, POLITICS, HISTORY | 3 |
| GERM 334 | NATIONALISM AND CITIZENSHIP | 3 |
| LALX 378 | LATIN AMERICAN POLITICAL THOUGHT: IDENTITY, LIBERATION, MODERNITY | 3 |
| Philosophy | ||
| PHIL 281 | HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY I | 3 |
| PHIL 283 | HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY II | 3 |
| PHIL 360 | ETHICS | 3 |
| PHIL 362 | HISTORY OF ETHICS | 3 |
| PHIL 370 | SOCIAL AND POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY | 3 |
| PHIL 372 | HISTORY OF SOCIAL AND POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY | 3 |
| PHIL 373 | PHILOSOPHY OF LAW | 3 |
| PHIL 386 | CONTINENTAL PHILOSOPHY | 3 |
| Political Science | ||
| POLI 316 | DEBATING FREEDOM AND EQUALITY IN AMERICAN POLITICAL THOUGHT | 3 |
| POLI 319 | WORLD LEGAL SYSTEMS | 3 |
| POLI 321 | AMERICAN CONSTITUTIONAL LAW: STRUCTURES AND POWERS | 3 |
| POLI 323 | AMERICAN CONSTITUTIONAL LAW: CIVIL RIGHTS AND LIBERTIES | 3 |
| POLI 324 | FROM DECOLONIZATION TO GLOBALIZATION | 3 |
| POLI 325 | AFRICAN AMERICAN POLITICS | 3 |
| POLI 326 | DEMOCRACY AND RELIGION | 3 |
| POLI 339 | GENDER AND POLITICS | 3 |
| POLI 341 | RACE AND THE LAW IN THE UNITED STATES | 3 |
| POLI 342 | POLITICS OF THE JUDICIARY | 3 |
| POLI 357 | DEMOCRACY AND DEMOCRATIZATION | 3 |
| POLI 359 | WORLD CONSTITUTIONS | 3 |
| POLI 371 | CIVIL WARS | 3 |
| POLI 457 | CONDITIONS OF DEMOCRACY | 3 |
| Politics, Law, and Social Thought | ||
| PLST 301 | MODERN POLITICAL THOUGHT: MACHIAVELLI TO RAWLS | 3 |
| PLST 302 | CONTEMPORARY POLITICAL THEORY: RESISTANCE AND SOCIAL TRANSFORMATION | 3 |
| PLST 305 | INTRODUCTION TO LAW | 3 |
| PLST 306 | THE RIVER AND THE WALL: LAW OF BORDERS AND MIGRATION | 3 |
| PLST 308 | LAW OF POPULATION | 3 |
| PLST 315 | AUTHORITARIAN CONSTITUTIONALISM AND DEMOCRATIC DICTATORSHIPS SINCE 1848 | 3 |
| PLST 316 / CLAS 316 | DEMOCRACY AND POLITICAL THEORY IN ANCIENT GREECE | 3 |
| PLST 317 | IDEOLOGY AND ITS CRITIQUE | 3 |
| PLST 330 | RACE AND THE LAW: HOW LAWS AND INSTITUTIONS HAVE PERPETUATED RACISM AND SUPPORTED PROGRESS | 1 |
| PLST 331 | CRIME IN THE U.S. | 3 |
| PLST 332 | DEMOCRACY AND PROTEST | 3 |
| PLST 401 | LEGAL PRACTICUM | 3 |
| PLST 402 | JUDICIAL PRACTICUM | 3 |
| Sociology | ||
| SOCI 321 | CRIMINOLOGY | 3 |
| SOCI 325 | SOCIOLOGY OF LAW | 3 |
| SOCI 349 | CRIME, LAW & JUSTICE IN POPULAR CULTURE | 3 |
| SOCI 358 | CRIME, PUNISHMENT AND SOCIETY | 3 |
| SOCI 380 | SOCIAL THEORY | 3 |
| SOCI 396 / ANTH 396 | LAW AND RESISTANCE IN THE EVERYDAY | 3 |
| SOCI 426 | CONTEMPORARY THEORY | 3 |
| Study of Women, Gender, and Sexuality | ||
| SWGS 250 / ASIA 251 / POLI 250 | SEX, MONEY, AND POWER AROUND THE WORLD | 3 |
Footnotes and Additional Information
| 1 | Students may use a maximum of 3 credit hours of independent study coursework to fulfill Elective Requirements. See the minor advisor for more information. |
Practica
Students may count one practicum with 3 credit hours toward the Elective Requirements for the minor, as long as the practicum substantively reflects the thematic focus of the minor in PLST. As general guidance, acceptable practica are concerned with the public dimension of law or fall into the area of public policy. Proposed practica have to be approved by the director before the official start date of the practicum. Practica must adhere to the requirements and policies governing practica as they have been established by the School of Humanities and/or the School of Social Sciences.
Policies for the Minor in Politics, Law, and Social Thought
Program Restrictions and Exclusions
Students pursuing the minor in Politics, Law, and Social Thought should be aware of the following program restriction:
- As noted in Majors, Minors, and Certificates, i.) students may declare their intent to pursue a minor only after they have first declared a major, and ii.) students may not major and minor in the same subject.
Transfer Credit
For Rice University’s policy regarding transfer credit, see Transfer Credit. Some departments and programs have additional restrictions on transfer credit. Requests for transfer credit must be approved for Rice equivalency by the designated transfer credit advisor for the appropriate academic department offering the Rice equivalent course (corresponding to the subject code of the course content). The Office of Academic Advising maintains the university’s official list of transfer credit advisors on their website: https://oaa.rice.edu. Students are encouraged to meet with the applicable transfer credit advisor as well as their academic program director when considering transfer credit possibilities.
Program Transfer Credit Guidelines
Students pursuing the minor in Politics, Law, and Social Thought should be aware of the following program-specific transfer credit guidelines:
- No more than 2 courses (6 credit hours) of transfer credit from U.S. or international universities of similar standing as Rice may apply towards the minor.
- Transfer credit received via the articulation of approved exam credit, such as Advanced Placement (AP) credit, International Baccalaureate (IB) credit, or A-level credit will not be considered towards minor requirements.
Distribution Credit Information
The determination of distribution credit eligibility is done initially as part of the new course creation process. Additionally, as part of an annual roll call coordinated each Spring by the Office of the Registrar, course distribution credit eligibility is routinely reviewed and reaffirmed by the Dean’s Offices of each of the academic schools.
Faculty and leadership in the academic schools are responsible for ensuring that the courses identified as distribution-credit-eligible meet the criteria as set in the General Announcements. Students are responsible for ensuring that they meet graduation requirements by completing coursework designated as distribution-credit-eligible at the time of course registration.
Distribution courses from Politics, Law, and Social Thought (PLST) are designed to provide students with the tools for thinking critically about politics, law, and society, and for using those tools to participate in the life of our society and polity.
Additional Information
For additional information, please see the Politics, Law, and Social Thought website: https://politics.rice.edu/.
Opportunities for the Minor in Politics, Law, and Social Thought
Academic Honors
The university recognizes academic excellence achieved over an undergraduate’s academic history at Rice. For information on university honors, please see Latin Honors (summa cum laude, magna cum laude, and cum laude) and Distinction in Research and Creative Work. Some departments have department-specific Honors awards or designations.
Additional Information
For additional information, please see the Politics, Law, and Social Thought website: https://politics.rice.edu/.