Government

The program in Government offers an approach to a liberal arts education that emphasizes the literature and methods of ancient, modern, and contemporary students of politics and government. The object is to place students in the midst of controversy over the great issues of politics and to equip them to deal rationally and prudently with these issues. Students in Government will find courses in American government and politics, business and public management, comparative politics, international relations, political philosophy, and public law taught by an accomplished faculty of teacher-scholars.

The study of Government plays a crucial role in the mission of the College, which is to educate students for “thoughtful and productive lives and responsible leadership in economics, government and public affairs.”  Consequently, Government and International Relations majors make up fully one-third of each graduating class, and the Government Department employs as many professors as the political science department at Vanderbilt University.

The major is selected by students preparing for careers in law; local, state, and national government; foreign service; business; government relations; and other areas of the private and public sectors in which a broad knowledge of the problems of modern society is appropriate.