Public Policy Major

1. Quantitative Methods (1 course)

One course selected from:

• GOVT055 CM - Empirical Methods
• ECON120 CM - Statistics
• Another college-level statistics course with permission of the program director.

2. Ethics (1 course)

One course selected from:

• Any 100+ level course from the Ethics Sequence   
• GOVT080 CM - Introduction to Political Philosophy

3. Policy Process (1 course)

One course selected from:

• GOVT050 CM - Introduction to Public Administration
• GOVT101 CM - The United States Congress
• GOVT116 CM - Public Policy Process
• GOVT118 CM - The Processes of Environmental Policymaking / ECON118 CM - The Processes of Environmental Policymaking  
• GOVT121 CM - Political Reform
• GOVT126A CM - Federal Budget Process (Washington Program course)
• GOVT126B CM - Problems in Public Policy (Washington Program course)
• GOVT149 CM - Foreign Relations of the United States
• GOVT150 CM - U.S. National Security Policy
• GOVT154 CM - Policymaking in International Organizations

4. Microeconomics (1 course)

• ECON101 CM - Intermediate Microeconomics

5. Electives (4 courses)

Four courses selected from the following, including at least one Economics course and one Government course:

6. Capstone (1 course)

• GOVT100 CM - Policy Lab  / ECON100 CM - Policy Lab  

7. Internship or Research Assistantship in Public Policy

One course selected from:

• An approved CMC internship with the permission of the program director; both the organization’s mission and the nature of the student’s work must relate to public policy. The internship may be for-credit or non-credit.
• GOVT030 CM - Washington Internship  (Washington Program course)
• Research assistantships might include a minimum of one semester’s work at one of CMC’s policy-related research institutes, such as the Rose Institute or the Lowe Institute, or another semester- or summer-long research assistant position with the approval of the program director.

Dual Major

The dual major in public policy requires a minimum of 7 courses. Dual majors may waive 2 electives from the full major.

Dual majors must complete at least one Economics and one Government elective.

Honors in Public Policy

To receive honors in Public Policy, a student must:

• Attain a grade point average of 3.50 or better in the major at time of graduation,
• Satisfactorily participate in a non-credit, co-curricular Public Policy thesis preparation course,
• Complete a 2-semester, 2-unit thesis in public policy with a grade of A- (3.67) or better, and
• Complete a thesis defense and attend a specified number of thesis defenses.

For additional information on the honors program, contact the program director of the major.

Learning Goals

In this major, students will learn to:

• Apply tools and concepts from economics and political science to the analysis of policy issues,
• Use quantitative and qualitative evidence to develop policy recommendations,
• Communicate complex ideas clearly and persuasively in written and oral forms, and
• Develop other professional skills including project management and teamwork.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the major, students will be able to:

• Demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of the public policy process, including problem identification, agenda setting, policy formation, budgeting, implementation, evaluation, and the roles of various institutions and political actors in policy-making;
• Evaluate the ways in which policies make trade-offs among competing values and the extent to which they arise from and fulfill differing conceptions of justice and the common good;
• Demonstrate a detailed understanding of applied economic concepts related to policy analysis such as market failure, moral hazard, and adverse selection;
• Gather policy information, create data sets, and produce clear visualizations to convey quantitative information;
• Use, and critically evaluate others’ use of, quantitative and analytical tools including statistical inference, regression analysis, program evaluation, and cost-benefit analysis;
• Compose written policy reports and memoranda, and deliver oral presentations, to a professional standard; and
• Manage complex projects, communicate professionally with clients, and work collaboratively in teams.

Evaluation Methods

Students will demonstrate mastery of the above subjects through:

• Exams that test understanding and application of quantitative skills, economic concepts, political process, and substantive policy;
• Individually producing and presenting policy reports and memoranda from independent research to a professional standard; and
• Demonstrating applied policy analysis skills in working with policy practitioners, through both an internship and the Policy Lab.