BA Political Science (Curriculum 2016)
The following information on the Bachelor’s degree program in Political Science refers to the curriculum adopted in 2016. This curriculum applies to you if you enrolled between winter semester 2016/17 and summer semester 2024. To students who enrol from winter semester 2024/25 onwards, the new 2024 curriculum will apply.
Students who started their studies according to the 2016 curriculum can complete their studies according to this curriculum until October 1, 2027 at the latest. After this date, they will automatically be transferred to the 2024 curriculum. However, they can also switch to the new curriculum earlier by notifying the Admissions Office.
General Information
The bachelor’s program comprises 6 semesters of study and requires 180 ECTS credits for completion – one ECTS credit equals 25 hours of academic work. The degree program consists of 83 ECTS credits of mandatory courses, 43 credits of elective modules, 12 ECTS credits of internship work, 6 ECTS credits are apportioned to the bachelor’s thesis and 24 ECTS credits to free electives. The program commences with a legally mandated introduction and orientation phase (“STEOP”) the successful completion of which determines whether students may proceed in the program. It is comprised of two lectures, Introduction to Political Science and Politics viewed from a Scientific Perspective (4 ECTS credits, respectively).
The BA curriculum is divided into five core areas: Political Theory (political ideas), Comparative Politics, Austrian Politics in Comparative Perspective, International Relations, and Politics of the European Union. In each core area, students must take foundational courses (introductory lecture and a more in-depth pro-seminar). In three of the five core areas, students will then attend thematically focused seminars and write research papers. To complete the BA program, students will need to take coursework in so-called neighboring disciplines (like Constitutional Law, Gender Studies, History, Macroeconomics, or Sociology), working techniques in Political Science as well as quantitative and qualitative research methods (to be taken prior to attending seminars), free electives, and an internship. Training in empirical research methods is a particular priority in the BA program. As such, methods’ training begins in the summer semester with a lecture on research design to be accompanied by a pro-seminar on qualitative research methods and continues in the winter semester with a lecture on quantitative methods and a corresponding pro-seminar.
What will I learn?
In the BA degree courses in Political Science, you will deal with political players, institutions and processes, the political culture of various countries and selected fields of politics. You will examine how political players understand their roles and the motives by which they are driven, how their actions are restricted by political institutions and how political power is exerted. Moreover, you will develop empirical and analytical, professional and methodical skills. These skills enable you to develop innovative research questions and to compose written works, which are theoretically and methodically profound. Students acquire the ability to grasp political and social problems, to work out practical solution strategies, to present them convincingly and to advocate them argumentatively.
Which career opportunities do I have?
Through this BA degree courses, you are qualified for responsible tasks in public administration, lobbying and non-government organizations (NGOs), in the field of PR and foreign ministries.
Why Salzburg?
There are several good reasons to enrol for a BA degree program in Political Science at the University of Salzburg, such as the high quality and international orientation of teaching and research, the flexible and individual organisation of the courses, small seminar groups, close supervision, the cooperation with the Salzburg Centre for European Union Studies (SCEUS), and the appeal of the course locations.
Links
Important information: The teaching language of our bachelor’s program is German! For additional information about our BA Politikwissenschaft please take a look at our German website.
