Introduction

Please click here to see Political Science department information.

The 4+1 accelerated Master's program in Political Science is an expedited program of study that allows students to complete a Bachelor's degree in Political Science and a Master's degree in Political Science in as few as 5 years. Students will follow the undergraduate curriculum for Political Science and work closely with their faculty advisor to begin taking Political Science graduate level coursework as they complete their undergraduate degree. They will complete no more than 15 credits as an undergraduate that will apply to both their undergraduate and graduate degrees. Students may officially declare their intent to complete this program in either their junior or senior year, and may apply to the graduate program during their senior year. Application requirements may differ from the traditional two-year MA, which is why students need to work closely with faculty advisors and the political science graduate program director for more information and to ensure they are following the best track to complete coursework so that they only have one year after completing the undergraduate degree, to complete the graduate requirements.

Program Delivery

• This is an on-campus program.

Declaring This Program

• Click here to go to information about declaring a major.

The PSCI  4+1 BA/MA program is open to any PSCI major who has reached junior-level status (completed 60-credit hours of coursework) with a GPA greater than 3.0. Students eligible to declare the PSCI BA/MA degree program must be active CU Denver students who have competed at least one semester in residence at CU Denver, including at least two CU Denver PSCI courses.

In order to declare the PSCI  4+1 BA/MA program prior to completion of the BA degree, interested students should consult with both the PSCI undergraduate and PSCI graduate advisors. Students must complete a 4+1 BA/MA degree intent form to formally declare this program, as they work very closely with undergraduate and graduate advisors to ensure they are on track and completing requirements as necessary. Completed 4+1 degree declaration forms are submitted to CLAS Advising for processing.

All students who have declared the 4+1 degree program option as undergraduates must submit a formal application through the CU Denver Graduate Admission’s online application system during their final semester of undergraduate coursework. The department’s preferred application deadlines are April 1 (summer term), May 1 (fall term), and November 1 (spring term).   

These degree requirements are subject to periodic revision by the academic department, and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences reserves the right to make exceptions and substitutions as judged necessary in individual cases. Therefore, the College strongly urges students to consult regularly with their major and graduate advisor and CLAS advisor to confirm the best plans of study before finalizing them.

Graduate Education Policies and Procedures apply to this program.

General Requirements

To earn a degree, students must satisfy all requirements in each of the three areas below, in addition to their individual major requirements.

• CU Denver General Graduation Requirements   

• CU Denver Core Curriculum    

• College of Liberal Arts & Sciences Graduation Requirements   

• Click here for information about Academic Policies

Program Requirements

While students are completing a BA degree in political science, they may also complete some of the requirements for an MA degree in political science by participating in the BA/MA program using the following guidelines:

1. The student must apply and be accepted for participation in the BA/MA program prior to completion of the BA degree in consultation with both the undergraduate and graduate advisors. Students must complete a 4+1 intent form to formally declare this program, as they work very closely with undergraduate and graduate advisors to ensure they are on track and completing requirements as necessary.
2. A minimum of 39 undergraduate hours and 33 graduate hours of Political Science credits hours must be completed to earn both an undergraduate and a graduate degree through this 4+1 program.
3. A minimum of 21 PSCI credit hours applied toward the BA must be taken at the upper division (3000-level and above) level and all credits applied toward the MA must be completed at the graduate level.
4. Students must earn a minimum grade of C- (1.7) in all courses that apply to the major and must achieve a minimum cumulative major GPA of 2.0. Students must earn a minimum grade of B- (2.7) in any graduate level course for it to later be counted towards graduate degree requirements. Courses taken using P+/P/F or S/U grading cannot apply to major or graduate program requirements.
5. A minimum of 15 semester hours applied toward the BA must be taken from CU Denver faculty and all graduate coursework must be completed with CU Denver faculty.

Program Allowances and Restrictions

1. Up to 15 graduate level credit hours in Political Science may be taken by Political Science undergraduates accepted to the 4+1 program, and these credits will count both towards completion of the undergraduate degree, and the graduate degree in political science, if the student is later accepted into the graduate program.
2. Complete all Political Science undergraduate major requirements. Refer to the undergraduate Political Science catalog page.
3. To secure admission to the Political Science graduate program, submit formal graduate application during the senior year.
4. No more than 15 undergraduate credit hours may "double-count" for the M.A.. Elective courses must be in accordance with Graduate Education Policies. Therefore, meeting with an advisor regularly is recommended. Eligible students may declare the 4+1 BA/MA program after reaching junior-level standing as an undergraduate.

To learn more about the Student Learning Outcomes for the Undergraduate program, please visit our website. 

To learn more about the Student Learning Outcomes for the Graduate program, please visit our website.