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Academic Catalog 2021-2022

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  • Politics, Philosophy, and Economics, BS

Politics, Philosophy, and Economics, BS

2021-2022 Edition

  • Undergraduate
    • Admission
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    • D'Amore-​McKim School of Business
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      • Interdisciplinary
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      • Economics
        • Economics, BA
        • History and Economics, BA
        • International Affairs and Economics, BA
        • Political Science and Economics, BA
        • Economics, BS
        • Computer Science and Economics, BS
        • Cybersecurity and Economics, BS
        • Data Science and Economics, BS
        • Economics and Business Administration, BS
        • Economics and Human Services, BS
        • Economics and Mathematics, BS
        • Economics and Philosophy, BS
        • Economics and Psychology, BS
        • Environmental and Sustainability Sciences and Economics, BS
        • History and Economics, BS
        • Political Science and Economics, BS
        • Politics, Philosophy, and Economics, BS
        • Economics, Minor
      • English
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      • Accelerated Bachelor/​Graduate Degree Programs
    • Faculty
    • Appendix
  • College of Professional Studies Undergraduate
  • Graduate
  • Course Descriptions
  • Catalog Archives
  • Overview
  • Program Requirements
  • Plan of Study

Website

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The PPE major at Northeastern University brings together three of the most important approaches to understanding the world around us: political science, philosophy, and economics. The PPE major is an interdisciplinary degree that not only provides students with the analytic tools from three different disciplines but also teaches students to make connections across disciplines and to keep multiple perspectives in mind when analyzing complex social phenomena. This interdisciplinary perspective and set of skills are indispensable in our increasingly interconnected world and are essential in addressing the kinds of complex global problems future leaders will need to tackle.

There are a number of varieties of the PPE major that students may choose from in accordance with their own backgrounds and interests. These include:

  • environment and energy policy

  • international political economy

  • law and justice

  • logic and game theory

  • political philosophy

  • public and economic policy

Complete all courses listed below unless otherwise indicated. Also complete any corequisite labs, recitations, clinicals, or tools courses where specified and complete any additional courses needed beyond specific college and major requirements to satisfy graduation credit requirements.

University-Wide Requirements

All undergraduate students are required to complete the University-Wide Requirements.

NUpath Requirements

All undergraduate students are required to complete the NUpath Requirements.

Politics, Philosophy, and Economics Major Requirements

Course List
Code Title Hours
Foundation Course
PHIL 1160Introduction to Economic Justice4
Core Courses
Philosophy
PHIL 2303Social and Political Philosophy4
or PHIL 3822 Philosophy of Race and Racism
PHIL 1115Introduction to Logic4
PHIL 3435Moral Philosophy4
or PHIL 2325 Ancient Philosophy and Political Thought
Political Science
POLS 1160International Relations4
POLS 3405International Political Economy4
POLS 1150American Government4
or POLS 1155 Comparative Politics
Economics
ECON 1115Principles of Macroeconomics4
ECON 1116Principles of Microeconomics4
ECON 2315Macroeconomic Theory4
or ECON 2316 Microeconomic Theory
Methods Course
PHIL 3000Interdisciplinary Methods for Politics, Philosophy, and Economics4
Capstone
Complete one of the following:4
ECON 4692
Senior Economics Seminar
PHIL 4550
Philosophy of Economics
PHIL 5001
Global Justice
PHIL 5002
Ethics and Public Policy
POLS 4701
Political Science Senior Capstone
POLS 4703
Senior Thesis

Major Electives

Course List
Code Title Hours
Complete two of the following:8
ECON 1200 to ECON 1999
ECON 3000 to ECON 4689
ECON 4900 to ECON 4999
ECON 5200 to ECON 5999
PHIL 2000 to PHIL 5999
POLS 2000 to POLS 5999

Concentration

Complete one of the following concentrations:

  • Environment and Energy Policy
  • International Political Economy
  • Law and Justice
  • Logic and Game Theory
  • Political Philosophy
  • Public and Economic Policy

Supporting Courses 

Course List
Code Title Hours
Racial or Gender Justice
Complete one of the following:4
AFAM 1101
Introduction to African American and Africana Studies
AFAM 2339
Analysis of American Racism
AFAM 2355
Race, Identity, Social Change, and Empowerment
AFAM 2360
Politics of Poverty
ANTH 2302
Gender and Sexuality: A Cross-Cultural Perspective
CRIM 3110
Gender, Crime, and Justice
ECON 3412
Women’s Labor and the Economy
HIST 1225
Gender, Race, and Medicine
HIST 2000
Native American Resistance: Past and Present
PHIL 1271
Sex in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
PHIL 3500
Sexuality, Gender, and the Law
POLS 3309
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues in Public Policy
SOCL/WMNS 1260
Gender in a Changing Society
SOCL 3270
Race and Ethnic Relations
SOCL 4520
Race, Class, and Gender
WMNS 1101
Sex, Gender, and Popular Culture
WMNS 1103
Introduction to Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
WMNS 1441
Topics in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
WMNS 2304
Communication and Gender
WMNS/HIST 2373
Gender and Sexuality in World History
WMNS/INTL 2480
Women and World Politics
WMNS 2505
Digital Feminisms
WMNS/HUSV 2800
Sexual Orientation and Gender Expression
WMNS 3100
Gender, Social Justice, and Transnational Activism
WMNS/COMM 3304
Communication and Inclusion
WMNS 3500
Sexuality, Gender, and the Law
Statistics and Mathematics
MATH 1231Calculus for Business and Economics4
or MATH 1241 Calculus 1
or MATH 1245 Calculus with Applications
or MATH 1251 Calculus and Differential Equations for Biology 1
or MATH 1340 Intensive Calculus for Engineers
or MATH 1341 Calculus 1 for Science and Engineering
ECON 2350Statistics4
or POLS 2400 Quantitative Techniques
or MATH 2280 Statistics and Software
Experiential Learning Requirement
Complete one co-op, study abroad, qualifying Dialogue of Civilizations, or one of the following:4
ECON 4991
Research
ECON 4994
Internship
ECON 4996
Experiential Education Directed Study
POLS 4970
Junior/Senior Honors Project 1
POLS 4971
Junior/Senior Honors Project 2
POLS 4942
Internship in Politics
POLS 4996
Experiential Education Directed Study

Major GPA/Credit Requirement

Complete 68 semester hours in the major with a 3.000 GPA.

Course List
Code Title Hours
Economics GPA Requirement:
Grades in the following courses must average to a minimum of C (2.000):
ECON 2315
Macroeconomic Theory
or ECON 2316
Microeconomic Theory
ECON 2350
Statistics
or POLS 2400
Quantitative Techniques
or MATH 2280
Statistics and Software

Course Distribution Requirement

Complete at least four courses in each of the following subject areas: ECON, PHIL, and POLS.

Experiential Liberal Arts

All undergraduate students in the College of Social Sciences and Humanities are required to complete the Experiential Liberal Arts Requirement.

Program Requirement

128 total semester hours required


Concentrations

Concentration in Environment and Energy Policy

Course List
Code Title Hours
Complete two of the following:8
ECON 1711
Economics of Sustainability
ECON 3423
Environmental Economics
or ECON 3425
Energy Economics
PHIL 1180
Environmental Ethics
or PHIL 1185
The Ethics of Food
POLS 2395
Environmental Politics and Policy
Complete one of the following:4
ECON 3423
Environmental Economics
ECON 3425
Energy Economics
PHIL 1180
Environmental Ethics
PHIL 1185
The Ethics of Food

Concentration in International Political Economy

Course List
Code Title Hours
Complete two of the following:8
ECON 1291
Development Economics
ECON 2316
Microeconomic Theory
ECON 3290
History of the Global Economy
ECON 3404
International Food Policy
ECON 4635
International Economics
ECON 5200
Topics in Applied Economics
PHIL 1185
The Ethics of Food
PHIL 1170
Business, Ethics, and Human Rights
POLS 3406
International Law
POLS 3487
Politics of Developing Nations
Complete one of the following:4
ECON 1292
Economic History of the Middle East
HIST 2360
History of Capitalism in East Asia
POLS 3435
Politics and Governance of Europe and the European Union
POLS 3465
Government and Politics in the Middle East
HIST 2011
Capitalism and Business: A Global History

Concentration in Law and Justice

Course List
Code Title Hours
Complete three of the following, only two of which may be POLS courses:12
ECON 3424
Law and Economics
ECON 1240
Economics of Crime
HIST 2308
Law, Justice, and Society in Modern China
PHIL 2155
Human Rights
PHIL 2301
Philosophical Problems of Law and Justice
PHIL 3500
Sexuality, Gender, and the Law
PHIL 5001
Global Justice
PHIL 5002
Ethics and Public Policy
POLS 3302
Judicial Process and Behavior
POLS 3324
Law and Society
POLS 3406
International Law
POLS 4500
U.S. Constitutional Law
POLS 4505
U.S. Civil Liberties
WMNS 3500
Sexuality, Gender, and the Law
HIST 2280
Hitler, Germany, and the Holocaust
HIST 1206
Drug Trade and Drug War: History, Security, Culture
HIST 3335
History of Modern Terrorism

Concentration in Logic and Game Theory

Course List
Code Title Hours
Complete three courses from the following:12
ECON 2316
Microeconomic Theory
ECON 3416
Behavioral Economics
ECON 4680
Competition Policy and Regulation
ECON 4681
Information Economics and Game Theory
ECON 5105
Math and Statistics for Economists
ECON 5110
Microeconomic Theory
PHIL 1162
Ethics and Philosophy through Sport
PHIL 2001
Ethics and Evolutionary Games
PHIL 2016
The Philosophy and Ethics of Lying and Deception
PHIL 3050
Information and Uncertainty
PHIL 4500
Theory of Knowledge
PHIL 4515
Advanced Logic
PHIL 4550
Philosophy of Economics

Concentration in Political Philosophy

Course List
Code Title Hours
Economics Course
ECON 3490Public Choice Economics4
Politics Courses
Complete two of the following:8
POLS 2328
Modern Political Thought
POLS 2330
American Political Thought
POLS 2332
Contemporary Political Thought
Philosophy Course
Complete one of the following:4
PHIL 2155
Human Rights
PHIL 2301
Philosophical Problems of Law and Justice
PHIL 3435
Moral Philosophy
PHIL 3500
Sexuality, Gender, and the Law
PHIL 5001
Global Justice
PHIL 5002
Ethics and Public Policy

Concentration in Public and Economic Policy

Course List
Code Title Hours
Required Course
POLS 3307Public Policy and Administration4
Elective Courses
Complete two of the following:8
ECON 1240
Economics of Crime
ECON 1281
Economics of the Creative Industries
ECON 2315
Macroeconomic Theory
ECON 3410
Labor Economics
ECON 3413
Health Economics and Healthcare Policy
ECON 3414
Economics of Human Capital
ECON 3420
Urban Economic Issues
ECON 3422
Economics of Transportation
ECON 3423
Environmental Economics
ECON 3425
Energy Economics
ECON 3440
Public Finance
ECON 3462
Bubbles, Busts, and Bailouts: Market and Regulatory Failures in the Financial Crisis
ECON 3490
Public Choice Economics
ECON 4680
Competition Policy and Regulation
HIST 2331
The Civil War and Reconstruction
HIST 2339
America's Gilded Age, 1865-1896
PHIL 5001
Global Justice
PHIL 5002
Ethics and Public Policy
POLS 2340
Business and Government
POLS 2390
Science, Technology, and Public Policy
POLS 2395
Environmental Politics and Policy
POLS 2335
Budgeting and Taxation
POLS 2357
Growth and Decline of Cities and Suburbs
POLS 3425
U.S. Foreign Policy

Program Requirement

128 total semester hours required

Four Years, Two Co-ops Summer 2/ Fall

Year 1
FallHoursSpringHoursSummer 1HoursSummer 2Hours
PHIL 11604ENGW 11114Elective4Vacation
PHIL 10001ECON 11164Elective4 
MATH 1231, 1241, 1245, 1251, 1340, or 13414PHIL 11154  
POLS 11604PHIL 23034  
General Elective   
General Elective4   
 17 16 8 0
Year 2
FallHoursSpringHoursSummer 1HoursSummer 2Hours
ECON 11154Statistics and Mathematics Requirement4Elective4Co-op
POLS 1150 or 11554ECON 2315 or 23164Elective4 
PHIL 3435 or 23254Major Elective4  
Supporting Course in Race or Gender Justice4Concentration Course4  
 16 16 8 0
Year 3
FallHoursSpringHoursSummer 1HoursSummer 2Hours
Co-opPHIL 30004General Elective4Co-op
 General Elective4General Elective4 
 Major Elective4  
 Concentration Course4  
 0 16 8 0
Year 4
FallHoursSpringHoursSummer 1Hours 
Co-opConcentration Course4General Elective4 
 Capstone Requirement4General Elective4 
 General Elective4  
 General Elective4  
 0 16 8 
Total Hours: 129
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