Student Learning Outcomes

Learning Outcomes

1. A student graduating with a bachelor’s degree in politics from Lake Forest College shall demonstrate proficiency in the subfield of American politics and public law – including principal research questions, concepts, theories and approaches.
2. A student graduating with a bachelor’s degree in politics from Lake Forest College shall demonstrate proficiency in the subfields of either comparative politics or international relations – including principal research questions, concepts, theories and approaches.
3. A student graduating with a bachelor’s degree in politics from Lake Forest College shall demonstrate proficiency in the methods of political science research.
4. A student graduating with a bachelor’s degree in politics from Lake Forest College shall demonstrate critical thinking and analysis skills.
5. A student graduating with a bachelor’s degree in politics from Lake Forest College shall demonstrate competency in research and writing in the political science discipline.
6. A student graduating with a bachelor’s degree in politics from Lake Forest College shall have general competency in the political science discipline.

Learning Outcomes

The expected Student Learning Outcomes for the International Relations Program are:

1.  A student graduating with a bachelor’s degree in international relations from Lake Forest College shall have competency in a foreign language.  Competency means the successful completion of at least one language course at the 300 Level of instruction.  An IR major shall also briefly describe how the study of a foreign language complements the student’s study of international relations.

2. A student graduating with a bachelor’s degree in international relations from Lake Forest College shall have proficiency in the major theoretical traditions of the study of international relations and politics research methods; the various inter-disciplinary fields of international relations, in particular sociology and anthropology, economics, history, international politics, and current global affairs.

3. Drawing upon written work carried out in any of the five Elective Courses and the Senior Studies requirement, a student graduating with a bachelor’s degree in international relations from Lake Forest College shall demonstrate critical thinking, analytical reasoning, and writing and research skills.