Political science is an excellent criminal justice minor that complements the concepts learned in criminal justice courses. Since criminal justice deals with a number of topics including but not limited to law enforcement and aspects of the legal system, political science helps one understand how laws come into fruition and more generally, how large social systems function. This allows for a richer understanding of how legal systems evolve over time, thus providing crucial information about how these systems may be improved and the steps involved in making these improvements.
What is Political Science?
Political science is a social science discipline that concerns itself with the behavior of political systems and the various individuals who compose them. Political scientists study everything from war and genocide to voting and political participation. It is a broad discipline that incorporates theories from other disciplines such as psychology, sociology, and economics. Therefore, it exposes students to a number of different theoretical perspectives. Political scientists also study the formation of laws and the factors that contribute to legislative productivity, whether a bill becomes a law, and whether individuals whom the laws apply to actually adhere to the laws in place.
Why should a Criminal Justice student minor in Political Science?
A criminal justice student should minor in political science for two main reasons. First, because it is a broad discipline that exposes students to a number of theoretical perspectives. Legal systems are complex and to better understand them, one needs to use all the tools at their disposal. Having a number of theoretical viewpoints to choose from helps one accomplish this goal. Second, the connection between criminal justice and political science is undeniable. Both disciplines deal with laws, both try to understand how social systems function, and without political systems, there would not be any laws to follow. Therefore, understanding politics goes hand in hand with understanding the criminal justice system. In addition to these reasons, political science is also a strong minor because it is a statistically sophisticated discipline. As more and more corporations and government agencies move toward data-driven work, knowledge of statistics, especially statistics applied to social phenomena, will become indispensable. It also has great earning potential.
Conclusion
Deciding on a minor is a difficult process every college student must encounter. One needs to be strategic and choose a minor that complements one’s degree. Political science is an excellent complement to a criminal justice degree. Political science involves the study of political systems and the individuals that comprise them. It is a broad field that incorporates influences from other disciplines such as sociology, economics, and psychology and deals with topics such as war, political participation, and legislative behavior. Political science perfectly complements a criminal justice degree because it allows one to better understand how social systems work and it answers an especially important question: where do the laws we enforce come from? When it comes to potential criminal justice minors, political science has no equivalent.
For more information, check out “Top 10 Online Criminal Justice Schools“.