“...and justice for all.”
Bachelor of Arts in Law, Society and Policy
Base Majors
Maxwell | College of Arts and Science
- African American Studies
- Anthropology
- Economics
- English and Textual Studies
- Geography
- History
- International Relations
- Latino/Latin American Studies
- Philosophy
- Policy Studies
- Political Science
- Political Philosophy
- Psychology
- Religion
- Sociology
- Writing Studies, Rhetoric and Composition
Falk
- Food Studies
- Human Development and Family Science
- Public Health
- Social Work
iSchool
- Information Management and Technology
- Applied Data Analytics
Newhouse
- Broadcast and Digital Journalism
- Newspaper and Online Journalism
- Public Relations
VPA
- Communications and Rhetorical Studies
- Transmedia
Course Requirements:
122 credits, of which 27 credits go toward the integrated learning major. A minimum of 18 of the 27 credits must be upper-division credits.
Core Requirements (6 credits)
Core courses are designed to ground students in the study of law, legal institutions, the legal dimensions of social life and the policy process.
Internship Requirement (3 credits)
All students majoring in this ILM will complete an internship to gain practical experience. There are numerous internship opportunities available in the local community of Syracuse, in the Maxwell-in-Washington program and through SU Abroad.
Concentration (15 credits)
Students will choose one of two concentration areas: Law, Crime and Society in the U.S. or Comparative and International Law. Students choose five courses within the concentration, with the advice of the program director.
Methods Requirements (3 credits)
All students in this ILM will complete at least one course on research methods so that they are better prepared to read, evaluate and conduct research. Students can select from a variety of research methods courses.
Sample Core Courses
The foundational courses will introduce you to sociolegal scholarship, policy studies and legal communication. Please note: these are a small sample of the courses available to choose from. For more information on this program, see the Course Catalog for complete details on the degree programs.
Core Courses
An Introduction to the Analysis of Public Policy (PST 101)
Law and Legal Communications (CRS 125)
Introduction to basic concepts in the criminal justice system. Principles of argumentation, persuasion, and legal communication as a part of mock trial preparation.
Elements of Law (LLA 201)
Provides an introduction to law and legal institutions. The course is designed to prepare lower-division undergraduates for the further study of legal topics in departments across the College of Arts and Sciences.
Methods Courses
Quantitative Methods for the Social Sciences (MAX 201)
Develop skills necessary to analyze data and evaluate research including research design, sampling design, descriptive and inferential statistics, data sources for social science, constructing data sets, reading and constructing tables and charts.
Practicum in History (HST 301)
History 301 introduces history majors to the methods and goals of historical study and to the skills needed to conduct independent historical research.
Introduction to Research (SOC 318)
Explore techniques and problems of research in the social sciences. Research design, measurement and data collection using surveys and other techniques are introduced, and students will gain computer analysis skills through research projects.
Law Crime and Society in the U.S. Courses
Criminal Justice (SOC 334)
This course looks at the organization of the criminal justice system in the United States and relations between its parts. The course focus is on the ideal versus actual roles of police, courts and corrections in maintaining social control.
Seminar in Legal Communication (CRS 446)
There is an inherent paradox to the assertion that we all enjoy an equal right to liberty and the pursuit of happiness and that we also all have the right to freely speak our minds. This course explores the story of our constitutional journey to speak freely and the necessary limitations on that right told through the landmark cases decided by the Supreme Court over the last two hundred plus years.
Crime and Society in American History, 1620-Present (HST 386)
This course examines the history of American deviance and dissent from colonial Massachusetts to the present. Topics include the rise of urban crime, the changing role of the state, police, radicalism, alcohol, vice, sexuality, and organized crime.
Comparative and International Law Courses
Human Rights & Global Affairs (PSC 354)
Examine the opportunities and limits of human rights language in promoting social and political change.
Peace, War and Security (ANT 358)
Examine the biological basis for war, the archaeology of early warfare, the effects of colonial expansion among Indigenous peoples and postcolonial society, contemporary peacekeeping, and humanitarian interventions.
Comparative Law and Courts (PSC 320)
Learn about different legal systems including common law, civil law, Islamic law and African and Asian legal traditions.
I am Maxwell
I really liked the law focus in the courses, but also the inclusion of an internship. I like that it's a part of the program so that I can combine theoretical and practical training to prepare myself for the fields I want to work in.”
Nadia Larissa Lyngdoh-Sommer
Sociology and Law, Society and Policy Major