Values, Law and Policy Minor

Values, Law, and Policy is an interdisciplinary minor involving the Departments of Economics, Philosophy, Political Science, Sociology, and others.

Participation in modern society requires an interdisciplinary grasp of issues. Ordinary party politics, structural changes to either state or federal government, changes in health care and insurance, alterations in property law or increased or decreased protections for racial, gender, or sexual orientation categories implicate issues of values, economics, and social interaction as well as law.

The minor in Values, Law, and Policy will provide students with an overview of the theories and analytical techniques of moral philosophy as well as the insights of economics, political science, history, and sociology on the desirability and consequences of different legal regimes, our current legal structures, and legal change.

The utility of the minor in Values, Law, and Policy (VLP) is not just the liberal arts objective of a broad education enabling full and knowledgeable participation in society, but also a sound foundation for a professional career.

The VLP minor provides a breadth of perspectives that would serve well for those students who intend to enter the legal profession or any of the professions that have a substantial interface with legal regulation. It would also provide a good background in the social sciences to enable graduate study in economics, political science, sociology, philosophy, or history.

Each student is required to take microeconomics, one course in moral or political philosophy, one course in social theory, and a choice of courses on law, ethics, or public policy.