BA in Social Science - Public Policy in Panama United States | Florida State University

The Public Policy specialization employs diverse academic viewpoints to explore U.S. public policy. As government's primary output, public policy serves as a key tool for addressing collective challenges and societal issues, though no single policy can fully resolve them. While shaped through political processes, these policies significantly influence both society and the economy, making their interdisciplinary study particularly valuable. Within this specialization, students will focus on specific policy areas while acquiring analytical skills to evaluate policies and their problem-solving potential through various social science lenses. The program emphasizes how social science frameworks and research can illuminate contemporary public issues.
Interdisciplinary approaches have gained increasing recognition, reflected in a dramatic rise in interdisciplinary undergraduate degrees—over 400% growth from 1973 to 2005 per National Center of Educational Statistics data. This trend extends to research funding, which increasingly prioritizes cross-disciplinary collaborations over single-discipline projects.

Drawing from multiple disciplines is fostering a fundamental shift from narrow, linear analysis to comprehensive, systems-level thinking. ISS adopts this expansive perspective when tackling modern challenges, acknowledging the intricate web of factors underlying social problems and their potential solutions.