Public Service Minor
Office of the Provost
Thurgood Marshall College
Administration Building
All courses, faculty listings, and curricular and degree requirements described herein are subject to change or deletion without notice. Updates to curricular sections may be found on the Academic Senate website: http://senate.ucsd.edu/Curriculum/Updates.htm.
Affiliated Faculty and Staff
Michael Cole, University Professor, Director of Public Service Minor
Tricia Taylor-Oliveira, Director, Academic Internship Program
Kerry Shannon, Public Service Internship Specialist
Specialization Chairs
Luz Chung, EdD, Education Studies—Education
Steven P. Erie, PhD, Political Science—Government
Lawrence A. Palinkas, PhD, Family and Preventive Medicine, School of Medicine—Health
Joel Robbins, PhD, Anthropology—Social Issues
The public service minor at UC San Diego encourages students to understand the history and practices of public service and to participate in the development of civic skills. Those skills and practices are essential cornerstones of participation in a democratic society regardless of one’s chosen profession.
The course work for the minor emphasizes the history and emergence of the non-profit sector as a national institution distinct from the private and public sectors. The practicum aspects of the minor coupled with the traditional academic work encourage students to see the connection between the deeds of charitable service and the historic worth of citizen participation in the common public franchise, regardless of professional interests or gain.
The minor in public service is open to all UC San Diego students in good standing. Students first complete TMC 15, Public Service in America, and must choose one area of specialization from education, government, social issues, or health. A list of specific courses appropriate for these specializations is available through the Public Service Minor website noted below. Approval of the minor is based on completion of TMC 15 and two of the three upper-division specialization courses with a 2.0 GPA or better, and a cumulative GPA of 2.5 on ninety units. Students approved to complete the minor are placed into specific internships in public service through the Academic Internship Program.
The following twenty-eight units comprise the public service minor:
- TMC 15, Public Service in America
- Three upper-division specialization courses (education, government, social issues, or health)
- Three upper-division academic internships in public service
- Capstone seminar in public service
For more information regarding the requirements for the minor, see the Office of the Provost, or Academic Advising, Thurgood Marshall College, TMC Administration Building, or visit the website at http://publicsvcminor.ucsd.edu.