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Political science professor education requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become a political science professor. Political science professors usually study political science, international relations, or law. 44% of political science professors hold a bachelor's degree, and 40% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 146 real political science professor resumes to see exactly what political science professor education sections show.
The most common colleges for political science professors are the Morehouse College and the Morehouse College.
There are also many online political science professor courses to help get the education required to be a political science professor.
What education do you need to become a political science professor?
What degree do you need to be a political science professor?
- Bachelor's, 44%
- Master's, 40%
- Doctorate, 13%
- Associate, 1%
- Other Degrees, 2%
What should I major in to become a political science professor?
- Political Science, 47%
- Law, 6%
- Other Majors, 37%
Most common colleges for political science professors
| Political science professor common college | Percentages |
|---|---|
| Morehouse College | 16.67% |
| University of Georgia | 10.00% |
| University of Houston | 6.67% |
| Saint Michaels College | 6.67% |
| University of California, Santa Barbara | 6.67% |
Best majors for political science professors
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Political Science | 46.9% |
| 2 | International Relations | 7.3% |
| 3 | Law | 6.3% |
| 4 | Public Administration | 3.1% |
| 5 | Urban Planning | 3.1% |
Best colleges for political science professors
The best colleges for political science professors are Stanford University, Northwestern University, and Harvard University.
A political science professor with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for political science professors. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become political science professors.
1. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$51,354
Enrollment
7,083
2. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
In-state tuition
$50,420
Enrollment
7,582
3. Duke University
Durham, NC • Private
In-state tuition
$55,695
Enrollment
6,596
4. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
In-state tuition
$55,584
Enrollment
10,764
5. Georgetown University
Washington, DC • Private
In-state tuition
$54,104
Enrollment
7,089
6. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
In-state tuition
$54,568
Enrollment
8,451
7. Rice University
Houston, TX • Private
In-state tuition
$47,350
Enrollment
3,962
8. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$59,430
Enrollment
8,216
9. Brown University
Providence, RI • Private
In-state tuition
$55,466
Enrollment
6,752
10. University of Virginia
Charlottesville, VA • Private
In-state tuition
$17,653
Enrollment
16,405
20 best online courses for political science professors
Advertising disclosure
1. Chinese Politics Part 1 – China and Political Science
This course offers a conceptual framework for understanding China that highlights the intersection of politics and economics. It shows that rather than develop into a full blown market economy, state and party officials at all levels of the political system maintain significant influence in economic development. Such a “political” economy has had both positive and negative outcomes, which we will assess in detail. We also look at the origins, views, backgrounds and relations among leaders, and...
2. Understanding Korean Politics
This course will select six most outstanding issues in contemporary Korean politics and will engage in an in-depth, interactive inquiry of those issue. They include Korean politics in history, institutional setting of Korean politics, and dynamics of political culture in Korea, profiles of political leadership, myth and reality of the developmental state and the Korean economic miracle, and debates on Korean unification. The course will expose students to contending theories and empirical...
3. International Politics Mastery: Levels of Analysis
Learn '3 Levels of Analysis' to speak confidently about international problems even without prior university education...
4. Navigating Office Politics: Get What You Want at Work
Learn how to gain influence and get more done in your organization by understanding and navigating office politics...
5. Comparative Political Systems
Comparative politics covers a wide variety of topics and themes. The course starts with the definition of the comparative method giving special emphasis to concept formation and historical and institutional approaches. The bulk of the course is devoted to the theory of coalitions and the processes of government formation, functioning, termination. Through several in-depth analyses, the course will throw light on the way democratic regimes are governed. Electoral rules will receive special...
6. American Politics, Foreign Policy, and US-India Ties
This specialization is intended for people interested in politics and international affairs. You will learn about the United States and how its history, culture, politics, and foreign policy leave a significant impact on the world. You will also gain insights into US-India relations - which is the most important bilateral relationship among democracies of the world...
7. Master Polite English
Learn the 3 Golden Rules and 6 Principles of Polite Speaking in English...
8. The Data Science Course: Complete Data Science Bootcamp 2023
Complete Data Science Training: Mathematics, Statistics, Python, Advanced Statistics in Python, Machine & Deep Learning...
9. Computational Social Science Methods
This course gives you an overview of the current opportunities and the omnipresent reach of computational social science. The results are all around us, every day, reaching from the services provided by the world’s most valuable companies, over the hidden influence of governmental agencies, to the power of social and political movements. All of them study human behavior in order to shape it. In short, all of them do social science by computational means. In this course we answer three...
10. Philosophy, Science and Religion: Religion and Science
Philosophy, Science and Religion mark three of the most fundamental modes of thinking about the world and our place in it. Are these modes incompatible? Put another way: is the intellectually responsible thing to do to ‘pick sides’ and identify with one of these approaches at the exclusion of others? Or, are they complementary or mutually supportive? As is typical of questions of such magnitude, the devil is in the details. For example, it is important to work out what is really distinctive...
11. Data Science Bootcamp 2022: 5 Data Science Projects
Data Science and Machine Learning Masterclass with Python with 5 Data Science Real World Projects...
12. Data Science with Python Complete Course
Data Science 2021 : Complete Data Science...
13. The Politics of Skepticism
This is a course about the history of Skepticism from the ancient Greeks to today, with special attention to the political ramifications of questioning man's ability to know the world and himself with any certainty. We will discuss the debates raging between Plato and the Sophists, the rise of Christianity in the Roman world, and the so-called 'Skeptical Crisis' of the Renaissance as well as Pierre Bayle's Skepticism and David Hume's. In addition the Natural Law tradition will be explored and...
14. Philosophy and the Sciences: Introduction to the Philosophy of Physical Sciences
What is the origin of our universe? What are dark matter and dark energy? This is the first part of the course 'Philosophy and the Sciences', dedicated to Philosophy of the Physical Sciences. Scientific research across the physical sciences has raised pressing questions for philosophers. The goal of this course is to introduce you to some of the main areas and topics at the key juncture between philosophy and the physical sciences. Each week we will introduce you to some of these important...
15. Data Science Foundations
Fundamentals of Data Science: Learn the Tools and Techniques...
16. Data Science for Professionals
It's time to leave spreadsheets behind.....
17. Science Literacy
Fake news or good science? In a world where we have access to unlimited information, it is hard to sift through the echo chamber of opinions fueled by emotions and personal biases, rather than scientific evidence. Science Literacy will teach you about the process of science, how to think critically, how to differentiate science from pseudoscience, how indigenous wisdom can inform science, how to understand and design a scientific study, and how to critically evaluate scientific communication in...
18. Social Science Approaches to the Study of Chinese Society Part 1
This course seeks to turn learners into informed consumers of social science research. It introduces concepts, standards, and principles of social science research to the interested non-expert. Learners who complete the course will be able to assess evidence and critically evaluate claims about important social phenomena. It reviews the origins and development of social science, describes the process of discovery in contemporary social science research, and explains how contemporary social...
19. Data Science: Complete Data Science & Machine Learning
Learn and master the Data Science, Python for Machine Learning, Math for Machine Learning, Statistics for Data Science...
20. Introduction to Machine Learning for Data Science
A primer on Machine Learning for Data Science. Revealed for everyday people, by the Backyard Data Scientist...
Top 10 most affordable universities for political science professors
The most affordable schools for political science professors are Baruch College of the City University of New York, brigham young university, and hunter college of the city university of new york.
If the best universities for political science professors are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for political science professors.
1. Baruch College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,262
Cost of attendance
14,046
2. Brigham Young University
Provo, UT • Private
In-state tuition
$5,620
Cost of attendance
18,136
3. Hunter College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,182
Cost of attendance
13,998
4. University of Florida
Gainesville, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,381
Cost of attendance
21,034
5. California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,798
Cost of attendance
18,306
6. California State University - Bakersfield
Bakersfield, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,309
Cost of attendance
16,714
7. Florida International University
Miami, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,556
Cost of attendance
19,434
8. Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$5,656
Cost of attendance
21,623
9. University of Washington
Seattle, WA • Private
In-state tuition
$11,207
Cost of attendance
25,275
10. University of South Florida
Tampa, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,410
Cost of attendance
20,456
Top 10 hardest universities to get into for political science professors
The hardest universities for political science professors to get into are Stanford University, Northwestern University, and Harvard University.
Some great schools for political science professors are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for political science professors based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.
1. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
Admissions rate
4%
SAT average
1,497
2. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,508
3. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
Admissions rate
5%
SAT average
1,520
4. Duke University
Durham, NC • Private
Admissions rate
9%
SAT average
1,516
5. Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD • Private
Admissions rate
11%
SAT average
1,513
6. Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA • Private
Admissions rate
17%
SAT average
1,507
7. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,492
8. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
6%
SAT average
1,512
9. Washington University in St Louis
Saint Louis, MO • Private
Admissions rate
15%
SAT average
1,506
10. Brown University
Providence, RI • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,492
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for political science professors
The easiest schools for political science professors to get into are Mount Saint Mary's University, la roche college, and university of the incarnate word.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a political science professor without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for political science professors.
1. Mount Saint Mary's University
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Admissions rate
84%
SAT average
1,031
2. La Roche College
Pittsburgh, PA • Private
Admissions rate
99%
SAT average
1,008
3. University of the Incarnate Word
San Antonio, TX • Private
Admissions rate
88%
SAT average
1,044
4. Notre Dame de Namur University
Belmont, CA • Private
Admissions rate
82%
SAT average
983
5. Holy Names University
Oakland, CA • Private
Admissions rate
70%
SAT average
849
6. Notre Dame of Maryland University
Baltimore, MD • Private
Admissions rate
88%
SAT average
1,069
7. Linfield College
McMinnville, OR • Private
Admissions rate
81%
SAT average
1,117
8. Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey - Camden
Camden, NJ • Private
Admissions rate
71%
SAT average
1,086
9. Centenary University
Hackettstown, NJ • Private
Admissions rate
67%
SAT average
987
10. Wheeling University
Wheeling, WV • Private
Admissions rate
86%
SAT average
1,072
Average political science professor salary by education level
| Political science professor education level | Political science professor salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $78,416 |
| Doctorate Degree | $103,781 |
Political science professor education FAQs
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Updated January 8, 2025
Updated January 8, 2025