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2024 Best Political Science Bachelor's Degree Schools

575 Colleges in the United States
42,513 Bachelor's Degrees
If you pursue a bachelor's degree in political science, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #8 most popular program in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

In 2024, College Factual analyzed 575 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Political Science Bachelor's Degree Schools ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 42,513 bachelor's degrees in political science during the 2020-2021 academic year.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Political Science School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best Political Science Bachelor's Degree Schools Your choice of political science for getting your bachelor's degree school matters. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.

A Great Overall School

The overall quality of a bachelor's degree school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To take this into account we consider a college's overall Best Colleges ranking which itself looks at a combination of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.

Other Factors We Consider

The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for political science students working on their bachelor's degree.

More Ways to Rank Political Science Schools

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
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Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Political Science Bachelor's Degree Schools ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Political Science in the United States

The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in political science. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

25 Top Schools for a Bachelor's in Poly Sci

1
Yale crest
Yale University
New Haven, CT
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
97 Annual Graduates

Yale University is one of the best schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in political science. Yale is a large private not-for-profit university located in the midsize city of New Haven.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from Yale University

2
Harvard crest
Harvard University
Cambridge, MA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
78 Annual Graduates

It is difficult to beat Harvard University if you want to pursue a bachelor's degree in political science. Located in the city of Cambridge, Harvard is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from Harvard University

3
UPenn crest
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
139 Annual Graduates

Any student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in political science has to take a look at University of Pennsylvania. UPenn is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Philadelphia.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from University of Pennsylvania

4
Georgetown crest
Georgetown University
Washington, DC
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
194 Annual Graduates

Any student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in political science has to check out Georgetown University. Georgetown is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Washington.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from Georgetown University

5
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
109 Annual Graduates

UChicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Chicago.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from University of Chicago

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
231 Annual Graduates

Columbia is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of New York.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from Columbia University in the City of New York

7
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, CA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
59 Annual Graduates

Located in the large suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from Stanford University

8
Rice crest
Rice University
Houston, TX
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
48 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Houston, Rice is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from Rice University

9
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
117 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from Northwestern University

10
Duke crest
Duke University
Durham, NC
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
105 Annual Graduates

Duke is a large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Durham.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from Duke University

11
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
186 Annual Graduates

Notre Dame is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Notre Dame.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from University of Notre Dame

12
Dartmouth crest
Dartmouth College
Hanover, NH
168 Annual Graduates

Located in the town of Hanover, Dartmouth is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from Dartmouth College

13
Vanderbilt crest
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
89 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from Vanderbilt University

14
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
147 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Ithaca, Cornell is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from Cornell University

15
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
87 Annual Graduates

WUSTL is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the suburb of Saint Louis.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from Washington University in St Louis

16
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
496 Annual Graduates

Located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from University of California - Berkeley

17
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
690 Annual Graduates

UCLA is a fairly large public university located in the city of Los Angeles.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from University of California - Los Angeles

18
121 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from University of Southern California

19
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
44 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Baltimore, Johns Hopkins is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from Johns Hopkins University

20
NYU crest
New York University
New York, NY
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
194 Annual Graduates

NYU is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of New York.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from New York University

21
Brown crest
Brown University
Providence, RI
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
78 Annual Graduates

Brown is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the medium-sized city of Providence.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from Brown University

22
38 Annual Graduates

Claremont McKenna is a small private not-for-profit college located in the suburb of Claremont.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from Claremont McKenna College

23
Princeton crest
Princeton University
Princeton, NJ
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
72 Annual Graduates

Located in the small city of Princeton, Princeton is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from Princeton University

24
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
321 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Washington, GWU is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from George Washington University

25
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
108 Annual Graduates

Located in the small suburb of Charlottesville, University of Virginia is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in political science from University of Virginia - Main Campus

Rest of the Top 50 Best Political Science Bachelor's Degree Schools

26
27
28
Emory crest
Emory University
Atlanta, GA
29
30
31
32

33
Swarthmore crest
Swarthmore College
Swarthmore, PA

34
35
36
Boston College crest
Boston College
Chestnut Hill, MA
37
38
39
40
UF crest
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL
41
The American University crest
American University
Washington, DC

42

43
Lafayette crest
Lafayette College
Easton, PA
44
Virginia Tech crest
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, VA
45
Amherst crest
Amherst College
Amherst, MA
46
SCU crest
Santa Clara University
Santa Clara, CA
47
48
Bucknell crest
Bucknell University
Lewisburg, PA
49
50
Boston U crest
Boston University
Boston, MA

Additional Award Winners

This list shows the remainder of the schools awarded a Best Political Science Bachelor's Degree Schools badge. Showing in this list means the college was ranked in the top 15% of the 575 different United States political science schools we analyzed.

Rank College Location
51 Bowdoin College Brunswick, ME
52 Northeastern University Boston, MA
53 Barnard College New York, NY
54 Middlebury College Middlebury, VT
55 Williams College Williamstown, MA
56 Villanova University Villanova, PA
57 Texas A&M University - College Station College Station, TX
58 Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, NC
59 Ohio State University - Main Campus Columbus, OH
60 University of Georgia Athens, GA
61 University of Connecticut Storrs, CT
62 Pomona College Claremont, CA
63 Purdue University - Main Campus West Lafayette, IN
64 Tufts University Medford, MA
65 William & Mary Williamsburg, VA
66 Miami University - Oxford Oxford, OH
67 Arizona State University - Tempe Tempe, AZ
68 University of Delaware Newark, DE
69 Colgate University Hamilton, NY
70 University of Massachusetts Amherst Amherst, MA
71 University of Missouri - Columbia Columbia, MO
72 Trinity College Hartford, CT
73 Florida State University Tallahassee, FL
74 Syracuse University Syracuse, NY
75 University of Iowa Iowa City, IA
76 Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH
77 Brigham Young University - Provo Provo, UT
78 University of California - Riverside Riverside, CA
79 Texas Christian University Fort Worth, TX
80 Indiana University - Bloomington Bloomington, IN
81 Michigan State University East Lansing, MI
82 University of Colorado Boulder Boulder, CO
83 University of South Carolina - Columbia Columbia, SC
84 DePauw University Greencastle, IN
85 University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA
86 Colby College Waterville, ME

Honorable Mentions

Here are some additional great schools for Political Science students that almost earned our Best Political Science Bachelor's Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
87 Hamilton College Clinton, NY
88 University of Rochester Rochester, NY
89 Rutgers University - New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ
90 Fordham University Bronx, NY
91 The University of Alabama Tuscaloosa, AL
92 University of California - Santa Cruz Santa Cruz, CA
93 University of Arizona Tucson, AZ
94 University of Kansas Lawrence, KS
95 Grinnell College Grinnell, IA
96 Bates College Lewiston, ME
97 Marquette University Milwaukee, WI
98 College of the Holy Cross Worcester, MA
99 Wellesley College Wellesley, MA
100 The University of Tennessee - Knoxville Knoxville, TN
101 University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT
102 Smith College Northampton, MA
103 Haverford College Haverford, PA
104 Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY
105 James Madison University Harrisonburg, VA
106 University of Miami Coral Gables, FL
107 Occidental College Los Angeles, CA
108 Florida International University Miami, FL
109 Pitzer College Claremont, CA
110 St Olaf College Northfield, MN
111 Denison University Granville, OH
112 University of Oregon Eugene, OR
113 Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA
114 University of Puget Sound Tacoma, WA
115 Kenyon College Gambier, OH

Political Science by Region

View the Best Political Science Bachelor's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Other U.S. Territories
Great Lakes

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One of 4 majors within the Political Science & Government area of study, Political Science has other similar majors worth exploring.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Other Political Science & Government 833
Political Economy 326
American Government & Politics (United States) 140

Notes and References

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