2024 Best Political Science & Government Schools
606
Colleges in the United States
49,282
Political Science Degrees Awarded
$34,387
Avg Early-Career Salary
Political Science & Government is of the hottest degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #20 most popular major in the country. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.
In 2024, College Factual analyzed 606 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Political Science & Government Schools ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 49,282 degrees in political science & government during the 2020-2021 academic year.
What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings
Choosing a Great Political Science & Government School
The political science program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Political Science & Government rankings. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for political science & government schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.
In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.
Pick Your Political Science & Government Degree Level
The political science school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we've developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of the Best Political Science & Government Schools.
You can also filter this list by location to find schools closer to you.
In addition to College Factual's rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you.
When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.
More information on how we come up with our rankings can be found here: College Factual's Data Methodology.
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Featured Political Science & Government Programs
Learn about start dates, transferring credits, availability of financial aid, and more by contacting the universities below.
BA in Political Science
Gain a solid understanding of American political history, the current political landscape, and the major political parties with this online bachelor's from Southern New Hampshire University.
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Best Schools for Political Science & Government in the United States
Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the political science degree levels they offer. 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 in Political Science
Yale University is a wonderful choice for students interested in a degree in political science & government. Yale is a large private not-for-profit university located in the medium-sized city of New Haven. A Best Colleges rank of #9 out of 2,238 schools nationwide means Yale is a great university overall.
There were approximately 141 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at Yale in the most recent year we have data available. Those political science & government students who get their degree from Yale University earn $22,946 more than the standard political science graduate.
More information about a degree in political science & government from Yale University
Johns Hopkins University is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in political science & government. Located in the city of Baltimore, Johns Hopkins is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #14 out of 2,238 colleges nationwide means Johns Hopkins is a great university overall.
There were about 156 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at Johns Hopkins in the most recent year we have data available. Political Science & Government degree recipients from Johns Hopkins University earn a boost of about $32,988 over the average earnings of political science & government graduates.
More information about a degree in political science & government from Johns Hopkins University
University of Chicago is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in political science & government. UChicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Chicago. A Best Colleges rank of #2 out of 2,238 colleges nationwide means UChicago is a great university overall.
There were approximately 139 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at UChicago in the most recent data year. Those political science & government students who get their degree from University of Chicago receive $13,695 more than the standard political science student.
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University of Pennsylvania is a great decision for students pursuing a degree in political science & government. UPenn is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Philadelphia. A Best Colleges rank of #4 out of 2,238 colleges nationwide means UPenn is a great university overall.
There were roughly 154 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at UPenn in the most recent data year. Political Science & Government degree recipients from University of Pennsylvania get an earnings boost of around $15,542 over the typical earnings of political science & government graduates.
More information about a degree in political science & government from University of Pennsylvania
Located in the medium-sized city of Cambridge, Harvard is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #6 out of 2,238 colleges nationwide means Harvard is a great university overall.
There were approximately 157 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at Harvard in the most recent year we have data available. Those political science & government students who get their degree from Harvard University receive $24,421 more than the average political science student.
More information about a degree in political science & government from Harvard University
Georgetown is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Washington. This university ranks 1st out of 8 schools for overall quality in the state of District of Columbia.
There were approximately 306 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at Georgetown in the most recent data year. Those political science & government students who get their degree from Georgetown University receive $20,743 more than the standard political science grad.
More information about a degree in political science & government from Georgetown University
Duke is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Durham. A Best Colleges rank of #7 out of 2,238 schools nationwide means Duke is a great university overall.
There were approximately 136 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at Duke in the most recent data year. Political Science & Government degree recipients from Duke University get an earnings boost of around $8,743 over the typical earnings of political science & government graduates.
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Columbia is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of New York. This university ranks 1st out of 143 colleges for overall quality in the state of New York.
There were approximately 296 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at Columbia in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the political science & government major at Columbia University in the City of New York make $17,709 above the typical graduate in this field shortly after graduation.
More information about a degree in political science & government from Columbia University in the City of New York
Located in the large suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #3 out of 2,238 schools nationwide means Stanford is a great university overall.
There were about 86 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at Stanford in the most recent data year. Those political science & government students who get their degree from Stanford University make $12,020 more than the average political science grad.
More information about a degree in political science & government from Stanford University
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type
13th
Most Popular In TX
59
Political Science Degrees Awarded
Located in the large city of Houston, Rice is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population. This university ranks 1st out of 116 colleges for overall quality in the state of Texas.
There were about 59 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at Rice in the most recent year we have data available.
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Notre Dame is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Notre Dame. This university ranks 1st out of 42 schools for overall quality in the state of Indiana.
There were roughly 204 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at Notre Dame in the most recent data year. Those political science & government students who get their degree from University of Notre Dame earn $8,649 more than the average political science grad.
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Located in the small city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #5 out of 2,238 schools nationwide means Northwestern is a great university overall.
There were approximately 140 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at Northwestern in the most recent data year. Political Science & Government degree recipients from Northwestern University receive an earnings boost of about $11,573 above the average earnings of political science & government majors.
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Located in the town of Hanover, Dartmouth is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population. This college ranks 1st out of 17 schools for overall quality in the state of New Hampshire.
There were roughly 168 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at Dartmouth in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the political science & government program at Dartmouth College make $22,708 above the average college graduate in this field shortly after graduation.
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WUSTL is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the suburb of Saint Louis. This university ranks 1st out of 48 schools for overall quality in the state of Missouri.
There were approximately 94 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at WUSTL in the most recent data year. Political Science & Government degree recipients from Washington University in St Louis get an earnings boost of about $11,522 above the typical earnings of political science & government majors.
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Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #12 out of 2,238 colleges nationwide means USC is a great university overall.
There were roughly 150 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at USC in the most recent year we have data available. Those political science & government students who get their degree from University of Southern California earn $6,656 more than the average political science graduate.
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Located in the city of Ithaca, Cornell is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. This university ranks 2nd out of 143 colleges for overall quality in the state of New York.
There were roughly 166 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at Cornell in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the political science & government major at Cornell University make $17,082 more than the typical college grad with the same degree when they enter the workforce.
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UCLA is a fairly large public university located in the city of Los Angeles. This university ranks 6th out of 170 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.
There were about 713 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at UCLA in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the political science program report average early career income of $35,138.
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Located in the city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #10 out of 2,238 colleges nationwide means UC Berkeley is a great university overall.
There were roughly 537 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at UC Berkeley in the most recent data year. Political Science & Government degree recipients from University of California - Berkeley receive an earnings boost of about $6,139 over the typical income of political science & government majors.
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Located in the city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 1st out of 45 schools for overall quality in the state of Tennessee.
There were about 98 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at Vanderbilt in the most recent year we have data available. Political Science & Government degree recipients from Vanderbilt University earn a boost of approximately $9,540 above the typical earnings of political science & government majors.
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Located in the midsize city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 1st out of 57 colleges for overall quality in the state of Michigan.
There were about 285 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at U-M in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the political science & government program at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor get $6,238 above the standard graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.
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Located in the city of Princeton, Princeton is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #11 out of 2,238 schools nationwide means Princeton is a great university overall.
There were about 108 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at Princeton in the most recent year we have data available. Political Science & Government degree recipients from Princeton University get an earnings boost of about $3,444 above the average income of political science & government graduates.
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Brown is a large private not-for-profit university located in the medium-sized city of Providence. This university ranks 1st out of 9 schools for overall quality in the state of Rhode Island.
There were roughly 95 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at Brown in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the political science & government major at Brown University get $15,799 more than the typical graduate in this field shortly after graduation.
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Bachelor's Degree
Highest Degree Type
49th
Most Popular In CA
38
Political Science Degrees Awarded
Claremont McKenna is a small private not-for-profit college located in the suburb of Claremont. A Best Colleges rank of #13 out of 2,238 schools nationwide means Claremont McKenna is a great college overall.
There were approximately 38 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at Claremont McKenna in the most recent data year.
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UW Seattle is a very large public university located in the large city of Seattle. This university ranks 1st out of 51 colleges for overall quality in the state of Washington.
There were roughly 423 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at UW Seattle in the most recent year we have data available. Those political science & government students who get their degree from University of Washington - Seattle Campus make $3,614 more than the standard political science graduate.
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Located in the large city of Washington, GWU is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 2nd out of 8 schools for overall quality in the state of District of Columbia.
There were approximately 506 political science & government students who graduated with this degree at GWU in the most recent year we have data available. Those political science & government students who get their degree from George Washington University earn $23,493 more than the typical political science student.
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