Doctor of Philosophy in Politics

The Ph.D. program in Politics is an intellectually vibrant home for students interested in pursuing academic careers focused on the analytically rigorous study of politics. The program offers a wide range of opportunities to learn from and work with leading scholars in American Politics, Comparative Politics, Political Economy, International Relations, Political Theory, and Methodology, through substantive and methods seminars, research workshops, closely supervised research projects, and scholarly collaborations that often extend well past the end of graduate training.

Our program is unusual in its international diversity. Almost 70% of our current students come from places outside the U.S., including from countries as far-flung as Benin, Korea, Chile, China, Mexico, Russia, and Italy just to take some examples.

Our job placement record is one of the most successful in the discipline. Recent placements include tenure-track appointments at Stanford, University of Chicago, University of Rochester, Washington University in St. Louis, University of Southern California, UCSD, Georgetown, UC Berkeley, ITAM, Texas 2 A&M, Emory, Vanderbilt and other leading research universities, and postdoctoral appointments at Princeton, LSE, the Harris School, UCSD, IAS-Toulouse, and others.

You must receive your undergraduate degree (U.S. baccalaureate or equivalent) from an institution of recognized standing before enrollment in the Graduate School.
Academic Transcripts
Test Scores (if required)
Applicant Statements
R'sum or Curriculum Vitae
Letters of Recommendation, and
For the TOEFL, the Graduate School recommends that the applicant achieve a minimum TOEFL score of 100 on the internet-based test. For the IELTS, a minimum overall band score of at least 7 is recommended.