The Department of Political Science at Michigan State University has long
been a leader in the discipline. Founded in 1949, the Department was a pioneering
center of activity during the behavioral revolution that swept the social
sciences in the 1950s and 1960s. Today, it continues to serve as a role
model in promoting high-caliber research and teaching. MSU’s political
scientists are highly-productive and widely recognized scholars who publish
on a regular basis in top-ranked professional journals and prestigious university
presses; they are actively engaged in a range of externally-funded research
projects; and they hold prominent leadership positions in major professional
organizations.
The Department’s reputation and impact within
the political science community is clearly reflected in the caliber of its
doctoral program. Our Ph.D. program prepares students to become active members
of the academic political science community. Given the diversity of the
discipline, this necessarily encompasses a wide variety of subsidiary orientations.
But, MSU’s Political Science faculty have reached a high level of
consensus regarding the skills and traits that we would like our Ph.D. graduates
to possess.
First, and foremost, we want our Ph.D.’s to be well-prepared for successful
academic careers at major research universities. This is reflected in the
strong research focus of the required curriculum and in the high level of
professional mentoring we provide through research collaboration, teaching
activities, and professionalization seminars. It is also evidenced in our
to ability to successfully place program graduates in tenure-track positions
at doctoral institutions. Tangible evidence of our success is manifested
by the placement of our Ph.D.’s in tenure-track positions at excellent
institutions, such as the University of Kentucky, the University of Georgia,
the University of Pittsburgh, the State University of New York at Buffalo,
and many others.
Although the primary focus of the MSU Department of Political Science is
on academic research, we do recognize that many students are also interested
in employment at teaching institutions, in governmental offices, and in
other, more applied settings. Our doctoral program has plenty of flexibility
to meet the needs of this important student constituency. Interest in these
alternative career paths varies across subfields, but the job placement
rates for our Ph.D. graduates in these settings are excellent.
The Department of Political Science at Michigan State University considers
graduate training to be one of its primary objectives. We invite you to
learn more about our program by viewing the information provided on this
website or by contacting us directly. We think that you will find our Ph.D.
program to be one of the strongest in the nation!