Figuring out rankings for Poli Sci Doctoral Programs?

[WheresWalden]

Hi all,

 

I'm having trouble gauging what schools are appropriate for me to apply to.

I've been thinking about going to grad school for political science. I honestly don't think I'm competitive enough for the better programs that will have better job outcomes and was looking into Master's programs in order to build up my credentials/confidence in myself/experience (contingent on getting scholarship though... can't really afford to shell out for that)*, but an old professor of mine has said I should just apply to PhD programs straightaway, that way I'll be funded. Problem is, I can't figure out what a reliable source is for rankings. 

It's easy to identify the top schools, we all kind of know what those top ten, top fifteen are, and sometimes they sort of shuffle around from year to year. But I look at US News or College Factual, for example, and there are some major discrepancies.

 

My key question is this: What are programs would fall into "highly respectable, but not the top programs" and "very good programs where I'll still have a shot at employment in academia?" How do I know this/where do I look?

My interests: I'm attracted to both theory and comparative politics, like the subjects of democratic theory and history of political thought in the United States, but also comparative or American politics with respect to democratization/autocratization and election systems. I suppose there's ways to kind of blend these various interests, but I'm sure that probably sounds pretty broad and I'm going to have to choose one direction and clarify my interests... not sure- I don't know how concrete an idea I need going into PhD programs, and that's also why I was interested in doing a year-long Master's, to dig deeper.

* Secondary question: how realistic is it to hope I can scrape together scholarships at the graduate level? I'm vaguely aware that it's more difficult, but don't know much. I've also save a lot of money for grad school just in case. It could just about sustain me for the year I'd be going and not working.

 

Any help would be deeply appreciated. I'd really like to apply to grad schools this Fall.

[JPYSD]

Hello 🙂

It is indeed a good idea to apply to PhDs directly, especially if you have a political science background already. If your GPA is decent, can score a high GRE result, have access to decent LORs and enough time to create a serious research narrative in your SOP, thats all you need. Most US master programs are cash cows and only really make sense if you can find funding for those, which is really rare. The name will not carry, everyone knows what they are for. I only saw people really increasing their chances with a master from for example Chicago or Columbia (both rather common for that purpose) if they did not have a political science background in their undergrad or if they really had bad grades and needed to create a better "impression" of themselves. UK master programs are a bit of a different story it seems, since they are usually more competitive themselves to get into, don't have the grade inflation and make the candidate more interesting. Especially Oxbridge, LSE and King's would be the options here.

In terms of rankings: It sadly is true that the US News Ranking is the only really trustworthy ranking for US graduate programs in political science. Its subfield rankings are decent for ranking the T10, but as you can see yourself, they don't go very far down, so take them with a grain of salt. It is also true that while theoretically everyone has a shot at academia, the vast majority of placements stem from T10-15, max. T30 schools. There are a few exceptions of good programs outside of those here and there, but it's really tight. If you are interested in political science schools globally, the Shanghai subject ranking is not too bad. Among the top 30 schools globally, Oxbridge, LSE, King's and the European University Institute definitely should be included as well. Maybe even Zurich and some of the English programs in Scandinavia.

In terms of chances, it is all about the "fit". Your topic has to fit to the research focus of ideally not just one professor and the department as a whole. Yes, a statement of purpose will be a research proposal with maybe one paragraph about the specific university you are applying to and yourself in the end. The "purpose" is your topic and not who you are. Here and in your statement, you have to be as specific as possible, although not one person has to fit it all. Remember, you will build a committee, so its the synergy of several people you should be interested in. On the flipside, if there is one perfect faculty for your topic, but the rest of the department is very far away from that subject area, it is not a good sign. Of course it is not about the subfield you should match faculty with but about the subfield in the subfield. Try to get as close to your actual research as possible. Comparative politics and theory are really big fields, e.g., and you could still have a horrible fit in a department that is usually known for those fields. Most of the T10-15 programs will be really good for most subfields. Then there are some departments that are clearly specialized in one subfield or research focus, but rather weak in most of the other classic ones. This will reflect in the rankings of course. Brown, e.g., is top-notch if you want to do comparative work with a South Asia focus or political theory. It is ranked at place 41, however. NYU is probably the top school for formal and quantitative methods, but is much lower. Chicago might be the best in country for political theory, but has no substantive people in American Politics. So it really depends and you have to do your research.

A general rule is (and you should stick to it, because it really shows the quality of the program): Where there is no good funding included in the program, it will not be a good program. The more you move yourself away from the T20, the less money or even no money will be guaranteed. Avoid those programs by all cost and don't even bother applying. T10 programs all pay a stipend of above 40k USD. But it decreases rapidly from there and of course depends on the area you would live in.

Also, apply broadly. There is no such thing as a safety school, since most programs max. take in 10-20 students, even the "low-ranked" ones. It really is about fit and fit only if your stats are right. If you don't have an obviously bad GPA and GRE, then still apply to the T10-schools, even if you think you would never have a chance.

Placement records are usually published by each department and show where people might end up with the degree. They could be read as a ever-changing "ranking". For T15 schools, they don't really matter because everyone really has a shot if they do good research. Of course the top of the top schools have it much easier producing those kind of students with their connections. If you are looking at schools ranked lower, definitely check their placement records. They won't be great but take them with a grain of salt - it will be about you in the end, so a good fit and funding is much more important for now.

Go through every single university from the top to the bottom of the US News List and filter by fit and funding. Then narrow down. 

Feel free to PN if you have specific questions regarding programs etc. 🙂 

All the best!

Edited March 12 by JPYSD

[vadis]

I second the idea of going straight for the PhD, if you know you want to go into academia. I went the master's route because I did not think I wanted to go into academia (to make a long story short, after grad school I worked in the field for about 7 years. I started teaching community college to make extra money and fell in love with it, and felt like I wanted to contribute rather than just regurgitate other peoples' research, and eventually realized I need to go for the PhD. Thus, applying for programs in my 30s with a bunch of extra student loan debt. 😁

If you have a clear idea now that this is what you want to do, go for the PhD. I applied this cycle to seven programs and only one required a master's as a prerequisite. You are also much more likely to get a fully funded PhD, since most master's programs don't offer that level of funding. 

Don't sell yourself too short on where you will be competitive. If I've learned anything over the last few months, it is that fit is everything and there really isn't a "safe" school. I was rejected from my safe school that doesn't fully fund their PhDs (I got into the master's program during my first round of grad school apps), but I got a really generous funding package from a more prestigious school that I thought was a long shot. It was a better fit and better timing, and probably some luck! If you see a school you really like and is a good fit, just go for it- you never know if it might be your time. 

At the same time, it won't be an effective strategy to just go down the list of "top" schools and apply to them all. I agree with JPYSD about being selective regarding fit. You should be very clear on which professors you want to work with and why their research interests match yours, as well as what the program offers that resonates with you in a very specific way. If you can contact professors ahead of time and make a connection, even better. Go to virtual recruitment fairs, ask questions by email, etc. If you make a good impression, the name recognition could help your application chances (I think. I don't have any data on this, but it stands to reason and if not true, it won't hurt your chances either). 

Good luck with your applications! It sounds like you are getting a good early start.

[Frank Knight]

I'm just here to strongly discourage having theory as your primary subfield. It's a dead subfield in terms of the job market. There are maybe half a dozen theory specific TT jobs in a given year. Do either comparative or American politics as your primary. Theory as a secondary field is okay, just don't expect to get hired because of it.

 

I +1 applying for PhD programs directly. Even if you want an MA, it's better to get into a lower ranked PhD program, get the MA as part of that for free (and getting a stipend along the way), and re-apply for higher ranked programs after.