Rudimentary Ranking of Admissions Competitiveness

RWBG · February 2, 2011

So let me start off by saying this is a rudimentary ranking at best. What I did was take NRC data on average GRE-Q score (GRE-V scores are not in the data set), and rank political science departments based on that critieria. There are serious methodological flaws in such a ranking. Two examples: First, it tends to bias the admissions competitiveness of universities upward if that school weights GRE scores heavily in the admissions process. Second, given that it uses the GRE-Q score only, it tends to bias upwards those universities that are more mathematically-oriented.

However, informally, it has seemed to me that GRE-Q scores are used much more in the admissions process than GRE-V scores. Additionally, if we assume that admissions committees are relatively randomly distributed in their weighting of GRE scores, we can say that it's likely that the data being taken over three years might average it out a bit. So as long as we're cogniscant of the methodological limitations, I think this ranking can give someone a sense of the relative admissions competitiveness of schools. Just adjust quant schools down a bit and non-quant schools up a bit.

This also has roughly accorded with my informal impressions of the competitiveness of schools, based on the acceptance records I've seen of a number of applicants. So keep in mind the limitations, and use it as you will. Happy obsessing!

var1 var2 rank

STANFORD UNIVERSITY Political Science 1

YALE UNIVERSITY Political Science 2

HARVARD UNIVERSITY Government 3

NEW YORK UNIVERSITY Politics 4

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-SAN DIEGO Political Science 5

PRINCETON UNIVERSITY Politics 6

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-BERKELEY Political Science 7

DUKE UNIVERSITY Political Science 8

MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Political Science 9

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-LOS ANGELES Political Science 10

WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY IN ST. LOUIS Political Science 11

UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER Political Science 12

UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN-ANN ARBOR Political Science 13

OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY MAIN CAMPUS Political Science 14

COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK Political Science 15

STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT STONY BROOK Political Science 16

CORNELL UNIVERSITY Government 17

UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON Political Science 18

GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY Political Science 19

RICE UNIVERSITY Political Science 20

BOSTON COLLEGE Political Science 21

PENN STATE UNIVERSITY Political Science 22

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT CHAPEL HILL Political Science 23

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN Political Science 24

EMORY UNIVERSITY Political Science 25

UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA Politics 26

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA Politics & International Relations 27

NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY Political Science 28

UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI International Studies 29

UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME Political Science 30

GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY Government 31

UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI - COLUMBIA Political Science 32

UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON Political Science 33

BOSTON UNIVERSITY Political Science 34

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA-TWIN CITIES Political Science 35

UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO Political Science 36

SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY MAIN CAMPUS Political Science 37

RUTGERS THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW JERSEY NEW BRUNSWICK CAMPUS Political Science 38

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-DAVIS Political Science 39

BROWN UNIVERSITY Political Science 40

MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY Political Science 41

JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY Political Science 42

UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN Government 43

STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT BUFFALO Political Science 44

UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO AT BOULDER Political Science 45

UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH PITTSBURGH CAMPUS Political Science 46

UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT Political Science PhD 47

OLD DOMINION UNIVERSITY International Studies 48

INDIANA UNIVERSITY AT BLOOMINGTON Political Science 49

ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY Political Science 50

UNIVERSITY OF UTAH Political Science 51

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA COLUMBIA Political Science & International Studies 52

UNIVERSITY OF IOWA Political Science 53

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE Political Science 54

FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY International Relations 55

HOWARD UNIVERSITY Political Science 56

UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII AT MANOA Political Science 57

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND COLLEGE PARK Government and Politics 58

TEXAS A & M UNIVERSITY Political Science 59

UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Political Science 60

FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY Political Science 61

UNIVERSITY OF OREGON Political Science 62

AMERICAN UNIVERSITY Political Science/School of International Service 63

BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY Politics 64

UNIVERSITY OF DALLAS Politics 65

UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE Political Science & International Relations 66

WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY Political Science 67

LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY AND AGRICULTURAL AND MECHANICAL COLLEGE Political Science 68

UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA Political Science 69

PURDUE UNIVERSITY MAIN CAMPUS Political Science 70

UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA NORMAN CAMPUS Political Science 71

STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT ALBANY Political Science 72

TEMPLE UNIVERSITY Political Science 73

VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY Political Science 74

STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT BINGHAMTON Political Science 75

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-SANTA BARBARA Political Science 76

UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA - LINCOLN Political Science 77

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT CHICAGO Political Science 78

UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA Political Science 79

UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA Political Science 80

UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON Political Science 81

UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO MAIN CAMPUS Political Science 82

UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA Political Science 83

UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE Political Science 84

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS Political Science 85

CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK GRAD. CENTER Political Science 86

GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY Political Science 87

UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI MAIN CAMPUS Political Science 88

CLAREMONT GRADUATE UNIVERSITY Politics and Policy 89

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-RIVERSIDE Political Science 90

UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI - SAINT LOUIS Political Science 91

CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA Politics 92

UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS Political Science 93

UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA RENO Political Science 94

UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY Political Science 95

WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY Political Science 96

NORTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY Political Science 97

FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY Political Science 98

LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO Political Science 99

TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY Political Science 100

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY CARBONDALE Political Science 101

WESTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY Political Science 102

UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI Political Science 103

UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA Political Science 104

UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MILWAUKEE Political Science 105

Edited February 2, 2011 by RWBG

firefly28 · February 2, 2011

So let me start off by saying this is a rudimentary ranking at best. What I did was take NRC data on average GRE-Q score (GRE-V scores are not in the data set), and rank political science departments based on that critieria. There are serious methodological flaws in such a ranking. Two examples: First, it tends to bias the admissions competitiveness of universities upward if that school weights GRE scores heavily in the admissions process. Second, given that it uses the GRE-Q score only, it tends to bias upwards those universities that are more mathematically-oriented.

However, informally, it has seemed to me that GRE-Q scores are used much more in the admissions process than GRE-V scores. Additionally, if we assume that admissions committees are relatively randomly distributed in their weighting of GRE scores, we can say that it's likely that the data being taken over three years might average it out a bit. So as long as we're cogniscant of the methodological limitations, I think this ranking can give someone a sense of the relative admissions competitiveness of schools. Just adjust quant schools down a bit and non-quant schools up a bit.

This also has roughly accorded with my informal impressions of the competitiveness of schools, based on the acceptance records I've seen of a number of applicants. So keep in mind the limitations, and use it as you will. Happy obsessing!

var1 var2 rank
STANFORD UNIVERSITY Political Science 1
YALE UNIVERSITY Political Science 2
HARVARD UNIVERSITY Government 3
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY Politics 4
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-SAN DIEGO Political Science 5
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY Politics 6
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-BERKELEY Political Science 7
DUKE UNIVERSITY Political Science 8
MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Political Science 9
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-LOS ANGELES Political Science 10
WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY IN ST. LOUIS Political Science 11
UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER Political Science 12
UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN-ANN ARBOR Political Science 13
OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY MAIN CAMPUS Political Science 14
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK Political Science 15
STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT STONY BROOK Political Science 16
CORNELL UNIVERSITY Government 17
UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON Political Science 18
GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY Political Science 19
RICE UNIVERSITY Political Science 20
BOSTON COLLEGE Political Science 21
PENN STATE UNIVERSITY Political Science 22
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT CHAPEL HILL Political Science 23
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN Political Science 24
EMORY UNIVERSITY Political Science 25
UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA Politics 26
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA Politics & International Relations 27
NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY Political Science 28
UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI International Studies 29
UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME Political Science 30
GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY Government 31
UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI - COLUMBIA Political Science 32
UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON Political Science 33
BOSTON UNIVERSITY Political Science 34
UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA-TWIN CITIES Political Science 35
UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO Political Science 36
SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY MAIN CAMPUS Political Science 37
RUTGERS THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW JERSEY NEW BRUNSWICK CAMPUS Political Science 38
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-DAVIS Political Science 39
BROWN UNIVERSITY Political Science 40
MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY Political Science 41
JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY Political Science 42
UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN Government 43
STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT BUFFALO Political Science 44
UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO AT BOULDER Political Science 45
UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH PITTSBURGH CAMPUS Political Science 46
UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT Political Science PhD 47
OLD DOMINION UNIVERSITY International Studies 48
INDIANA UNIVERSITY AT BLOOMINGTON Political Science 49
ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY Political Science 50
UNIVERSITY OF UTAH Political Science 51
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA COLUMBIA Political Science & International Studies 52
UNIVERSITY OF IOWA Political Science 53
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE Political Science 54
FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY International Relations 55
HOWARD UNIVERSITY Political Science 56
UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII AT MANOA Political Science 57
UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND COLLEGE PARK Government and Politics 58
TEXAS A & M UNIVERSITY Political Science 59
UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Political Science 60
FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY Political Science 61
UNIVERSITY OF OREGON Political Science 62
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY Political Science/School of International Service 63
BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY Politics 64
UNIVERSITY OF DALLAS Politics 65
UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE Political Science & International Relations 66
WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY Political Science 67
LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY AND AGRICULTURAL AND MECHANICAL COLLEGE Political Science 68
UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA Political Science 69
PURDUE UNIVERSITY MAIN CAMPUS Political Science 70
UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA NORMAN CAMPUS Political Science 71
STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT ALBANY Political Science 72
TEMPLE UNIVERSITY Political Science 73
VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY Political Science 74
STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT BINGHAMTON Political Science 75
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-SANTA BARBARA Political Science 76
UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA - LINCOLN Political Science 77
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT CHICAGO Political Science 78
UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA Political Science 79
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA Political Science 80
UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON Political Science 81
UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO MAIN CAMPUS Political Science 82
UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA Political Science 83
UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE Political Science 84
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS Political Science 85
CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK GRAD. CENTER Political Science 86
GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY Political Science 87
UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI MAIN CAMPUS Political Science 88
CLAREMONT GRADUATE UNIVERSITY Politics and Policy 89
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-RIVERSIDE Political Science 90
UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI - SAINT LOUIS Political Science 91
CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA Politics 92
UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS Political Science 93
UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA RENO Political Science 94
UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY Political Science 95
WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY Political Science 96
NORTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY Political Science 97
FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY Political Science 98
LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO Political Science 99
TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY Political Science 100
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY CARBONDALE Political Science 101
WESTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY Political Science 102
UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI Political Science 103
UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA Political Science 104
UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MILWAUKEE Political Science 105

That's a nice starting point. Perhaps % acceptance could also be factored in?

RWBG · February 2, 2011

That's a nice starting point. Perhaps % acceptance could also be factored in?

I thought about that (although I don't have a well-organized data set including acceptance/enrollment statistics, and many schools don't publish that data) and one big problem with that is that the selection biases can be misleading. Everyone applies to Harvard, so the applicant numbers are skewed up. In lower ranked/seemingly less competitive universities, acceptance rates still seem very low, probably because the applicants are on average less competitive. So every tier of university has its own selection biases confounding inference based on those statistics.

Anyways, by no way is this intended to be a perfect ranking, but I also hope it serves as a good starting point.

wtncffts · February 2, 2011

Um, isn't this already here: http://graduate-school.phds.org/rankings/political-science ? That's where I got most of my information when I was selecting schools.

RWBG · February 2, 2011

Um, isn't this already here: http://graduate-scho...litical-science ? That's where I got most of my information when I was selecting schools.

You're totally right. That site uses NRC data, but I didn't realize you could sort by GRE-Q score until checking it just now.

http://graduate-scho...______________U

However, its originality doesn't really matter. The data wasn't mine to begin with anyways. If people weren't aware of the NRC rankings, the website you quoted, or the fact that the NRC had GRE-Q data, they can use it as a resource now. Or if they just didn't think to sort by GRE-Q.

Edited February 2, 2011 by RWBG

RWBG · February 2, 2011

Deleted Duplicate.

Edited February 2, 2011 by RWBG

wtncffts · February 2, 2011

You're totally right. That site uses NRC data, but I didn't realize you could sort by GRE-Q score until checking it just now.

http://graduate-scho...______________U

However, its originality doesn't really matter. The data wasn't mine to begin with anyways. If people weren't aware of the NRC rankings, the website you quoted, or the fact that the NRC had GRE-Q data, they can use it as a resource now. Or if they just didn't think to sort by GRE-Q.

Absolutely. I didn't intend to be dismissive or critical. I actually thought there might have been different sources, since your rankings were slightly different.

RWBG · February 2, 2011

I think my ranking might have dealt with ties differently. I was working off the raw data, which I was going through for other purposes, and figured I'd post this.

firefly28 · February 2, 2011

On 2/1/2011 at 10:49 PM, RWBG said:

I thought about that (although I don't have a well-organized data set including acceptance/enrollment statistics, and many schools don't publish that data) and one big problem with that is that the selection biases can be misleading. Everyone applies to Harvard, so the applicant numbers are skewed up. In lower ranked/seemingly less competitive universities, acceptance rates still seem very low, probably because the applicants are on average less competitive. So every tier of university has its own selection biases confounding inference based on those statistics.

Anyways, by no way is this intended to be a perfect ranking, but I also hope it serves as a good starting point.

This is true. If there's any information on the average applicant profile, then the acceptance rates could be weighted by the average applicant profile. GPA could also be included (accepting that some schools may weigh GPA heavier than others).

One other thing to keep in mind is the average size of the incoming class. If candidates A and B have virtually identical resumes and each are highly qualified, they both may be accepted into UCLA, but only the higher one may get accepted into the program that accepts significantly fewer students.

Zahar Berkut · February 2, 2011

I'm very curious to see what a ranking by verbal scores would produce, and whether the two together correlate at other to program prestige.

RWBG · February 2, 2011

On 2/2/2011 at 10:50 AM, firefly28 said:

This is true. If there's any information on the average applicant profile, then the acceptance rates could be weighted by the average applicant profile. GPA could also be included (accepting that some schools may weigh GPA heavier than others).

One other thing to keep in mind is the average size of the incoming class. If candidates A and B have virtually identical resumes and each are highly qualified, they both may be accepted into UCLA, but only the higher one may get accepted into the program that accepts significantly fewer students.

Agreed, for the most part. The main limitation with acceptance rates remains data limitations.

And yes, it's true that average size of the incoming class affects things, but only really insofar as it changes the ratio of applicants to accepted students. UCLA tends to get a lot of applications.

Tupamaros · April 18, 2013

Apologies for resurrecting an old thread, but just came across it while searching for admission/GRE stats at schools.

Question; is the information in the link RWBG provided (http://graduate-school.phds.org/rankings/political-science/rank/________________M_______________________________________________U) accurate with regard to average GRE scores for each of the schools? And if so, does ETS' most recent concordance table give an accurate conversion of these scores eg. Does Stanford's 775Q mean that their average is roughly a 162Q score? I would have thought it was higher...

ThisGuyRiteHere · April 19, 2013

Dont just think about acceptances. REMEMBER FUNDING PERCENTAGE.

You can get into a school (a public uni), but may not get funded.

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