Reputation of Political Science in international comparison

[Ra's al Ghul]

Hey guys,

I am studying Political Science in Germany (Darmstadt). Here in Germany the humanities don't enjoy much appreciation, although I think that generally Political Science gets more appreciation than other humanities like history or some kind of cultural sciences.

Nevertheless, also Political Science doesn't has a good reputation. Especially students of the so called "MINT" (maths, engineer, natural sciences, technique) are very condescending towards the humanities, mostly by postulating that there is only jibber jabber without any useful content and thinking that you have very bad chances concerning the labour market.

However, sometimes I hear that especially in the United States the situation is pretty in contrast to that. So I wonder, is it true that the humanities, and Political Science in particular, enjoy much more appreciation in the US and other anglistic regions than in Germany and other states? Or do you contradict by suggesting that in the US, Canada, Great Britain etc. there is not much of a difference to the picture in Germany?

Thanks!

[PoliticalOrder]

Well, first of all political science is not humanities, it is a social science. 

There is a general pecking order:

Natural Sciences (physics, chemistry)  > Math, Statistics, Computer Science, Technology, ect > Social Sciences > Humanities

There is some elitism, generally people look down on the disciplines below them. General public seems to look up at STEM, but not really understand the nuances between the other fields, although disciplines like English or Women's Studies are often criticized to some degree. 

Political Science seems to fit right in the middle, probably the most 'respected' of the non-STEM disciplines with the exception of Economics. Anthropology is probably the least respected of the social sciences.

I mean basically, the more quantitative your field is the more 'respect' it has. 

As far as how prevalent this is, it really depends. Some people take it seriously, some don't at all. 

[saudiwin]

Dear heaven what a patronizing reply, PoliticalOrder.

The humanities exist because people care about the questions they pursue. Political science similarly exists around a specific set of questions. Re: al Ghul, the methodological boundaries of political science differ greatly in the US than in Europe, although there are US academics who hew more closely to the European field. American political science is much more about creating rigorous research design than it is about exploring deep questions of truth and meaning.

But that is not to say that the humanities are not respected in the US. There is a big difference between the fundraising-oriented goals of university administrators and what people in general appreciate.

[kaykaykay]

I am not too sure what to make of the question. I am European and humanities are well respected in Europe, potentially more than the US. Even Political Science is much more closely aligned with its political theory roots. As an empirical scholar I chose the US PhD for this reason (I have an econ undergrad so I prefer this tradition) but I do not think that the European scholarship would be worse and especially it is not disrespected in Europe. (in my humanities heavy family/ school mate/ friends circle actually it is a bit less respected than philosophy or such would be because it is not "humanities" enough)

Edited April 16, 2016 by kaykaykay

[CakeTea]

I think the OP's perception is magnified by his alma mater TU Darmstadt. It is a Technical Uni with strong STEM concentrations and I can understand that STEM profs and students rule on his campus. Non STEM are just an add on at Techs. This is certainly reflected in third party research grants raised by state and industry. The situation may be different at other German unis with a stronger PolScie department and less STEM dominance (see Frankfurt, FU Berlin and Bonn). German PolScie may not have the strong research design and methods of US unis. I notice that most German PolScie profs are trained mostly in Germany, particularly the older generation. Some younger profs are trained at US and British unis. 

There is some petty interdepartmental bickering about rigorous scholarship, quality of research and innovation. Sciences can always brag with Nobel laureates. STEM subjects have more peer reviewed publications in academic journals = impact factor, raise more grants and publicity. This happened at my alma mater when the sciences landed a huge EU grant. This is translated in higher rankings in various surveys due to methodology. 

It is understood that PolScie is part of Social Sciences, not Humanities department.

[GradSchoolTruther]

On April 15, 2016 at 7:18 PM, saudiwin said:

Dear heaven what a patronizing reply, PoliticalOrder.

The humanities exist because people care about the questions they pursue. Political science similarly exists around a specific set of questions. Re: al Ghul, the methodological boundaries of political science differ greatly in the US than in Europe, although there are US academics who hew more closely to the European field. American political science is much more about creating rigorous research design than it is about exploring deep questions of truth and meaning.

But that is not to say that the humanities are not respected in the US. There is a big difference between the fundraising-oriented goals of university administrators and what people in general appreciate.

Look at funding for various disciplines. There is a pecking order. That's not to say humanities is not important, but putting your head in the sand doesn't make the pecking order disappear.

[belles]

On 4/15/2016 at 4:18 PM, saudiwin said:

Dear heaven what a patronizing reply, PoliticalOrder.

The humanities exist because people care about the questions they pursue. Political science similarly exists around a specific set of questions. Re: al Ghul, the methodological boundaries of political science differ greatly in the US than in Europe, although there are US academics who hew more closely to the European field. American political science is much more about creating rigorous research design than it is about exploring deep questions of truth and meaning.

But that is not to say that the humanities are not respected in the US. There is a big difference between the fundraising-oriented goals of university administrators and what people in general appreciate.

I didn't find their reply patronizing in the least. Being Canadian and a social sciences grad myself, I found their reply to be scarily accurate and definitely applicable to the Canadian environment.

 

[NoMorePartiesInLA]

I wouldn't lump poli sci in with the humanities guys. Poli sci PhDs get to go on TV and advise politicians and write in newspapers and conduct the type of research that a layman can appreciate in many cases. Therefore, the perceived utility and practicality of the degree is higher than for humanities degrees. I mean, when is the last time a CNN or msnbc producer said, "quick, we need an ancient greek literature expert for the program." I think all of this in combination leads to greater overall respect to poli sci PhDs in general, relative to their humanities counter-parts. Now, I'm not saying the humanities are bad or that media ubiquity is the best measure of utility; I'm just saying the perception is that poli sci is probably held in a little higher regard both among the public and even among some academics

Edited May 22, 2016 by NoMorePartiesInLA

[Ben414]

4 hours ago, Karoku_valentine said:

I was in social sciences before, and now I am in STEM. I do agree with most people here. Poli Sci is seen as okish. However, it's still seen as inferior (truth to be told) than any STEM, and normally is assumed to not make any contributions to the society.

I always found it funny how some STEM people see themselves as very smart, yet many of them show such obvious failures in basic logic. Obviously you're not saying you agree with that general perception, but it's genuinely dumb for anyone to believe non-STEM fields make no contributions to society. It's not even something debatable--it's just empirically wrong and an honestly dumb idea to hold.

[Karoku_valentine]

6 hours ago, Ben414 said:

I always found it funny how some STEM people see themselves as very smart, yet many of them show such obvious failures in basic logic. Obviously you're not saying you agree with that general perception, but it's genuinely dumb for anyone to believe non-STEM fields make no contributions to society. It's not even something debatable--it's just empirically wrong and an honestly dumb idea to hold.

I think it has to do with the belief hold by many people that students in social sciences tend to be bad at Math. While it is true at some level with some disciplines, some people (STEM and not STEM) assume that this mathematical barrier filters most students, and so, the "lazy" ones study majors like communications or other "easy" majors. With Poli-sci, I have the impression it is not seen as a major for lazy people, but it is not seen as a very useful major to get a job. Though it clearly changes from school to school, the core of Political Science is mostly about philosophy, political theory and analysis; if you took classes in data analysis, economics, policy and others, then Poli-Sci becomes a much more employable major. But the core of poli-sci seems to be much more theoretical, and the rest are just ramifications. You may agree or not with this last statement, but I think it reflects the view of many people.