Our department offers courses that explore political behavior, institutions of government, international relations and international finance, policy-making, and protest and revolution. ?Our political science faculty employ a range of research methods and approaches, including elite interviewing, survey research, field and archival research, and comparative case study analysis.

Faculty specialties in the Department of Political Science include US political institutions; elections and political parties both in the United States and abroad; legislative politics and public policy; international relations with an emphasis on international political economy; the development and decline of nation-states; the politics of gender; constitutional law; public policy and public organizations; research methods; and comparative politics with regional concentrations including Africa, Central Asia and the Middle East, and Europe. The department offers degree programs leading to the BA, MA, and PhD.

The study of political science can build a foundation for many types of future employment. Many political science majors are preparing for graduate study or law school. Others intend to pursue careers in journalism, nonprofit groups, public policy, government, or business.