Political Scientists
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Speciality
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Overview
Study the origin, development, and operation of political systems. May study topics, such as public opinion, political decisionmaking, and ideology. May analyze the structure and operation of governments, as well as various political entities. May conduct public opinion surveys, analyze election results, or analyze public documents.
Highlights
Undergraduate program resulting in the highest median salary ($75K): Liberal Arts
Largest undergraduate program (15.2% of workers): Anthropology and Archeology
Explore Pathways
Titles for this career often contain these words
PoliticalAnalystPolicySpecialistGovernmentAffairsResearcherAdvisorCitizenParticipationLegislativeOfficerAideConsultantResearchScientistProgramStrategist
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Responsibilities and activities

Political scientists typically do the following:

  • Research political subjects, such as the U.S. political system and foreign relations
  • Collect and analyze data from sources such as public opinion surveys
  • Develop and test political theories
  • Evaluate the effects of policies and laws on government, businesses, and people
  • Monitor current events, policy decisions, and other related issues
  • Forecast political, economic, and social trends
  • Submit research results by giving presentations and publishing articles

Political scientists usually conduct research in one of the following areas: national politics, comparative politics, international relations, or political theory.

Often, political scientists use qualitative methods in their research, gathering information from numerous sources. For example, they may use historical documents to analyze past government structures and policies. Political scientists also rely on quantitative methods to develop and research theories. For example, they may analyze voter registration data to identify voting patterns. Political scientists study a wide range of topics such as U.S. political parties, how political structures differ among countries, globalization, and the history of political thought.

Political scientists also work as policy analysts for organizations that have a stake in policy, such as government, labor unions, and political groups. They evaluate current policies and events using public opinion surveys, economic data, and election results. From these sources, they try to anticipate the effects of new policies.

Political scientists often research the effects of government policies on a particular region or population, both domestically and internationally. As a result, they provide information and analysis that help in planning, developing, or carrying out policies.

Many people with a political science background become postsecondary teachers and high school teachers.

Salary
Median salary: $125,350 annually
Half of those employed in this career earn between $90,780 and $157,710.
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Context: Median Salary
How do salaries for this career compare to other jobs' salaries?
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Salary growth for specialized social scientists and related workers
Is this job likely to reward you for sticking with it through pay raises and promotions? The higher a job’s “experience quotient,” the more you are likely to get as you stay there.
Experience quotient percentile
Take a minute to look at how much you might expect your salary to increase with each five years' experience, as well as how the numbers working at each age change. Does this seem to be a job for the young or the old, or could it be a career offering steady salary growth for many years?
Salary distribution
$76K$69K$71K$43K$65K$31K$53K$71K$72K$0$50K$100K$150K20-2425-2930-3435-3940-4445-4950-5455-5960-64
Number employed
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About Political Scientists
How do benefits for this career compare to other jobs? The availability of health care, especially employer provided health care, and pension plans can add significantly to the value of compensation you receive in a career. These charts compare how this career compares to other careers with regard to health care and pension plans.
Employee has health insurance
Employer is providing health insurance
Employer-provided pension plan is available
Worker concerns
Some jobs are more stressful than others, and some are just plain dangerous. The following list gives the percentages of political scientists who report hazardous or difficult situations typically occurring at least once a week.
  • Time Pressure (36%)
SOURCES:
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Personality and skills
Can you see yourself in the ranks of Political Scientists? Here are the skills and traits that could lead to success.
Analytical skills
Political scientists often use qualitative and quantitative research methods. They require analytical skills to collect, evaluate, and interpret data.
Communication skills
Political scientists often collaborate with other researchers when writing reports or giving presentations. They must communicate their findings to a wide variety of audiences.
Creativity
Political scientists must continually explore new ideas and information to produce original papers and research. They must stay current on political subjects and come up with new ways to think about and address issues.
Critical-thinking skills
Political scientists must be able to examine and process available information and draw logical conclusions from their findings.
Education pathways to this career
Education attained by political scientists
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), political scientists typically hold a master's degree.
Sometimes the typical education identified by the BLS differs a bit from the reality of the how much education current workers actually have. The donut shows the education level held by people currently working as specialized social scientists and related workers as reported in responses to the American Community Survey.
Details: Education and training recommended for political scientists

Most political scientists need to complete either a master’s or Ph.D. program. To be admitted to a graduate program, applicants should complete undergraduate courses in political science, writing, and statistics. Applicants also benefit from having related work or internship experience.

Political scientists often complete a master of public administration (MPA), master of public policy (MPP), or master of public affairs degree. These programs usually combine several disciplines, and students can choose to concentrate in a specific area of interest. Most offer core courses in research methods, policy formation, program evaluation, and statistics. Some colleges and universities also offer master’s degrees in political science, international relations, or other applied political science specialties.

Some political scientists also complete a Ph.D. program, which requires several years of coursework followed by independent research for a dissertation. Most Ph.D. candidates choose to specialize in one of four primary subfields of political science: national politics, comparative politics, international relations, or political theory.

Jobseekers with a bachelor’s degree in political science usually qualify for entry-level positions in a related field, such as assistants or research assistants for research organizations, political campaigns, or nonprofit organization. They may also qualify for some government positions. Others go into fields outside of politics and policymaking, such as business or law.

Education level of Specialized Social Scientists and Related Workers
About 50% of specialized social scientists and related workers have a graduate-level education, and 86% have at least a bachelor's degree.
Education attained by specialized social scientists and related workers
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High School
Some College
Associate's Degree
Bachelor's Degree
Master's Degree
Professional Degree
Doctorate
Top college degrees
Here are the top college degrees held by the 83% of people in this job who have at least a bachelor's degree. Some of degrees may link to multiple programs due to the way Census classifies college majors. Click on a program to learn more about career opportunities for people who major in that field.
  1. Anthropology and Archeology
  2. Political Science and Government
  3. Psychology
  4. History
  5. Geography
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College majors held by specialized social scientists and related workers
This table shows the college majors held by people working as specialized social scientists and related workers. If you see "**" before the name of a degree/program, that means this field is one that the Department of Education believes is preparatory for this career. However, you can see from this list that those recommendations are far from your only path to this job!
Major
Select any title to learn more about that degree
Salary comparison for bachelor's only
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Salary for all workers
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Education for Career and Major
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The link between degrees and this career
With the following sankey diagram, you can follow the top ten bachelor's degrees held by people working as specialized social scientists and related workers, and then, in turn, you can see the 10 occupations that hire the most of each degree's graduates. We hope this provides ideas for similar jobs and similar fields of study.
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Anthropology and Arc...Political Science an...PsychologyHistoryEnglish Language and...GeographyCriminal Justice and...Business Management ...SociologyBiologyAll other degreesThis jobTop 10 majors
Where are the jobs
State-by-state employment numbers
Some careers tend to be centered in specific parts of the country. For example, most jobs in fashion are in New York or California. Let's see if your dream job is easy to find in your dream location! We have a few choices for viewing the data that can help you get a full employment picture.
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Number of Specialized Social Scientists and Related Workers per 1,000 workers (ACS)
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Job density versus job count
Which states hire the most political scientists? We wonder if that's a fair question since states come in all sizes, so instead let's start with the question of which states have the highest density of people working as political scientists. You can choose to view the number of jobs per state if you prefer.
Salaries by state
Let's get a feel for where political scientists earn the highest salaries. There are several choices for which data we consider and how we view that data, and each can lead to different conclusions, so please read on...
Median salary versus state ratio
We use two methods to compare salaries across states:
  • In-state comparisons: the ratio of median (middle) salaries for specialized social scientists and related workers compared to the median salary for all people working in each state, or
  • Median salary: the unaltered median salaries for specialized social scientists and related workers.
We hope the ratio allows perspective about how salaries may compare to the regional cost-of-living.
The darkest shading corresponds to states in which specialized social scientists and related workers earn the highest salary when compared to other jobs in the state. We think this figure might be a better indicator than the actual salary for your buying power as a state resident.
Select a state to see local area details
Location-adjusted median salary for Specialized Social Scientists and Related Workers (ACS for all specialties)
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Employment
19% of Specialized social scientists and related workers are working part time.
We’ve found that some jobs have a huge number of part-time workers, and typically that is because they are unable to find full-time work or the job itself can’t provide full-time hours. With 19% part-time workers, this occupation has a higher percentage of part-time workers than 65% of careers.
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Employer types
This donut shares the break-down of workers by employer type, giving us a picture of what employers most typically hire for this career.
Employers of undefined (ACS)
Private for-profit
Private not-for-profit
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State government
Federal government
Self-employed incorporated
Self-employed not incorporated
Working without pay
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Distribution: Salaries of specialized social scientists and related workers by type of employer
Here are the salary distributions based on employer type.
$59K$82K$50K$54K$52K$51K$0$50,000$100,000$150,000Federal governmentState governmentLocal governmentPrivate not-for-profitPrivate for-profitAll
Gender
Specialized social scientists and related workers and gender
With 52% women, this occupation has a higher percentage of women than 63% of careers.
Gender of Specialized social scientists and related workers
Men (48%)
Women (52%)
Distribution: salaries by gender
Does gender greatly influence your salary in this career? The closer the bars are, the less discrepancy there is.
$54K$64K$0$100K$200K$300KWomenMen
We only include salary data when the survey error is less than 20%, so you may see only partial information for some categories.
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Context: Women in the workforce
How does this career compare to other careers with regard to the percentage of women in the career.
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Context: Salary inequity
The median salary for all full-time male workers in the US exceeds the full-time median salary for women by 19%. The situation is a little better for specialized social scientists and related workers, with the median salary for men 18% higher than the median salary for women.
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Race/Origin
Race and origin of Specialized social scientists and related workers
This donut shows the distribution of race and origin among those employed as Specialized social scientists and related workers.
Race/origin of specialized social scientists and related workers
White (77% )
Black (9% )
Asian (6% )
Multiracial (4% )
Other (2% )
American Indian (1% )
Hispanic (1% )
Pacific Islander (0% )
Distribution: salaries by race/origin
Some careers might have a pay disparity based on race or origin, the closer the below bars are the less of a discrepancy is present.
$48K$51K$63K$0$50K$100K$150KBlackMultiracialWhite
We only include salary data when the survey error is less than 20%, so you may see only partial information for some categories.