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2023 Best Political Science & Government Master's Degree Schools

178 Colleges
$50,486 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Political Science & Government Master's Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, 49,282 people earned a degree or certificate in political science and government, making the major the #20 most popular in the United States.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Political Science & Government Master's Degree Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 178 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best master's degree programs for students. Factors related to overall quality of the school, post-graduation earnings, average student debt, and more accumulated were considered when coming up with this list.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Political Science & Government Master’s Degree Schools in the United States

Check out the political science master's degree programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.

Top 25 Top Schools for a Master's in Political Science & Government

#1

Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD

Our analysis found Johns Hopkins University to be the best school for political science and government students who want to pursue a master’s degree in the United States. Johns Hopkins is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Baltimore.

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#2

Rice University

Houston, TX

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Rice University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Political Science & Government Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the city of Houston, Rice is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population.

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A rank of #3 on this year’s list means The Graduate Center, CUNY is a great place for political science and government students working on their master’s degree. Located in the large city of New York, The Graduate Center is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

Read full report on Political Science & Government at The Graduate Center, CUNY

#4

Yale University

New Haven, CT

Out of the 178 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Yale University landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the midsize city of New Haven, Yale is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.

Full Political Science & Government at Yale University Report

#5

Harvard University

Cambridge, MA

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Harvard University is a great place for political science and government students working on their master’s degree. Located in the medium-sized city of Cambridge, Harvard is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

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Teachers College at Columbia University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Political Science & Government Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Teachers College is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of New York.

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#7

Brown University

Providence, RI

Brown University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree political science and government programs. Brown is a large private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Providence.

Full Political Science & Government at Brown University Report

#8

Cornell University

Ithaca, NY

Cornell University landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree political science and government programs. Located in the city of Ithaca, Cornell is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

Read full report on Political Science & Government at Cornell University

#9

Duke University

Durham, NC

With a ranking of #9, Duke University did quite well on this year’s best schools for political science and government students working on their master’s degree. Located in the large city of Durham, Duke is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.

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#10

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

With a ranking of #10, Stanford University did quite well on this year’s best schools for political science and government students working on their master’s degree. Stanford is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Stanford.

Read full report on Political Science & Government at Stanford University

#11

University of Notre Dame

Notre Dame, IN

University of Notre Dame landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree political science and government programs. Located in the suburb of Notre Dame, Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

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#12

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

Northwestern University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for political science and government students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #12 on the list. Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

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#13

Princeton University

Princeton, NJ

With a ranking of #13, Princeton University did quite well on this year’s best schools for political science and government students working on their master’s degree. Princeton is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Princeton.

Read full report on Political Science & Government at Princeton University

#14

Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN

Vanderbilt University ranked #14 on this year’s Best Political Science & Government Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

Full Political Science & Government at Vanderbilt University Report

#15

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA

University of Pennsylvania did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for political science and government students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #15 on the list. Located in the city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

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#16

University of Virginia - Main Campus

Charlottesville, VA

With a ranking of #16, University of Virginia - Main Campus did quite well on this year’s best schools for political science and government students working on their master’s degree. University of Virginia is a fairly large public school located in the small suburb of Charlottesville.

Full Political Science & Government at University of Virginia - Main Campus Report

Washington University in St Louis ranked #17 on this year’s Best Political Science & Government Master’s Degree Schools list. WUSTL is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Saint Louis.

Full Political Science & Government at Washington University in St Louis Report

#18

Georgetown University

Washington, DC

Georgetown University came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Political Science & Government Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Georgetown is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Washington.

Full Political Science & Government at Georgetown University Report

#19

George Washington University

Washington, DC

George Washington University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for political science and government students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #19 on the list. GWU is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Washington.

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Columbia University in the City of New York ranked #20 on this year’s Best Political Science & Government Master’s Degree Schools list. Columbia is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of New York.

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University of California - Berkeley came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Best Political Science & Government Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public school with a very large student population.

Read full report on Political Science & Government at University of California - Berkeley

#22

Virginia Tech

Blacksburg, VA

With a ranking of #22, Virginia Tech did quite well on this year’s best schools for political science and government students working on their master’s degree. Virginia Tech is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Blacksburg.

Full Political Science & Government at Virginia Tech Report

#23

Villanova University

Villanova, PA

Villanova University landed the #23 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree political science and government programs. Located in the large suburb of Villanova, Villanova is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.

Full Political Science & Government at Villanova University Report

#24

University of Chicago

Chicago, IL

With a ranking of #24, University of Chicago did quite well on this year’s best schools for political science and government students working on their master’s degree. UChicago is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Chicago.

Read full report on Political Science & Government at University of Chicago

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for political science and government students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #25 on the list. Located in the medium-sized city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public school with a very large student population.

Full Political Science & Government at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor Report

Rest of the Top Best Political Science & Government Master's Degree Schools

#26

University of Rochester

Rochester, NY

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great schools for Political Science & Government students that almost earned our Best Political Science & Government Master's Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
27 Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA
28 University of Maryland - College Park College Park, MD
29 Claremont Graduate University Claremont, CA
30 Marquette University Milwaukee, WI
31 Catholic University of America Washington, DC
32 Citadel Military College of South Carolina Charleston, SC
33 Emory University Atlanta, GA
34 University of Wisconsin - Madison Madison, WI
35 University of California - Irvine Irvine, CA

Political Science & Government by Region

View the Best Political Science & Government Master's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

One of 12 majors within the area of study, political science and government has other similar majors worth exploring.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Economics 49,055
Sociology 38,475
General Social Sciences 18,997
International Relations & National Security 14,306
Anthropology 11,415

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to UKWiki at English Wikipedia.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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