Placement & Career Opportunities

First, and foremost, we want our Ph.D.’s to be well-prepared for successful academic careers at major research universities. This is reflected in the strong research focus of the required curriculum and in the high level of professional mentoring we provide through research collaboration, teaching activities, and professionalization seminars. It is also evidenced in our to ability to successfully place program graduates in tenure-track positions at doctoral institutions. Tangible evidence of our success is manifested by the placement of our Ph.D.’s in tenure-track positions at excellent institutions, such as the University of Kentucky, the University of Georgia, the University of Pittsburgh, the State University of New York at Buffalo, and many others.

Although the primary focus of the MSU Department of Political Science is on academic research, we do recognize that many students are also interested in employment at teaching institutions, in governmental offices, and in other, more applied settings. Our doctoral program has plenty of flexibility to meet the needs of this important student constituency. Interest in these alternative career paths varies across subfields, but the job placement rates for our Ph.D. graduates in these settings are excellent.