Political Science, Ph.D.
Learn research skills and develop your own research agenda.
About the Ph.D. in Political Science
The Department of Political Science in the College of Liberal Arts offers the Ph.D. in Political Science. It is designed to prepare students for careers in university-level teaching and research. Students select a major and minor field from
- American politics
- Comparative politics
- International relations
- Political science methods
Students learn research skills and have opportunities to develop their own research agendas. Doctoral students must take at least three research tool courses, at least two of which must be quantitatively-oriented. In addition to research papers for seminar classes, faculty often encourage students to join them on collaborative research projects outside the classroom.
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Program Information
Degree
Ph.D. in Political Science
Required Credit Hours
54 hours
Program Type
Doctorate Program
Program Location
School
Graduate Program Coordinator
Thank you for your interest in a graduate degree in Political Science from the University of Mississippi. We are an empirically focused department with strengths across American Politics, Comparative Politics and International Relations. Our program is small be design, emphasizing hands-on training and research opportunities for students. Our training prepares graduates for a range of careers in academia, as well as government, NGOs and the private sector.
Benjamin Thomas Jones
Associate Professor of Political Science and Graduate Program Coordinator
Ph.D. in Political Science Program Details
Learn about the application process, academic requirements, and the financial support available to you.
APPLICATION DEADLINE: February 1
The Department of Political Science welcomes student applications.
- Complete the Graduate School’s Online Application.
- Upload Supplemental Application materials for the Department of Political Science to the link provided by the online application.
Under special circumstances, we will consider Spring admissions (October 15th deadline). In most cases, this requires having a master’s degree.
Ph.D. students receive competitive stipends. Doctoral students are eligible for numerous forms of financial assistance, including graduate assistantships (which require assisting faculty with teaching or research) and honors fellowships. Graduate assistantships automatically receive
- scholarship that covers some or all of the tuition and non-residency fee, if applicable, for regular semesters and
- subsidized health insurance.
Alumni and friends of the Department of Political Science have given support for graduate students. For more information, visit Graduate Programs in the Department of Political Science.
The Graduate School's financial aid webpage lists a variety of funding possibilities.
Students pursuing the Ph.D. in political science complete 54 credit hours.
- 54 semester hours of graduate-level course work in political science have been completed, including course work for the M.A. (done at UM or elsewhere), but excluding credit for the thesis or internship;
- methodology requirement:
- Pol 550: Research in Politics
- Pol 551: Empirical Political Analysis
- Pol 552: Applied Political Research
- the written and oral portions of the comprehensive examination have been passed
- dissertation prospectus and a dissertation exhibiting original research and demonstrating mature scholarship and critical judgment are required
Students in the Department of Political Science have access to a number of resources on campus to support their research, including
- John Davis Williams Library (U.S. Government Documents Regional Depository)
- Grisham Law Library (with LEXIS and WESTLAW facilities)
- The Center for the Study of Southern Culture
- The Mississippi Center for Supercomputing Research
- Social Science Research Laboratory
Department of Political Science
Department Video
Hear firsthand from students, faculty, and staff about the Political Science program.
Next Steps
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