Undergraduate Students
Career Planning and Placement
"What do you do with a Political Science concentration"? That is understandably a recurrent query of many prospective students who want to know more about the purposes of a concentration in Political Science. The most familiar view of Political Science associates it with three career choices: teaching, government service, and law. These associations are still true -- but only for about two-thirds of the students who concentrate in Political Science. Currently, an estimated 19 percent head in the direction of advanced study in Political Science; another 14 percent found immediate employment with the government (national, state, or local); while 30 percent went on to law school.
For one out of every three, however, a Political Science concentration has led in very different directions. Graduates report such varied activities as graduate study in MBA programs, military service, communications, and hospital administration. But by far the category that attracts the largest percentage of Political Science graduates is business and industry. At 26 percent of all majors, employment in the private sector ranks as the second most popular career option.
The significance of these statistics is simple. Political Science has a wide range of applications, and provides a useful preparation for a variety of career options. While it is an appropriate base for advanced professional study and for government service, it also frequently serves as a springboard into business, industry, and such related careers as journalism, communications, research, publishing, interest group work, and government affairs. We strongly encourage students to broaden their perspectives as to the range of possible vocational options available to them and to acquire appropriate areas of skills and specialties.
The limitations of space preclude a listing here of all the possibilities to which a Political Science concentrator might lead, and the details of avenues to pursue them. A good way to explore those alternatives is to use the extensive resources in the Career Planning Office. The staff is helpful and informed about career opportunities, and we strongly encourage an early visit to that office.
Besides investigating careers outside of a narrow range of choices, there are a number of other suggestions we believe useful to make to those who are beginning to think about graduation:
1.) Give thought as early as possible to the question of your career. The sooner one knows a career direction, the easier it will be to make the necessary preparations and plan accordingly.
2.) Find out about the particular career possibilities you have in mind. Research your area of interest and talk to people currently in the field.
3.) Consider the benefits of acquiring some special skill or talent, which other applicants in your career will not have. Your application may be strengthened by the addition of strong writing skills, foreign language proficiency, computer programming and analysis, quantitative techniques, research methods, accounting and perhaps a set of courses in a related area.
4.) Other ways of enhancing your record include a unique internship experience, summer job experience, foreign study, or workshop. In some fields, graduate training or advanced study is a must.
5.) Find out which examinations may be necessary for the career you are considering (such as GRE's or LSAT's). Talk to someone knowledgeable about the timetable that you must follow. For government service, you will want to find out about the Civil Service examinations.
6.) Remember that the more detailed the recommendation letter, the more useful it is. Your instructors need to know you to write good letters. Students who remain invisible throughout their college careers may come to regret it.
7.) Flexibility is a great asset when it comes to careers. We hope you will think about different alternatives and different directions and also will do a bit of contingency planning. The most common mistakes often are associated with putting all of your hopes on a single possibility.
8.) Finally, we hope you will remember that the Political Science Department stands ready to help in whatever way we can.