Political Scientists
What Political Scientists Do
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.
See full salary breakdown & percentiles →
Career Outlook
National employment outlook, 2024–2034.
- Related work experience
- None
- On-the-job training
- None
- Self-employed
- 1.1%
Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.
How Much Preparation Does This Take?
Job Zone 5 of 5Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed
- Experience
- Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience.
- Education
- Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).
- Job training
- Employees may need some on-the-job training, but most of these occupations assume that the person will already have the required skills, knowledge, work-related experience, and/or training.
Source: O*NET Job Zones.
Key Knowledge Areas
Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.
- Law and Governmentimportance 4.7/5
- English Languageimportance 4.4/5
- Education and Trainingimportance 4.3/5
- History and Archeologyimportance 3.4/5
- Mathematicsimportance 3.4/5
- Communications and Mediaimportance 3.3/5
- Sociology and Anthropologyimportance 3.2/5
- Geographyimportance 3.1/5
Work Environment
What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.
- E-Mail5.0/5
- Freedom to Make Decisions4.8/5
- Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals4.8/5
- Indoors, Environmentally Controlled4.7/5
- Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams4.5/5
- Level of Competition4.3/5
Careers With Similar Skills
Occupations whose Transferable Skills profile most closely matches this one — a mathematical comparison, not observed data about people actually moving between these careers.
- Sociologists98% skill match
- Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary98% skill match
- Sociology Teachers, Postsecondary98% skill match
- Mathematical Science Teachers, Postsecondary98% skill match
- Geographers98% skill match
- Foreign Language and Literature Teachers, Postsecondary98% skill match
- Business Teachers, Postsecondary98% skill match
- Philosophy and Religion Teachers, Postsecondary98% skill match
Transferable Skills
Cross-functional skills this occupation draws on most, per O*NET — the kind that carry over to other careers.
- Social Perceptivenessimportance 3.8/5
- Complex Problem Solvingimportance 3.6/5
- Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 3.6/5
- Instructingimportance 3.5/5
- Systems Evaluationimportance 3.1/5
- Coordinationimportance 3.0/5
- Service Orientationimportance 3.0/5
- Systems Analysisimportance 3.0/5
Software & Technologies
Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.
Hot Technologies
Other Software Used
- Bare Bones Software BBEdit
- CQ Press Political Reference Suite
- Data visualization software
- DataMystic TextPipe Pro
- EBSCO Publishing Academic Search Premier
- EBSCO Publishing Political Science Complete
- Email software
- Europa World Plus
Work Style
Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.
- Intellectual Curiosity
- Integrity
- Attention to Detail
- Achievement Orientation
- Tolerance for Ambiguity
- Dependability
- Innovation
Career Interests
This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.
- InvestigativeHigh
- ArtisticMedium
- EnterprisingMedium
- ConventionalMedium
- SocialMedium
- RealisticLow
This page includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Where This Career Is Most Concentrated
Metro areas where political scientists make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).
- 1Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV33.11× national avg
- 2Ann Arbor, MI7.51× national avg
- 3Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH1.95× national avg
- 4Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA1.11× national avg
- 5Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN0.55× national avg
Possible Career Moves
A computed starting point, not observed job-change data — see the full list for why each one might fit.
- SociologistsLateral Move
- Political Science Teachers, PostsecondaryCareer Change
- EconomistsLateral Move
- Sociology Teachers, PostsecondaryCareer Change
Related Education Programs
Schools that offer related fields of study, based on the NCES CIP-SOC crosswalk — not a guarantee that graduates enter this specific career.
Political Economy
- University of California-Los Angeles (Los Angeles, CA)grads earn ~$74,202
- Florida State University (Tallahassee, FL)grads earn ~$68,059
- University of California-Berkeley (Berkeley, CA)grads earn ~$75,128
- University of Washington-Seattle Campus (Seattle, WA)grads earn ~$72,487
- University of Wisconsin-Madison (Madison, WI)grads earn ~$66,148
International Relations and National Security Studies, Other
- Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, MD)grads earn ~$114,716
- George Washington University (Washington, DC)grads earn ~$76,751
- American University (Washington, DC)grads earn ~$97,808
- American University (Washington, DC)grads earn ~$73,865
- George Washington University (Washington, DC)grads earn ~$100,024
Education Policy Analysis
- Harvard University (Cambridge, MA)grads earn ~$129,978
- University of Wisconsin-Madison (Madison, WI)
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Chapel Hill, NC)grads earn ~$74,403
- Duke University (Durham, NC)grads earn ~$103,071
- Duke University (Durham, NC)grads earn ~$109,274