About Us

Graduate Degree Requirements

The department offers two graduate degrees in Political Science: the Master of Arts (M.A.) and the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.). Graduate students may major in the fields of American politics, comparative politics, and international relations; students seeking the doctorate are also required to select a minor in a different field, or minor in political methodology.

The master's (M.A.) program requires a minimum of 30 semester hours beyond the bachelor's degree. All students in the M.A. program must complete at least 24 hours of course work, with at least 12 of those hours in a designated major field. Those choosing the thesis option must then take at least six hours of thesis preparation credit and successfully defend their completed thesis. Those opting for the non-thesis option must take six hours toward examination preparation and pass a written exam based on course work in their major field.

The doctoral (Ph.D.) program is designed to prepare students for careers in university-level teaching and research, and requires a minimum of 60 semester hours beyond the bachelor's degree. Students in the Ph.D. program must take at least five courses (15 hours) in their designated major field and at least four courses (12 hours) in their designated minor field. After completing their course work, students are required to pass written comprehensive examinations in both of their fields. Finally, Ph.D. students must propose, complete, and defend a dissertation that reports original research.

The Department places a heavy emphasis on teaching students research skills and providing them with the opportunities to begin conducting their own research projects and developing their own research agendas. Master's degree students are required to take at least two "research tool" courses (at least one of which must be quantitatively-oriented), while doctoral students must take at least three research tool courses. In addition to research papers for seminar classes, faculty often encourage students to join them on collaborative research projects outside the classroom.

Application and Admission Procedures

All applicants should hold at least a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution, have a competitive undergraduate grade-point average, and have earned competitive scores on the verbal and quantitative sections of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). Applicants for whom English is not the native language must demonstrate linguistic proficiency suitable for graduate-level study by achieving a minimum score of 550 on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). Applicants also must submit three letters of recommendation, a writing sample, and a brief essay outlining their substantive interests in political science (for example, American politics and judicial politics) and the career goals for which a graduate degree will prepare them. Fulfilling the minimum standard is not a guarantee of admission.

Applicants should specify whether they are applying for the master's or doctoral program. Admission to the doctoral program is open to students without a master's degree. All applicants will be considered for non-need-based financial aid.

The deadline for Fall admissions is February 15th; for Spring admissions, the deadline is October 1st. To request an application or to receive more information, please contact our Graduate Program Coordinator, Dr. Alice Cooper.

You can also apply online or download application forms from the Graduate School's website; however, you will still have to mail the supplementary materials to our department.

• Courses Offered
• Financial Aid and Research Resources
• Links:
  The Graduate School
  The Graduate Student Council

For further information about our graduate programs, please contact:

Dr. Alice Cooper
Graduate Program Coordinator
Department of Political Science
P.O. Box 1848
University, MS 38677-1848
Office: (662) 915-5608
Fax: (662) 915-7808
Email: acooper@olemiss.edu

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