Overview

Education

The PhD program in Political Science at the University of California, San Diego primary goal is to prepare scholars to teach and conduct research at major research universities.

Graduate seminars are small and students have ample opportunity to become involved in collaborative research projects with faculty from across the subfields of contemporary political science. We also offer students many opportunities to attend colloquia that feature presentations by faculty, outside speakers, and dissertation candidates. The small number of students accepted into the program also makes it possible to fund almost all graduate students throughout their entire graduate careers.

A hallmark of our program is the willingness and ability of both faculty and graduate students to work across traditional sub-disciplinary boundaries. We believe that political science is a coherent discipline, rather than independent subfields loosely grouped under an umbrella. We as a department seek to break down additional barriers and build bridges across all the subfields and give all of our students a broad command of the discipline as a whole, regardless of their area of specialization.

Programme Structure

Courses include:

Analytic Theory

Quantitative Methods

Game theory

Formal modeling

Econometrics

Foreign languages

Key information

Duration

Full-time
- 60 months

Start dates & application deadlines

Starting 2027-09-23 00:00:00
- Apply before 2026-12-01 00:00:00

Language

English

TOEFL^® IBT

100

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PTE Academic

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IELTS

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Delivered

On Campus

Campus Location

San Diego, United States

Disciplines

Political Science View 95 other PhDs in Political Science in United States

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Academic requirements

We are not aware of any specific GRE, GMAT or GPA grading score requirements for this programme.

English requirements

TOEFL^® IBT

100

Schedule TOEFL®

PTE Academic

Schedule a PTE test!

IELTS

Prepare for Your English Test

Cathoven AI IELTS Preparation

Learn your IELTS Score

AI-powered IELTS feedback. Clear, actionable, and tailored to boost your writing & speaking score. No credit card or upfront payment required.

Trusted by 300k learners
98 accuracy using real exam data
4.9/5 student rating

Other requirements

General requirements

Official evidence that a baccalaureate degree has been received or will be received prior to the start of the program from an accredited institution or the equivalent, with training comparable to that provided by the University of California.

Transcripts from each college attended. Applicants will be asked to upload their transcripts to the online graduate application system directly for review purposes.

Three letters of recommendations from faculty members familiar with previous work and able to assess the potential for graduate study

Statement of Purpose

Writing sample, optional. For those who submit a writing sample, any length is acceptable

GRE, optional

Application fee

Tuition Fees

Tuition fees are shown in and the most likely applicable fee is shown based on your nationality.

International Applies to you

Applies to you

Non-residents

36477 USD / year

≈ 36477 USD / year
Out-of-State

36477 USD / year

≈ 36477 USD / year
Domestic

Applies to you

In-State

21375 USD / year

≈ 21375 USD / year

Living costs

San Diego

United States

1400 - 2455 USD / month

The living costs include the total expenses per month, covering accommodation, public transportation, utilities (electricity, internet), books and groceries.

Funding

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Scholarships Information

Below you will find PhD's scholarship opportunities for Political Science.

Available Scholarships

You are eligible to apply for these scholarships but a selection process will still be applied by the provider.

About

Overview

Education

Programme Structure

Key information

Duration

Start dates & application deadlines

Language

Prepare for Your English Test

Delivered

Campus Location

Disciplines

What students do after studying

Academic requirements

English requirements

Prepare for Your English Test

Other requirements

General requirements

Tuition Fees

International Applies to you

Domestic

Living costs

San Diego

Funding

Scholarships Information

Available Scholarships

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