Susquehanna University Department of Political Science

The Major Program
Susquehanna's Department of Political Science offers a challenging opportunity to gain expertise in the government, politics and public policy of the United States and other countries of the world. The political science department at Susquehanna offers five areas of concentration: American Government and Politics, Public Law, International Relations and Foreign Policy, Comparative Politics, and Political Thought. This enables students to achieve both a broad understanding of political science and a more in-depth understanding of a desired area.

The Department of Political Science has over 70 majors, making us one of the larger departments in the School of Social and Natural Sciences. Our faculty and majors take pride in being affiliated with a strong program that is considered among the more demanding at Susquehanna University.

Political science is frequently chosen by students who plan to pursue a legal career, work in lobbying or policy-related organizations, or be employed in government service at the local, state, and federal levels. Among other areas, the political science program also prepares students for teaching, journalism, or business careers.

Recent political science graduates have chosen careers from a wide range of fields. These have included: a representative in the Pennsylvania General Assembly; staff assistants in the U.S. Congress and Pennsylvania legislature; a member of the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service; and research analysts employed by the Washington, D.C. court system, the U.S. Sentencing Commission, and a number of political research organizations. Other political science graduates have become practicing lawyers, including assistant district attorneys, and a judge in the Pennsylvania state court system.

A number of students have taken positions outside the traditional realm of law and politics. Many have moved into business careers, including positions with insurance and publishing firms, and one graduate now serves as the general manager of the National Hockey League’s Tampa Bay Lightning franchise. A number of graduates have chosen careers as secondary school teachers or college faculty, and still other students have taken positions with the Peace Corps.

Additionally, many political science graduates go on to study at the graduate level, and have been accepted at a number of universities, including American University, Monterey Institute of International Studies, Columbia University, New York University, the University of Pennsylvania, University of Pittsburgh, University of Rochester, University of Southern California and Villanova University. Other graduates have been accepted to a wide variety of law schools, including Cornell, Penn State’s Dickinson School of Law, Tulane, the University of Pittsburgh, Villanova, American University and Widener School of Law

The political science department has a strong commitment to prepare students for a successful future, regardless of their chosen career. A survey of Susquehanna's political science graduates indicates high success in a variety of careers and high satisfaction with the academic preparation received in the political science department.