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33

full-time faculty teaching and conducting research in political science

66%

of Maxwell faculty conduct research focused outside of the U.S.

50

graduate students in residence; fewer than 12 admitted each year

Undergraduate Studies


Studying political science will help you understand the workings of political life at the local, national and international levels and will prepare you for a lifetime of active and informed citizenship. The Department of Political Science at Syracuse University has more than thirty full-time faculty that teach a wide variety of courses in multiple subject areas. We will guide you as you explore the world of politics and hone your skills as a researcher, analyst and writer.

Graduate Studies


Master’s and doctoral students receive broad training in quantitative and qualitative methods of social science research, while also concentrating in two of the following substantive fields: American politics, comparative politics, international relations, political theory, public administration and policy, law and courts, or security studies. 
Mazaher Kaila

I am Maxwell.

Civic engagement is a core value for me. I have always aspired to help the communities I’m from.” Mazaher Kaila, a Maxwell alumna and third-year student at Syracuse University's College of Law, moved with her family from Sudan to Central New York when she was four years old. “I realized that to make meaningful change in society, I needed to understand the systems that power it—government and politics—and that’s insight I would gain by studying political science.”

Mazaher Kaila ’19, L’22

political science, law

Read Kaila's story, “A Powerful Voice for Justice”

Andersen quoted in Commercial Appeal article on women in politics

August 21, 2020

The Commercial Appeal

Kristi Andersen

Kristi Andersen


Kristi Andersen, professor emeritus of political science, was quoted in the Commercial Appeal article "Ten women who changed the course of U.S. politics." "She was tough,” Andersen says of Margaret Chase Smith, the first woman to serve in both houses of Congress and whose most enduring victory was the passage of her Women's Armed Forces Integration Act giving women permanent roles in the U.S. military. "She held her own, for sure — as most of these people did. Back in the day, you had to be pretty tough — and may still have to be — to get what you wanted." 08/21/20

BaoBao Zhang Joins First Cohort of AI2050 Early Career Fellows

One of only 15 scholars chosen from across the U.S., Zhang will receive up to $200,000 in research funding over the next two years. Zhang will use the funding to partner with the nonprofit, non-partisan Center for New Democratic Processes to test whether public participation in AI governance is increased through the creation of public assemblies, known as “deliberative democracy workshops.”

Baobao Zhang

Assistant Professor, Political Science Department

Read More

Baobao Zhang

Andersen quoted in Commercial Appeal article on women in politics

August 21, 2020

The Commercial Appeal

Kristi Andersen

Kristi Andersen


Kristi Andersen, professor emeritus of political science, was quoted in the Commercial Appeal article "Ten women who changed the course of U.S. politics." "She was tough,” Andersen says of Margaret Chase Smith, the first woman to serve in both houses of Congress and whose most enduring victory was the passage of her Women's Armed Forces Integration Act giving women permanent roles in the U.S. military. "She held her own, for sure — as most of these people did. Back in the day, you had to be pretty tough — and may still have to be — to get what you wanted." 08/21/20

Political Science Department
100 Eggers Hall