Best Political Science Programs in Texas for 2027

UT Austin calls its political science major Government, and the BA asks for 30 hours of GOV coursework, 18 of them upper-division. You'll take upper-division courses in at least three of eight fields, which include political theory, public and comparative law, public policy, research methods and international relations. A tools course is required too, such as Research Methods in Government or Statistical Analysis in Political Science, and AP credit can't fill it. The internship menu stands out: legislative, campaigns and elections, administrative and political internships sit alongside a Government Research Internship, though only six internship hours count toward the major. You'll also finish six upper-division hours in one foreign language.

Tools Course

GOV 339L Research Methods in Government or GOV 350K Statistical Analysis in Political Science

Internship Options

Legislative, campaigns and elections, administrative, political and research internships, up to six hours in the major

Field Breadth

Upper-division courses in three of eight fields

Program Sources: Government (BA) < University of Texas at AustinGovernment (BA) < University of Texas at Austin

Inside the Bush School of Government and Public Service, the political science BA at Texas A&M is a 120-hour degree. The major starts with American National Government, State and Local Government and Foundations of Political Science. Introduction to Political Science Research comes next, and you must finish it before taking more than six hours of 300- or 400-level political science. You then choose three from political theory, comparative politics, world politics and U.S. politics and policy, and add five electives. The BA also requires 14 hours of a foreign language through the intermediate level. The separate BS puts more weight on research skills and data analysis. A large program, it awarded 247 degrees in 2023–24.

Research Course

POLS 209 Introduction to Political Science Research, taken before upper-level work

Subfield Survey

Three of four: theory, comparative, world politics, U.S. politics and policy

Language Requirement

14 hours through the intermediate level

Program Sources: Political Science - BA < Texas A&M Catalogs

Research and seminars carry much of the 41-credit political science major at Rice. You choose two introductions from American politics, international relations and comparative politics, then take both Quantitative Analysis for the Social Sciences and Applied Research Methods in Political Science. At least two 400-level seminars follow, along with four 300-level courses that must be taken at Rice and three more courses at any level. Directed readings can count as electives.

Methods Pair

SOSC 302 Quantitative Analysis and POLI 395 Applied Research Methods

Seminars

At least two 400-level seminar courses

Residency

Four 300-level courses must be taken at Rice

Program Sources: Bachelor of Arts (BA) Degree with a Major in Political Science < Rice University

Sam Houston State's current political science MA is a 30-credit online program built around four overview courses and a capstone. You'll study Scope and Methods, American Politics, Comparative Politics, and International Relations, then choose five additional graduate electives. With advisor approval, some electives can form an informal concentration outside the department. This gives the degree a common disciplinary foundation while preserving half of its coursework for the topics you want to study more closely.

Common Core

Overview courses in scope and methods, American politics, comparative politics and international relations lead to a capstone

Elective Flexibility

Five graduate electives can include an informal concentration outside the department with advisor approval

Program Sources: Political Science MA

North Texas offers a 30-credit, campus-based political science MA with study in American government and public law, comparative politics, international relations, or political theory. Its course list includes Quantitative Political Research Methods and proseminars in American political behavior and comparative government. The department encourages early faculty research collaboration and conference presentations. If you want research experience alongside seminars, examine the faculty's current projects when choosing the areas you'll emphasize in your degree.

Methods Coursework

Quantitative Political Research Methods addresses empirical design, statistical applications and computer use

Faculty Research

Early collaboration can involve faculty publications or grant-funded research, alongside opportunities to present at conferences

Program Sources: Political Science Master's Degree | University of North Texas

Texas State's political science MA offers a thesis route and a coursework route ending in a written examination. Optional fields let you emphasize American politics, comparative politics, international relations, or political theory. The published courses range from Texas Politics and Congress and the Legislative Process to Social Contract Theory and the International Politics of Nuclear Weapons. Up to nine credits may come from related fields with approval, allowing a focused interdisciplinary addition to the degree.

Final Assessment

Choose a defended thesis or a non-thesis route ending in a written examination

Related-Field Study

Up to nine credits in related fields may count with the MA director’s prior approval

Program Sources: Political Science MA

UT Austin’s government PhD combines major-field and minor-field coursework with a second-year review and a written major-field examination. Available fields include public law and public policy alongside political theory, comparative politics, American politics, international relations, and methodology. The methods curriculum includes experimental approaches and formal political analysis using game theory and social choice, alongside statistical modeling of empirical political questions. Students subsequently defend a dissertation proposal and complete an original dissertation with an oral defense.

Candidacy Preparation

A second-year review and written major-field examination precede dissertation proposal work

Methods Choices

The methods field includes statistical models, experimental approaches, and formal analysis using game theory and social choice

Program Sources: Government PhDMethods | Government | Liberal Arts | UT - Austin

Fifty-four credit hours of advanced coursework make up the political science PhD at Rice. You complete core courses in each of three fields, three courses beyond the core in your major field, two in a minor field, and POLI 500, 502, 506 and 511 plus one more research-tools course. You then pass two preliminary examinations, a general exam in the major field and a predissertation exam, before defending a thesis prospectus and the thesis. Students in the PhD can also earn a Master of Arts in Statistics through a coordinated program.

Advanced Coursework

54 credit hours, including three fields of core courses

Examinations

Two preliminary exams, a prospectus defense and a thesis defense

Statistics Option

Coordinated MA in Statistics alongside the PhD

Program Sources: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Degree in the field of Political Science < Rice University

Paris Junior College designs this 60-credit Associate of Arts as a transfer degree, pointed at a bachelor’s in political science, law or public administration. Classes run on the Paris campus and at the Greenville and Sulphur Springs locations, so you can start close to home and finish your last two years elsewhere. The program page names a division coordinator for social sciences as the contact, and a conversation there early on is worth having if you already know where you plan to transfer. Eight students earned the degree in 2023–24.

Degree Length

60 credit hours, Associate of Arts

Campuses

Paris, Greenville and Sulphur Springs

Transfer Pathway

Bachelor’s degrees in political science, law or public administration

Program Sources: Political Science

Houston City College calls this program Government, and the A.A. is meant for students who plan to move on to a bachelor’s in political science or another liberal arts major. Two courses carry most of the transfer weight: Government 2305 and 2306, which public universities in Texas require for bachelor’s degrees. They are not sequential, so you can take them in either order or in the same semester. The college says every course in its Government department transfers to four-year universities. Seventeen students completed the associate degree in 2023–24.

Transfer Focus

Prepares for a bachelor’s in political science or other liberal arts majors

Core Courses

Government 2305 and 2306, taken in any order or in the same semester

Course Transfer

All Government department courses transfer to four-year universities

Program Sources: Government | Houston City College