Political Science

San Diego State University

May 14, 2025

2021/2022 University Catalog

Undergraduate Information
Graduate Information

OFFICE: Nasatir Hall 126
TELEPHONE: 619-594-6244 / FAX: 619-594-7302

Faculty

Department Chair: Farid Abdel-Nour, Professor of Political Science, Ph.D. Rutgers University,

Undergraduate Advisor: Kimberly Twist, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Ph.D. University of California Berkeley

Graduate Advisor: Kristen Maher, Associate Professor of Political Science, Ph.D. University of California Irvine

Tenured and Tenure-Track Faculty:

Brian Adams, Professor of Political Science, Ph.D. University of California Irvine,

Mikhail Alexseev, Professor of Political Science, Ph.D. University of Washington,

David Carruthers, Professor of Political Science, Ph.D. University of Oregon,

Jonathan Graubart, Professor of Political Science, Ph.D. University of Wisconsin, J.D. University of California Berkeley

Ahmet Kuru, Professor of Political Science, Ph.D. University of Washington

Emanuele Saccarelli, Professor of Political Science, Ph.D. University of Minnesota

Latha Varadarajan, Professor of Political Science, Ph.D. University of Minnesota

Kimberley Fletcher, Associate Professor of Political Science, Ph.D. University at Albany, SUNY

Benjamin Gonzalez-O’Brien, Associate Professor of Political Science, Ph.D. University of Washington

Madhavi McCall, Associate Dean College of Arts and Letters and Professor of Political Science, Ph.D. Washington University

Cheryl O’Brien, Associate Professor of Political Science, Ph.D. Purdue University

Ronnee Schreiber, Associate Dean College of Arts and Letters, Professor of Political Science, Ph.D. Rutgers University

Emeritus Faculty:

Lyndelle Fairlie

Ivo Feierabend

Lei Guang

Dipak Gupta

Edward Heck

John Hobbs

Richard Hofstetter

Robert Keiser

Carole Kennedy

Ron King

Harlan Lewin

Richard Little

Brian Loveman

William Schultze

John Soule

Paul Strand

Lecturers:

Yvonne Gastelum, Ph. D. Harvard University

Gregory Allen Greb, Ph.D. University of California San Diego

James Ingram, Ph.D. University of California San Diego

John Mercurio, M.A. San Diego State University

James Murren, M.E.S. University of Pennsylvania

James Samstad, Ph.D. University of California Berkeley

Undergraduate Information

The Major

Political science is the study of governments. Its concerns, however, are not limited to formal governmental institutions such as the executive and legislative branches or the justice systems. Political science is also interested in other organizations and activities which are part of the process of government, including political parties, interest groups, and the press.

Students who become political science majors will learn about who creates the rules by which people are governed, the attitude and behavior of leaders and members of the public which cause certain decisions to be made, and how these decisions affect such values as liberty, equality, welfare, and justice. Political science is concerned with contemporary public affairs, problems in other political systems and contemporary international politics, as well as with historical growth, evolution, and decline of various types of governments.

The many career opportunities which might be available to political science graduates include teaching at the secondary level; positions with the federal government in areas such as intelligence, foreign affairs, environmental protection, civil rights and civil liberties, and budget and computer administration; positions with state and local governments, including administrative aide for a city manager, staff assistant for a county supervisor, and assistant to the registrar of voters; administrative positions on the staffs of national, state, and local legislators; statistical technician; marketing researcher; lobbyist for a business, non-profit or trade organization; community organizer and/or service provider and political reporter.

Impacted Program

The political science major is an impacted program. To be admitted to the political science major, students must meet the following criteria:

Complete with a grade of C (2.0) or better: POL S 101 , POL S 102 , either POL S 103 or POL S 104 , and three units of either statistics or logic (POL S 201 ; ECON 201 ; PSY 280 ; SOC 201 ; STAT 119 , STAT 250 ; PHIL 120 ). These courses cannot be taken for credit/no credit (Cr/NC);
Have a cumulative GPA of 2.40 or better.

To complete the major, students must fulfill the degree requirements for the major described in the catalog in effect at the time they are accepted into the pre-major at SDSU (assuming continuous enrollment).

Advising

All College of Arts and Letters majors are urged to consult with their department advisor as soon as possible. To add Political Science as a second major or to change from a different major or from undeclared status to Political Science, please contact the undergraduate advisor.

Major Academic Plans (MAPs)

Visit http://www.sdsu.edu/mymap for the recommended courses needed to fulfill your major requirements. The MAPs website was created to help students navigate the course requirements for their majors and to identify which General Education course will also fulfill a major preparation course requirement.

Graduate Information

OFFICE: Nasatir Hall 126
TELEPHONE: 619-594-6244 / FAX: 619-594-7302
WEBSITE: http://politicalscience.sdsu.edu

General Information

The political science graduate program emphasizes global diversity and the interdependence between American society and politics and other nations through its curriculum in the areas of international relations, comparative politics, American politics, and political theory and methods. The department offers courses that contribute to career development in various professions including teaching, research, and consulting. Students from nations throughout the world, students in other disciplines and majors, and students from diverse social and cultural backgrounds enroll in political science graduate courses.

This graduate program provides core courses and programs of study for three distinctive groups of students: (1) Academic career students intending to enter Ph.D. programs and to pursue careers as university or college faculty or as professional researchers. (2) Community career students pursuing a master’s degree to obtain or enhance current employment including teaching, work in public agencies, business, military, law enforcement, and holding elected or appointed office. (3) Self-development students, often mature adults, pursuing a master’s degree because they enjoy studying political science and politics. These students contribute breadth and sophistication of understanding and a wealth of diverse experience to graduate seminars.

For those who want to develop specialized skills, we also offer two 15-unit certificate programs that can be completed as part of an MA or separately: the Advanced Certificate in Public Policy and the Advanced Certificate in Comparative and Global Politics. These are both open to all matriculated students with a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution or its equivalent from a foreign institution

One of the strengths of the graduate program in political science is the depth and breadth of resources available to the students. The department actively cooperates with the interdisciplinary degree programs in Latin American Studies and Asian Studies and shares faculty and expertise with the programs in International Security and Conflict Resolution (ISCOR) and Sustainability. The department offers training in both qualitative and quantitative methods as well as faculty mentorship on individual thesis projects. The Social Science Research Laboratory (SSRL) provides technical support for students wishing to pursue quantitative or survey research. The department also holds an associate membership in the Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) that provides students with ready access to national and international databases. The faculty includes teacher/scholars who are experts in their respective fields of study and who remain professionally active in and out of the classroom.

The department is committed to ensuring that financial resources are made available to graduate students in the form of scholarships, research and graduate assistantships, and graduate teaching associateships.

Admission to Graduate Study

All students must satisfy the general requirements for admission to the university with classified graduate standing, as described in Admission and Registration . In addition, students seeking the Master of Arts degree in political science must attain a satisfactory score on the GRE General Test (ideally, a minimum of 153 on both verbal and quantitative portions. The department also requires that applicants submit two letters of recommendation from individuals familiar with the academic work or potential of the applicant along with a statement of purpose written by the applicant. It is an advantage for admission to have completed 30 semester units of coursework in the social sciences, including at least 12 upper division units in political science, as approved by the department. The department strongly prefers applicants with a grade point average of 3.0 for the last 60 semester units of undergraduate work, a 3.0 grade point average in upper- division courses in political science, and a 3.0 grade point average for all work taken in political science. Applicants who are deficient in any of these requirements may be considered for conditional admission. The application deadline for the fall semester is March 1, and students who would like to be considered for all scholarship/fellowship opportunities should have complete files by February 15.

Students applying for admission should electronically submit the university application available at http://www.calstate.edu/apply along with the application fee.

All applicants must submit additional admissions materials separately to SDSU Graduate Admissions and to the Department of Political Science, as follows:

Graduate Admissions

The following materials should be submitted as a complete package directly to:

Graduate Admissions
Enrollment Services
San Diego State University
San Diego, CA 92182-7416

Official transcripts (in sealed envelopes) from all postsecondary institutions attended;

NOTE:
- Students who attended SDSU need only submit transcripts for work completed since last attendance.
- Students with international coursework must submit both the official transcript and proof of degree. If documents are in a language other than English, they must be accompanied by a certified English translation.
GRE scores (http://www.ets.org SDSU institution code 4682);
English language score, if medium of instruction was in a language other than English (http://www.ets.org SDSU institution code 4682).

Department of Political Science

The following admissions materials must be submitted electronically through Interfolio:

Two letters of reference;
Statement of purpose;
Writing sample (optional).

For information regarding the admissions process and the Interfolio link for applicants, visit the department website at https://politicalscience.sdsu.edu/graduate/apply.html.