harvard political science phd students

Information for prospective graduate students

Like all of my colleagues, I receive a large number of email queries from prospective students about the application process to Harvard's Government Department. In case it's helpful, then, a couple of pieces of advice specific to the graduate program here at Harvard, before some more general advice about graduate school applications, including some thoughts from friends and colleagues in the discipline:

You may wish to consult the information posted on the Government department website , which has more details about the program and admissions process, as well as descriptions of research interests of current graduate students and faculty members. Unlike PhD programs in other disciplines/countries, our admissions process does not rely on faculty sponsors: that is, if you’re admitted, you’re admitted to the program more generally, rather than to work with a specific faculty member. In this sense, because the admissions process is centralized, and there aren't particular slots reserved for particular supervisors, you don’t need to go through the hassle of contacting individual faculty members to tell them that you're applying, ask them if they're taking graduate students (we are!), or ask them to sign off on your application or research interests. (There is a misperception that contacting faculty of interest increases your odds of getting in; it does not. The application website at Harvard includes a box where applicants can indicate which faculty they've been in touch with, but to my knowledge, no one looks at this.) Similarly, the sheer number of applications we receive (in a 1993 PS article, King, Bruce and Gilligan report the Government department was receiving ~700 applications a year) means that it's logistically impossible for us to meet with all of the prospective applicants who might wish to do so. The good news is that because the admissions process is centralized, this isn't something you need to do anyway! If you're admitted to the program, we'll fly you in to meet with us, so you'll have ample chance to meet with us then, figure out if the program is a good fit, and so on.

General advice about graduate school applications in political science

One of the challenges about offering more general advice about applying to PhD programs in political science is that the process is so idiosyncratic, both across subfields (a competitive file in political theory might look very different than in American politics), across institutions (some schools care a lot about subfield divisions, and others don't believe in subfields altogether), across time (who happens to be on the admissions committee that year often determines which files make it to the top), and across space (the information below is probably the most useful for applications to schools in the United States). Moreover, given structural changes in post-secondary education that have shrunk the size of the academic job market, there are plenty of good arguments against doing a PhD! The advice below, then, is focused less on the question of whether you should apply to PhD programs (though some of the advice from colleagues below speaks to this point), and more on demystifying the admissions process itself. In general you can think of graduate school applications as a signaling problem. Admissions committees are looking through hundreds upon hundreds of applications spanning thousands upon thousands of pages, trying to predict from your file whether you'll be able to succeed in their graduate program. At many of the top PhD programs, then, it's not about trying to figure out whether you're smart, but about trying to figure out if you're ready. So, committees are going to be looking for signals to help gauge how ready you are, both in your materials, and in letters from your letter writers. Here are a couple of things I wish I knew about this process when I was applying to graduate school.

Signaling you understand the field

Sometimes advisors will tell you about the importance of asking an interesting question in your research statement, but this isn't very actionable advice, because few of us deliberately study things we think are boring — and how do you know if your question will count as interesting to admissions committees? A better way to think about this is as an encouragement to do some reading. Academic disciplines are collective enterprises, in which scholarship is produced in conversation with others. Your research statement is a chance to show that you understand where the conversation is going. If you take a look at the recent books published in your subfield of interest at Princeton University Press or Cambridge University Press , for example, and read the first chapters of the ones that interest you (often times the first chapters are available free online!), what sorts of questions are they about? Take a look at articles published recently in the journals where the faculty you want to work have published. If some of them seems interesting to you, read them, along with some of the other articles they cite. Read pieces written by the faculty you want to work with too. The more you read, the better the sense you'll have of the landscape of the field, and the better sense you'll have about how to "sell" your interests. This is also helpful because sometimes the way we're exposed to the field in the introductory undergraduate classes that first hook us on the topic may not represent the state of the discipline. Similarly, when I was applying to PhD programs, the field looked very different in Canada, where I was from, than in the United States. You should ask one of your advisers to take a look at your research statement to solicit their feedback before you send off your application. Signaling you understand the field also matters in other ways: in your statement of purpose, if all of the faculty members you indicate you're interested in working with are outside of your subfield of interest, or who do work of a very different style (e.g. you want to do game theory, and they do critical theory, or vice versa), or are all in a different department, that can be a sign to admissions committees that you haven't done your homework.

Signaling you understand how to do research

If being a successful undergraduate student is typically about being a skilled consumer of research, being a successful graduate student is typically about being a skilled producer of research. Having previous research experience is valuable not only because it will teach you whether you really want to apply for grad school in the first place, but also because it will help you better understand the field , help you produce a strong writing sample , and help you get stronger letters . Not everyone gets the chance to do a lot of research in college, but research experience can take a variety of forms, from writing a senior or master's thesis, to working as a research assistant, either in college or afterwards. The kind of research experience you'd want to have is likely is going to vary based on the kind of work you're interested in doing (e.g. in parts of comparative politics, many applicants often have spent a year working as an RA or predoctoral associate running studies and analyzing data, which isn't necessarily the norm in quadrants of the field that don't rely as heavily on field experiments), but more experience is usually better than less. There are also a number of programs that offer research opportunities to college graduates from historically underrepresented groups. If this applies to you, you should speak to one of your advisers.

What makes an informative writing sample?

Some writing samples are more informative than others. If possible, your writing sample should be a solo-authored piece (i.e., isn't coauthored with one of your advisors, whereupon admissions committees might be unsure about how much of the work you did, even if you did the whole thing!), written in the subfield you're interested in studying (i.e. if you want to study American politics, your writing sample should ideally be about American politics, not IR). Ideally, it should also be consistent with the norms of academic research in whatever subfield you're studying (for most subfields, it shouldn't just be a literature review, political commentary, or a book report, say).

What makes a useful letter of reference?

The most helpful letters come from faculty members who can speak to your ability to conduct academic research in the discipline you want to study. Letters from celebrities, politicians, your boss in a non-research-based job, and so on, are going to be less useful to you, since they can't credibly speak to what you need your letters to speak to. This is another reason why having research experience before applying to graduate school is useful, since letter writers who you work as a research assistant for are well positioned to speak to your abilities in this front. Similarly, although it's not at all the case that you need to be a political science major in college in order to get into political science PhD programs, you do want to have at least one of your letters come from a political scientist, ideally in the subfield you want to study. (Chemists and comparative literature professors, say, can speak to your ability to do research, but not necessarily your ability to conduct research in political science).

Strong GRE scores

When I was applying to graduate school, I assumed that everyone understood that standardized tests were noisy and imperfect measures and that admissions committees wouldn't place much weight on them. Suffice it to say, the admissions committees at the schools I applied to disagreed! Regardless of how much weight committees should place on the GRE (although many critiques of the diagnostic value of the GRE suffer from some methodological flaws ), however, many do take them into account (although some departments have made them optional in recent cycles). For those programs that do require GREs, these scores are useful because they provide one of the few metrics in common across files that typically differ from one another along a large number of dimensions. (When I'm on admissions, I might not know how to compare a 3.9 GPA at school X with a 3.7 GPA in a different program of study at school Y, but I know how to compare a 168 GRE with a 160). You're unlikely to get into a graduate program just because of your GRE score (we reject applicants with 170/170 GREs all the time!), but doing well on the GRE (especially the quantitative score, since that's the part of the test that applicants tend to perform the most poorly on in relative terms) will be helpful. What counts as doing well will depend on the program to which you're applying (see some of the suggestions below for details).

Skills relevant to your proposed program of study

To some extent, your GPA matters less than the courses you've taken, or skills you've acquired. Admissions committees want to know whether you have the skills you need to do the research you're interested in. If you're interested in doing political economy-style work, a 4.0 GPA without any economics or math classes will be less helpful than a lower GPA that includes more technical coursework. Similarly, it's hard to study East Asian politics if you don't speak or have never studied any East Asian languages.

Additional resources

Finally, a number of friends and colleagues in the discipline have put together some helpful resources with advice about applying to PhD programs in political science in general, and in international relations in particular: "Should I Get a PhD?" is an interview-based site run by Tim Hopper that isn't specific to political science, but offers lots of helpful suggestions more generally about the more fundamental question of whether you should apply for a PhD in the first place. Dan Nexon has helpful advice at the Duck of Minerva on applying for a PhD in political science, and how to make your application more competitive. Nuno Monteiro has great advice both on how to decide whether to go to graduate school, and the tradeoffs between PhD programs (like those offered by the Government department) and MA programs (which the Government department doesn't currently offer as a standalone degree). Erica Chenoweth has similarly helpful advice; her discussion of the difference between policy-oriented degrees (like those offered at the Harvard Kennedy School ) versus academic degrees (like those offered in the Government department) is especially valuable. Steven Wilkinson has useful advice especially relevant for international applicants. Terri E. Givens has a series of helpful articles at Inside Higher Education on her graduate school experiences, especially relevant for first-generation students, and students of color. Duke's Sociology Department has a helpful FAQ page that's technically about applying to sociology PhD programs, but many of its suggestions apply to social science PhD programs more generally. Dan Drezner has a series of helpful posts at Foreign Policy on PhD programs in political science: see here for advice for undergraduates , here for advice for students who have already graduated , and here for advice on PhD applications for aspiring policymakers . Erin Simpson and Andrew Exum have helpful advice on the CNAS blog from the perspective of policymakers. Bradley Potter, Nathaniel Allen, and Torrey Taussig have helpful advice at War on the Rocks about good and not-so-good reasons to pursue a policy-oriented PhD. Chris Blattman has extensive advice on many of the above topics from a political economy perspective. Cyrus Samii has helpful advice on much of the above; his advice about applying to "boutique" departments is also particularly helpful. Justin Esarey has a helpful post on The Political Methodologist about how to know whether to apply to grad school in the first place, and if so, how to choose where to apply. Austin Carson has helpful advice on whether to go to grad school, along with what to do when you get there. Once you've been admitted to a PhD program, Chris Kennedy has useful advice about how to prepare for your first semester. Finally, here's some advice for early career researchers I was asked to put together by International Society of Political Psychology's Early Career Committee .

Placement History

The department has an excellent record of graduate placement. Recent graduates have obtained positions at leading universities and at leading organizations in government and industry. Following is the placement history for our recent graduates.

Amy Chandran                              Assistant Professor, University of Florida

Caterina Chiopris                        Assistant Professor, Columbia University

Kaitlyn Chriswell                           Post-doc, Brown University

Julia Coyoli                                       Assistant Professor, University of Strathclyde

Shusei Eshima                               Data Scientist, Netflix

Joshua Freedman                         Post-doc, University of Pennsylvania

Chelsea Green                               non-academic job candidate

Sarah Gustafson                          Assistant Professor, American University

Dimitrios Halikias                        Assistant Professor, University of Florida

Christopher Havasy                    Assistant Professor, Penn State University Law School

Liam Klein                                         Research Fellow, Clingendael

Hansong Li                                       Assistant Professor, American University

Alex Mierke-Zatwarnicki           Post-doc, European University Institute

Natasha Murtaza                         Visiting Assistant Professor, Williams College

James Rosenberg                         additional education (law school)

Jacob Roundtree                           Post-doc, Johns Hopkins University

Tyler Simko                                       Assistant Professor, Univ Michigan

Seth Soderborg                              Principal Consultant, SNS Analytics LLC

Olivia Woldemikael                     Post-doc, The New School for Social Research

Andi Zhou                                          Assistant Professor, U.S. Naval Academy

Sean Ashley                                     Post-doc, University of Maryland

Soubhik Barari                               Assistant Professor, Columbia University

Avishay Ben Sasson-Gordis Post-doc, Hebrew University

Fernando Bizzarro Neto           Assistant Professor, Boston College

Jessie Bullock                                 Assistant Professor, Syracuse University

Noah Daponte-Smith                Analyst, Eurasia Group

Kevin DeLuca                                  Assistant Professor, Yale University

Reva Dhingra                                  Policy and Planning Advisor, International Rescue Committee

Georgina Evans                             Research Scientist, Google

Naima Green-Riley                      Assistant Professor, Princeton University

Jingkai He                                          Post-doc, Stanford University

Hanno Hilbig                                   Assistant Professor, U.C. Davis

Jacob Hoerger                                 Senior Researcher, Equal Justice Initiative

Alyssa Huberts                               Social Scientist, The Lab @ DC

Kaneesha Johnson                      Post-doc, University of North Carolina Chapel Hillre

Andrew Leber                                  Assistant Professor, Tulane University

Aseem Mahajan                           Post-doc, New York University Abu Dhabi

Harry Oppenheimer                    Assistant Professor, Georgia Tech

Yon Soo Park                                   Co-Founder, R.care

Connor Phillips                              Post-Doc, Vanderbilt University

Justin Pottle                                     Assistant Professor, Loyola University Chicago

Sascha Riaz                                     Assistant Professor, European University Institute

William Tilleczek                           Post-doc, McGill University

Briitta van Staalduinen             Assistant Professor, Leiden University

Arjun Vishwanath                         Assistant Professor, Boston University

Saul Wilson                                      Assistant Professor, Ashoka University

Alica Xu                                               Assistant Professor, University of Pennsylvania

Soichiro Yamauchi                      Data Scientist, Google

Hanyu Zelda Zhao                       Assistant Professor, Tohoku University

Pablo Balan  Assistant Professor, Tel Aviv University

Jeremy Bowles  Post-doc, Stanford University; Assistant Professor, University College London

Jacob Brown  Post-doc, Princeton University; Assistant Professor, Boston University

Lean Downey  Junior Research Fellow, University of Cambridge

Mitchell Kilborn  Product Scientist, LinkedIn

Amy Lakeman  Adjunct Professor, Calvin University

Pamela Nwakanma  Leading Edge Fellow, American Council for Learned Societies

Matthew Reichert  Preceptor in Social Studies, Harvard University

Tobias Resch  Lead Research Scientist, Amend Project

Atyug Sasmaz  Assistant Professor, Bryn Mawr College

Nicholas Short  Post-doc, Princeton University

Joshua Simons  Director, Labour Together

Angie Bautista-Chavez  Assistant Professor, Arizona State University

Christopher Chaky  Experimentation and Analytics Researcher, Harvard Business Review.

Colleen Driscoll  Data Scientist, PayPal

Edmund Flanigan  Assistant Professor, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich

Jon Gould  Assistant Professor, U.C. Berkeley School of Law

Mark Hill  not on academic job market

Anna Hopper  Assistant Professor, NYU Shanghai

Connor Jerzak  Assistant Professor, U.T. Austin

Gabe Koehler-Derrick  Assistant Professor, NYU-Abu Dhabi

Shiro Kuriwaki  Assistant Professor, Yale University

Audrey Latura  Postdoctorate Associate, Yale University

Brendan McElroy  Assistant Professor, University of Toronto

Michael Morse  Assistant Professor, Boston College

Lowry Pressly  Lecturer on Social Studies, Harvard University

Albert Rivero  Assistant Professor, University of Virginia

David Romney  Assistant Professor, Brigham Young University

Andrew Stone  Assistant Professor, University of Mississippi

Julie Weaver  Lecturer on Social Studies and Academy Fellow, Harvard University

Jin Zang  Co-founder and Chief Operating Officer, Axle

Michael Zoorob  Research Advancement Manager, Meta

Jared   Abbott  Post-Doc and Lecturer, Princeton University

Alla   Baranovsky  Math Teacher, Dana Hall School

Huan   Gao  Assistant Professor, Carleton College

Max   Goplerud  Assistant Professor, University of Pittsburgh

Yichen   Guan  Chief Consultant and Head of Research, PalmDrive Inc.

John   Harpham  Assistant Professor, University of Chicago

Connor   Huff  Assistant Professor, Rice University

David   Jud  Lead Director of Research, Civey

Jaclyn   Kaslovsky  Assistant Professor, Rice University

Boram   Lee  Assistant Professor, London School of Economics

Yoon Jin   Lee  Assistant Professor, City University of New York (CUNY)

Shom   Mazumder Freelance Writer and Cook

Belen   Milmanda Fernandez  Assistant Professor, Trinity College

Michael   Olson  Assistant Professor, Washington University in St. Louis

Austin   Strange  Assistant Professor, University of Hong Kong

Sarah   White  Assistant Professor, U.S. Military Academy

Jacob   Abolafia  Assistant Professor, Ben Gurion University of the Negev

Christopher   Carothers  Associated Scholar, University of Pennsylvania

Christopher   Celaya Program Coordinator and Lecturer, Colorado State Univ.

Rush   Doshi Founding Director of the China Strategy Initiative, Brookings

Chase   Foster  Research Fellow and Lecturer, Brown University

Rebecca   Goldstein  Assistant Professor, U.C. Berkeley Law School Jurisprudence & Social Policy Program

Jesse   Gubb  Research Manager, J-Pal North America

Dana   Higgins  Principal Data Scientist, Fidelity Investments.

Jennifer   Howk  Director, TrueNorth Health Foundation

Tyler   Jost  Assistant Professor, Brown University

Aaron   Kaufman  Assistant Professor, NYU Abu Dhabi

Tsin Yen   Koh  Assistant Professor, Yale-NUS College Singapore

Mayya   Komisarchik  Assistant Professor, University of Rochester

Dominika   Kruszewska  Manager, Bain. & Company

Adam   Lebovitz  WYNG Research Fellow, University of Cambridge

Brian   Libgober  Assistant Professor, Northwestern University

Dan   Moskowitz  Assistant Professor, University of Chicago

Rory   Schacter Research Scholar, University of Tokyo

Shanna   Weitz  Social Science Research Analyst, US Dept of Health and Human Services

Tess   Wise  Assistant Professor, Wake Forest University

Pamela Ban  Assistant Professor, U.C. San Diego

Peter Bucchianeri  Research Consultant, Vanderbilt University

Ranjit Lall  Associate Professor, University of Oxford

Leslie Finger  Assistant Professor, University of North Texas

Samuel Imlay  Research Scientist, The College Board

Madhav Khosla  Associate Professor of Law, Columbia University

Matthew Kim  Assistant Professor of Law, University of Florida

Chan Peter  Kim Senior Associate, JP Morgan Chase & Co.

Christopher Lucas  Assistant Professor, Washington University St. Louis

Shim Reza  Assistant Professor, University of Lahore

Anton Strezhnev  Assistant Professor, University of Chicago

Kai Thaler  Assistant Professor, U.C. Santa Barbara

Jon Weigel  Assistant Professor, U.C. Berkeley

Li Chiao   George Yin Assistant Professor, Swarthmore College

Adriana Alfaro  Assistant Professor, ITAM (Mexico)

Ashley Anderson  Assistant Professor, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill

Jonathan Bruno  Associate Attorney, Del Sole Cavanaugh Stroyd LLC

Kara Ross Camanera  Assistant Professor, Loyola University Chicago

Volha Charnysh  Assistant Professor, M.I.T.

Emily Clough  Assistant Professor, Northeastern University

Rachel Friedman  Assistant Professor of Law, Tel Aviv University

Iza Ding  Assistant Professor, University of Pittsburgh

Michael Gill  Research Scientist, Meta

Shelby Grossman  Research Scholar, Stanford Internet Observatory

Michael Hankinson  Assistant Professor, George Washington University

Jeffry Javed  Researcher, Meta

Tae-Yeoun Keum Assistant Professor, U.C. Santa Barbara

Charles Lesch  Associate Professor, Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Zeynep Pamuk  Assistant Professor, London School of Economics

Stephen Pettigrew  Director of Data Sciences, University of Pennsylvania, Senior Analyst for NBS News

Jonathan Phillips  Assistant Professor, the University of São Paulo

Amanda Pinkston  Team Lead, Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs

Soledad Prillaman  Assistant Professor, Stanford University

Gabrielle Ramaiah  Associate Partner, McKinsey & Company

Melissa Sands  Assistant Professor, London School of Economics

• Public Policy
• Introduction

Harvard Griffin GSAS strives to provide students with timely, accurate, and clear information. If you need help understanding a specific policy, please contact the office that administers that policy.

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Questions about these requirements? See the contact info at the bottom of the page. 

The Public Policy PhD is awarded by the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (Harvard Griffin GSAS) but is administered by the Higher Committee on Public Policy.  Students enroll in one of four tracks: Economics, Judgment and Decision Making, Politics and Institutions, or Science, Technology and Policy.

The economics track in the PhD program in public policy provides a curriculum for doctoral students seeking rigorous disciplinary training, with a focus on applying the tools of economics to the study of major public policy issues.  Graduates will be prepared for academic teaching and research positions in schools of public policy, economics and other disciplinary departments, as well as policy positions in national governments and international institutions, nongovernmental organizations, and in some cases, various roles in the private sector. HKS has a strong core of faculty specializing in a diverse range of subfields of economics including labor, public and applied microeconomics topics, behavioral economics and decision sciences, environmental economics, international trade, economic development, and other subjects. The program embeds formal economics training within a unique interdisciplinary atmosphere of scholars and practitioners who are working on problems of practice in a wide range of settings. In addition, the PhD program offers teaching and research opportunities for students with leading scholars at Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) and elsewhere at Harvard.

Judgment and Decision Making

The judgment and decision making track in the PhD program in public policy provides a curriculum for doctoral students seeking rigorous interdisciplinary training in psychological science, behavioral economics, and decision science, with a focus on understanding and improving public policy.  A typical program of study includes emphasis on descriptive and normative approaches as well as prescriptive interventions. Graduates will be prepared for academic teaching and research positions in public policy schools, interdisciplinary programs (e.g., management, decision science), and traditional behavioral science departments (e.g., psychology) as well as for analytic positions in industry, think tanks, government, and international institutions.  HKS has a strong core of faculty specializing in judgment and decision making research as well as faculty specializing in applied policy domains where students may wish to focus.  Intrinsic to the program are teaching and research opportunities with leading scholars at HKS and elsewhere at Harvard.

Politics and Institutions

The politics and institutions track provides a curriculum for students interested in a rigorous program of study and research on international or domestic politics and institutions as these issues relate to major public policy issues in the US and around the world.   Graduates will be prepared for academic research and teaching positions in schools of public policy and disciplinary departments such as, but not limited to, political science and history, as well as policy positions in national governments, research centers, and international institutions.  HKS offers a strong cadre of faculty across multiple social science disciplines specializing in politics and institutions, renowned and dynamic research centers, and a unique interdisciplinary atmosphere of scholars and practitioners with expertise in diverse fields. In addition to research opportunities with leading scholars, the PhD program offers training in teaching as well as in public policy writing and communication.

Science, Technology and Policy Studies

The science, technology and policy studies track provides rigorous interdisciplinary training, drawing on methodological tools from science and technology policy, science and technology studies, policy analysis, political theory, law, and economics. At HKS, students have access to leading scholars from across Harvard in the social sciences, natural sciences, and engineering, with specialties in areas such as security studies, energy policy, innovation and development, environment and climate, biotechnology, data science, and information. The HKS faculty includes practitioners with wide experience at the highest levels of government and industry in science and technology policy. Graduates are qualified for academic teaching and research in public policy schools, interdisciplinary programs, and traditional social science departments, as well as for leadership positions in national and international science and technology policy in both the public and private sectors.

The First Two Years

Students are expected to complete required coursework and sit for the oral general examination. Approval to take the oral examination is predicated on successful completion of the required courses with requisite grades.

Credit for coursework done elsewhere is not granted. There is no language requirement.  Each track has specific course requirements, outlined below: 

Economics 

• Two courses in microeconomics theory (Economics 2020a and Economics 2020b) 
• One course in political theory 
• One course in analytical methods, or completion of a qualifying exam 
• Two courses in empirical methods 
• Two doctoral research seminars (API 901 and API 902)

Judgment and Decision Making   

Please see the Public Policy Web site for updates course requirements    

• Two courses in economic theory 
• One course in normative theory 
• Three courses in empirical methods 

Politics and Institutions 

• Two courses in political theory 
• One course in analytical methods 

Science, Technology and Policy 

• Two courses in analytical methods 
• One course in empirical methods 
• Two doctoral research seminars (API 901 and API 902) 

Incompletes

In order to convert a grade of incomplete to a letter grade, the student must complete the requisite coursework by the end of the term following that in which the course was taken. No grade of incomplete can be used to satisfy any program requirement.

Teaching is not required. A maximum of sixteen term-fifths over a period of five years is permitted. During the third year, a combination of teaching and research, not to exceed three-fifths TIME, is recommended.

First Two Years

Students are assigned an advisor, taking into account each student’s stated research interests at the time of admission. If the research focus changes, students are encouraged to seek out new advisors on their own; however, the director of graduate studies will intervene as needed to facilitate new links to different faculty.

The major effort expended during the first two years is on coursework. By the end of the second year, students are expected to affiliate with a research center either at HKS or the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Research assistantships and, in some cases, teaching fellowships often lead to a close relationship with a faculty member that will develop into an official advisor/advisee role.

The primary hurdle of the third year is completion of the dissertation prospectus (which may be a paper or a slide deck) and an oral presentation of either one chapter (or one paper and an executive summary of the second and third papers, in the case of a three-paper dissertation) to two members of the dissertation committee. A copy of the prospectus, with written approval from both advisors, is then submitted to the program office by the beginning of the fourth year. In addition, students must complete the PhD Research Seminar (API 902) where work in progress on the dissertation is presented.

Fourth Year

By the beginning of the fourth year, all students must have chosen two members of the dissertation committee. The dissertation committee will include at least three faculty members. Affiliations of these faculty members will include one member of the PhD Standing Committee, one HKS-appointed faculty member, and one Harvard Griffin GSAS-appointed faculty member.

Field Requirements and Qualifying Examinations

In order to advance to PhD candidacy, a student must demonstrate PhD-level proficiency in the required track areas covering analytic methods, economics, politics and management and normative theory, quantitative empirical methods, advanced methodology, and a special field of the student’s election. Students must complete at least two PhD-level courses in a primary field and the secondary field.

The purpose of the primary and secondary field requirement is to establish a solid foundation for future research. Students should seek PhD-level courses that broaden and deepen their knowledge in a special field. Since many HKS courses and seminars are targeted toward practitioners rather than scholars, at least part of the special field work will normally be done at Harvard Griffin GSAS (in courses at the 2000-level) or at other graduate units outside the HKS. A plan of study that includes the syllabus for each proposed course in the special field must be submitted to the program office for approval. Only in exceptional circumstances (where, for example, the field of one’s research is not well developed) will the PhD committee grant a petition to substitute a reading and research course for a normal course.

General Oral Examination

The general oral examination determines whether the student has sufficient grounding in the literatures of the primary and secondary fields. More broadly, the exam provides an assessment of the student’s academic preparation and aptitude as well as the student’s interest in and prospects for a successful career after completion of the PhD.

For students matriculating in fall 2025 or later: Students are required to take at least one of their oral fields within their track, and it is strongly recommended that both of the fields are within the student’s track.  An approved list will be posted in the student handbook. 

In the middle of the second year, the student identifies a primary and secondary field critical to the dissertation research and works with two faculty examiners confirmed by the director of graduate study. The student meets with the examiners to agree on the nature and scope of the fields and develops a reading list that provides adequate coverage of the fields. The exam is scheduled before the beginning of the third year.

Dissertation

The candidate is required to demonstrate their ability to perform original research in an area of public policy by writing a dissertation that represents a significant contribution to knowledge in that field. Three faculty members supervise the writing of the dissertation. One member of the committee must come from the HKS. The other two must come from a combination of the Harvard Griffin GSAS and the PhD committee.

Note: A member of the Committee on Higher Degrees in Public Policy may represent the Harvard Griffin GSAS at a dissertation defense.

A prospective fifth year, or a more advanced student, must have produced at least one acceptable chapter of the dissertation each year beginning in the fifth year. This chapter must be submitted to the dissertation committee for its approval. Evidence of satisfactory progress may also include manuscripts submitted for publication, or abstracts of papers delivered at professional meetings, or other evidence as specified by the dissertation committee chair.

A dissertation may be written in book form or it may take the form of three publishable papers. Each track will provide guidance of the norms/expectations regarding dissertation authorship including any limits or other requirements regarding coauthorship.  It will be left to the dissertation committee chair to determine the number of coauthored papers allowed in the dissertation.

Details on the format of the PhD dissertation are published in the Policies . 

Dissertation Defense

After the candidate has met all other degree requirements, they must pass an oral examination focused on the dissertation. This examination is given when the final draft of the dissertation has been completed. Dissertation examiners will normally include the three supervisors of the dissertation. The purpose of this examination is to assure the committee that the methodology and basic approach of the dissertation are sound and that the student has received critical advice at the most appropriate stage of their advanced research. The dissertation must be accepted before the formal application for the degree can be activated. The dissertation defense is ordinarily open to the public.

Length of Time to Degree

Average time to completion of the PhD is five years. Except by special vote of the committee, all work for the PhD degree must be completed within five years of completion of the general written and oral examinations.

AM in Passing 

The Public Policy PhD program in coordination with Harvard Griffin GSAS will award an AM (Masters of Arts) degree in passing or terminal AM to students who have satisfactorily completed two years of course work and completed the oral general examination.  Students must also fulfill the Harvard Griffin GSAS requirements for an AM degree in passing. 

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You see today's most compelling global issues as complex, interrelated, and urgent. You believe that fresh ideas—and research to carry them through—are critical to building stronger communities and a more just world.

In collaboration with the  Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences  (Harvard Griffin GSAS),  Harvard Kennedy School immerses you in rigorous learning that bridges academic disciplines and draws from leading faculties across the university’s graduate schools. When you pursue a doctoral degree at HKS, you are among extraordinarily bright minds, you’ll work with committed faculty members who are leaders in their fields, and you’ll have unparalleled access to resources across Harvard University.

Prepare yourself for a career in academia or policymaking that demands advanced knowledge of economics, political science, and social policy. Translate your ideas into action that can untangle our world’s unprecedented challenges. Join us.

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Political Science-Prep (PS-Prep) 2024

Interested in applying to graduate programs in political science?

Great! The Harvard Department of Government (academic political science) community is thrilled to announce the fourth annual Political Science-Prep (PS-Prep) , an informational and mentoring event for individuals interested in pursuing doctorates in political science.

Who is this program for?

The goal of this workshop is to help students who are underrepresented in PhD programs with their applications to graduate school in political science. PS-Prep offers participants the opportunity to ask important questions and to receive feedback that they may not otherwise receive without the workshop. Past participants have come from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences. We encourage you to submit an application even if you are unsure whether you match this section's description. Interested applicants from any institution or organization are invited to apply!

Why is Harvard Government doing this?

The Harvard Department of Government is actively and intentionally committing to building an inclusive field. While we intend to be more intentional about increasing diversity and support for diverse individuals within our own department, we also feel strongly that we should help underrepresented students pursue training in political science no matter what institutions they're interested in, because the field needs everything you have to offer! As such, our goal in offering this workshop is to help you put your best foot forward as you apply widely for training opportunities in political science.

What is the format?

Our community of graduate students and faculty will hold a free day of informal panel discussions. You will also be paired with current members of our department (i.e., faculty and graduate students) who will provide structured feedback on the materials you intend to use to apply to Ph.D. programs in political science.

What will the application feedback portion look like?

You will receive feedback on your research statement, or a brainstorm about how to approach it if you haven’t started yet.

How do I apply?

Click here to apply!

What's the application like?

The application is estimated to take between 10 and 15 minutes. It consists of a few quick questions about your background and identities that you hold, as well as a single short response question asking for information about you, your interests, research experience, and why you're interested in this program.  This application is meant to be very informal!

Is this only for people who are applying to positions at Harvard?

Nope! You can apply to this workshop regardless of whether or not you plan to apply to Harvard (though we hope you'll apply to Harvard as well)!  Please Note: that this event is NOT associated with admissions to Harvard University.

How are participants selected?

We will first review applications to ensure selection criteria are met. Then, we will randomly select from this pool by sub-discipline (i.e., American Politics, Comparative Politics, International Relations, and Political Theory) to form a cohort for the event. We are using random selection to comprise the final cohort of attendees to ensure a maximally equitable selection process. 

Important Dates:

Thursday, October 10th, 2024 : PS-Prep applications are due

Tuesday, October 15th, 2024 : you will receive email notification of PS-Prep admission decision

Saturday, October 19th, 2024 : the informal, live event will take place virtually (via Zoom)

Week of October 21st : Peer/faculty feedback on application materials

Eligibility Requirements:

At least 18 years of age

Important Notes:

Priority will be given to individuals who are planning on applying for Ph.D. programs in political science THIS CYCLE (i.e., applying in Fall 2024 to begin a PhD program in Fall 2025).

If you have questions about this event or the application, please email [email protected] and [email protected] . 

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Phd in political economy & government.

The PhD in Political Economy and Government is designed for students interested in the impact of politics on economic processes and outcomes, and the reciprocal influence of economic conditions on political life. It is appropriate for students whose academic interests are not served by doctoral studies in Economics or Political Science alone.

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How can higher ed make democracy better.

Kennedy School panel says it’s a combination of knowledge — and skills

Christina Pazzanese

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Surveys have shown that Americans’ faith in the nation’s political system and its institutions has declined, as partisan polarization and civic disengagement has risen. In response, there is a growing consensus that students — and American democracy itself — would greatly benefit from more robust civic education.

Higher education, in particular, has long had an essential role in helping foster a healthy democracy, but are colleges and universities doing enough to meet the moment?

A panel of specialists on public policy and civic engagement considered the many options during a talk last week hosted by the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at the Harvard Kennedy School and the Democratic Knowledge Project at Harvard Graduate School of Education.

During the current period of “incredible turmoil and debate” on college campuses across the country, the question over how higher ed should fulfill that role has become especially salient and important, said Danielle Allen , James Bryant Conant University Professor, during the Friday event.

Allen is also director of the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation , which focuses on the challenge of how to tune up democratic institutions to ensure they continue operating as intended and to fix components when they falter.

“Cultivating the spirit not only of individual economic success, but of collective work mutually tied to one another, is the secret sauce our nation needs right now more than ever.” John Bridgeland ’82

Experts say if we truly want to prepare college students to be fully engaged in civic life after graduation, schools need to insist that appropriate training be part of an undergraduate education. That would include necessary academic work as well as the development of the intellectual and social tools necessary to engage in the kind of vigorous, fact-based debate that living in a healthy democracy requires.

It’s “absolutely essential” that every college student take courses in American government, politics, history, and economics regardless of their concentration or career goals, said John Bridgeland ’82, who chairs Civic Enterprises, a social enterprise firm, and worked on domestic policy initiatives during the George W. Bush and Barack Obama administrations.

Schools must also expand how students understand democracy — that it’s a cooperative activity all citizens are part of and responsible for maintaining, Bridgeland argued. And they could do more to encourage and facilitate stints in public service, perhaps by linking it to tuition defrayment.

“I think cultivating the spirit not only of individual economic success, but of collective work mutually tied to one another, is the secret sauce our nation needs right now more than ever,” he said.

Allen noted that one of the biggest obstacles schools must overcome to provide “a democracy education” is “ideological self-segregation and an absence of civil discourse across political divides.”

Panelists said there are some strategies that can help.

Schools not only ought to be deliberate in teaching the history and requisite skills of democracy, but also model the behaviors of a democratic society, such as supporting arguments with facts, listening to and considering evidence from other viewpoints, and having sometimes-uncomfortable conversations, said Cecilia Muñoz , a senior White House staffer on domestic policy during the Obama administration.

Beyond dialogue, schools can also bring students from different viewpoints to work together on local, real-world problems so they learn a cornerstone of democracy — how to move beyond ideological differences in order to get things done, said Bridgeland.

Changing attitudes, curricula, and behavior certainly won’t be easy. Still, lots of college and university officials remain eager to see their institutions play a more intentional role “renovating” American democracy and educating its citizenry, said Rajiv Vinnakota , president of Institute for Citizens and Scholars, an organization assisting more than 100 college presidents pushing for better civic preparedness.

Contrary to news reports about ideological clashes on college campuses over the Middle East or presidential politics that might suggest students today are less open to engaging with those from different perspectives, survey data show “that actually isn’t the case,” Vinnakota said.

One major structural challenge that school administrators will need to overcome, however, is that students are often afraid to speak their minds freely because of a fear over “being canceled” by peers and on social media. It’s a “critical” societal problem with no clear solution, he warned.

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