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Political Science is one of the most common majors in American universities, and so it’s usually not necessary to say too much about what someone does with a political science degree after graduation from college. This is MIT, however, and with a relatively small number of majors , we need to address this question a little more directly. As one guide to thinking about what one can do with a political science degree from MIT, here is a summary of what our graduates have done in their careers. The following table is (roughly) ordered in terms of the frequency with which our majors pursue these careers.
Profession |
Comments |
| Lawyer | Law is by far the most frequent profession that political science majors follow, and MIT majors are no exception. MIT graduates range from private practice to corporate law. So you want to be a lawyer? The American Bar Association’s Pre-Law Committee has this statement about pre-law training. MIT’s Career’s Office also has a Pre-Law page. |
| Management consultant | MIT graduates range all over the map in their management consulting careers. Some follow the traditional track that’s so common nowadays at MIT, while some others enter consulting after beginning other career paths. |
| College professor | MIT’s undergraduate training, which emphasizes an analytical approach to problems, makes MIT political science majors especially sought-after in graduate school and, after that, teaching in colleges and universities. Well-known academic political scientists with MIT undergraduate degrees include Howard Rosenthal (Princeton), Peter Ordeshook (CalTech), Edie Goldenberg (Michigan), Steven J. Brams (NYU), Jonathan Katz (Caltech), Mark Smith (Washington), and Jay Goodliffe (BYU). |
| Business manager | Business management creates the most varied career paths among our graduates. Here we have the presidents of high-tech start-up firms, managers of foreign research for international manufacturing concerns, and financial analysts for small financial service firms. |
| Military officer | Need we say more? MIT graduates have served in all areas of the American armed forces, ranging from traditional combat-related positions to intelligence and other support positions. |
| High-tech firm manager | A surprising number of MIT political science graduates find themselves in technical positions within high-tech firms, writing software and developing systems. In many cases, a basic introduction to computer science is all it takes to begin a rewarding career in a high-tech firm, with the political science component adding general knowledge about the world that many firms find attractive. |
| Physician | The science requirements for medical school are pretty minimal, which means that a surprising number of physicians have degrees in English, History, and Political Science. MIT’s graduates find themselves in all areas of medicine. The Career Services office at MIT is an excellent place to go for information about going to medical school. |
| Journalist | Quite a number of MIT graduates have gone on to a career in journalism, often writing in technical fields, both for daily newspapers and magazines. Karen Kaplan (LA Times) and Simson Garfinkel (Boston Globe) are two MIT political science undergraduates who write in the fields of science and technology. |
| Other | The previous professions are common career paths that MIT’s political science majors take. In addition, MIT political science graduates have gone on to such varied professions as teaching high school, working as an analyst for a social science research firm, working for the CIA, and performing as a dancer. |
In almost every case, it is necessary to go to graduate or professional school in order to pursue the chosen career. Before deciding to embark on a career path, you might want to work in a non-professional capacity for a few years, to get a feel for what you are getting into. It is also possible to intern in many pre-professional areas, and the MIT Political Science Department can often help you line up an internship and (perhaps) get you some credit for it.Professional schools (like law school, medical school, and business school) are full of students with liberal arts degrees, such as political science. The one general advantage that MIT undergraduates have in applying for and succeeding in professional schools is the science core background, which most liberal arts majors don’t have. Even if the field isn’t obviously related to science (like the law), having a foundation of science and mathematics helps you to cope with the analytical issues that are usually at the core of a graduate or professional education. Not only that, but the high-pressure environment of MIT is good preparation for the most high-stress of professional schools, especially law and medicine.
December 21, 1999
Author: Professor Charles Stewart III