2025 Best Political Science Doctor's Degree Schools in Illinois

Ranked #42 in popularity, political science is one of the most sought-after doctor's degree programs in the nation. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 2 schools in Illinois to determine which ones were the best for political science students pursuing a doctor's degree. Combined, these schools handed out 33 doctor's degrees in political science to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

• Best Doctor’s Degree Schools List

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

• Major Focus - How much a school focuses on political science students vs. other majors.
• Major Demand - How many other political science students want to attend this school to pursue a doctor's degree.
• Educational Resources - The amount of money and other resources allocated to students while they are pursuing their degree. These resources include such things as number of students per instructor and education expenditures per student.
• Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized political science related body.

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for political science students working on their doctor's degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Political Science Doctor's Degree Schools in Illinois ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

Best Schools for Doctorate Students to Study Political Science in Illinois

Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a doctor's degree in political science.

Top Illinois Schools for a Doctorate in Poly Sci

1

Northwestern University
Evanston, IL

Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type

12 Annual Graduates

Northwestern University is one of the best schools in the country for getting a doctor's degree in political science. Northwestern is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the small city of Evanston.More information about a doctorate in political science from Northwestern University

2

University of Chicago
Chicago, IL

Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type

11 Annual Graduates

University of Chicago is a great option for individuals pursuing a doctor's degree in political science. Located in the city of Chicago, UChicago is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a doctorate in political science from University of Chicago

Best Political Science Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Best Political Science Colleges in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State	Colleges	Degrees Awarded
Michigan	257	23
Ohio	253	12
Indiana	202	24
Wisconsin	163	11

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Rankings in Majors Related to Poly Sci

Political Science is one of 4 different types of Political Science & Government programs to choose from.

Notes and References

• The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
• The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
• Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
• Credit for the banner image above goes to UKWiki at English Wikipedia. More about our data sources and methodologies.