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2025 Best Political Science & Government Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region

71 Colleges in the Far Western US Region
7,268 Bachelor's Degrees
$35,821 Avg Early-Career Salary
Political Science & Government is of the hottest bachelor's degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #12 most popular major in the country. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

In 2025, College Factual analyzed 71 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Political Science & Government Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 7,268 bachelor's degrees in political science & government to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Political Science & Government School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best Political Science & Government Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region Your choice of political science & government for getting your bachelor's degree school matters. Important measures of a quality political science program can vary widely even among the top schools. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:

Quality Overall Is Important

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Average Earnings

To determine the overall quality of a graduate school, one factor we look at is the average early-career salary of those receiving their bachelor's degree from the school. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their bachelor's degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.

Other Factors We Consider

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

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

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Political Science Rankings Other Ranking Categories

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Political Science & Government Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region list, to help you choose the best school for you.

In addition to College Factual's rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Political Science & Government in the Far Western US Region

Explore the top ranked colleges and universities for political science & government students seeking a a bachelor's degree. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

14 Top Far Western US Region Schools for a Bachelor's in Political Science

1
653 Annual Graduates
$34,392 Median Starting Salary
$25,770 Median Student Debt

University of California - Los Angeles is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in political science & government. Located in the city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public university with a very large student population.

Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the political science program make about $34,392 in their early career salary.

More information about a bachelor’s in political science & government from University of California - Los Angeles

2
418 Annual Graduates
$45,418 Median Starting Salary
$22,000 Median Student Debt

University of California - Berkeley is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a bachelor's degree in political science & government. UC Berkeley is a very large public university located in the city of Berkeley.

Bachelor's recipients from the political science & government degree program at University of California - Berkeley get $9,597 above the standard college graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a bachelor’s in political science & government from University of California - Berkeley

3
336 Annual Graduates
$36,208 Median Starting Salary
$14,844 Median Student Debt

Any student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in political science & government has to check out University of California - Davis. Located in the suburb of Davis, UC Davis is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the political science program report average early career income of $36,208.

More information about a bachelor’s in political science & government from University of California - Davis

4
132 Annual Graduates
$38,063 Median Starting Salary
$24,043 Median Student Debt

It is hard to beat University of Southern California if you wish to pursue a bachelor's degree in political science & government. USC is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Los Angeles.

Those political science & government students who get their bachelor's degree from University of Southern California earn $2,242 more than the typical political science graduate.

More information about a bachelor’s in political science & government from University of Southern California

5
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, CA

Stanford is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Stanford.

Bachelor's recipients from the political science & government major at Stanford University earn $23,476 above the standard college grad with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a bachelor’s in political science & government from Stanford University

6
389 Annual Graduates
$41,246 Median Starting Salary
$34,378 Median Student Debt

Located in the city of Seattle, UW Seattle is a public university with a very large student population.

Bachelor's recipients from the political science & government major at University of Washington - Seattle Campus get $5,425 above the standard graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a bachelor’s in political science & government from University of Washington - Seattle Campus

7
322 Annual Graduates
$39,404 Median Starting Salary
$38,093 Median Student Debt

Located in the medium-sized suburb of Santa Barbara, UCSB is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Those political science & government students who get their bachelor's degree from University of California - Santa Barbara receive $3,583 more than the standard political science student.

More information about a bachelor’s in political science & government from University of California - Santa Barbara

8
269 Annual Graduates
$31,976 Median Starting Salary
$19,189 Median Student Debt

UC Irvine is a very large public university located in the city of Irvine.

Bachelor's students who receive their degree from the political science program make about $31,976 for their early career.

More information about a bachelor’s in political science & government from University of California - Irvine

9
383 Annual Graduates
$33,345 Median Starting Salary
$22,145 Median Student Debt

UCSD is a fairly large public university located in the large city of La Jolla.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the political science program state that they receive average early career wages of $33,345.

More information about a bachelor’s in political science & government from University of California - San Diego

10
265 Annual Graduates
$30,060 Median Starting Salary
$11,512 Median Student Debt

Located in the large city of Riverside, UCR is a public university with a very large student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the political science program state that they receive average early career earnings of $30,060.

More information about a bachelor’s in political science & government from University of California - Riverside

11
141 Annual Graduates
$31,882 Median Starting Salary
$27,000 Median Student Debt

UC Santa Cruz is a large public university located in the small city of Santa Cruz.

After graduating, political science bachelor's recipients typically earn about $31,882 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in political science & government from University of California - Santa Cruz

12
SCU crest
Santa Clara University
Santa Clara, CA

Located in the medium-sized city of Santa Clara, SCU is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population.

Those political science & government students who get their bachelor's degree from Santa Clara University receive $21,290 more than the typical political science graduate.

More information about a bachelor’s in political science & government from Santa Clara University

13
193 Annual Graduates
$36,022 Median Starting Salary
$51,765 Median Student Debt

UO is a fairly large public university located in the city of Eugene.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the political science program state that they receive average early career earnings of $36,022.

More information about a bachelor’s in political science & government from University of Oregon

14

Located in the suburb of Claremont, Claremont McKenna is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Political Science & Government bachelor's degree recipients from Claremont McKenna College earn a boost of approximately $6,731 over the typical income of political science & government graduates.

More information about a bachelor’s in political science & government from Claremont McKenna College

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great schools for Political Science & Government students in the Far Western US Region that almost earned our Best Political Science & Government Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region award.

Rank College Location
15 San Diego State University San Diego, CA
16 San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA
17 California State University - Long Beach Long Beach, CA
18 California State University - Sacramento Sacramento, CA
19 Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA
20 University of Puget Sound Tacoma, WA
21 University of Nevada - Reno Reno, NV
22 California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, CA
23 Washington State University Pullman, WA

Best Political Science & Government Colleges by State

Explore the best political science & government schools for a specific state in the Far Western US Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
California 262 6,117
Washington 226 957
Oregon 185 527
Nevada 129 196
Hawaii 112 132
Alaska 75 16

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One of 13 majors within the Social Sciences area of study, Political Science & Government has other similar majors worth exploring.

Political Science Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Political Science 6,910
Other Political Science & Government 258
Political Economy 87
American Government & Politics (United States) 13

Related Major Annual Graduates
Sociology 9,100
Economics 7,112
Anthropology 2,050
General Social Sciences 1,574
International Relations & National Security 871
Geography & Cartography 716
Other Social Sciences 392
Urban Studies 308
Sociology & Anthropology 65
Archeology 53

Notes and References

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