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2021 Best Political Science & Government Colleges for Non-Traditional Students

287 Colleges
42,363 Bachelor's Degrees
$37,146 Avg Cost*

Finding the Best Political Science & Government Schools for Non-Traditional Students

Best Political Science & Government Colleges for Non-Traditional StudentsPolitical Science & Government is the #12th most popular major in the country with 42,363 bachelor's degrees awarded in <nil>.

For this year's Best Political Science & Government Colleges for Non-Traditional Students ranking, we looked at 287 colleges that offer a bachelor's in political science. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great political science & government programs and a strong support system for non-traditional students.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the political science & government program at the school, affordability, and presence of non-traditional students. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Political Science & Government Schools

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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 Schools for Non-Traditional Students list, to help you choose the best school for you.

To further help you make the college decision, we've developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

2021 Best Political Science & Government Schools for Non-Traditional Students in the United States

The colleges and universities below are the best for non-traditional students studying political science.

Top 25 Political Science & Government Schools for Non-Traditional Students

1
Georgetown crest
Georgetown University
Washington, DC

Georgetown University tops the 2021 list of our schools in the United States that are best for non-traditional political science & government students. Located in the large city of Washington, Georgetown is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population. Georgetown did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list.

About 0.2% of Georgetown students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. Approximately 4,343 students take at least one class online at Georgetown. There are roughly 5,553 part time students in attendance at Georgetown.

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2

George Washington University earned the #2 spot in our 2021 rankings. Located in the large city of Washington, GWU is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population. GWU also took the #5 spot in our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government rankings.

The student loan default rate at GWU is lower than is typical, just 0.4% of students default in three years. 5,340 students at GWU are exclusively online. 8,798 students are part time.

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3

The #3 spot in this year's ranking belongs to Columbia University in the City of New York. Located in the city of New York, Columbia is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population. Columbia also took the #3 spot in our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government rankings.

The school has a low student loan default rate of 0.9%. There are approximately 6,172 students at Columbia that take at least one class online. 4,854 of Columbia students are attending part time.

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4
NYU crest
New York University
New York, NY

The #4 spot in this year's ranking belongs to New York University. NYU is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of New York. As a testament to the quality of education it offers, NYU also is in the top 5% of our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government ranking.

The student loan default rate at NYU is lower than is typical, just 0.8% of students default in three years. There are approximately 21,614 students at NYU that take at least one class online. 8,829 of NYU students are attending part time.

Read full report on Political Science & Government at New York University

5

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill comes in at #5 in this year's ranking. UNC Chapel Hill is a fairly large public school located in the city of Chapel Hill. UNC Chapel Hill excels when it comes to major quality. It's ranked in the top 5% of all schools on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list.

The student loan default rate at UNC Chapel Hill is lower than is typical, just 0.9% of students default in three years. There are approximately 6,990 students at UNC Chapel Hill that take at least one class online. 5,151 students are part time.

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6

University of California - Berkeley earned the #6 spot in our 2021 rankings. UC Berkeley is a very large public school located in the city of Berkeley. UC Berkeley also claimed a spot on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list. It's in the top 5% of all schools in this category.

The school has a low student loan default rate of 0.5%. Approximately 26,398 students take at least one class online at UC Berkeley. 4,099 students are part time.

Full Political Science & Government at University of California - Berkeley Report

7

The #7 spot in this year's ranking belongs to Cornell University. Cornell is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Ithaca. On top of its placing in our non-traditional rankings, Cornell also did well on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list. It's in the top 5% of all schools reviewed in that analysis.

About 0.4% of Cornell students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. Approximately 2,837 students take at least one class online at Cornell. There are roughly 574 part time students in attendance at Cornell.

Full Political Science & Government at Cornell University Report

8
Boston College crest
Boston College
Chestnut Hill, MA

The #8 spot in this year's ranking belongs to Boston College. Located in the city of Chestnut Hill, Boston College is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population. On top of its placing in our non-traditional rankings, Boston College also did well on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list. It's in the top 5% of all schools reviewed in that analysis.

The student loan default rate at Boston College is lower than is typical, just 0.5% of students default in three years. There are approximately 6,590 students at Boston College that take at least one class online. About 1,916 of the students at Boston College are attending part time.

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9

Our rankings recognize Johns Hopkins University as the #9 school in this year's rankings. Located in the city of Baltimore, Johns Hopkins is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population. On top of its placing in our non-traditional rankings, Johns Hopkins also did well on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list. It's in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis.

About 0.6% of Johns Hopkins students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. 14,847 of Johns Hopkins students are exclusively distance learners. 14,794 students are part time.

Read full report on Political Science & Government at Johns Hopkins University

10
Villanova crest
Villanova University
Villanova, PA

Villanova University comes in at #10 in this year's ranking. Villanova is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Villanova. On top of its placing in our non-traditional rankings, Villanova also did well on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list. It's in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis.

About 0.3% of Villanova students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. 1,551 of Villanova students are exclusively distance learners. There are roughly 2,678 part time students in attendance at Villanova.

Read full report on Political Science & Government at Villanova University

11

George Mason University comes in at #11 in this year's ranking. Located in the suburb of Fairfax, GMU is a public college with a fairly large student population.

The school has a low student loan default rate of 0.8%. Approximately 21,490 students take at least one class online at GMU. 12,712 students are part time.

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12
The American University crest
American University
Washington, DC

American University comes in at #12 in this year's ranking. The American University is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Washington. On top of its placing in our non-traditional rankings, The American University also did well on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list. It's in the top 5% of all schools reviewed in that analysis.

The school has a low student loan default rate of 0.9%. There are approximately 5,283 students at The American University that take at least one class online. There are roughly 3,612 part time students in attendance at The American University.

Read full report on Political Science & Government at American University

13
Emory crest
Emory University
Atlanta, GA

Our rankings recognize Emory University as the #13 school in this year's rankings. Emory is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Atlanta. On top of its placing in our non-traditional rankings, Emory also did well on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list. It's in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis.

The student loan default rate at Emory is lower than is typical, just 0.4% of students default in three years. Approximately 6,651 students take at least one class online at Emory. 1,395 of Emory students are attending part time.

Read full report on Political Science & Government at Emory University

14

Our rankings recognize University of Maryland - College Park as the #14 school in this year's rankings. Located in the suburb of College Park, UMCP is a public college with a very large student population. UMCP also claimed a spot on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list. It's in the top 10% of all schools in this category.

About 0.7% of UMCP students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. There are approximately 11,700 students at UMCP that take at least one class online. 4,841 of UMCP students are attending part time.

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15

Our rankings recognize University of California - Los Angeles as the #15 school in this year's rankings. UCLA is a very large public school located in the large city of Los Angeles. On top of its placing in our non-traditional rankings, UCLA also did well on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list. It's in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis.

The school has a low student loan default rate of 0.7%. There are approximately 25,859 students at UCLA that take at least one class online. 2,161 students are part time.

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16

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor earned the #16 spot in our 2021 rankings. U-M is a fairly large public school located in the city of Ann Arbor. On top of its placing in our non-traditional rankings, U-M also did well on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list. It's in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis.

About 0.2% of U-M students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. Approximately 15,737 students take at least one class online at U-M. About 3,568 of the students at U-M are attending part time.

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17

Texas A&M University - College Station earned the #17 spot in our 2021 rankings. Located in the city of College Station, Texas A&M College Station is a public college with a very large student population. On top of its placing in our non-traditional rankings, Texas A&M College Station also did well on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list. It's in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in that analysis.

About 0.6% of Texas A&M College Station students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. There are approximately 24,343 students at Texas A&M College Station that take at least one class online. 9,943 students are part time.

Read full report on Political Science & Government at Texas A&M University - College Station

18

The #18 spot in this year's ranking belongs to University of Virginia - Main Campus. Located in the small suburb of Charlottesville, University of Virginia is a public school with a fairly large student population. On top of its placing in our non-traditional rankings, University of Virginia also did well on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list. It's in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in that analysis.

About 0.5% of University of Virginia students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. There are approximately 4,175 students at University of Virginia that take at least one class online. 2,758 of University of Virginia students are attending part time.

Full Political Science & Government at University of Virginia - Main Campus Report

19
Florida State crest
Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL

The #19 spot in this year's ranking belongs to Florida State University. Located in the medium-sized city of Tallahassee, Florida State is a public college with a very large student population. On top of its placing in our non-traditional rankings, Florida State also did well on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list. It's in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in that analysis.

About 1.0% of Florida State students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. Approximately 20,172 students take at least one class online at Florida State. There are roughly 8,311 part time students in attendance at Florida State.

Read full report on Political Science & Government at Florida State University

20

The #20 spot in this year's ranking belongs to American Public University System. Located in the town of Charles Town, American Military University is a private for-profit college with a very large student population.

About 2.4% of American Military University students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. All 48,298 students take classes exclusively online at American Military University. 45,236 of American Military University students are attending part time.

Full Political Science & Government at American Public University System Report

21

University of Wisconsin - Madison earned the #21 spot in our 2021 rankings. UW - Madison is a fairly large public school located in the city of Madison. UW - Madison excels when it comes to major quality. It's ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list.

The school has a low student loan default rate of 0.2%. Approximately 11,375 students take at least one class online at UW - Madison. About 4,683 of the students at UW - Madison are attending part time.

Read full report on Political Science & Government at University of Wisconsin - Madison

22

Our rankings recognize The University of Texas at Austin as the #22 school in this year's rankings. UT Austin is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Austin. UT Austin excels when it comes to major quality. It's ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list.

About 0.8% of UT Austin students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. There are approximately 23,198 students at UT Austin that take at least one class online. 3,479 of UT Austin students are attending part time.

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23
UF crest
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL

University of Florida landed the #23 spot in our 2021 best political science & government schools for non-traditional students. UF is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Gainesville. As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UF also is in the top 20% of our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government ranking.

About 0.9% of UF students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. There are approximately 22,865 students at UF that take at least one class online. 11,205 of UF students are attending part time.

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24

Rutgers University - New Brunswick earned the #24 spot in our 2021 rankings. Located in the small city of New Brunswick, Rutgers New Brunswick is a public college with a fairly large student population. Rutgers New Brunswick excels when it comes to major quality. It's ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list.

About 1.1% of Rutgers New Brunswick students default on their loans in three years, which is lower than average. Approximately 30,054 students take at least one class online at Rutgers New Brunswick. About 7,559 of the students at Rutgers New Brunswick are attending part time.

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25

The #25 spot in this year's ranking belongs to University of Minnesota - Twin Cities. Located in the city of Minneapolis, UMN Twin Cities is a public college with a fairly large student population. In addition to being on our bet for non-traditional students list, UMN Twin Cities is in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Colleges for Political Science & Government list.

The student loan default rate at UMN Twin Cities is lower than is typical, just 0.6% of students default in three years. There are approximately 21,237 students at UMN Twin Cities that take at least one class online. 13,655 students are part time.

Read full report on Political Science & Government at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Rest of the Top Schools for Best Political Science & Government Colleges for Non-Traditional Students

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27
28
29
Syracuse crest
Syracuse University
Syracuse, NY
30
31
32

33

34
U of U crest
University of Utah
Salt Lake City, UT
35
JMU crest
James Madison University
Harrisonburg, VA
36
37
38
Michigan State crest
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI
39
Vanderbilt crest
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN
40
Iowa crest
University of Iowa
Iowa City, IA
41

42

43

Honorable Mentions

Here are some additional great schools for non-traditional students studying Political Science that almost earned our Best Political Science & Government Colleges for Non-Traditional Students award.

Rank College Location
44 Boston University Boston, MA
45 Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA
46 William & Mary Williamsburg, VA
47 University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA
48 University of California - San Diego La Jolla, CA
49 University of California - Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA
50 University of California - Irvine Irvine, CA
51 California State University - Sacramento Sacramento, CA
52 University of Colorado Boulder Boulder, CO
53 University of Arizona Tucson, AZ
54 San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA
55 Arizona State University - Tempe Tempe, AZ
56 Marquette University Milwaukee, WI
57 University of Central Florida Orlando, FL

Political Science & Government by Region

View the best for non-traditional students Political Science & Government schools in a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Other U.S. Territories
Great Lakes

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

Notes and References

Footnotes

*Avg Cost is for the top 25 schools only.

References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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