Welcome to the Department of Political Science

For over half a century, the Department of Political Science at UC Santa Barbara has been home to top scholars engaged in cutting edge research. Housed in a world-class university widely known for its interdisciplinarity, the department is committed to rigorous quantitative and qualitative research, as well as to normative theory. 

In addition to its commitment to research, the department prides itself on first-rate teaching at the undergraduate and graduate levels.  Our research and teaching cover the traditional fields of International Relations, Comparative Politics, American Politics, Political Theory, and Research Methods. We are distinctive because of our additional emphasis on the Politics of Identity and Politics of the Environment.