BA + MA Program in Political Science

Undergraduate political science and international affairs majors at the University of Cincinnati have the opportunity to earn the MA in Political Science as a natural extension of their undergraduate work. The Master's degree could enhance job prospects in government service, admission to law school, and recruitment to public policy positions in government or private industry. Students with the Master's degree enter civil service positions at a significantly higher grade level than those with only a bachelor's degree.

The BA + MA program (sometimes referred to as a "4+1" program) allows students who have elective hours in their senior year to begin taking graduate classes at that time. After earning the BA degree degree and completing the admission requirements for the MA program, students will be formally admitted to the Graduate School and continue their graduate coursework. Students who are able to complete two to three graduate courses in their senior year should be able to complete their Master's degree in one additional year. Note that undergraduate students may only enroll for a maximum of 10 graduate credits during their undergraduate studies.

The admissions process involves two steps::

1) Students may apply for the program at any time during the junior year. If accepted, they begin taking courses for graduate credit with permission of the graduate director.

2) During the senior year, students apply to the MA program via the Graduate School's online application system. After completing all requirements for the bachelor's degree and the MA program application, students will be admitted to the Graduate School.

When taking graduate courses in the senior year, students will be charged undergraduate tuition for a full-time course load. After being formally admitted to the Graduate School, students in the BA+MA program will be charged graduate tuition for their coursework but will receive a tuition scholarship equal to 25% of graduate tuition for two semesters of full-time graduate study.

To apply for acceptance into the BA + MA program, students should submit the application form along with the required documents to the School of Public and International Affairs in Clifton Court Hall, Room 5114A.

Political Science or International Affairs Majors

• Junior year status as a political science major
• Completion of POL 3000 (before Fall 2016) or POL 1001 and POL 3001C (after Fall 2016) with "B" or better
• Overall GPA of 3.0
• Political Science GPA of 3.33 (Recommended)
• Unofficial transcript (degree audit is acceptable)
  
• One letter of recommendation from a faculty member
• Submission of application form by May 1 of the junior year (waived with permission of Graduate Program Director)

Majors other than Political Science or International Affairs may also apply

• Junior year status for students
• Overall GPA requirement of 3.0 and major GPA of 3.33
• Unofficial Transcript (degree audit is acceptable)
  
• Two letters of recommendation from faculty
• Completion of Political Science 3000 or equivalent methodology course(s) in their major

Requirements for Formal Admission to the MA program

• Confirmation of the BA degree
• Submission of GRE scores to the School of Public and International Affairs
• Completion of the Graduate School on-line application form including the Statement of Purpose

Requirements of the MA program

Students in the BA + MA program must meet all the program requirements to earn the Master's degree including 30 credits of graduate work. See the programs's MA requirements page for details.