The Political Science Department at the Hebrew University offers you the opportunity to join a gripping intellectual journey, integrating the interesting studies of Israeli society and politics with the international political system. The department is ranked internationally and domestically as the best Israeli department in this field, and is ranked within the top ten leading departments outside of the United States. For anyone seriously interested in this field, this is the place to study. Among the department's faculty members are the best researchers and lecturers in Israel, four of them recipients of the Israel Prize.
In the framework of the different study programs, the department will impart knowledge, depth and understanding to the wide term of “Politics” through focusing on different ideologies and their developments, institutions and their political purposes, as well as additional subjects which overlap with politics such as: bureaucracy, legislative law, culture and art.
Please chose from the following Programs:
Undergraduate Studies
*Please note that the vast majority of courses at the undergraduate level are taught in Hebrew*
A Political Science Degree from Hebrew University
The Department of Political Science is number one in the country, and the department’s faculty consists of graduates of the best universities in the world. Our curriculum integrates academic research and political involvement, supplementing classroom studies with fieldwork.
The study of Political Science develops a plethora of skills. To that end, our undergraduate program is designed with the aim of improving students’ critical thinking, analytical capacity, communication and research abilities, and ethical reasoning.
We provide our undergraduates with theoretical and research tools from an array of complementary fields. Sub-field course clusters include: education and social leadership; political psychology; Israeli and comparative studies; policy, regulation and public administration; and conflicts and violence; political theory, values and ideologies.
For additional information in Hebrew, click here.
For information regarding undergraduate studies in English, please see the Rothberg International School website.
Graduate Study Tracks
Graduate students in our department choose between a research track and a non-research track. MA students will complete a combination of required courses and elective courses. Students may also complete guided reading courses in an area of expertise of a departmental faculty member. Research track students are required to complete one seminar paper, while non-research track students will complete two seminar papers. In addition to their coursework, students in the research track are required to complete an MA thesis, consisting of original Political Science research. Students in the non-research track do not write an MA thesis.
Students may pursue a general MA in Political Science or they may choose one of the following areas of specialization: Program in Politics and Society in the Middle East; Political Thought; or Law, Government and Society. Certain specializations are available exclusively to research track students, while others are available to non-research track students; please see the descriptions below for further details
Admissions Requirements
Applicants to the non-research track must have completed an undergraduate degree with a final grade of at least 80. Applicants to the research track must have completed an undergraduate degree with a final grade of at least 87. Applicants with undergraduate degrees from departments other than Political Science are required to complete supplementary courses.
Students who wish to be admitted to the research track must also submit a "statement of intent," and qualified candidates will be invited to an interview. Research track students are asked to find a supervisor for their M.A. thesis from among the department’s academic faculty by the end of their second year.
Registration for the MA is open each spring.
Please contact the Graduate Students Administrator with any questions regarding the MA degree.
The Department of Political Science at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem Israel offers an innovative study program which integrates MA and PhD studies, fully funded by academic scholarships.
Link to information flier (Hebrew)
Link to information flier (Arabic)
About the program
The AGSP is a unique, five-year program that integrates master’s and doctoral studies in a format modeled after the Graduate Schools of leading universities worldwide. This highly selective program creates an intensive learning environment, is academically rigorous, and is internationally recognized. This program aims to instill students with the necessary skills for conducting research of the highest caliber, and to position its graduates at the forefront of their fields.
Undergraduate honors students from all academic institutions are invited to apply for the AGSP/TELEM based on their outstanding academic achievements. Applicants must demonstrate a wide range of intellectual capabilities, including flexibility, depth of thought, research ambition, and an ability to contribute to a creative and productive environment.
This academic program begins with a two-year MA component during which students participate in an array of advanced courses aimed at providing them with a systematic, in depth and critical understanding of the top research in the field. At the end of their second year of studies students write a final thesis based on an original piece of research they conduct. With the conclusion of this portion of the program, the students receive their MA in Political Science. The following three years of the program are dedicated to working toward a PhD dissertation. During this portion of the program students enrich their knowledge through additional courses and deepen their involvement in the world of research. Most are expected to present preliminary aspects of their research in academic forums in Israel and internationally.
This program, the first of its kind in Israel, strives to create financial security for its students, providing them with the resources to allow their academic work to be the main focus of their professional lives. To that end, students accepted to the program are awarded scholarships and are offered paid positions as Teaching Assistants and researchers at the university. Students accepted to this elite program are afforded the opportunity to work with leading Political Scientists in Israel and study alongside students of the highest caliber in the country. They will receive preferential treatment for endowments of grants and other institutional funding, including scholarships to participate in scientific conferences overseas.
Registration
Registration is completed through the university registration system.
Interested applicants should contact the Department Administrator and/or the Graduate Students Administrator.
The Department of Political Science’s Doctoral Program is designated for students who completed a research-track MA in Political Science with an average of 85 or above, who wrote a master’s thesis graded 85 or above, and who have a PhD supervisor who is a member of the department’s academic faculty.
The first stage in the acceptance process is securing an appropriate PhD supervisor. Interested students should assess our various faculty members’ areas of expertise, send potential supervisors an email with a copy of their resume, and set up an in-person meeting with any potential supervisor.
Students who meet the aforementioned requirements are invited to apply to our doctoral program after securing a PhD supervisor. The Authority for Research Students accepts applications bi-annually, in July and in January. The Authority for Research Students first ensures that applicants meet the minimum admissions requirements, and they will then transfer your application to the department’s doctoral committee.
Students who completed an MA in Political Science in the non-research track, who have earned a final average of 85 or above, and who have a PhD supervisor, may apply for the doctoral program. Applicants who fit this description will have to take supplementary courses and register as a student “completing research requirements.”
Students who completed their MA in a department other than Political Science, who earned a final average of 85 or above, who completed a thesis graded 85 or above, and who have a PhD supervisor from within the department, may also apply to the doctoral program under the status of “special research student”.
For more details regarding admissions requirements please see the Authority for Research Students web site.
Interested applicants should contact the Department administrator and/or the Graduate Students Administrator.
Prospective post-doc applicants, please see the Lady Davis Fellowship Trust website: http://ldft.huji.ac.il/about