The Department of Politics supports research and honors teaching that develop a critical understanding of national and international politics. Its distinguished faculty members seek to instill in their students a theoretical and practical appreciation of the ideas, institutions, and history that shape political life. The Department seeks to promote an awareness of the strengths and weaknesses of different methodologies so that students can evaluate and select the approaches most suited to exploring the research questions in which they are interested.

The Department comprises five subfields: American Politics, Comparative Politics, International Relations, Political Methodology, and Political Theory. In addition, the Department has a formal working group focused on Race, Ethnicity, and Gender, made up of scholars from across the traditional subfields.

RESPECT FOR THE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

The Department of Politics is committed to a learning environment that is respectful to all students and open to a full range of viewpoints.  Students with concerns about the conduct of an instructor within or outside the classroom are welcome to raise this concern, with or without a chosen faculty advisor, with the Department’s Director of Graduate Studies, its Director of Undergraduate Programs, and/or the Department Chair. Please see the Department Leadership page for contact information.

The aim is to create a safe and confidential meeting environment. But in cases that may involve a violation of the University’s policies on sexual or gender-based harassment, students should be aware of reporting procedures and requirements (set out under Federal Law and known in shorthand as Title IX). These policies can be found at this site: https://eocr.virginia.edu/appendixb.