How to become a political scientist

Official title: Political scientist

Also called: Political philosopher, Political science researcher, Ÿ Political philosopher, Ÿ Political science researcher

Political scientist conducts research into the origin, development, operation and interrelationships of political institutions and structures. He/she studies various phenomena of political behaviour and develops political theories around the phenomena. He/she conducts research into political philosophy and systematic theory, governmental institutions, public laws and administration, international laws and relations and other aspects of politics. He/she also analyses, synthesises and interprets results of studies and recommends programmes and policies to institutions and organisations.

Main tasks

• Consulting and comparing primary sources, such as original or contemporary records of past events, and secondary sources such as archaeological or anthropological findings
• Conducting research in such fields as political philosophy, or past and present theory and practice of political systems, institutions or behaviour
• Observing contemporary political institutions and opinions, collecting data on them from various sources, including interviews with government and political party officials and other relevant persons
• Presenting findings and conclusions for publication or use by government, political parties or other organisations and interested persons
• Preparing scholarly papers and reports

Ways in

• University: Science degrees, Offered by 4 universities in Singapore

Pay · Outlook · AI and this job

• Generative AI could change some tasks in this job, by the ILO's global estimate.

Related jobs

• Economist
• Sociologist/Anthropologist
• Social science researcher
• Minister of religion

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Questions people ask

How do I become a political scientist?

Ways in include: Science degrees.

Will AI change the work of a political scientist?

Generative AI could change some tasks in this job, by the ILO's global estimate.

Sources

• International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026

Updated 4 October 2026