Average political science major salary

Updated September 14, 2023

$52,859

$24,00010%

$52,859Median

$115,00090%

What is the average political science major salary in the US?

Political science major graduates in America make, on average, $52,859 a year or $25.41 per hour.Those in the bottom 10 percent make under $24,000 a year, and the top 10 percent make over $115,000.Most jobs for political science majors are in professional companies and technology companies.The best states for high paying jobs for political science major graduates are New York, Connecticut, California, New Jersey, and Massachusetts.

Best paying cities

$65,077

$64,971

$64,597

Average political science salary by company

There is good job security for political science major graduates. However, some industries offer better pay and benefit packages than others.Most jobs for political science majors are in professional companies and professional companies.Microsoft and Apple are the highest paying companies.In addition, companies like Dell and Citi report highly competitive salaries for political science majors.

Average salary by company

Rank	Company	Zippia score	Average political science salary
1	1.Microsoft	4.8	$104,312
2	2.Apple	4.8	$93,617
3	3.Dell	4.8	$84,364
4	4.Citi	4.6	$83,086
5	5.AIG	4.5	$81,673
6	6.Law Office	4.1	$81,383
7	7.JPMorgan Chase & Co.	4.8	$79,345
8	8.Deloitte	4.7	$78,228
9	9.Morgan Stanley	4.6	$77,625
10	10.Merrill Lynch	4.9	$77,542
11	11.General Electric	4.8	$76,373
12	12.Thomson Reuters	4.6	$75,998
13	13.Pwc	4.8	$74,828
14	14.Accenture	4.7	$74,084
15	15.American Express	4.8	$73,362
16	16.Booz Allen Hamilton	4.9	$73,347
17	17.Oracle	4.6	$72,692
18	18.Pfizer	4.5	$71,714
19	19.HSBC Bank	4.9	$71,705
20	20.Northwestern Mutual	4.5	$67,480

Average political science major salary by city

Political science major graduates in the US make an average salary of $52,859 per year or $25.41 per hour.The top city when it comes to salaries for political science majors is San Francisco, CA at $65,077 per year.The average entry-level salary in San Francisco, CA is $30,000.New York, NY, Washington, DC, Hartford, CT, Jersey City, NJ, Boston, MA, and Providence, RI are the best cities for political science major graduates looking for a higher than average salary.New York, Connecticut, California, New Jersey, and Massachusetts are the states with the highest payscale for political science major graduates.Alabama, South Carolina, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Oklahoma are at the bottom for competitive pay.

Average salary by location

Rank	City	Average political science salary	Salary range
1	San Francisco, CA	$65,077	$32k $96k
2	New York, NY	$64,971	$32k $96k
3	Washington, DC	$64,597	$32k $96k
4	Hartford, CT	$62,135	$32k $96k
5	Jersey City, NJ	$61,779	$32k $96k
6	Boston, MA	$60,257	$32k $96k
7	Providence, RI	$57,606	$32k $96k
8	Seattle, WA	$57,231	$32k $96k
9	Arlington, VA	$55,769	$32k $96k
10	Baltimore, MD	$55,573	$32k $96k
11	Philadelphia, PA	$54,452	$32k $96k
12	Albany, OR	$52,763	$32k $96k
13	Chicago, IL	$52,335	$32k $96k
14	Detroit, MI	$51,277	$32k $96k
15	Las Vegas, NV	$51,259	$32k $96k
16	Portland, ME	$51,211	$32k $96k
17	Saint Paul, MN	$49,889	$32k $96k
18	Denver, CO	$48,978	$32k $96k
19	Raleigh, NC	$48,848	$32k $96k
20	Phoenix, AZ	$48,740	$32k $96k

Average political science major salary by state

The darker areas on the map show where political science majors earn the highest salaries across all 50 states.

Average salary

Political science major average salary by state

State	Average political science major salary	Average hourly rate
New York	$64,969	$31.24
Connecticut	$62,481	$30.04
California	$61,919	$29.77
New Jersey	$61,679	$29.65
Massachusetts	$60,317	$29.00
Rhode Island	$57,828	$27.80
Washington	$56,721	$27.27
Delaware	$55,600	$26.73
Maryland	$55,516	$26.69
Virginia	$54,338	$26.12
Pennsylvania	$54,193	$26.05
New Hampshire	$54,132	$26.02
Oregon	$52,509	$25.24
Illinois	$52,198	$25.10
Vermont	$52,052	$25.02
Nevada	$51,551	$24.78
Michigan	$51,145	$24.59
Alaska	$51,040	$24.54
Maine	$50,842	$24.44
Hawaii	$50,080	$24.08
Minnesota	$49,893	$23.99
Colorado	$49,069	$23.59
Arizona	$48,803	$23.46
Ohio	$48,399	$23.27
Wisconsin	$48,388	$23.26
North Dakota	$48,303	$23.22
North Carolina	$48,148	$23.15
Texas	$48,006	$23.08
West Virginia	$47,480	$22.83
Georgia	$46,288	$22.25
New Mexico	$45,196	$21.73
Idaho	$45,091	$21.68
Indiana	$44,954	$21.61
South Dakota	$44,501	$21.39
Tennessee	$44,193	$21.25
Kentucky	$44,186	$21.24
Florida	$44,162	$21.23
Iowa	$44,108	$21.21
Wyoming	$44,082	$21.19
Montana	$43,957	$21.13
Utah	$43,865	$21.09
Missouri	$43,779	$21.05
Nebraska	$43,296	$20.82
Kansas	$43,248	$20.79
Alabama	$42,990	$20.67
South Carolina	$42,784	$20.57
Louisiana	$42,682	$20.52
Mississippi	$41,912	$20.15
Oklahoma	$41,456	$19.93
Arkansas	$41,073	$19.75

Highest paying jobs for political science majors

Rank	Job title	Average salary	Open jobs
1	Vice President, Business Development	$165,159	188,137
2	Lawyer	$115,808	2,897
3	Attorney	$109,476	10,991
4	Data Scientist	$106,104	106,973
5	Software Engineer	$100,259	339,938
6	Management Consultant	$99,360	153,045
7	Policy Advisor	$98,220	39,659
8	Intelligence Officer	$93,740	64,410
9	Real Estate Agent	$91,787	41,399
10	Senior Analyst	$84,799	159,807
11	Risk Analyst	$81,483	71,284
12	Document Review Attorney	$81,181	9,393
13	Web Developer	$78,975	227,881
14	Intelligence Analyst	$77,752	21,390
15	Program Analyst	$75,039	156,716
16	Business Analyst	$74,430	170,514
17	Data Analyst	$74,342	167,520
18	Associate Consultant	$73,340	94,983
19	Analyst	$73,007	253,138
20	Producer	$72,201	10,610

Average political science major salary by industry

Wages for political science major graduates can differ based on the industry they work in.By looking at our data, we can see that professional companies, hospitality companies, and education companies pay political science major graduates well.Salaries for political science major graduates in professional companies average $42,826 annually, while hospitality companies and education companies pay $40,222 and $39,972, respectively.At $30,749, the average salary for political science majors in the retail industry is lower than other industries.

Average salary by industry

Rank	Industry	Average political science major salary	Range
1	Professional	$42,826	$25k $60k
2	Hospitality	$40,222	$25k $60k
3	Education	$39,972	$25k $60k
4	Government	$38,664	$25k $60k
5	Finance	$37,946	$25k $60k
6	Manufacturing	$36,780	$25k $60k
7	Health Care	$35,267	$25k $60k
8	Retail	$30,749	$25k $60k

Salary history for political science major graduates

This data shows the national average salary between 2011-2020 among Political Science major graduates.

Political science major salary by experience level

Average salary by experience level salaries by experience level

The salary for a political science major graduate can range from $25,628 to $86,060 depending on the amount of work experience that the person has. Data on how experience level affects salary is provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) as part of their National Compensation Survey, which is based on factors such as knowledge, complexity, contacts, and environment.

Experience level	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
Entry-level average salary by experience level	$25,600	$12.32
Mid-level average salary by experience level	$45,200	$21.73
Senior-level average salary by experience level	$86,100	$41.38

Salaries for related majors

Rank	Major	Average salary	Range
1	Economics	$71,876	$28k $103k
2	International Relations	$60,634	$28k $103k
3	Geography	$60,412	$28k $103k
4	Sociology And Anthropology	$57,070	$28k $103k
5	Urban Studies	$49,227	$28k $103k
6	Anthropology	$46,800	$28k $103k
7	Criminology	$46,597	$28k $103k
8	Social Sciences	$42,879	$28k $103k
9	Sociology	$40,376	$28k $103k