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Political Scientists

$128.02K Median Salary 700 Job Openings (Annual Projection) 8.6% Job Growth

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About This Career

Study the origin, development, and operation of political systems. May study topics, such as public opinion, political decisionmaking, and ideology. May analyze the structure and operation of governments, as well as various political entities. May conduct public opinion surveys, analyze election results, or analyze public documents.

Reported Job Titles

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Skills You'll Need

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Abilities

Written Comprehension

Oral Comprehension

Oral Expression

Inductive Reasoning

Speech Clarity

Written Expression

Speech Recognition

Deductive Reasoning

Near Vision

Problem Sensitivity

Information Ordering

Category Flexibility

Fluency of Ideas

Originality

Mathematical Reasoning

Knowledge

Law and Government

English Language

Education and Training

History and Archeology

Mathematics

Communications and Media

Sociology and Anthropology

Geography

Philosophy and Theology

Computers and Electronics

Skills

Reading Comprehension

Active Learning

Active Listening

Speaking

Critical Thinking

Writing

Social Perceptiveness

Complex Problem Solving

Judgment and Decision Making

Instructing

Learning Strategies

Systems Evaluation

Coordination

Mathematics

Service Orientation

Systems Analysis

Technology Skills

Analytical or scientific software

Presentation software

Information retrieval or search software

Data base user interface and query software

Electronic mail software

Data base management system software

Object or component oriented development software

Spreadsheet software

Document management software

Enterprise resource planning ERP software

Desktop publishing software

Office suite software

Cloud-based data access and sharing software

Word processing software

Business intelligence and data analysis software

Web platform development software

Process mapping and design software

Tools

Audioconferencing systems

Notebook computers

Digital voice recorders

Digital video disk players or recorders

Overhead projectors

Pocket calculator

Desktop computers

Abilities

Written Comprehension: The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Oral Comprehension: The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Oral Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Inductive Reasoning: The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
Speech Clarity: The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
Written Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
Speech Recognition: The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
Deductive Reasoning: The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Near Vision: The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Problem Sensitivity: The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
Information Ordering: The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
Category Flexibility: The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
Fluency of Ideas: The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
Originality: The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.
Mathematical Reasoning: The ability to choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.

Knowledge

Law and Government: Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
English Language: Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Education and Training: Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
History and Archeology: Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Mathematics: Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Communications and Media: Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Sociology and Anthropology: Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Geography: Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
Philosophy and Theology: Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Computers and Electronics: Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Skills

Reading Comprehension: Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
Active Learning: Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
Writing: Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
Social Perceptiveness: Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Complex Problem Solving: Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
Judgment and Decision Making: Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Instructing: Teaching others how to do something.
Learning Strategies: Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
Systems Evaluation: Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
Coordination: Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Mathematics: Using mathematics to solve problems.
Service Orientation: Actively looking for ways to help people.
Systems Analysis: Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.

Technology Skills

Analytical or scientific software: Statistical analysis software; TapRooT
Presentation software: Microsoft PowerPoint
Information retrieval or search software: LexisNexis
Data base user interface and query software: Blackboard software; Database software; Microsoft Access; Yardi software
Electronic mail software: IBM Notes; Microsoft Exchange; Microsoft Outlook
Data base management system software: Apache Solr; Elasticsearch; MySQL
Object or component oriented development software: Oracle Java
Spreadsheet software: Microsoft Excel
Document management software: Adobe Systems Adobe Acrobat; Filing system software; Records management software; Transcription system software
Enterprise resource planning ERP software: Oracle JD Edwards EnterpriseOne; Oracle PeopleSoft; Oracle PeopleSoft Financials; SAP software
Desktop publishing software: Adobe Systems Adobe InDesign; Microsoft Publisher
Office suite software: Microsoft Office software
Cloud-based data access and sharing software: Dropbox; Google Drive; Microsoft SharePoint
Word processing software: 3M Post-it App; Evernote; Google Docs; Microsoft Word
Business intelligence and data analysis software: BrightEdge; Conductor Searchlight; IBM Digital Analytics; Searchmetrics Suite
Web platform development software: Microsoft Active Server Pages ASP
Process mapping and design software: Microsoft Visio

Tools

Audioconferencing systems:
Notebook computers: Laptop computers
Digital voice recorders: Digital audio recorders
Digital video disk players or recorders: Digital video disk DVD players
Overhead projectors: Overhead data projectors
Pocket calculator: Handheld calculators
Desktop computers:

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