Ohio State’s political science department is in Ivy League company, according to a recent study.
The study ranked OSU’s department of political science fourth best in the world; only Columbia, Harvard and Stanford universities received better marks.
“We’ve been in the top 20 nationwide for a long time,” said Paul Beck, chairman of the Department of Political Science. “The department has grown stronger and stronger.”
Simon Hix of the London School of Economics and Political Science conducted the study. He examined articles published by members of each university’s political science department from 63 of the world’s leading political science journals.
Beck said the ranking was especially impressive because other studies, such as ones by U.S. News and World Reports, often use a reputation system to rank universities. Beck called it the “institutional halo” effect. Hix used numerical means and took many variables into his study, including the reputation of the political science journals and number of faculty in each university’s department.
“The study was objective, and as far as I know, he has no ties here (to the university). He was an unbiased source from another country,” said Randall Ripley, dean of the college of social and behavioral sciences and former chair of the political science department.
OSU faculty members cited many reasons for the department’s success.
“We have a balance of teaching, research and service to the OSU and political science communities,” said Jan Box-Steffensmeier, professor of political science.
Box-Steffensmeier said the department’s faculty and students gain experience through activities on the national scale: Interviews with national public and working with the New York legislature are two examples.
Beck said the department is often quoted in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and other leading news sources because of its experience in international affairs – the department has experts on the Middle East, Asia, developing countries and elsewhere.
“Any time an issue hits the media, people want to hear from scholars from that area,” Beck said.
The department also is heavily involved with the local Columbus community, giving community talks on political issues and working with The Columbus Dispatch, Beck said.
Ripley, Box-Steffensmeir and Beck said the key ingredient to continued departmental success is the quality of teachers being hired.
“The important variable is talent, and these are really talented people,” Ripley said.
Ripley also said the department’s collegial atmosphere and spirit have helped propel it to great success.
“The department is well-ranked, so we must be doing things right. I can say I’m a happy worker,” Box-Steffensmeier said.
