When to apply

The deadline to apply for fall admission is April 1. To apply, you must submit an application to both the university (available on-line at www.csumentor.edu) and the department. Click on this link for a copy of the department application that you can print out and submit (it must be mailed in). If you have any questions, please contact Amelia Marquez at amarque4@csulb.edu (or) 562-985-4704). The prospective student should enter as degree objective Master of Arts in Political Science (Code POSCMA01).

Please keep in mind that the department prefers to admit students for the fall semester. Spring semester applicants should first consult with the graduate coordinator.

Already enrolled in another CSULB graduate program?

A graduate student in another program at CSULB who wishes to change his/her graduate degree objective to the M.A. in Political Science needs to reapply to CSULB as a political science graduate student.

Applying to CSULB from another university?

An applicant to the CSULB master's program in political science from another college or university should state the M.A. in Political Science as the degree objective on the Application for Admission. His or her work will first be evaluated by the University Admissions Office after official transcripts of all college-level study have been received. The student should also provide directly to the Department of Political Science three letters of recommendation and official transcripts with all college-level study. These should be sent directly to the department's graduate coordinator.

Determining posssible "deficiencies" in your previous coursework.

Students who have been accepted into the master's program may still be required to take additional courses in political science to remove any undergraduate deficiencies. A student will normally be permitted to take course work at the 600 level only after such deficiencies have been removed.

Course work deficiencies in political science occur when a student's undergraduate education falls short of the current requirements for an undergraduate major in political science at this university. These requirements are listed in the current CSULB Catalog . This additional course work is over and above that normally required for the M.A. degree. Students must receive grades of B or better in these courses to maintain enrollment in the program.

Prerequisite course work may also be required for students who have completed a B.A. with a major in political science at a foreign university. Foreign students should consult with the graduate coordinator about possible deficiencies.

All potential graduate students are responsible for consulting with the graduate coordinator to determine all such possible deficiencies in previous course work. While prerequisite courses taken to remove deficiencies cannot be used to satisfy the 30 unit minimum requirement of the graduate program, the grades received in such courses will be included when the student's overall grade point average is calculated.