About

Welcome to the School of Political Science and International Studies at UQ. We are internationally recognised for offering a unique combination of world-class research, teaching, community engagement, and student outcomes across political science, peace and conflict studies, international relations, and governance and public policy.

Our staff and post-graduate students are involved in influential cutting-edge research that delivers real-world impact. Our graduates obtain a wide range of positions across the government and public sectors, in non-government organisations and international organisations. The 2020 Graduate Outcomes Survey (QILT) found that 96% of our graduates were in full time employment three years after graduation.

The School is home to the Rotary Centre for International Studies in Peace and Conflict Resolution (one of only 6 such in the world), and the critically significant Asia Pacific Centre for the Responsibility to Protect which is jointly funded by the Australian Government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Our postgraduate offerings are coordinated through our Graduate Centre in Governance and International Affairs.

Our transformative scholarship combines research at the highest level (including numerous grants from the Australian Research Council) with award-winning teaching that moves between concepts, theory, methodology, data, analysis and application. Staff experience in the fields they research, along with the School’s close links with research partners, ensure our curriculum is relevant and responsive to current domestic and world issues and prepares students to address future challenges. Our graduates demonstrate independent thinking, critical analysis and problem-solving skills in addition to disciplinary knowledge across a wide range of topical issues, and our programs encourage undergraduate and postgraduate work placements to support immediate employability.