<p>Hi! I'm a post-undergrad fellow interested in pursuing a career in politics--possibly as an elected official, possibly as a political writer, possibly both. I've been considering A) grad school, B) law school, or C) a joint degree (ex. Masters in Public Admin / Juris Doctorate) as possible options for me, education-wise. Does anyone here have some useful advice as far as what would be the best course of action for someone with my goals?</p>
<p>One suggestion: if you're interested in politics in a certain geographical area (city, county, state) then be sure to apply to the best local or regional law schools. You might even do that in preference to a major national school since connections into local politics can be well made there.</p>
<p>Wherever you can get connections, and connections with lots of money.</p>
<p>I see. Thanks for the advice. Do you have any suggestions relating specifically to the sort of education that would be most useful to me?</p>
<p>"Do you have any suggestions relating specifically to the sort of education that would be most useful to me?"</p>
<p>...a good one? :D</p>
<p>What's your current academic standing?</p>
<p>A common major that would help you run a country is "EPE", which stands for economics, political science, and ethics. Not sure how much that would help you get there.</p>
<p>"What's your current academic standing?"</p>
<p>Erm... good? :D Not sure what you mean. I graduated from undergrad at the age of 21 almost exactly a year ago with good grades, if that makes any difference.</p>
<p>Sorry - I had missed the "post-undergrad" comment.</p>
<p>It's pretty typical for a politician to have gone to law school, although there are many exceptions; there are two members of the US Senate who went to veterinary school at Colorado State. Law school's pretty common for pundits as well.</p>
<p>There are plenty of pundits (and plenty of politicians) with no more than a bachelor's degree.</p>
<p>There's no single clear-cut academic path into politics, or writing about politics. Further your education if you'd like, but you can enter politics by volunteering for political campaigns. You can also contact a political party, and tell them you're interested in volunteering.</p>
<p>People get jobs writing about politics by writing about politics. There are lots of places on the web where you can post things you're written (the "Fray" on Salon.com is one example).</p>
<p>Education doesn't count as much as simply connecting with people.</p>