Читать книгу The CQ Press Career Guide for Political Science Students - Wendy N. Whitman Cobb - Страница 17

Political science degrees can also lead to promising positions in business settings, particularly businesses that have interactions with governments, domestic or foreign. Think about what you learn as a political science major. Your knowledge of global affairs, international organizations, and international politics can assist major global corporations in navigating international hurdles when foreign governments must be considered or dealt with. Many large businesses and financial institutions undoubtedly have foreign dealings, particularly in countries with favorable tax laws.

One of the areas in which political science degrees can be useful is in global trade. The recent negotiation and signing of the Trans-Pacific Partnership is a work not only in politics but economics and trade. It takes quick thinking and a solid foundation of knowledge to be able to negotiate issues not only between countries but between businesses and states. If this line of work sounds interesting, you may wish to consider a minor in business or economics along with a political science major (or admittedly, vice versa).

Businesses often require expertise in the areas of administration and evaluation. An education in the fields of public policy and/or public administration can provide a potential employer with a way to understand their business from a cultural or institutional perspective. Experts in public administration not only help in the everyday functioning of the organization but provide advice on how organizations should be structured or reformed to make them more efficient and effective.

Policy evaluation, or the analyzing of outcomes and outputs of policy to determine if and how well they are solving the intended problems, can help industry understand their own policy initiatives and ensure that they are implemented in a sensible fashion. Any time a company institutes a new policy, the skills of a good evaluator can be used. Program and policy evaluators are often hired on by a company to perform in-house evaluations of their operations and provide policy advice. While evaluators can also form their own operation that can then be contracted to perform evaluations, they are equally as likely to be hired to be on staff.