Political Science (M.A.) and Double Degrees (M.A.)
Admission Requirements
The admission procedure is carried out in accordance with our admission regulations. In order to be accepted into our master degree program in political science, you must fulfil three criteria:
- You must have obtained at least 90 ECTS in political science classes in your first degree, in particular in the areas political theory, political systems and international relations.
- You must have obtained at least 9 ECTS in classes on political science methods (quantitative methods).
- You must have obtained a grade point average of 2.0 or better in your first degree. If you are an international student, please convert your grade with the Bavarian formular. Letter grading systems can be converted using this table. If your grade point average is below the required level, but is between 2.0 and 2.3, the admissions committee will consider your application based on the written assignment* you submitted with your application.
Please note: For courses where the relevance to political science is not evident from their titles, you may include a brief, official course description from your university.
Evaluation of Admission Requirements
All criteria fulfilled
You meet the admission requirements. Your application can be accepted.
Subject requirements fulfilled, GPA below 2.0
You meet the required ECTS criteria (at least 90 ECTS in political science and at least 9 ECTS in empirical political science research classes). As your GPA falls within the range of 2.0 to 2.3, your written assignment will be considered. Admission is possible if it meets the requirements.
At least two criteria not fulfilled
Your application will be rejected.
Please note: The Master's programs at our institute are highly competitive and the number of available places is limited. The high level of competition means that achieving all three criteria does not guarantee that an offer of admission will be made. Each application is carefully reviewed on an individual basis, considering the full range of documents submitted.
Application Deadlines and Timeline
Our application portal will open on February 15
Please note that application documents submitted outside the application period or not through the online application portal will not be considered.
- April 1 (23:59 CET): Double Master Degree with Stockholm University
- May 1 (23:59 CET): Double Master Degree with Universitat Pompeu Fabra
- May 1 (23:59 CET): Master Degree in Political Science at LMU Munich
Required Documents
- Curriculum vitae in tabular form;
- Copy of the leaving certificate from your first academic degree program with the details of all your examination results ("transcript of records") and the official grade point average. If you do not yet have the first degree leaving certificate at the time of your application, please include an up-to-date transcript of records with the seal and stamp of the responsible examination office and the grade point average of your studies thus far;
- Wirtten Assignment *A written assignment is classified as a subject-related thesis, essay, working paper or Bachelor's thesis, or other written examination, which has already been submitted during your Bachelor's degree programme. It must be approximately 15,000 characters long (including spaces) and have already been assessed as passed. For the M.A. Political Science at LMU, the written assignment may be submitted in either English or German.
However, for the Double Degree application, the written assignment must be submitted in English.
If you did not write a written assignment in English at your home university, you are required to translate it yourself and include both the English version and the original.
For all written assignments, you must also include an official confirmation from your programme coordinator stating:
1) in which module the written assignment was completed,
2) in which semester it was submitted,
3) and the grade with which it was passed. - Unceritifed copy of proof of English language skills. The minimum acceptable level is C1. Proof of English language skills may be provided in any form that demonstrates that you have attained the minimum acceptable level of C1 on the scale of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). Please refer to our list of accepted tests;
- Only for Double Masters Degree with Stockholm University: a letter of motivation in English stating your interest in the double master degree with Stockholm University (400 to 600 words).
- Only for Double Masters Degree with Universitat Pompeu Fabra: in addition to your application at LMU Munich, please note that you must submit a separate application to the University of Barcelona.
Additional Requirement for Foreign Applicants
- Foreign applicants, who have neither a German higher education entrance qualification, nor a first university degree taken in Germany, are required to submit an additional application to the International Office. The application to the International Office is only necessary after you have already been accepted for the Master's Degree by our Institute. Applying through the International Office is more of a formality for international students. The International Office does not have its own admission requirements and is not part of our selection committee. Deadline for the application to the International Office is July 15.