The department administers up to five prizes with cash awards each year, all for senior theses. Outstanding theses may be eligible for the Samuel G. Lamport Prize (given in the area of international understanding) the Ross E. Cheit Award for Outstanding Thesis in American Politics; the Linda J. Cook Award for Outstanding Thesis in Comparative Politics; a prize for Outstanding Thesis in Political Theory; and the Alan Z. Zuckerman Award for Outstanding Political Science Thesis.

Nominations are submitted by faculty members to the DUS. Not all prizes are awarded every year.

As a Political Science concentrator, you are invited to apply for membership in Pi Sigma Alpha, the National Political Science Honor Society. The requirement for membership is a G.P.A. of 3.6 in a minimum of 8 graded POLS courses (or non-POLS courses taught by POLS faculty) going into your 8th semester (with the expectation that you will complete the required 10 for a Political Science concentration). An NC in any Political Science course automatically disqualifies you from applying.

Information for membership will be sent to all concentrators in the spring of your senior year. We will verify your eligibility and submit your name for membership to the National PSA. Recognition in PSA will be acknowledged at Commencement.

Pi Sigma Alpha website