Journal profile · POLITICAL SCIENCE

Journal of Political Science Education

ISSN 1551-2169 · eISSN 1551-2177 · Taylor & Francis

Journal of Political Science Education: CAS Zone 4 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1 (journal website); hybrid open access; APC charged, amount not published; median 217 days to acceptance (89 articles, last 24 months); acceptance rate 39% (journal website); 53 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.

Impact factor1From the journal's website, 2025 value
CAS zoneZone 4 · Sociology2025 upgraded edition, major category · 2026 Xinrui edition Zone 3 · Sociology
Review time217 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · 89 articles, last 24 months · Crossref
APCCharged, amount not publishedHybrid journal: charged only for open-access articles
Acceptance39%From the journal's website
Articles per year532025 · OpenAlex count

Scope

Aims, scope and focus

Journal of Political Science Education is published by Taylor & Francis and is in Zone 4 of Sociology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Innovative Teaching Methodologies in Social Sciences, Educator Training and Historical Pedagogy and Evaluation of Teaching Practices, together about 52.1% of its articles. Its main subfields are Education. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)

In keeping with the current trend in higher education to apply the methodological and research techniques developed in substantive fields to the scholarship of teaching and learning, the journal especially invites articles that provide systematic tests and empirical evidence to demonstrate that the pedagogical innovations or innovative teaching techniques described in the article actually work. The Journal of Political Science Education is political science’s leading journal on teaching and learning that publishes the highest quality scholarship and research on teaching and pedagogical issues in political science. We welcome submissions that represent the full range of questions, issues and approaches regarding political science education, including teaching-related issues, methods and techniques, learning/teaching activities and devices, educational assessment in political science, graduate education, and curriculum development. We particularly welcome articles that reflect the scholarship of teaching and learning, and/or works that are of practical use to the readers of the Journal of Political Science Education , and address topics in an empirical way, making use of the techniques that political scientists use in their own substantive research. While significant and detailed case studies are also welcome, the editors encourage authors to focus on how these can be transferred to other contexts or how they illustrate the practical application of theories and approaches. Format The editors of the Journal of Political Science Education invite you to submit the following types of articles: Articles should be between 4,000 and 8,000 words. Articles that are more practice-based, such as case studies and experiential reflections are likely to be reflected in a shorter word count of between 4,000 and 5,000 words. Pedagogical and Curricular Innovations: Submissions consider various pedagogical and curricular innovations within the classroom, department, or university. Topics might include innovations in assignments for students, methods of creating a more inclusive classroom, innovations in political science curriculum, among others. Civic Engagement and Experiential Learning: Submissions focus on issues related to community and civic engagement, including internships, and experiential learning within and beyond the classroom. Virtual and Technologically Enhanced Learning: Submissions address issues related to virtual and technologically enhanced learning, includ

From the journal's Aims & Scope

Research area (LetPub): POLITICAL SCIENCE

Editor-in-chief Charity Butcher KennesawPublisher website

Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United States 5, United Kingdom 1 (6 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·

Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate

  1. Innovative Teaching Methodologies in Social SciencesSocial Sciences30.2%
  2. Educator Training and Historical PedagogySocial Sciences14.1%
  3. Evaluation of Teaching PracticesSocial Sciences7.8%
  4. Political Science Research and EducationSocial Sciences6.8%
  5. Online and Blended LearningSocial Sciences4.9%
  6. Service-Learning and Community EngagementSocial Sciences4.6%
  7. Social Media and PoliticsSocial Sciences3.8%
  8. Innovations in Educational MethodsSocial Sciences2.6%

Rankings & indexing

CAS ranking and database indexing

CAS Journal Ranking

CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Sociology Zone 4
LevelCategoryZone
MajorSociologyZone 4
MinorPolitical ScienceZone 4

Top journal: noReview journal: no

CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Sociology Zone 3
LevelCategoryZone
MajorSociologyZone 3
MinorPolitical ScienceZone 4

Top journal: noReview journal: not marked

CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered

Not covered by this edition.

JCR / CiteScore quartiles on the journal's website

Publisher-reported: JCR figures are Clarivate's and CiteScore figures Scopus's to confirm; both are a different system from the CAS zones.Publisher website

Database indexing

ESCIScopusLetPub

International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub

Indexing the journal's website claims

ERICPublisher website

Other: OCLC, CSA Worldwide Political Science Abstracts, EBSCOhost Online Research Databases, Family Index Database, International Political Science Abstracts, Ulrichs Periodicals Directory

As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.

Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.

Metrics

Impact metrics and publication volume

Impact

Impact factor (publisher) 2025
1Publisher website ·
5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
1Publisher website ·
CiteScore 2026-06
1.5LetPub ·
CiteScore (publisher) 2025
1.5Publisher website ·
SJR 2026-06
0.35LetPub ·
SJR (publisher) 2025
0.35Publisher website ·
SNIP 2026-06
0.94LetPub ·
SNIP (publisher) 2025
0.94Publisher website ·
h-index
44OpenAlex ·
i10-index
302OpenAlex ·
2-year mean citedness
1.24OpenAlex ·
Self-citation rate
40%LetPub ·
Share of gold OA articles
11.03%LetPub ·

Volume

Articles per year
47LetPub ·
Downloads per year (publisher)
89,000Publisher website ·

Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,043 in total · the current year is incomplete

YearArticlesOpen accessCitations
202649713
2025531047
20246115142
2023497188
20227510266
2021424185

Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.

Review & acceptance

Review time and acceptance

Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with Crossref · to

217 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 113 days – 294 days

Acceptance to online
median 18 days (91 articles)
Submission to online
median 234 days
Sample
89 articles with submission and acceptance dates (118 in the window); the latest was accepted on

Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".

Other sources

Acceptance rate (publisher)
39%Publisher website ·
Submission to first decision
61 daysPublisher website ·
First decision after review
61 daysPublisher website ·
Acceptance to publication
31 daysPublisher website ·
Peer review
Double anonymous peer reviewPublisher website

Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.

Fees & open access

APC and open-access policy

Hybrid open accessLetPub

A subscription journal in which authors can pay to publish their article open access.

SourceAPCFee waiverLicenseObserved
Publisher websiteYes, amount not published——

A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.

The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.

Submission

Article types and submission policies (journal website)

Article types accepted7
  1. articlesArticles should be between 4,000 and 8,000 words.Length not stated
  2. books, teaching tools, and educational resourcesBooks, Teaching Tools, and Educational Resources: Submissions should help readers identify available new books, software and resources, and to improve classroom…Length not stated
  3. civic engagement and experiential learningCivic Engagement and Experiential Learning: Submissions focus on issues related to community and civic engagement, including internships, and experiential learn…Length not stated
  4. pedagogical and curricular innovationsPedagogical and Curricular Innovations: Submissions consider various pedagogical and curricular innovations within the classroom, department, or university.Length not stated
  5. simulations, role-play, and gamesSimulations, Role-Play, and Games: Submissions focus on the pedagogical use of simulations, role-play activities, and games in the classroom.Length not stated
  6. symposiumSymposium: a collection of articles that comprise a maximum length of 20,000 words that discuss important issues, ideas, and debates in the scholarship of teach…Length not stated
  7. virtual and technologically enhanced learningVirtual and Technologically Enhanced Learning: Submissions address issues related to virtual and technologically enhanced learning, including online and hybrid …Length not stated
Publisher website
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteOpen access, Peer review
Open access Open access

Journal of Political Science Education is a hybrid open access journal that is part of the Taylor & Francis Open Select publishing program, giving you the option to publish open access. Publishing open access means that your article will be free to access online immediately on publication, increasing the visibility, readership, and impact of your research. Why choose open access? Increase the disc…

Source ↗Publisher website ·
Peer review

All submissions are initially screened by an editor; original articles are then sent out for double-anonymous review by at least two independent referees. Model summary

All submissions to this journal are initally screened by an editor; original articles are then sent out for double-anonymous review by at least two independent referees.

Source ↗Publisher website ·

Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.

Profile

Publication details and official links

Publisher
Taylor & Francis
ISSN
1551-2169
Electronic ISSN
1551-2177
Latest issue on the website
Volume 22, Issue 3 (2026)
Official links

FAQ

Frequently asked questions about Journal of Political Science Education

What CAS zone is Journal of Political Science Education in?

In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Journal of Political Science Education is in Zone 4 of Sociology, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Political Science. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Sociology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.

What is the impact factor of Journal of Political Science Education?

The journal's website gives an impact factor of 1 (2025); this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 1.5, h-index 44.

How long does peer review take at Journal of Political Science Education?

Based on the dates recorded on 89 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 217 days (interquartile range 113–294 days); the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 39%. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.

Where are the editorial board members of Journal of Political Science Education based?

Of the 6 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (5) and United Kingdom (1). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.

Which databases index Journal of Political Science Education?

According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Journal of Political Science Education is indexed in ESCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists ERIC; that list has not been checked against each database.

Is Journal of Political Science Education open access, and what is the APC?

Journal of Political Science Education is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC charged, amount not published.

Sources and updates

The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-25). Last updated: .