By the time David Ramsey arrived at Baylor, his search for a doctoral program in political science had become exhausting. "I applied three times," the Kansas native says. "There simply wasn't a program that had what I was looking for."

David's third round of applications uncovered a brand-new program in the political science department at Baylor that offered students a degree grounded in political theory whose practical application extended into the subfields of international relations, comparative government, public policy and American government. "After a visit to campus and meetings with several professors in multiple departments, I decided that Baylor was definitely the place for me," he says.

American Constitutional Law

Now in his fourth year, he is researching for his dissertation, which focuses on constitutional law. "The thesis of the work is that the Roberts Court is seeking to revitalize a jurisprudence in which role of reason is at the heart of American constitutional law," he says. "My work heralds the rebirth of a respect for common law principles as an important corrective to the excesses of nineteenth and early twentieth century legal positivism."

One of David's favorite things about the program is the way he feels that Baylor is preparing him for his future vocation as an educator. "But in no way is this concern limited to the political science department," he says. "The development of SET by the Graduate School shows that the administration is in full support of a graduate education which encourages practical experience as well as academic competence."

The Community

In addition, he feels that the community of his graduate peers has enhanced his experience as a student and an individual. "There are groups and associations of all sorts springing up all the time among graduate students and particularly our department," he says. "The community is authentic, an outgrowth of the new community of graduate students developing here on Baylor's campus."

The timing in his Baylor Graduate School couldn't be more perfect. "Being at Baylor right now, when the aspiration of Baylor 2012 is fresh and real, there's a certain excitement that permeates everything about graduate study," David says. "Programs are growing, standards are rising and professors are rising to the challenge presented by their new role in preparing the next generations of academics and scholars."