When you're looking for the best institutions for your subject, it's important to consider the standing of not only the institution as a whole, but also the specific department in which you wish to study or research. Although it's a matter of debate what makes the very best academic departments, there are some universally-recognised leaders in each discipline.

To help you find the best departments in Political Science and International Relations, we've compiled a list of the top twenty departments in Europe. Check back for another article on the top departments worldwide.

1. Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Oxford, United Kingdom
2. Department of Government, London School of Economics, United Kingdom
3. Department of Politics and International Studies, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom
4. School of International Relations, University of St. Andrew's, United Kingdom
5. Centre d’études et de recherches internationales, Sciences Po Paris, France
6. Politics and International Studies, University of Warwick, United Kingdom
7. Department of Political Science, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands
8. Department of Political Science, Leiden University, Netherlands
9. Politics and International Relations, University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom
10. Department of History and Political Science, University of Manchester, United Kingdom
11. Department of Political Science, University College London, United Kingdom
12. Department of Political Economy, King's College London, United Kingdom
13. School of Government & International Affairs, Durham University, United Kingdom
14. Politics and International Relations, Cardiff University, United Kingdom
15. School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies, University of Bristol, United Kingdom
16. Department of Political Science, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland
17. Humanities, Social and Political Sciences, ETH Zurich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology), Switzerland
18. Political and Social Sciences, Freie Universität Berlin, Germany
19. Department of Political Science and Government, Aarhus University, Denmark
20. Department of Politics, University of Sheffield, United Kingdom

Compiled from the QS World University Rankings, Shanghai Rankings, and Hix, S. (2004). A global ranking of political science departments. Political Studies Review, 2(3), 293-313.