Chernivtsi National University is one of the oldest institutions of higher education in Ukraine, established in 1875 by the Decree of the Austrian Emperor Franz-Joseph. Department of Political Science and Public Administration was founded in 1998 at the Faculty of History, Yurii Fedkovych Chernivtsi State University (now – the Faculty of History, Political Science and International Relations). Firstly it acted as the Department of Political Science and Sociology, later (from 2003) as the Department of Political Science. From March 2006 till now it functions as the Department of Political Science and Public Administration. Its first head was professor Serhiy Troian, and since October 1999 the Department is headed by professor Anatoliy Kruglashov.
Since 2006, the Department provides training for MA students in “Public Service” in the area of “Public Administration".
Since 2010, the Department has established and developed two specializations for students, dtudying Political Science: "Political Processes and Management" and "European and Regional Integration."
The Department is constantly updating its curricula and training programs. For example, not long ago there were introduced new courses such as "Political Processes and Gender", "The Theory of Political Institutions", "Actual Problems of Ukraine-Russia Relations", "Institutions and political processes of the European Union", "Management of the Parties’ Activity", "Political Modeling" .
The Departments’ teaching staff publishes the results of individual and collective research work in scientific journals of Ukraine, Austria, Russia, Poland, Slovakia, Moldova, Canada, Romania, Lithuania, Belarus and other countries. Some of them were trained in foreign scientific and educational centers.
Department staff studies foreign policy, social, political, administrative and other actual problems of social development. Since 2001, the Department has been publishing a collection of scientific papers "Political and Social Studies" (specialized in political science). Also, the Department issues other publications, which are usually prepared on the results of international research and practical conferences, seminars and symposiums.
The Department had established a Center of European Studies, which over time was transformed into the Research Institute of European Integration and Regional Studies.