The historical and institutional context in which political science operates in Spain is grounded in the institutionalization undergone during the 1980s in university departments along the country. The Madrid-based University of Complutense – with a degree in Political Science from 1944 − was joined by newly created departments of political science where political scientists were hired at Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona, UNED, and Universidad de Granada. This moment, a critical juncture for the discipline, broke from the previous concentration of studies in Madrid. The democratic transition from the 1980s marked a new turning point. Political science proceeded to grow rapidly during the 1980s and 1990s, but this growth has been limited, and has faced a number of particular challenges.

Today, change comes from three directions: the process of adaptation to the European Higher Education Area (EHEA); the necessity to apply for research funds in a networked manner − jointly with foreign universities and firms under the European Union framework; and the general impact of the austerity measures at the national level. Austerity measures come hand in hand with a deep economic crisis with strong impact on society from 2009, together with a political crisis.