Aim. Determination of the validity of the use of the term “national political science school” in relation to political science in Asia, Africa and Latin America; identification of the specifics of the research of non-Western political scientists in comparison with the works of their Western colleagues. Methodology. The criteria characterizing national scientific schools are determined, according to which the development of political science in different regions of the modern world is compared. The article uses the tools of political comparative studies, the method of analysis, synthesis, generalization. Results. The validity of the use of the category “non-Western political science” as a generalizing concept for the characteristics of political science schools in Asia, Africa and Latin America is established. A characteristic feature of these schools is the identification of the local political process peculiarities in comparison with Western countries. The explanation of the specifics are the concepts of the civilizational originality of the regions, formulated by thinkers of the XIX-XX centuries and developed by modern political scientists. Research implications. The results of the study contribute to the study of modern political science and serve as an illustration of the struggle in modern social science of global and national explanatory models.