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CIP 45.0901 Social Sciences

International Relations and Affairs

IPEDS Completions, US Department of Education · 2025

中文

Total graduates

10,943

2025 · 311 schools

International share

15.6%

1,705 international students

Bachelor's degrees

7,224

10.2% international

Master's degrees

3,615

26.2% international

Overview

International Relations and Affairs is a dynamic and interdisciplinary field that examines the interactions between nation-states, international organizations, non-governmental organizations, and other actors on the global stage. This field encompasses a wide range of topics, including diplomacy, conflict resolution, international security, global governance, human rights, and economic relations.

Students pursuing a degree in International Relations and Affairs typically study the historical, political, and economic contexts that shape international interactions. They engage with theories of international relations, such as realism, liberalism, and constructivism, to understand the motivations behind state behavior and foreign policy decisions. Additionally, students are encouraged to analyze current global issues, such as climate change, terrorism, and migration, from a multifaceted perspective.

The curriculum often includes courses in political science, economics, history, and law, providing a well-rounded education that equips students with critical thinking, analytical, and communication skills. Internships and study abroad programs are frequently encouraged, allowing students to gain practical experience and a deeper understanding of international dynamics.

Graduates of International Relations and Affairs programs can pursue diverse career paths, including positions in government, international organizations, non-profits, and the private sector. They may work as diplomats, policy analysts, international development specialists, or intelligence officers, contributing to the understanding and resolution of complex global challenges. Overall, this field is essential for fostering cooperation and peace in an increasingly interconnected world.

Graduates by year

Graduates by degree level (first and second majors)

AssociateBachelor'sMaster'sDoctoral

From 2002 to 2025, graduates grew 26% and the international share went from 16.1% to 15.6%.

International share (%)
Graduates by group, 2025
White
47.1%
Asian
8.0%
Hispanic
15.2%
Black
6.3%
Other
7.8%
Intl.
15.6%

Colleges that award this degree

In 2025, 311 schools awarded this degree as a first major. The table lists those in the 2027 U.S. News National or Liberal Arts rankings, plus the unranked schools with the most graduates.

RankSchoolStateGraduatesInternational
#3 Harvard University Massachusetts 54 15
#4 Yale University Connecticut 117 39
#5 Stanford University California 107 20
#7 University of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 36 2
#8 Duke University North Carolina 25 20
#9 University of Chicago Illinois 115 44
#9 Johns Hopkins University Maryland 744 268
#12 Columbia University in the City of New York New York 190 87
#14 Cornell University New York 16 10
#14 Carnegie Mellon University Pennsylvania 21 1
#16 Washington University in St Louis Missouri 3 0
#16 Brown University Rhode Island 110 11
#16 Rice University Texas 15 6
#23 Georgetown University D.C. 597 163
#23 Emory University Georgia 19 0
#26 University of Virginia-Main Campus Virginia 131 11
#27 University of Southern California California 135 12
#29 University of California-San Diego California 108 39
#29 Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus Georgia 41 4
#31 Tufts University Massachusetts 278 85
#31 New York University New York 186 61
#34 University of California-Davis California 115 12
#34 University of Florida Florida 1 0
#34 Boston University Massachusetts 234 48
#34 The University of Texas at Austin Texas 40 5
#34 University of Wisconsin-Madison Wisconsin 13 3
#42 Northeastern University Massachusetts 102 12
#44 Ohio State University-Main Campus Ohio 90 2
#44 Lehigh University Pennsylvania 26 1
#49 University of Maryland-College Park Maryland 26 0
#49 University of Rochester New York 14 2
#49 University of Washington-Seattle Campus Washington 11 5
#52 University of Georgia Georgia 200 5
#52 College of William and Mary Virginia 87 1
#52 Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Virginia 99 0
#55 University of Miami Florida 46 7
#55 The Pennsylvania State University Pennsylvania 97 10
#59 George Washington University D.C. 719 93
#59 Florida State University Florida 243 16
#59 Tulane University of Louisiana Louisiana 47 3
#59 University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Minnesota 39 0
#59 University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus Pennsylvania 31 7
#59 Texas A & M University-College Station Texas 79 2
#69 Michigan State University Michigan 76 1
#72 Syracuse University New York 145 41
#73 Indiana University-Bloomington Indiana 88 2
#73 Worcester Polytechnic Institute Massachusetts 1 0
#73 Rutgers University-Newark New Jersey 10 3
#73 North Carolina State University at Raleigh North Carolina 25 7
#80 University of California-Riverside California 41 0
#85 University of Delaware Delaware 28 1
#85 Fordham University New York 110 15
#90 Baylor University Texas 34 2
#90 Texas Christian University Texas 2 0
#90 Gonzaga University Washington 6 0
#90 Marquette University Wisconsin 18 0
#95 American University D.C. 663 47
#100 University of San Diego California 44 0
#100 Florida International University Florida 174 23
#100 University of South Florida-Main Campus Florida 62 11
#100 University of Iowa Iowa 23 0
#100 Saint Louis University Missouri 9 0
#100 Creighton University Nebraska 7 0
#109 Loyola Marymount University California 21 3
#109 Fairfield University Connecticut 9 3
#116 University of San Francisco California 40 1
#116 Brigham Young University-Provo Utah 26 2
#121 Arizona State University-Tempe Arizona 37 8
#121 University of Denver Colorado 139 11
#121 Loyola University Chicago Illinois 10 1
#121 SUNY at Albany New York 13 2
#121 University of South Carolina-Columbia South Carolina 24 1
#121 George Mason University Virginia 155 44
#133 Miami University-Oxford Ohio 37 5
#137 Saint Joseph's University - Philadelphia Pennsylvania 4 0
#137 University of Scranton Pennsylvania 4 0
#137 James Madison University Virginia 41 1
#148 Mercer University Georgia 8 1
#148 University of Kentucky Kentucky 25 4
#148 University of Rhode Island Rhode Island 24 0
#156 The University of Alabama Alabama 31 0
#156 Kansas State University Kansas 13 0
#156 University of St Thomas (MN) Minnesota 1 0
#156 Seton Hall University New Jersey 79 4
#156 CUNY--City College New York 43 4
#156 Duquesne University Pennsylvania 9 0
#169 DePaul University Illinois 48 4
#169 Butler University Indiana 12 0
#169 Simmons University Massachusetts 3 0
#179 University of Mississippi Mississippi 31 0
#179 University of Cincinnati-Main Campus Ohio 16 0
#186 California Lutheran University California 3 1
#186 University of Hawaii at Manoa Hawaii 5 0
#191 Samford University Alabama 6 0
#191 University of Arkansas Arkansas 30 6
#191 Drake University Iowa 16 2
#191 Adelphi University New York 4 1
#202 University of Massachusetts-Boston Massachusetts 24 4
#202 University of St. Thomas (TX) Texas 19 5
#208 University of La Verne California 1 0
#208 University of Idaho Idaho 18 0
#208 Belmont University Tennessee 2 0
#219 Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis Indiana 6 1
#219 University of Nevada-Reno Nevada 11 1
#227 San Francisco State University California 37 5
#227 The New School New York 24 12
#227 University of Texas-San Antonio Texas 36 1
#227 West Virginia University West Virginia 24 0
#236 University of North Florida Florida 14 3
#236 Stetson University Florida 2 0
#236 Bethel University Minnesota 1 0
#236 Kent State University at Kent Ohio 8 4
#236 Pacific University Oregon 3 0
#236 Portland State University Oregon 2 0
#250 Nova Southeastern University Florida 8 1
#250 La Salle University Pennsylvania 5 1
#262 University of Maine Maine 8 0
#262 Suffolk University Massachusetts 20 3
#262 Central Michigan University Michigan 9 0
#276 Northern Arizona University Arizona 23 1
#276 University of New Haven Connecticut 2 1
#276 University of Missouri--St. Louis Missouri 5 0
#276 Widener University Pennsylvania 1 0
#288 University of Hartford Connecticut 4 0
#288 University of Indianapolis Indiana 5 0
#288 University of Memphis Tennessee 8 0
#288 Texas State University Texas 19 1
#299 Azusa Pacific University California 2 1
#308 Oakland University Michigan 9 1
#308 Wilkes University Pennsylvania 2 1
#317 Morgan State University Maryland 1 0
#317 Indiana University of Pennsylvania-Main Campus Pennsylvania 2 0
#317 Marshall University West Virginia 2 0
#328 Georgia Southern University Georgia 20 0
#328 East Tennessee State University Tennessee 3 0
#328 Old Dominion University Virginia 20 4
#332 University of Baltimore Maryland 10 1
#332 Mercy University New York 2 0
#332 University of Lynchburg Virginia 6 0
#342 Cleveland State University Ohio 4 1
#342 Kennesaw State University Georgia 41 1
#365 Troy University Alabama 85 3
#365 Northern Kentucky University Kentucky 11 1
#365 Liberty University Virginia 71 2
#365 Eastern Washington University Washington 6 0
#382 Saint Leo University Florida 4 1
#382 Roosevelt University Illinois 1 0
LAC #3 Claremont McKenna College California 29 4
LAC #3 Pomona College California 16 4
LAC #9 The United States Military Academy at West Point New York 34 3
LAC #10 Wellesley College Massachusetts 11 1
LAC #12 Vassar College New York 19 0
LAC #14 Hamilton College New York 16 1
LAC #16 Carleton College Minnesota 37 4
LAC #19 Middlebury College Vermont 45 7
LAC #22 Colgate University New York 35 4
LAC #29 Bucknell University Pennsylvania 16 1
LAC #30 Lafayette College Pennsylvania 21 3
LAC #31 Denison University Ohio 9 2
LAC #34 Mount Holyoke College Massachusetts 15 3
LAC #38 Occidental College California 38 5
LAC #38 Scripps College California 2 0
LAC #38 Trinity University Texas 3 0
LAC #41 Skidmore College New York 18 2
LAC #47 Connecticut College Connecticut 10 2
LAC #49 Rhodes College Tennessee 18 0
LAC #54 Dickinson College Pennsylvania 9 0
LAC #57 Wheaton College (IL) Illinois 25 1
LAC #60 Hobart and William Smith Colleges New York 12 2
LAC #60 Reed College Oregon 7 0
LAC #62 Agnes Scott College Georgia 5 0
LAC #62 Lake Forest College Illinois 9 5
LAC #62 Muhlenberg College Pennsylvania 4 0
LAC #62 Virginia Military Institute Virginia 62 0
LAC #68 Wofford College South Carolina 12 1
LAC #68 Lawrence University Wisconsin 8 1
LAC #72 Saint Anselm College New Hampshire 3 0
LAC #74 Rollins College Florida 14 1
LAC #74 Principia College Illinois 1 1
LAC #74 Kalamazoo College Michigan 3 0
LAC #81 Wheaton College (MA) Massachusetts 5 1
LAC #83 Earlham College Indiana 1 1
LAC #85 Knox College Illinois 3 2
LAC #85 Drew University New Jersey 12 4
LAC #85 Allegheny College Pennsylvania 4 1
LAC #85 Susquehanna University Pennsylvania 4 0
LAC #91 College of Wooster Ohio 7 1
LAC #91 Juniata College Pennsylvania 2 0
LAC #91 Ursinus College Pennsylvania 3 0
LAC #91 Southwestern University Texas 1 0
LAC #97 Washington College Maryland 2 0
LAC #97 Lewis & Clark College Oregon 33 7
LAC #97 Austin College Texas 2 0
LAC #100 SUNY College at Geneseo New York 9 1
LAC #100 University of Puget Sound Washington 4 0
LAC #100 Beloit College Wisconsin 6 1
LAC #106 Transylvania University Kentucky 4 0
LAC #111 Hampden-Sydney College Virginia 10 1
LAC #111 Whitworth University Washington 1 0
LAC #116 Saint Michael's College Vermont 1 0
LAC #116 Roanoke College Virginia 7 0
LAC #119 Meredith College North Carolina 5 0
LAC #125 Goucher College Maryland 2 0
LAC #125 Emmanuel College Massachusetts 2 0
LAC #128 Cornell College Iowa 4 0
LAC #128 University of Mary Washington Virginia 14 0
LAC #132 Eckerd College Florida 3 0
LAC #132 Bennington College Vermont 2 0
LAC #146 Oglethorpe University Georgia 5 1
LAC #146 Gordon College Massachusetts 7 4
LAC #165 Bridgewater College Virginia 1 0
LAC #168 Cottey College Missouri 8 2
LAC #176 Virginia Wesleyan University Virginia 2 1
— Arizona State University Digital Immersion Arizona 74 0
— Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Prescott Arizona 61 0
— Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey California 52 12
— CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice New York 42 2
— Norwich University Vermont 38 0
— Pennsylvania State University-World Campus Pennsylvania 35 1
— New England College New Hampshire 32 5
— CUNY Bernard M Baruch College New York 27 6
— Webster University Missouri 20 6
— Grand Valley State University Michigan 19 2
— State University of New York at New Paltz New York 18 0
— Middle Tennessee State University Tennessee 14 2
— St. Mary's University Texas 14 2
— University of North Georgia Georgia 14 0
— Oral Roberts University Oklahoma 12 0
— Salve Regina University Rhode Island 12 1
— Towson University Maryland 11 0
— Western Kentucky University Kentucky 9 0
— Saint Cloud State University Minnesota 8 1
— Hollins University Virginia 8 0
— California State University-Chico California 7 1
— University of West Florida Florida 7 1
— Berry College Georgia 7 0
— Calvin University Michigan 7 0
— Minnesota State University-Mankato Minnesota 7 1
— The College of New Jersey New Jersey 7 1
— High Point University North Carolina 7 0
— Santa Barbara City College California 6 0
— Lindenwood University Missouri 6 0
— SIT Graduate Institute Vermont 6 1

Purple: international students are 25% or more of the school's graduates.

Related jobs and pay

OccupationUS employmentMean hourly wageMean annual wage
Managers, All Other 622,190 $73.99 $153,890
Political Science Teachers, Postsecondary 16,970 — $108,100
Political Scientists 5,540 $68.51 $142,510

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025.

Graduate counts: IPEDS Completions, US Department of Education, 2002–2025. Rankings: 2027 U.S. News.