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Thank you for your interest in the Foreign Policy Association's Top Schools page. This part of our website has been recently updated and we invite you to visit our new Top Schools webpage.

The information below mirrors the current page as of Fall 2008, but all further updates will be featured on the new Top Schools webpage.

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Resources for Masters Programs in International Relations

U.S. News Review of the Best American University Masters Degree Programs in International Politics

International Relations Graduate Programs in Europe

Association of Professional Schools of International Affairs (APSIA) Member Schools

Graduate School Standardized Testing

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U.S. Master Programs in International Relations

American University School of International Service

The School of International Service is the largest school of International Affairs in the United States. The School was founded 50 years ago on the timeless principle of engaging its students and faculty in international public service through an interdisciplinary approach to the study of international relations that values human rights and social justice. The School has over 60 full time faculty and students from over 135 countries and its curriculum draws from its eight distinctive fields of study including comparative and regional studies, global environmental politics, international communication, international development, international economic relations, international peace and conflict resolution, international politics and United States foreign policy.

Harvard University

The Kennedy School of Government's newest degree program, the MPA in International Development (MPA/ID), is designed to prepare the next generation of leaders in international development. This two-year program combines depth in economics training with a multi-disciplinary approach to solving the most critical problems facing the world today. The MPA/ID curriculum is built around a specifically designed set of core courses in advanced microeconomics and macroeconomics, quantitative methods, history and theory of development, governance, management, and law, with an emphasis on policy and practice. For exceptional, motivated people from all over the world, the program will deepen and expand analytic skills through intensive coursework and offer real-world experience through summer internships in international settings.

New York University's Center for Global Affairs

The Center for Global Affairs at NYU's School of Continuing and Professional Studies offers a Master of Science in Global Affairs degree, as well as a Certificate in Global Affairs.

Johns Hopkins University

SAIS, a division of The Johns Hopkins University located in Washington, D.C., is one of the nation's leading graduate schools devoted to the study of international relations. At SAIS, the wisdom of universities, business, and labor merge with the knowledge and expertise of those currently engaged in government, foreign affairs and international economic practice.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Political Science was formally established in 1955, within what was then the Department of Economics and Social Science, as part of a broad effort to develop research and training at MIT in the social sciences. The nucleus of a Political Science faculty had already been formed within the Center for International Studies, a pioneering, interdisciplinary research center working on American foreign policy and security issues, economic and political development in the Third World, Communist societies, and international communication.

Princeton's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs was founded at Princeton in 1930. The dual focus on international and domestic public affairs has been a marked feature of the school from its earliest years. M.P.A. students spend part of their first year acquiring core skills for public affairs careers; political and analysis that will help them formulate public policy and manage public programs; quantitative analysis that is widely used in creating and evaluating public programs; and economic analysis that has broad applications to public policy, including national fiscal and monetary policy, international trade and finance, and economic development in the Third World. First-year students also begin to work in a chosen field of specialization, selecting from the fields of international relations, development studies, domestic policy, and economics and public policy.

Stanford University

The field of International Relations at Stanford includes the study of ethnic conflict, international political economy, and international politics. The department only reviews applications for students that will be entering our program during the fall quarter. The Master's program requires three quarters of full registration. Master's candidates must take 45 units of course work, and 25 of those units must be in graduate seminars. There is no examination or thesis requirement.

Tufts University

The Fletcher School opened in 1933 and is the oldest exclusively graduate school of international affairs in the United States. The primary aim of The Fletcher School is the same as it was when conceived by its founders: to offer a broad program of professional education in international relations to a select group of graduate students committed to maintaining the stability and prosperity of a complex, challenging, and increasingly global society.

University of California - San Diego

The University of California's Graduate School of International Relations and Pacific Studies (IR/PS) is unique among U.S. graduate schools in its focus on the economic, political, and business relations of the Pacific Rim, encompassing both the Americas and the Asia-Pacific region. IR/PS is recognized internationally for its excellence and attracts students from every region of the Pacific Rim and beyond.

University of Colorado - Boulder

The M.A. in Political Science (Public Policy) at the University of Colorado at Boulder is a two- year program of professional education for careers in policy analysis. Students are trained to integrate and apply the best available knowledge to policy decisions and to participate responsibly and effectively in the policy process.

Yale University

The International and Development Economics Program (IDE), which is administered by the Center on behalf of Yale's Economics Department, offers a one-year course of study leading to the Master of Arts degree. The program is designed to provide rigorous training to students whose careers are or will be in the area of economic development or international economics. The curriculum of the program is designed to help students develop a solid core of analytical skills that will be of value to them in subsequent professional work. Many students entering the program are early career professionals in the public or private sectors in developing countries, and graduates of the program serve in government ministries, planning agencies, central banks, academic institutions, private firms, and international agencies.

Duke University

The Terry Sanford Institute of Public Policy offers two new specializations within the Master of Public Policy (MPP) degree program - one in Journalism and Policy Analysis and the other in International Development Policy. These specializations provide a formal structure for students in the MPP program to take full advantage of the exceptional resources within the DeWitt Wallace Center for Communications and Journalism and the Center for International Development Research.

Duke Center for International Development

The Program in International Development Policy (PIDP) at Duke University is designed for mid-career professionals who are interested in a graduate-level program and who are likely to dedicate their careers to policy making and public service in developing countries and countries in transition. As part of the mission of the Duke Center for International Development (DCID), the PIDP provides interdisciplinary training in policy analysis on issues related to long-term social and economic development.

University of California - Berkeley

University of California Berkeley Masters in Public Policy embraces the realms of both domestic and international policy. The School prepares students for careers including policy analysis, program evaluation, management and planning. The Goldman School of Public Policy (GSPP) graduates enjoy an outstanding rate of employment and career advancement, working in government, in the private and nonprofit sectors, in research organizations, and as consultants. The heart of GSPP is its two-year Master of Public Policy (MPP) program, with a core curriculum emphasizing practical and applied dimensions of policymaking.

University of California - Los Angeles

Students take three four-unit courses per quarter for a total of 72 units, including nine core courses, four concentration courses, two electives, and a three-quarter seminar in applied policy analysis. With the approval of their faculty adviser and chair, students may also take a maximum of two 596 courses (8 units total) which may apply toward the entire graduate course requirement for the degree. A field internship is also required, generally between the first and second years.

University of Chicago

The Irving B. Harris Graduate School of Public Policy Studies offers a two-year program of professional study leading to the master of public policy (M.P.P.) degree. There are four components of the master's program curriculum which include: development of fundamental skills in policy analysis through a comprehensive core of analytical courses; focus in a substantive field of public policy through specialized courses in particular areas of policy study; ancillary skill training, through which students acquire the proficiencies necessary for professional positions in public policy and administration; leadership training and an emphasis on the practical application of academic training to real policy analysis.

University of Indiana - Bloomington

The curriculum provides a general framework within each student, in consultation with a faculty advisory committee, designs a course of study unique to the student's interests. In addition to substantive course work, the department offers courses to prepare students to teach. In most cases, the department incorporates an opportunity to teach, both with supervision and independently.

University of Michigan

This degree program is designed for students wanting to apply the theory and methodology of economics to the analysis of policy problems. It is not an intermediate step to the Ph.D.

University of Denver

If you're interested in providing global health leadership in International Affairs, the Graduate School of International Studies at the University of Denver may very well be the place for you. At GSIS, we're dedicated to making global health an every day concern of International Affairs. Through teaching, research, and practice, we provide our students and community partners with the knowledge and analytical tools to make sustainable health improvements the world over.

Syracuse University

The Maxwell School offers three professional degrees: the master of public administration; the master of arts in international relations; and the M.P.A./M.A.-I.R., pursued as a joint degree.

New York University

The Department of Politics offers six fields of study: Political Theory, Political Methodology, American Government and Politics, Comparative Politics, Political Economy, and International Relations. In addition, we offer a concentration in International Business/International Politics in conjunction with the Stern School of Business (see the Special Master's Programs section). In each field, we offer a core course that serves as a graduate introduction to theories, concepts, and debates in the respective field.

Rice University

The political science department has no M.A. program as such and students seeking only a master's degree will typically not be admitted. Students admitted to the Ph.D. program may seek an M.A. as an interim step in their studies.

Ohio State University

Graduate courses at Ohio State meet for ten weeks and students take three courses each quarter. Course enrollments average about 10 to 12 students and virtually all courses are conducted in a seminar format where open discussion and interaction are encouraged.

Pennsylvania State University - University Park

Penn State's M.A. and Ph.D. programs offer rigorous training in the subfields of American Politics, Comparative Politics, International Relations, Political Theory, and Political Methodology. Penn State is also one of only a few programs nationally to offer a dual-degree in Political Science and Women's Studies. Details of these fields, and several cross-cutting subfields, are available under the "Areas of Study" section.

University of Minnesota – Twin Cities

Most students admitted to the Ph.D. graduate program expect to pursue scholarly careers in college teaching and research. The Ph.D. curriculum begins in the Fall semester of the academic year. We do not permit new students to begin the Ph.D. program at other times

George Washington University

The Elliott School of International Affairs at The George Washington University is one of America's leading professional schools of international affairs. Our world-renowned faculty provides students, the policy community and the public with in-depth analysis of international economic, scientific, and political issues and the historical and cultural factors shaping them. The Elliott School prepares students for an extensive range of international affairs careers in the business, nonprofit and governmental sectors. Our alumni can be found in leading decision-making positions all over the world.

Georgetown University

The Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service (SFS) is the oldest school of international affairs in the United States and the largest of its type in the world. In 1919, Edmund A. Walsh, S.J., founded the School to provide an education, "particularly devoted to preparation for foreign service in public or private interests." The Washington environment is central to the School's curriculum and co-curricular activities.

Cornell University

Cornell University Master of Professional Studies with an emphasis in International Development embraces the philosophy that successful development administrators require a combination of skills. In addition to knowledge of the substantive areas for which they are responsible, practitioners need the analytical tools by which such knowledge is transformed into action.

Columbia University

The Masters in International Affairs (MIA) degree requirements include completion of the Core Curriculum, and either a Functional or a Regional Concentration. A total of 54 points is required to complete the MIA degree. To draw on the resources of Columbia University and enable students to pursue studies in related fields, SIPA, along with other professional schools at the University, offers a number of combined degree programs. Each program leads to the award of two professional degrees. Under the joint degree arrangements, students can earn the two degrees in less time than if the two degrees were pursued separately. Candidates must apply and be admitted to each school separately; admission to one school has no bearing on the decision made by the other.