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Most Popular International Relations & Security Master's Degree Schools

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2023 Most Popular International Relations & Security Master's Degree Schools

115 Colleges
$56,002 Avg Salary

Finding the Best International Relations & National Security Master's Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, 5,010 people earned a degree or certificate in international relations and national security, making the major the #48 most popular in the United States.

It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Grad Degree Search has developed this Most Popular International Relations & Security Master's Degree Schools ranking. Our analysis looked at 115 schools in the United States to see which master's degree programs were the most popular for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the International Relations & National Security program at each school on the list.

The following schools top our list of the Most Popular International Relations & National Security Master's Degree Colleges.

#1

Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD

Our 2023 rankings named Johns Hopkins University the most popular school in the United States for international relations and national security students working on their master’s degree. Located in the city of Baltimore, Johns Hopkins is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

Women make up 47% of the international relations majors at the school.

Full International Relations & National Security at Johns Hopkins University Report

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means George Washington University is a great place for international relations and national security students working on their master’s degree. Located in the city of Washington, GWU is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Of the 381 students majoring in international relations at GWU, 49% are male and 51% are female.

Full International Relations & National Security at George Washington University Report

#3

Tufts University

Medford, MA

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Tufts University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Most Popular International Relations & Security Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large suburb of Medford, Tufts is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

Of the 311 students majoring in international relations at Tufts, 50% are male and 50% are female.

Full International Relations & National Security at Tufts University Report

#4

Georgetown University

Washington, DC

The in-demand master’s degree programs at Georgetown University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular international relations and national security schools in the United States. Located in the city of Washington, Georgetown is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

About 49% of the students majoring in international relations at the school are women while 51% are male.

Full International Relations & National Security at Georgetown University Report

#5

American University

Washington, DC

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means American University is a great place for international relations and national security students working on their master’s degree. The American University is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Washington.

Of the 279 students majoring in international relations at The American University, 41% are male and 59% are female.

Read full report on International Relations & National Security at American University

Naval Postgraduate School came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular International Relations & Security Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the midsize suburb of Monterey, Naval Postgraduate School is a public college with a small student population.

Women make up 12% of the international relations majors at the school.

Read More…

With a ranking of #7, Columbia University in the City of New York did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for international relations and national security students working on their master’s degree. Located in the large city of New York, Columbia is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

Women make up 56% of the international relations majors at the school.

Read More…

#8

New York University

New York, NY

New York University landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular master’s degree international relations and national security programs. NYU is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of New York.

About 74% of the students majoring in international relations at the school are women while 26% are male.

Read full report on International Relations & National Security at New York University

University of California - San Diego did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for international relations and national security students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the large city of La Jolla, UCSD is a public college with a very large student population.

About 40% of the students majoring in international relations at the school are women while 60% are male.

Read More…

#10

Liberty University

Lynchburg, VA

Liberty University ranked #10 on this year’s Most Popular International Relations & Security Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the city of Lynchburg, Liberty University is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

About 44% of the students majoring in international relations at the school are women while 56% are male.

Read full report on International Relations & National Security at Liberty University

Texas A&M University - College Station came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular International Relations & Security Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the city of College Station, Texas A&M College Station is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Of the 85 students majoring in international relations at Texas A&M College Station, 52% are male and 48% are female.

Read full report on International Relations & National Security at Texas A&M University - College Station

#12

George Mason University

Fairfax, VA

George Mason University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for international relations and national security students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #12 on the list. Located in the large suburb of Fairfax, GMU is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Of the 76 students majoring in international relations at GMU, 66% are male and 34% are female.

Read More…

#12

Syracuse University

Syracuse, NY

With a ranking of #12, Syracuse University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for international relations and national security students working on their master’s degree. Syracuse is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Syracuse.

About 50% of the students majoring in international relations at the school are women while 50% are male.

Read full report on International Relations & National Security at Syracuse University

#14

Norwich University

Northfield, VT

Norwich University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for international relations and national security students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #14 on the list. Located in the town of Northfield, Norwich is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

About 31% of the students majoring in international relations at the school are women while 69% are male.

Full International Relations & National Security at Norwich University Report

#15

Troy University

Troy, AL

Troy University landed the #15 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular master’s degree international relations and national security programs. Located in the remote town of Troy, TROY is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Of the 73 students majoring in international relations at TROY, 74% are male and 26% are female.

Full International Relations & National Security at Troy University Report

Arizona State University - Skysong came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular International Relations & Security Master’s Degree Schools ranking. ASU - Skysong is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Scottsdale.

Women make up 33% of the international relations majors at the school.

Full International Relations & National Security at Arizona State University - Skysong Report

#17

University of Denver

Denver, CO

University of Denver did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for international relations and national security students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #17 on the list. Located in the city of Denver, DU is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

About 57% of the students majoring in international relations at the school are women while 43% are male.

Full International Relations & National Security at University of Denver Report

Honorable Mentions

Here are some additional popular schools for International Relations & Security students that almost earned our Most Popular International Relations & Security Master's Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
18 Angelo State University San Angelo, TX
18 The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX
20 Harvard University Cambridge, MA
21 Seton Hall University South Orange, NJ
22 University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA
23 University of Chicago Chicago, IL

International Relations & National Security by Region

View the Most Popular International Relations & Security Master's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

One of 12 majors within the area of study, international relations and national security has other similar majors worth exploring.

Majors Similar to International Relations

Related Major Annual Graduates
Economics 6,173
Political Science & Government 2,664
Geography & Cartography 2,315
Sociology 1,907
Anthropology 1,446

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 26 schools only.

  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to RepubFan12.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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