U.S. scholars rank the top 25 IR programs for undergraduates, master's, and Ph.D.s.
By Daniel Maliniak, Susan Peterson, Ryan Powers, and Michael J. Tierney
RANKINGS NOTES FROM THE IVORY TOWER SURVEY DEMOGRAPHICS
The road to Washington is paved with elite educations. Indeed, for young people hoping to secure jobs in Foggy Bottom, on Pennsylvania Avenue, and elsewhere in the foreign-policy establishment, a key ingredient to success is often a diploma in international relations (IR) from one of America’s top universities. There are debates to be had about this model—how the pipeline can become more affordable, for instance, to ensure greater diversity among government hires. Scholars and policymakers alike rightly agree, however, that language skills, expertise about regions of the world, and other knowledge gleaned in the classroom make for a stronger, more effective corps of foreign-policy wonks. So which schools prepare students best?
The results of the 2014 Ivory Tower survey—a collaboration between FOREIGN POLICYand the Teaching, Research, and International Policy (TRIP) project at the College of William & Mary—provide an insider’s guide. Responses from 1,615 IR scholars drawn from 1,375 U.S. colleges and universities determined rankings for the leading Ph.D., terminal master’s, and undergraduate programs in IR. (The scholars were asked to list the top five institutions in each category.) The survey also quizzed respondents about recent historical events and future policy challenges: Just how plausible is a U.S. war with China, for example, and who was the most effective secretary of state over the past 50 years? (Hint: Neither Condoleezza Rice nor John Kerry.)
All told, the Ivory Tower survey offers a window into how America’s top IR scholars see the world today—and which institutions are effectively nurturing future generations of thinkers and policymakers.
Mavi Boncuk |
By Daniel Maliniak, Susan Peterson, Ryan Powers, and Michael J. Tierney
RANKINGS NOTES FROM THE IVORY TOWER SURVEY DEMOGRAPHICS
The road to Washington is paved with elite educations. Indeed, for young people hoping to secure jobs in Foggy Bottom, on Pennsylvania Avenue, and elsewhere in the foreign-policy establishment, a key ingredient to success is often a diploma in international relations (IR) from one of America’s top universities. There are debates to be had about this model—how the pipeline can become more affordable, for instance, to ensure greater diversity among government hires. Scholars and policymakers alike rightly agree, however, that language skills, expertise about regions of the world, and other knowledge gleaned in the classroom make for a stronger, more effective corps of foreign-policy wonks. So which schools prepare students best?
The results of the 2014 Ivory Tower survey—a collaboration between FOREIGN POLICYand the Teaching, Research, and International Policy (TRIP) project at the College of William & Mary—provide an insider’s guide. Responses from 1,615 IR scholars drawn from 1,375 U.S. colleges and universities determined rankings for the leading Ph.D., terminal master’s, and undergraduate programs in IR. (The scholars were asked to list the top five institutions in each category.) The survey also quizzed respondents about recent historical events and future policy challenges: Just how plausible is a U.S. war with China, for example, and who was the most effective secretary of state over the past 50 years? (Hint: Neither Condoleezza Rice nor John Kerry.)
All told, the Ivory Tower survey offers a window into how America’s top IR scholars see the world today—and which institutions are effectively nurturing future generations of thinkers and policymakers.
Mavi Boncuk |
Top U.S. Undergraduate Institutions to Study International Relations
- 1.Harvard University 46.20%
- 2.Princeton University 39.14%
- 3.Stanford University 33.02%
- 4.Georgetown University 28.06%
- 5.Columbia University 24.37%
- 6.University of Chicago 19.62%
- 7.Yale University 18.67%
- 8.George Washington University 11.39%
- 9.American University 9.92%
- 10.University of Michigan 9.49%
- 11.University of California—Berkele 8.54%
- 12.Dartmouth College 8.23%
- 13.University of California—San Diego 7.70%
- 14.Tufts University 7.07%
- 15.Cornell University 6.43%
- 16.Johns Hopkins University 6.12%
- 17.Massachusetts Institute of Technology 5.06%
- 18.College of William & Mary 4.54%
- 19.Swarthmore College 3.48%
- 20.Williams College 2.95%
- 21.University of California—Los Angeles 2.85%
- 22.Brown University 2.74%
- 22.University of Virginia 2.74%
- 24.Ohio State University 2.64%
- 25.Duke University 2.22%
- Top Master's Programs for Policy Career in International Relations
- 1.Georgetown University 58.61%
- 2.Johns Hopkins University 47.76%
- 3.Harvard University 46.31%
- 4.Princeton University 33.33%
- 5.Columbia University 31.21%
- 6.Tufts University 29.08%
- 7.George Washington University 26.06%
- 8.American University 17.11%
- 9.London School of Economics 13.42%
- 10.Stanford University 5.37%
- 11.University of Denver 5.15%
- 12.University of Chicago 5.03%
- 13.University of California—San Diego 4.70%
- 14.University of Oxford 4.47%
- 15.Yale University 3.91%
- 16.Syracuse University 3.13%
- 17.University of California—Berkeley 2.57%
- 18.University of Cambridge 2.35%
- 19.University of Pittsburgh 1.79%
- 20.Massachusetts Institute of Technology 1.68%
- 21.Monterey Institute of Int’l Studies 1.45%
- 21.Sciences Po—Paris 1.45%
- 21.University of Michigan 1.45%
- 24.Graduate Inst. of Int’l and Dev. Studies 1.12%
- 24.New York University 1.12%
- 24.Texas A&M University 1.12%
- Top Ph.D. Programs for Academic Career in International Relations
- 1.Harvard University 62.51%
- 2.Princeton University 53.17%
- 3.Stanford University 48.76%
- 4.Columbia University 32.44%
- 5.Yale University 21.80%
- 6.University of Chicago 21.37%
- 7.University of California—San Diego 16.00%
- 8.University of Michigan 15.68%
- 9.Massachusetts Institute of Technology 13.43%
- 10.University of California—Berkeley 12.03%
- 11.University of Oxford 8.59%
- 12.Cornell University 7.30%
- 13.London School of Economics 6.66%
- 14.Ohio State University 5.48%
- 15.Georgetown University 5.37%
- 16.University of Cambridge 4.51%
- 17.Johns Hopkins University 4.08%
- 18.George Washington University 3.22%
- 19.New York University 2.69%
- 19.University of Wisconsin—Madison 2.69%
- 21.University of Minnesota 2.26%
- 22.American University 2.15%
- 22.Duke University 2.15%
- 22.University of Rochester 2.15%
- 25.University of California—Los Angeles 2.04%