What are the top

institutions for
undergraduate,
masters, and
Ph.D. programs
in international
relations? Who
are the top
scholars? And
what are the
most important
foreign-policy
issues facing the
United States
today?

The V
t
HILLARY CLINTON
WAS RANKED
AMONG THE
MOST EFFECTIVE
SECRETARIES
OF STATE.

BY DANIEL MALINIAK, SUSAN PETERSON,

RYAN POWERS, AND MICHAEL J. TIERNEY

58 JAN|FEB 2015

Survey Demographics

Policy and the Teaching, Research, and

International Policy (TRIP) project at the

31%

College of William & Maryprovide an

insiders guide. Responses from 1,615 IR
scholars drawn from 1,375 U.S. colleges and
universities determined rankings for the

69%

leading Ph.D., terminal masters, and under-

MALE FEMALE

graduate programs in IR. (The scholars were

asked to list the top five institutions in each

35%

category.) The survey also quizzed respon-

30%

dents about recent historical events and

25%
20%

future policy challenges: Just how plausi-

15%

ble is a U.S. war with China, for example,

66+

56-65

46-55

5%

36-45

10%

20-35

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
Americas top universities. There
are debates to be had about this
modelhow 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 surveya collaboration between Foreign

and who was the most effective secretary of

AGE BREAKDOWN

state over the past 50 years? (Hint: Neither

Condoleezza Rice nor John Kerry.)
All told, the Ivory Tower survey offers a
38%

window into how Americas top IR scholars

see the world todayand which institutions
are effectively nurturing future generations

62%

of thinkers and policymakers.

CONSULTED WITH
GOVERNMENT IN PAST
FIVE YEARS DID NOT

THE TEACHING, RESEARCH, AND INTERNATIONAL POLICY

PROJECT IS SUPPORTED BY THE CARNEGIE CORPORATION
OF NEW YORK AND THE MACARTHUR FOUNDATION.

View from
the Tower
Who was the most influential
scholar of the past 20 years?

Who was the most effective

U.S. secretary of state of the
past 50 years?

Alexander Wendt

40.76%

Robert Keohane

34.00%

Henry Kissinger

32.21%

John Mearsheimer

32.73%

Dont know

18.32%

James Fearon

24.82%

James Baker

17.71%

Kenneth Waltz

23.23%

Madeleine Albright

8.70%

Joseph Nye Jr.

17.32%

Hillary Clinton

8.70%

Bruce Bueno de Mesquita

13.20%

George Shultz

5.65%

Samuel Huntington

11.51%

Dean Rusk

3.51%

Martha Finnemore

11.19%

Warren Christopher

1.53%

10

Robert Jervis

11.09%

Cyrus Vance

1.53%

11

Stephen Walt

10.77%

10

Colin Powell

1.07%

12

Kathryn Sikkink

8.76%

11

Condoleezza Rice

0.46%

13

Peter Katzenstein

7.92%

12

Lawrence Eagleburger

0.31%

14

Beth Simmons

7.18%

12

John Kerry

0.31%

15

David Lake

6.76%

FOR COMPLETE RESULTS, VISIT HTTP://TRIP.WM.EDU/REPORTS/2014/

In which issue areas has IR research had the largest impact on U.S. foreign policy?
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
INTERNATIONAL
SECURITY

INTERNATIONAL
POLITICAL
ECONOMY

INTRASTATE
CONFLICT

HUMAN RIGHTS

DEVELOPMENT
STUDIES

INTERNATIONAL
LAW

COMPARATIVE
FOREIGN POLICY

INTERNATIONAL
RELATIONS
THEORY

HUMAN
SECURITY

INTERNATIONAL
ORGANIZATIONS

NONE OF THESE

ENVIRONMENT

INTERNATIONAL
HEALTH

GLOBAL CIVIL
SOCIETY

OTHER

HISTORY OF
INTERNATIONAL
RELATIONS

INTERNATIONAL
ETHICS

FOREIGNPOLICY.COM 59

To which of the following events did you respond by

increasing or decreasing your research in a related
area of study? (Top 10 responses)

30%
IRAQ WAR

9%
WAR IN
KOSOVO

11%
RWANDAN

8%
CHINAS
OPENING

Which area of the world do you consider to be

of greatest strategic importance to the United
States today?

19%

GLOBAL FINANCIAL CRISIS

19%

AFGHANISTAN
WAR

GENOCIDE

1 40% EAST ASIA (INCLUDING CHINA) 2 37% MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA (INCLUDING
TURKEY) 3 10% WESTERN EUROPE 4 5% RUSSIA/FORMER SOVIET UNION (EXCLUDING THE BALTIC
STATES) 5 2% LATIN AMERICA (INCLUDING MEXICO AND THE CARIBBEAN) 5 2% NORTH AMERICA
(EXCLUDING MEXICO) 7 1% CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE (INCLUDING THE BALTIC STATES)
7 1% SOUTH ASIA (INCLUDING AFGHANISTAN) 7 1% SOUTHEAST ASIA 7 1% SUB-SAHARAN
AFRICA ALL OTHER AREAS LESS THAN 1%

22%

40%
OTHER

ARAB SPRING

26%

FALL OF USSR

Which area of the world do you think will be of

greatest strategic importance to the United States
20 years from now?

37%

9/11 ATTACKS

What are the three most important foreign-policy

issues facing the United States today?
1

Global climate change 40.96%

Armed conflict in the Middle East 26.81%

Failed or failing states 22.29%

Chinas rising military power 21.54%

Transnational terrorism 21.23%

Renewed Russian assertiveness 17.47%

Global poverty 16.42%

Global wealth disparities 15.66%

Chinas rising economic influence 15.51%

10

Proliferation of weapons of mass destruction 14.01%

10

Transnational political violence 14.01%

1 66% EAST ASIA (INCLUDING CHINA) 2 10% MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA (INCLUDING
TURKEY) 3 6% WESTERN EUROPE 4 3% LATIN AMERICA (INCLUDING MEXICO AND THE CARIBBEAN)
4 3% SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA 6 2% ARCTIC 6 2% RUSSIA/FORMER SOVIET UNION (EXCLUDING
THE BALTIC STATES) 6 2% SOUTH ASIA (INCLUDING AFGHANISTAN) 6 2% SOUTHEAST ASIA
ALL OTHER AREAS LESS THAN 2%

Likelihood of U.S. war with China or Russia in the

next 20 years (on a scale of 0-10)
30%

What are the three most important foreign-policy

issues the United States will face over the next 10 years?
1

Global climate change

45.90%

Chinas rising military power

28.28%

Armed conflict in the Middle East

23.03%

Chinas rising economic influence

20.87%

Failed or failing states

20.71%

Transnational terrorism

19.94%

Global wealth disparities

16.07%

Renewed Russian assertiveness

14.37%

Proliferation of weapons of mass destruction

12.83%

10

Transnational political violence

12.52%

25%

CHINA
RUSSIA

20%

15%
10%

5%

0 WONT HAPPEN

WILL HAPPEN 10

FOREIGNPOLICY.COM 61

R EF F EC T IV E NO R I NE FF E CT I V
E

Top Masters Programs for Policy Career in IR

EFF

FFE

RY

CTI

VE

VE

NEITHE

INE
E CT

EFF

IVE

60

D ONT KN OW

Top U.S. Undergraduate Institutions to Study IR

Harvard University
Princeton University

39.14%

Stanford University

33.02%

Georgetown University

28.06%

Columbia University

24.37%

University of Chicago

19.62%

Yale University

18.67%

George Washington University

11.39%

American University

9.92%

10

University of Michigan

11

Harvard University 46.31%

Princeton University 33.33%

Columbia University 31.21%

Tufts University 29.08%

George Washington University 26.06%

American University 17.11%

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 CaliforniaSan Diego 4.70%

14

University of Oxford 4.47%

15

Yale University 3.91%

16

Syracuse University 3.13%

17

University of CaliforniaBerkeley 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 Intl Studies 1.45%

21

Sciences PoParis 1.45%

21

University of Michigan 1.45%

24

Graduate Inst. of Intl 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 IR

46.20%

Johns Hopkins University 47.76%

ECT

Georgetown University 58.61%

EFF

40

E RY
IN

IVE

0%

IVE

EXTENDING OR
WITHDRAWING ECONOMIC
ASSISTANCE
IMPOSING TRADE
SANCTIONS OR GRANTING
TRADE CONCESSIONS
PROMOTING OR RESTRICTING
PRIVATE INVESTMENT
PROMOTING OR RESTRICTING
BUSINESS WITH BANKS IN
TARGETED COUNTRIES
USING SOVEREIGN WEALTH
FUNDS TO INCREASE OR
WITHDRAW INVESTMENT
IN A TARGET MARKET
EXTENDING OR
WITHDRAWING MILITARY
ASSISTANCE

ECT

What is the
effectiveness of
each policy tool?

1
2

Harvard University 62.51%

TOP 10 RECOMMENDED
LANGUAGES FOR A CAREER
IN FOREIGN AFFAIRS

Princeton University 53.17%

Stanford University 48.76%

1. CHINESE
2. ARABIC
3. ENGLISH
4. SPANISH
5. FRENCH
6. RUSSIAN
7. FARSI
8. HINDI
9. GERMAN
10. TURKISH

Columbia University 32.44%

Yale University 21.80%

University of Chicago 21.37%

University of CaliforniaSan Diego 16.00%

University of Michigan 15.68%

Massachusetts Institute of Technology 13.43%

9.49%

10

University of CaliforniaBerkeley 12.03%

University of CaliforniaBerkeley

8.54%

11

University of Oxford 8.59%

12

Dartmouth College

8.23%

12

Cornell University 7.30%

13

University of CaliforniaSan Diego

7.70%

13

London School of Economics 6.66%

14

Tufts University

7.07%

14

Ohio State University 5.48%

15

Cornell University

6.43%

15

Georgetown University 5.37%

16

Johns Hopkins University

6.12%

16

University of Cambridge 4.51%

17

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

5.06%

17

Johns Hopkins University 4.08%

18

College of William & Mary

4.54%

18

George Washington University 3.22%

19

Swarthmore College

3.48%

19

New York University 2.69%

20

Williams College

2.95%

19

University of WisconsinMadison 2.69%

21

University of CaliforniaLos Angeles

2.85%

21

University of Minnesota 2.26%

22

Brown University

2.74%

22

American University 2.15%

22

University of Virginia

2.74%

22

Duke University 2.15%

24

Ohio State University

2.64%

22

University of Rochester 2.15%

25

Duke University

2.22%

25

University of CaliforniaLos Angeles 2.04%

FOREIGNPOLICY.COM 63