The Top 10 International Relations Ph.D. Rankings

Schools for the next generation of global intellectual heavyweights.

JAN/FEB 2012

9. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Admitted Class Size: 7-11
Average Time to Graduate: 5-6 years
Funding: Five years of funding, including nine-month stipends
Star professors: Daron Acemoglu, Barry R. Posen, Daniel Posner

Website: http://web.mit.edu/polisci/academic-programs/graduate/phd.shtml

 SUBJECTS:
 

Methodology: The authors are researchers with the Teaching, Research, and International Policy (TRIP) project at the College of William and Mary. The fourth wave of the TRIP survey explores the views of international relations (IR) faculty from every four-year college and university in the United States, as identified by U.S. News & World Report, for their views on various international issues. The results include the responses of 1,582 faculty members, representing more than 40 percent of IR scholars in the United States, collected between August and November 2011. The parallel survey of practitioners surveyed 244 current and former policymakers who served from 1989 to 2008 in national security decision-making roles at the level of assistant secretary, director, and designated policymaking groups within several U.S. government agencies.You can find complete results from the survey of U.S. IR scholars here.

ATRW

2:29 PM ET

January 5, 2012

All the top IR Ph.D. programs are in the U.S.?

... I guess that's what you get when you ask scholars based in the U.S. only.

It's still "An American Social Science" ... and it is dominated by insiders who replicate that story (including in the TRIP survey, but also in FP more generally - see http://walt.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/06/06/is_ir_still_an_american_social_science for example).

So - here's my challenge to you: FInd a way to do a truly global survey... and broaden the scope of what you're asking so the survey does not just replicate accepted notions of the field of IR. Or - make sure you make the parameters of the study so explicit that it is clear from the outset that the assessment is completely biased.

 

DIANA RELKE

3:01 AM ET

January 11, 2012

that was the question

The question was: What are the top 10 schools in the USA for IR doctoral programs. No thoughts about where else in the world one might pursue a prestigious doctorate in IR.

There were no surprises in this selection -- except for maybe MIT. So I've been reminded yet again that MIT is MIT because it doesn't skimp on its non-hard-science programs.

 

SETTUSURF

9:37 AM ET

January 27, 2012

Harvard University

Based on my experience Harvard University is best for student to learn partially in there studies. ebook conversion.

 

JANEDAVIS74

4:56 PM ET

January 27, 2012

Too Expensive

They should also include ratings on cost and factor that in. I hardly think some of these are truly worth the cost. Harvard is great and all but it will set you back a pretty penny.

Think of it this way: You can go to a comporable college and save yourself hundreds of thousands of dollars, or you can be in debt for many years to come and get a slightly better education. I'll take my money and run, thanks. limo directory