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2025 Best International Relations Schools in California

13 Colleges in California
1,022 International Relations Degrees Awarded
International Relations is of the hottest degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #63 most popular major in the country. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

College Factual looked at 13 colleges and universities when compiling its 2025 Best International Relations Schools in California ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 1,022 degrees in international relations annually.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great International Relations School

Best International Relations Schools in California Your choice of international relations school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall International Relations School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

International Relations Rankings by Degree Level

Associate Degrees in International Relations
Bachelor's Degrees in International Relations
Master's Degrees in International Relations
Doctor's Degrees in International Relations

When choosing the right school for you, it's important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we've created a number of major-specific rankings, including this Best International Relations Schools in California list to help you make the college decision. You can also filter this list by location to find schools closer to you.

In addition to College Factual's rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

More information on how we come up with our rankings can be found here: College Factual's Data Methodology.

Best Schools for International Relations in California

If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the international relations degrees they offer, see the list below.

10 Top California Schools in International Relations

1
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, CA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
6th Most Popular In CA
89 International Relations Degrees Awarded

Stanford University is a good decision for students interested in a degree in international relations. Located in the suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #10 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Stanford is a great university overall.

There were about 89 international relations students who graduated with this degree at Stanford in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in international relations from Stanford University

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In CA
191 International Relations Degrees Awarded

Every student pursuing a degree in international relations needs to take a look at University of Southern California. Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #13 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means USC is a great university overall.

There were approximately 191 international relations students who graduated with this degree at USC in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in international relations from University of Southern California

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Masters Degree Type
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More information about a degree in MBA in International Business from Southern New Hampshire University
3
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
12th Most Popular In CA
20.0% Growth in Graduates

Every student who is interested in international relations has to look into Claremont McKenna College. Claremont McKenna is a small private not-for-profit college located in the large suburb of Claremont. A Best Colleges rank of #43 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Claremont McKenna is a great college overall.

There were roughly 30 international relations students who graduated with this degree at Claremont McKenna in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in international relations from Claremont McKenna College

4
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In CA
121 International Relations Degrees Awarded

University of California - Davis is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in international relations. UC Davis is a fairly large public university located in the small suburb of Davis. A Best Colleges rank of #55 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UC Davis is a great university overall.

There were about 121 international relations students who graduated with this degree at UC Davis in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in international relations from University of California - Davis

5
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
3rd Most Popular In CA
123 International Relations Degrees Awarded

Located in the city of La Jolla, UCSD is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #49 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UCSD is a great university overall.

There were about 123 international relations students who graduated with this degree at UCSD in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in international relations from University of California - San Diego

6
Oxy crest
Occidental College
Los Angeles, CA
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
11th Most Popular In CA
53 International Relations Degrees Awarded

Located in the large city of Los Angeles, Oxy is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. This college ranks 83rd out of 161 schools for overall quality in the state of California.

There were approximately 53 international relations students who graduated with this degree at Oxy in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in international relations from Occidental College

7
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
5th Most Popular In CA
64 International Relations Degrees Awarded

Located in the city of San Francisco, SFSU is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 30th out of 161 schools for overall quality in the state of California.

There were roughly 64 international relations students who graduated with this degree at SFSU in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in international relations from San Francisco State University

8
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In CA
92 International Relations Degrees Awarded

UCR is a very large public university located in the large city of Riverside. This university ranks 28th out of 161 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were about 92 international relations students who graduated with this degree at UCR in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in international relations from University of California - Riverside

9
USFCA crest
University of San Francisco
San Francisco, CA
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
8th Most Popular In CA
40 International Relations Degrees Awarded

Located in the city of San Francisco, USFCA is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #152 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means USFCA is a great university overall.

There were roughly 40 international relations students who graduated with this degree at USFCA in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in international relations from University of San Francisco

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
10th Most Popular In CA
44 International Relations Degrees Awarded

Located in the large city of San Diego, USD is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population. This university ranks 35th out of 161 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were approximately 44 international relations students who graduated with this degree at USD in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in international relations from University of San Diego

Best International Relations Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best International Relations Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Washington 831 64
Oregon 587 56
Nevada 354 49
Hawaii 267 3

View All Rankings >

International Relations is one of 2 different types of International Relations & National Security programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Other International Relations & National Security Studies 266
International Security 107

View All International Relations Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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