2023 Best Value Colleges for International Relations & National Security (Income $48-$75k) in District of Columbia

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value International Relations Schools in District of Columbia For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

International Relations & National Security is the 67th most popular major in the country with 14,306 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, international relations and national security graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $41,288 and had an average of $21,455 in loans still to pay off.

Across District of Columbia, there were 2,268 international relations and national security graduates with average earnings and debt of $55,009 and $20,688 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value International Relations Schools in District of Columbia For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking analyzed 3 colleges that offered a degree in international relations and national security. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great international relations and national security programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the international relations and national security program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank International Relations & National Security Schools

The international relations school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Value International Relations Schools in District of Columbia For Those Making $48-$75k”.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Value International Relations Schools in District of Columbia For Those Making $48-$75k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value International Relations Schools in District of Columbia For Those Making $48-$75k.

Top 3 Best Value Colleges for International Relations & National Security (Income $48-$75k) in District of Columbia

1

Georgetown University
Washington, District of Columbia

#1 in overall quality

$12,505 Average Net Price

$69,885 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 3 schools in the Best Value International Relations Schools in District of Columbia For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, Georgetown University landed the #1 spot on the list. Georgetown is located in Washington, District of Columbia and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 572 ’s international relations degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Georgetown, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best International Relations & National Security Schools in District of Columbia” ranking. It costs about $12,505 for district of columbia international relations students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend Georgetown.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about International Relations & National Security at Georgetown University

2

George Washington University
Washington, District of Columbia

#2 in overall quality

$21,174 Average Net Price

$65,148 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend George Washington University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value International Relations Schools in District of Columbia For Those Making $48-$75k. Located in Washington, District of Columbia, this large private not-for-profit school awarded 948 diplomas to qualified ’s international relations students in 2020-2021.

GWU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best International Relations & National Security Schools in District of Columbia” list. The estimated yearly cost for GWU is $21,174 for district of columbia international relations students whose families make $48-$75k.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.3% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%.

Read full report on International Relations & National Security at GWU

3

American University
Washington, District of Columbia

#3 in overall quality

$27,374 Average Net Price

$50,575 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend American University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value International Relations Schools in District of Columbia For Those Making $48-$75k list. This fairly large school is located in Washington, District of Columbia, and it awarded 700 ’s international relations degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our district of columbia international relations students whose families make $48-$75k list, The American University has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best International Relations & National Security Schools in District of Columbia” ranking. The yearly cost to attend American University is $27,374 for district of columbia international relations students whose families make $48-$75k.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full The American University International Relations & National Security Report

• Best Value Colleges for International Relations & National Security (Income $48-$75k) in the Middle Atlantic Region
• Best Value Colleges for International Relations & National Security (Income $48-$75k)

Notes and References

References

• 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 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).
• Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

• *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
• Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

Credits

• Credit for the banner image above goes to RepubFan12.