# International Relations Graduate Programs

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/international-relations-graduate-programs/348648>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [March 16, 2006, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/international-relations-graduate-programs/348648 "2006-03-16T20:40:23Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Grendel\_s\_Father](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Grendel\_s\_Father](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grendel_s_Father)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2006, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/international-relations-graduate-programs/348648/1 "2006-03-16T20:40:23Z")

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Hey everyone. I’m currently looking into graduate programs in international relations, with an eye towards the US Foreign Service (my current educational background is a BS in Secondary English Education). One program that looks particularly attractive to me (I’ve got a severe travel bug) is the Global MA in IR from Webster University in St. Louis ([http://www.webster.edu/global/](http://www.webster.edu/global/)). While I love the idea of traveling to four European countries while completing my masters, I’m a little suspicious about how such a program might be viewed by potential future employers. So, I’m looking far and wide for opinions on this particular program or similar programs (one-year, mostly or completely taken abroad) and how it compares with other, possibly more prestigious programs (and how much a program’s prestige factors into employment opportunities in this field).

Any anecdotes or advice here would be most appreciated. Thanks!

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**Author:** ![Gladstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/90db22/32.png) [@Gladstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gladstone)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2006, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/international-relations-graduate-programs/348648/2 "2006-03-16T21:42:29Z")

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Can’t really provide any firsthand info about graduate IR programs, but I would recommend looking into Washington, DC universities in particular for the chance to develop contacts and get internships at the State Dept. or related organizations.

[Georgetown University - School of Foreign Service](http://www.georgetown.edu/sfs/)

[American University - School of International Service](http://www.american.edu/academic.depts/sis/)

[The George Washington University - School of International Affairs](http://www.gwu.edu/~elliott/academicprograms/grad.html)