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2022 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for International Relations & National Security in the Great Lakes Region

7 Ranked Colleges
128 Degrees Awarded
$29,100 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees*
Best Value International Relations Schools for a Master's in the Great Lakes Region

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. 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 for a Master’s in the Great Lakes Region” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2019-2020, 14,762 people earned their degree in international relations and national security, making the major the 65th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, international relations and national security graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $38,051 and had an average of $28,099 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Great Lakes region, there were 1,340 international relations and national security graduates with average earnings and debt of $35,821 and $24,013 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 128 international relations and national security graduates with average earnings and debt of $57,039 and $42,488 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value International Relations Schools for a Master’s in the Great Lakes Region” ranking, we looked at 7 colleges that offer a degree in international relations and national security. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent international relations and national security programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the international relations and national security program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank International Relations & National Security Schools

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 Value International Relations Schools for a Master’s in the Great Lakes Region” list to help you make the college decision.

One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.

Best Value International Relations Schools for a Master’s in the Great Lakes Region

The colleges and universities below are the best for great lakes region master’s degree international relations students.

Top 7 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for International Relations & National Security in the Great Lakes Region

#1

Marquette University

Milwaukee, Wisconsin
#2 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Marquette University. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value International Relations Schools for a Master’s in the Great Lakes Region. This fairly large school is located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and it awarded 4 masters’s international relations degrees in 2019-2020.

Marquette also made our “Best International Relations & National Security Master’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #2. Average graduate tuition and fees at Marquette are $21,690, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on International Relations & National Security at Marquette University

#2

DePaul University

Chicago, Illinois

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend DePaul University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value International Relations Schools for a Master’s in the Great Lakes Region. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s international relations degrees to 23 students in 2019-2020.

DePaul did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best International Relations & National Security Master’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at DePaul University are $19,760, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read more about International Relations & National Security at DePaul University

#4 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Wisconsin - Madison. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value International Relations Schools for a Master’s in the Great Lakes Region list. Madison, Wisconsin is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s international relations degrees to 7 students in 2019-2020.

UW - Madison not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best International Relations & National Security Master’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Wisconsin - Madison are $25,523, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on International Relations & National Security at University of Wisconsin - Madison

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Akron Main Campus. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value International Relations Schools for a Master’s in the Great Lakes Region. University of Akron Main Campus is a fairly large school located in Akron, Ohio that handed out 9 masters’s international relations degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our great lakes region master’s degree international relations students list, University of Akron Main Campus has also earned the #7 rank in our “Best International Relations & National Security Master’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Akron Main Campus are $15,217, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on International Relations & National Security at University of Akron Main Campus

#6 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Wright State University - Main Campus. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value International Relations Schools for a Master’s in the Great Lakes Region. Wright State University - Main Campus is a fairly large school located in Dayton, Ohio that handed out 8 masters’s international relations degrees in 2019-2020.

Wright State University - Main Campus not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #6 on our “Best International Relations & National Security Master’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Wright State University - Main Campus are $24,286, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about International Relations & National Security at Wright State University - Main Campus

#6

Indiana University - Bloomington

Bloomington, Indiana
#3 in overall quality

Indiana University - Bloomington ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value International Relations Schools for a Master’s in the Great Lakes Region list. Indiana University - Bloomington is a public institution located in Bloomington, Indiana. The school has a large population, and it awarded 4 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our great lakes region master’s degree international relations students list, IU Bloomington has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best International Relations & National Security Master’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at IU Bloomington are $33,338.

Read full report on International Relations & National Security at Indiana University - Bloomington

#7

University of Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

University of Chicago landed the #7 spot on the 2022 Best Value International Relations Schools for a Master’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. University of Chicago is a private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 66 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UChicago not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best International Relations & National Security Master’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Chicago are $61,548, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about International Relations & National Security at University of Chicago

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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.

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