Master's · Washington, District of Columbia

Is International Relations and National Security Studies at Institute of World Politics worth it?

Medium confidence Medium confidence: 40–99 graduates behind the earnings figures.

The verdict · all families, in-state, half paid with loans

Pays back in time: graduates typically recover the cost in about 5.2 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $87,783; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $104,192; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $39,950; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Typical borrowing (no graduate net price is published): $42k (likely $42k – $42k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $20k a year vs bachelor's graduates 4 years out in DC; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 5.2 years (likely 3.3–10.1); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: −$65k (likely −$195k – $75k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $207k (likely −$54k – $549k); Today's dollars

Scorecard reports no net price for graduate programs; cost is based on what graduates typically borrowed.