Skip to main content

GeraLearn / US College Salaries / International Relations and National Security Studies

International Relations and National Security Studies Salary (US)

US Bachelor’s graduates who studied International Relations and National Security Studies had a median income of $43,249 about one year after completing their degree — ranked #48 of 120 fields, below the $47,260 all-field median. A median, not a guarantee. Real U.S. Dept of Education College Scorecard data (public domain).

What do US International Relations and National Security Studies graduates typically earn after a Bachelor’s degree?

US Bachelor’s graduates who studied International Relations and National Security Studies had a median income of $43,249 about one year after completing their degree — ranking #48 of 120 fields and below the $47,260 all-field median. This is the typical (median) completer: half earned more, half earned less. It is not a guarantee. Source: U.S. Dept of Education College Scorecard (public domain).

Source:U.S. Department of Education — College Scorecard, Field of Study (Bachelor’s)·As of College Scorecard Field of Study release (updated 2026-06-10) · updated annually · last refreshed

This page shows the typical (median) early-career income of US graduates who studied International Relations and National Security Studies at Bachelor’s level, from the U.S. Department of Education’s College Scorecard field-of-study data. The median is the middle completer who was working and not enrolled in further study — half earned more and half earned less — so it describes a typical outcome about one year after completion rather than a promise. Earnings usually rise with experience.

International Relations and National Security Studies graduate earnings — the numbers

MeasureInternational Relations and National Security StudiesAll fields
Median income, ~1 year after completion$43,249$47,260
Rank by median earnings#48 of 120
Institution-level program medians rolled up10925,739
Working, non-enrolled completers6,7872,523,626

Based on 6,787 working, non-enrolled completers across 109 institution- level program medians (2018-19 & 2019-20 award-year cohorts (about one year after completion)). College Scorecard measures earnings only about one year after completion; pay typically rises with experience beyond this point.

What this means

A median of $43,249 places International Relations and National Security Studies at #48 of 120 fields, $4,011 below the $47,260 all-field median. Because this is the typical completer one year out, the field you study is only one of many factors — institution, region, role and experience all shape what an individual actually earns, and earnings generally rise across a career.

US college salary comparator

Pick a field of study to compare its typical (median) early-career earnings against the all-field median. Every figure is a real published College Scorecard median — not a guarantee.

Median early-career income

$43,249

Rank (of 120)

#48

Completers behind it

6,787

The $43,249 median for International Relations and National Security Studies is $4,011 below the $47,260 all-field median. It rolls up 109 published institution-level program medians.

Medians, not guarantees or averages. Figures are completer-count-weighted medians of real published College Scorecard institution-level program medians for Bachelor’s completers who were working and not enrolled, measured about one year after completion. Individual earnings vary by institution, region, role and experience. Nothing here is modelled or interpolated.

International Relations and National Security Studies salary — FAQ

What is the typical salary for US International Relations and National Security Studies graduates?
The median income for US Bachelor’s graduates who studied International Relations and National Security Studies was $43,249 about one year after completing their degree (2018-19 & 2019-20 award-year cohorts (about one year after completion)). The median is the typical completer who was working and not enrolled in further study — half earned more and half earned less. This figure rolls up 109 published institution-level program medians covering 6,787 completers. Source: U.S. Dept of Education College Scorecard (public domain).
Where does International Relations and National Security Studies rank among US fields of study for earnings?
By median early-career earnings, International Relations and National Security Studies ranks #48 of 120 Bachelor’s fields in this College Scorecard rollup. Its $43,249 median is below the $47,260 all-field median. Rankings reflect typical outcomes by field, not the earning potential of any one graduate. Source: U.S. Dept of Education College Scorecard (public domain).
Is a International Relations and National Security Studies graduate guaranteed to earn $43,249?
No. $43,249 is the median — the typical completer, not a guarantee or an average. Half of International Relations and National Security Studies graduates earned less and half earned more, and individual earnings vary widely by institution, region, role and person. The figure also measures earnings only about one year after completion; pay typically rises with experience. Source: U.S. Dept of Education College Scorecard (public domain).
How is this earnings figure calculated?
College Scorecard publishes one median per institution per program and suppresses small cells for privacy, so there is no single official national median per field. The figure here is the completer-count-weighted median of the published per-institution program medians for International Relations and National Security Studies at Bachelor’s level (W-2 wages plus positive self-employment income from IRS records, for completers who were working and not enrolled). It is a transparent rollup of real published medians — not an official Department of Education figure and not an average.
Is this real government data?
Yes. Every input is a published U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard "Field of Study" median (release updated 2026-06-10), in the U.S. Government public domain. No figure is modelled, estimated, or interpolated — only real published institution-level medians are rolled up.

Compare with similar-earning fields

See all 120 fields ranked by median salary →

Researching where to live and work too?

See US county opportunity profiles for education, median household income and employment by county, from real Census ACS data.

Source: U.S. Department of Education — College Scorecard, Field of Study (Bachelor’s). Figures are from the College Scorecard Field of Study release (updated 2026-06-10), covering US Bachelor’s completers who were working and not enrolled in further study, measured about one year after completion (W-2 wages plus positive self-employment income, IRS records). U.S. Government public domain. The $43,249 headline is a completer-count-weighted median of real published institution-level program medians — the typical graduate, not an average and not a guarantee. Last refreshed 2026-06-27. No figure is modelled or interpolated.