International Relations, Master of Arts

The majority of students at Johns Hopkins SAIS are enrolled in the two-year, full-time Master of Arts in International Relations (MAIR) degree. The program’s interdisciplinary coursework emphasizes international economics, policy and regional studies, international relations, and languages. Students in this degree can spend both years in Washington, DC or may spend their first year at the SAIS Europe campus in Bologna, Italy or pursuing the Certificate at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center in Nanjing, China before coming to Washington, DC for the second year.

Our graduates are in great demand by employers in the public, private and nonprofit sectors. Economics knowledge, analytical abilities, regional expertise, diplomatic skills, language proficiency and the capacity to apply theory to real-world problems give students a distinct professional advantage.

Degree Requirements

Campus: Washington, DC and Bologna, Italy

Duration: Two academic years, Full-Time

Course delivery: In-person

In order to earn the degree, students must fulfill all degree requirements and earn a cumulative GPA of 2.67 or above. Students are required to spend a minimum of 3 fall/spring semesters in full-time status (12+ credits). Students must spend at least one full-time semester of study enrolled at the Washington, DC campus.

Core Curriculum (24 credits)

Courses used toward the Core Curriculum may not be double-counted toward any other degree requirement.

World Order and Disorder (4 credits)

Students must complete one approved World Order and Disorder course. Sample courses include:

Leadership, Ethics, and Decision-making in International Relations (4 credits)

Students must complete one approved Leadership, Ethics, and Decision-making course. Sample courses include:

International Economics (8 credits)

Students must complete:

If a student is waived from International Economics I and/or II, the student must take a replacement International Economics and Finance course(s) to fulfill this requirement. A replacement International Economics and Finance course may not be double-counted toward the International Economics and Finance Functional Focus area or any other requirement.

A student may only be waived by passing a waiver exam or by having completed the equivalent course at Johns Hopkins University within the previous five years.

Data Analytics (0-4 credits)

Students must complete:

Students who complete the non-credit version of this course in Pre-Term have fulfilled this requirement. Students who pass a waiver exam in Statistics must take a second approved Research Methods course.

Students must fulfill this requirement no later than their third full-time semester (second full-time semester for students with 16 or more credits of Advanced Standing).

Research Methods (4-8 credits)

Students must complete one approved Research Methods course. Students who are waived from Data Analytics must complete two Research Methods courses. Sample courses include:

Course offerings vary each academic year and are subject to change.

Interdisciplinary Program of Study (40 credits)

Beyond the Core Curriculum, students complete a self-designed interdisciplinary program of study. This must include at least 12 credits from courses within a specific Functional Focus Area and at least 12 credits from courses within a specific Regional Focus Area. Cross-listed courses may only be used toward one focus area. To fulfill both focus area requirements, students must complete at least 6 distinct courses (24 credits). Courses that do not apply to focus area requirements count as electives (up to 16 credits).

Functional Focus Areas (12 credits)

Regional Focus Areas (12 credits)

Capstone

Capstones may be associated with a for-credit course or a non-credit research paper and may not be completed in the student’s first year of study. Students must complete one of the options below: