National Security Policy Studies
CIP Code: 45.0902A national security policy studies degree prepares graduates for careers in Political scientists, Managers, all other, Political science teachers, postsecondary. 45 colleges and universities offer this program.
Annual Degrees Awarded
788
Colleges Offering
45
Avg. Career Salary
$123,537
Top Career Salary
$139,380
National Security Policy Studies Salary by College
Nationally, bachelor’s graduates in this field earn a median $66,596 four years after graduating (middle half: $46,031–$87,798). Where you study it matters: across 118 colleges with reported results, pay ranges from $41,730 to $99,205.
Sort by:
| # | College | 4 yrs after | Wage-adjusted | 1 yr after | Median debt | Outcome Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD | $99,205 | $87,064 | $44,004 | $12,000 | A+ |
| 2 | Claremont McKenna College Claremont, CA | $96,520 | $87,827 | — | — | A+ |
| 3 | Fairfield University Fairfield, CT | $94,347 | $84,942 | $49,239 | $27,000 | A+ |
| 5 | Middlebury College Middlebury, VT | $92,728 | $95,239 | $68,344 | — | A+ |
| 4 | Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey Monterey, CA | $92,728 | $84,376 | $68,344 | — | A |
| 6 | Stanford University Stanford, CA | $91,075 | $82,872 | $76,166 | — | A+ |
| 7 | William & Mary Williamsburg, VA | $91,065 | $82,923 | $47,270 | $20,500 | A |
| 8 | Bucknell University Lewisburg, PA | $90,393 | $91,930 | $77,312 | — | A+ |
| 9 | Angelo State University San Angelo, TX | $87,991 | $89,461 | $53,246 | — | D |
| 10 | University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA | $87,439 | $88,926 | $65,559 | $10,470 | A+ |
| 11 | Brown University Providence, RI | $86,780 | $85,469 | $46,284 | $12,000 | A+ |
| 12 | University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA | $84,866 | $77,223 | $52,262 | $13,247 | A+ |
| 13 | University of Miami Coral Gables, FL | $84,474 | $89,912 | $31,813 | $16,478 | A+ |
| 14 | University of Virginia-Main Campus Charlottesville, VA | $82,991 | $75,571 | $46,870 | $19,500 | A+ |
| 15 | Georgetown University Washington, DC | $82,197 | $72,026 | $50,588 | $17,500 | A+ |
| 16 | Lehigh University Bethlehem, PA | $79,569 | $80,922 | $36,147 | $21,250 | A+ |
| 17 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus Atlanta, GA | $79,264 | $82,054 | — | — | A+ |
| 18 | Emory University Atlanta, GA | $78,029 | $80,776 | $45,022 | $19,500 | A+ |
| 19 | Tufts University Medford, MA | $77,998 | $68,685 | $54,079 | $16,250 | A+ |
| 20 | Hobart William Smith Colleges Geneva, NY | $77,977 | $74,218 | $40,648 | $26,000 | B+ |
| 21 | Tulane University of Louisiana New Orleans, LA | $77,300 | $89,481 | $47,956 | $20,000 | A+ |
| 22 | Fordham University Bronx, NY | $77,234 | $73,511 | $46,653 | $24,759 | A+ |
| 23 | Colgate University Hamilton, NY | $77,199 | $73,477 | — | — | A+ |
| 24 | George Washington University Washington, DC | $76,751 | $67,254 | $52,933 | $20,958 | A+ |
| 25 | California State University Maritime Academy Vallejo, CA | $76,478 | $69,590 | $42,924 | $25,500 | A |
| 27 | Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach Daytona Beach, FL | $75,520 | $80,381 | $46,868 | $22,500 | A |
| 26 | Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Prescott Prescott, AZ | $75,520 | $77,598 | $46,868 | $22,500 | A |
| 28 | Northeastern University Boston, MA | $74,816 | $65,883 | — | $21,000 | A+ |
| 29 | Michigan State University East Lansing, MI | $74,709 | $78,772 | $38,810 | $23,750 | A |
| 30 | Northwestern University Evanston, IL | $74,477 | $73,173 | $58,326 | $19,234 | A+ |
| 31 | American University Washington, DC | $73,865 | $64,725 | $47,551 | $23,250 | A |
| 32 | Virginia Military Institute Lexington, VA | $72,700 | $66,200 | $44,429 | $21,875 | A |
| 33 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg, VA | $71,988 | $65,552 | $44,638 | $21,250 | A |
| 34 | Connecticut College New London, CT | $71,960 | $64,787 | $45,543 | $25,605 | A |
| 35 | Seton Hall University South Orange, NJ | $71,949 | $63,149 | $45,440 | $20,500 | B |
| 36 | Fairmont State University Fairmont, WV | $71,751 | $84,885 | $35,925 | $18,896 | C |
| 37 | Brigham Young University Provo, UT | $71,622 | $67,881 | $50,563 | — | A |
| 38 | Liberty University Lynchburg, VA | $71,436 | $65,049 | $43,567 | $21,750 | F |
| 41 | Pennsylvania State University-World Campus University Park, PA | $71,001 | $72,209 | $45,858 | $24,375 | C+ |
| 40 | Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus University Park, PA | $71,001 | $72,209 | $45,858 | $24,375 | A |
| 39 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Lehigh Valley Center Valley, PA | $71,001 | $72,209 | $45,858 | $24,375 | C+ |
| 42 | University of Georgia Athens, GA | $70,510 | $72,992 | $39,275 | $18,761 | A |
| 43 | Rollins College Winter Park, FL | $70,502 | $75,040 | $28,113 | $27,000 | B+ |
| 44 | Occidental College Los Angeles, CA | $70,394 | $64,054 | $35,231 | $19,275 | A |
| 45 | George Mason University Fairfax, VA | $69,399 | $63,194 | $44,644 | $20,117 | B+ |
| 46 | James Madison University Harrisonburg, VA | $68,798 | $62,647 | $44,667 | $18,138 | B+ |
| 47 | Elon University Elon, NC | $68,262 | $73,255 | — | — | A+ |
| 48 | DePaul University Chicago, IL | $68,180 | $66,986 | $35,792 | $20,094 | B+ |
| 49 | Syracuse University Syracuse, NY | $68,049 | $64,769 | $43,249 | $26,068 | A |
| 50 | Norwich University Northfield, VT | $68,004 | $69,846 | $43,621 | $18,000 | B+ |
| 51 | Washington College Chestertown, MD | $67,983 | $59,663 | — | — | B |
| 52 | University of North Georgia Dahlonega, GA | $67,692 | $70,075 | $43,564 | $20,500 | D |
| 53 | University of Rochester Rochester, NY | $67,531 | $64,276 | — | $21,750 | A |
| 54 | Baylor University Waco, TX | $67,484 | $68,611 | $37,507 | $22,409 | A |
| 55 | Miami University-Oxford Oxford, OH | $67,301 | $71,820 | $38,766 | $20,475 | B |
| 56 | University of California-Davis Davis, CA | $67,056 | $61,017 | $34,949 | $12,500 | A |
| 57 | The College of New Jersey Ewing, NJ | $67,001 | $58,806 | $34,841 | $23,250 | B+ |
| 58 | Boston University Boston, MA | $66,661 | $58,702 | $45,870 | $23,394 | A+ |
| 59 | SUNY College at Geneseo Geneseo, NY | $66,435 | $63,232 | $36,754 | $17,500 | B+ |
| 60 | Marquette University Milwaukee, WI | $66,180 | $68,863 | $43,290 | $20,750 | A+ |
| 61 | Ohio State University-Main Campus Columbus, OH | $66,064 | $70,500 | $38,584 | $18,384 | A |
| 62 | San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA | $65,775 | $59,851 | $31,254 | $16,625 | B |
| 63 | American Public University System Charles Town, WV | $65,510 | $77,502 | $48,142 | $14,947 | C+ |
| 64 | Wheaton College Wheaton, IL | $65,230 | $64,088 | $40,084 | $23,250 | B+ |
| 65 | Duquesne University Pittsburgh, PA | $65,169 | $66,277 | $39,630 | $25,000 | A |
| 66 | University of Delaware Newark, DE | $64,715 | $64,327 | $38,250 | $24,748 | A |
| 67 | Western Kentucky University Bowling Green, KY | $64,710 | $73,271 | — | — | D |
| 68 | Hamilton College Clinton, NY | $64,585 | $61,472 | $45,332 | $19,000 | A+ |
| 69 | Florida International University Miami, FL | $64,399 | $68,544 | $33,417 | $17,662 | B+ |
| 70 | Florida State University Tallahassee, FL | $63,984 | $68,103 | $32,098 | $16,750 | A |
| 71 | Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY | $63,591 | $60,525 | $31,956 | $20,232 | A |
| 72 | Dickinson College Carlisle, PA | $62,570 | $63,634 | — | $19,000 | A |
| 73 | University of Maine Orono, ME | $62,555 | $66,480 | $35,337 | $23,000 | C |
| 74 | University of San Diego San Diego, CA | $61,509 | $55,969 | $50,948 | $24,100 | A+ |
| 75 | Central Michigan University Mount Pleasant, MI | $61,331 | $64,666 | $35,802 | $26,750 | C+ |
| 76 | University of New Hampshire-Main Campus Durham, NH | $60,577 | $55,797 | $34,036 | $27,000 | B |
| 77 | Northern Arizona University Flagstaff, AZ | $60,448 | $62,111 | $29,924 | $19,468 | C+ |
| 78 | Kennesaw State University Kennesaw, GA | $60,031 | $62,144 | $34,343 | $21,500 | C+ |
| 79 | University of Denver Denver, CO | $59,895 | $56,014 | $40,923 | $19,500 | B+ |
| 80 | San Diego State University San Diego, CA | $59,733 | $54,353 | $35,361 | $15,124 | B |
| 81 | University of San Francisco San Francisco, CA | $59,387 | $54,038 | $36,669 | $24,603 | A |
| 82 | CUNY City College New York, NY | $59,039 | $56,193 | $30,627 | $14,060 | B |
| 83 | University of South Florida Tampa, FL | $58,999 | $62,797 | $30,977 | $16,204 | B+ |
| 84 | California State University-East Bay Hayward, CA | $58,885 | $53,581 | — | — | B |
| 85 | Grand Valley State University Allendale, MI | $58,802 | $62,000 | $28,202 | $18,535 | B |
| 86 | Loyola University Chicago Chicago, IL | $58,511 | $57,487 | $32,682 | $21,500 | A |
| 87 | University of Nevada-Reno Reno, NV | $58,002 | $60,199 | $29,539 | $21,094 | B |
| 88 | Indiana University-Bloomington Bloomington, IN | $57,806 | $62,015 | $36,100 | $16,832 | A |
| 89 | Lewis & Clark College Portland, OR | $57,783 | $58,123 | — | $23,000 | B |
| 90 | Towson University Towson, MD | $57,498 | $50,461 | $39,208 | $21,824 | C+ |
| 91 | University of Cincinnati-Main Campus Cincinnati, OH | $57,228 | $61,071 | $32,543 | $22,500 | B |
| 92 | Rhodes College Memphis, TN | $56,744 | $61,987 | $23,835 | $22,072 | A |
| 93 | Portland State University Portland, OR | $56,436 | $56,768 | $30,253 | $21,666 | C+ |
| 94 | University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN | $56,257 | $53,737 | $28,596 | $19,632 | A |
| 95 | University of California-Riverside Riverside, CA | $56,108 | $51,055 | $27,021 | $18,829 | B+ |
| 96 | Saint Louis University Saint Louis, MO | $55,964 | $60,005 | — | — | A |
| 97 | The University of Alabama Tuscaloosa, AL | $55,419 | $62,905 | $35,324 | $23,250 | B+ |
| 98 | University of South Carolina-Columbia Columbia, SC | $54,781 | $60,744 | $33,612 | $18,875 | A |
| 99 | University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Oshkosh, WI | $54,506 | $56,716 | $36,726 | $24,250 | C+ |
| 100 | Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA | $54,505 | $49,632 | $33,581 | $21,187 | D |
| 101 | Gonzaga University Spokane, WA | $53,458 | $49,170 | — | — | A |
| 102 | Texas State University San Marcos, TX | $53,407 | $54,299 | $20,547 | $17,750 | C+ |
| 103 | California State University-Chico Chico, CA | $52,150 | $47,453 | $39,060 | $15,000 | B |
| 104 | Kent State University at Kent Kent, OH | $51,747 | $55,222 | — | $25,500 | D |
| 105 | University of Mary Washington Fredericksburg, VA | $51,166 | $46,591 | $30,357 | $25,043 | C+ |
| 106 | Eastern Washington University Cheney, WA | $50,238 | $46,208 | — | — | C |
| 107 | Drake University Des Moines, IA | $49,764 | $52,346 | — | — | A |
| 108 | Indiana University-Indianapolis Indianapolis, IN | $49,069 | $52,642 | $36,889 | $22,500 | C+ |
| 109 | University of Arkansas Fayetteville, AR | $48,925 | $57,654 | $22,612 | $20,500 | B+ |
| 110 | University of Idaho Moscow, ID | $48,662 | $51,745 | $30,261 | $23,785 | C+ |
| 111 | Saint Cloud State University Saint Cloud, MN | $48,463 | $46,293 | — | $18,250 | C |
| 112 | Georgia Southern University Statesboro, GA | $47,844 | $49,528 | $27,664 | $25,082 | C |
| 113 | University of Puget Sound Tacoma, WA | $47,734 | $43,905 | $28,176 | $25,798 | B+ |
| 114 | Cleveland State University Cleveland, OH | $45,045 | $48,070 | $31,434 | $22,960 | C |
| 115 | Susquehanna University Selinsgrove, PA | $44,784 | $45,546 | — | — | B |
| 116 | University of West Florida Pensacola, FL | $43,652 | $46,462 | — | $16,202 | C |
| 117 | The University of Texas at San Antonio San Antonio, TX | $42,864 | $43,580 | $25,879 | $21,522 | C+ |
| 118 | Northern Kentucky University Highland Heights, KY | $41,730 | $47,251 | $21,915 | — | C+ |
Bachelor’s degrees. Wage-adjusted = pay ÷ √(state wage index). Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard field-of-study data.
What Can You Do With a National Security Policy Studies Degree?
Graduates with this degree pursue careers in the following fields:
$123,537
Average Salary Across Careers
$139,380
Highest Paying Career
3
Career Paths Available
Best Colleges for National Security Policy Studies
Ranked by Repit grade, then by degrees awarded. These are the top-rated colleges that produce the most graduates in national security policy studies.
| # | College | Location | Degrees Awarded | Repit Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Johns Hopkins University | Baltimore, MD | 29 | A |
| 2 | San Diego State University | San Diego, CA | 43 | B+ |
| 3 | University of Massachusetts-Lowell | Lowell, MA | 53 | B |
| 4 | Angelo State University | San Angelo, TX | 82 | C+ |
| 5 | Liberty University | Lynchburg, VA | 60 | C+ |
| 6 | Fairmont State University | Fairmont, WV | 53 | C+ |
| 7 | The University of Texas at El Paso | El Paso, TX | 36 | C+ |
| 8 | Utah Valley University | Orem, UT | 34 | C+ |
| 9 | Bellevue University | Bellevue, NE | 33 | C+ |
| 10 | Naval Postgraduate School | Monterey, CA | 70 | C |
| 11 | Norwich University | Northfield, VT | 30 | C |
Largest National Security Policy Studies Programs
Schools ranked by number of graduates. These institutions produce the most national security policy studies graduates annually, including online and distance learning programs.
| # | College | Location | Degrees Awarded | Repit Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Angelo State University | San Angelo, TX | 82 | C+ |
| 2 | Naval Postgraduate School | Monterey, CA | 70 | C |
| 3 | Liberty University | Lynchburg, VA | 60 | C+ |
| 4 | University of Massachusetts-Lowell | Lowell, MA | 53 | B |
| 5 | Fairmont State University | Fairmont, WV | 53 | C+ |
| 6 | San Diego State University | San Diego, CA | 43 | B+ |
| 7 | The University of Texas at El Paso | El Paso, TX | 36 | C+ |
| 8 | Utah Valley University | Orem, UT | 34 | C+ |
| 9 | Bellevue University | Bellevue, NE | 33 | C+ |
| 10 | Norwich University | Northfield, VT | 30 | C |
| 11 | Johns Hopkins University | Baltimore, MD | 29 | A |
788
Degrees Awarded Annually
45
Colleges Offering Program
3
Related Careers
About National Security Policy Studies
National Security Policy Studies is a degree program offered at 45 colleges and universities across the United States. Each year, approximately 788 students graduate with this degree.
Graduates with this degree can pursue careers such as political scientists, managers, all other, political science teachers, postsecondary.
Program Classification
CIP Code
45.0902
Field (2-digit CIP)
45
Category (4-digit CIP)
45.09
Frequently Asked Questions
What can I do with a National Security Policy Studies degree?
A National Security Policy Studies degree can lead to careers as a
political scientists, managers, all other, political science teachers, postsecondary,
and more.
Top earners in related careers can make up to $139,380 annually.
How many colleges offer National Security Policy Studies?
45 colleges and universities in the United States offer
National Security Policy Studies as a degree program. Each year, approximately 788
students graduate with this degree.
What are the best colleges for National Security Policy Studies?
The best colleges for National Security Policy Studies based on Repit's ratings include
Johns Hopkins University, San Diego State University, University of Massachusetts-Lowell, Angelo State University, Liberty University.
Rankings are based on the college's overall Repit grade and the number of degrees awarded in this program.
What is the salary potential with a National Security Policy Studies degree?
Graduates with a National Security Policy Studies degree can expect average salaries around $123,537
in related careers, with top earners making up to $139,380.
Actual salaries depend on the specific career path, experience level, and location.