Princeton University

“In the Nation’s Service and the Service of Humanity.” Coined by the School’s namesake and later expanded, this phrase captures the essence of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University.

What began in 1930 as a small interdisciplinary undergraduate program has become a major center of research and education, providing training in its graduate programs to masters and doctoral students.

The School offers a rigorous academic experience in a tight-knit, intimate community. Admitted students will join an intellectually stimulating family that includes more than 4,000 alumni, esteemed research faculty, high-level policymakers, and a staff dedicated to helping them succeed.

With 200 graduate students enrolled in our three graduate programs, students are able to create meaningful connections and lifelong friendships with peers and professors. Generous financial aid packages allow students to pursue careers in public service unencumbered by debt.

Our work is informed by a commitment to a multidisciplinary approach to policy issues, a global perspective, and an emphasis on top-quality research and teaching. Our faculty reflect the complexity of today’s policy issues and includes economists, historians, political scientists, and sociologists, as well as scientists, engineers, psychologists, and legal scholars. Practitioners are an important part of students’ training and bring real-world policy experience to the classroom. Our Leadership Through Mentorship Program brings in high-level policy officials who attend classes, share meals with students, and offer office hours. Finally, the School is home to 20 research centers and programs organized around policy-relevant areas.

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What’s unique about the Woodrow Wilson School’s approach to policy?

Our distinctive course of study strikes a balance between theory and practice. Ninety-two full-time faculty members teach at the school, most with dual appointments, representing eleven different departments. International relations scholars combine expert analysis of a shifting world order with insight into how history influences today’s geopolitical landscape. Our faculty conduct innovative research; provide policymakers, nonprofits, and research centers with expert, nonpartisan policy analysis; and provide students with the tools and knowledge needed to tackle important policy issues. Students select one of four fields of concentration and can deepen their knowledge in specific areas of study through certificates in health and health policy, urban policy, or science, technology, and environmental policy. All students receive an education focused on rigorous quantitative and qualitative analysis—an adaptable “policy toolkit” that allows them to excel in any field, domestically or internationally.

How do Woodrow Wilson School students apply classroom lessons to real-world policy challenges?

We believe that learning extends beyond the classroom. Formal coursework is enriched with public lectures and informal talks with policymakers and advocates working on the important issues of the day. We send students all over the world to learn in the field—required summer internships for Master in Public Affairs students, policy workshops to analyze a complex issue and present recommendations to a real client, or fieldwork to supplement formal studies. The result: students are able to learn about any policy topic from various vantage points.

How does the school support students’ career goals and objectives?

We take the view that the school should invest in the students so they can focus on their studies and pursue careers in public service without worrying about financing their graduate education. Generous financial aid is offered to all graduate students covering full tuition and required fees for everyone, as well as financial support for travel to complement policy workshops, for language training, and for summer internships. Our career services team is dedicated to helping launch students’ careers, providing coaching, guidance, and resources for the lifecycle of their careers.

How does the Woodrow Wilson School engage in foreign affairs and foreign policy, especially as the rules of international affairs seem to be changing?

For a school our size, we offer remarkable range in this regard. Our faculty and practitioners study international relations, politics, and economics, and our twenty centers and programs focus on policy issues ranging from climate change and forced migration to security studies, health, and finance. We are a home for the study and debate of national and international policy and support a variety of educational, research, enrichment, and outreach activities. Opportunities abound for students to gain the skills necessary to become the next generation of strategic thinkers and decision-makers. Recognizing the ways in which advancements in information technology are affecting global relationships, we invest heavily in IT policy studies. In addition to our eighty-plus tenured faculty, we regularly host visiting leaders and diplomats. Ambassadors Daniel C. Kurtzer and Ryan Crocker, both of whom have led crisis decision- and policymaking processes, teach at the school and engage with our community.

What’s unique about the Woodrow Wilson School’s approach to teaching policy?

Our distinctive multidisciplinary course of study strikes a balance between theory and practice. Ninety full-time faculty members teach at the School, almost all of whom have dual appointments with other departments. Approximately forty-five visiting professors, lecturers, and practitioners from the world of public and international affairs also teach at the School. Our faculty conduct innovative research; provide policymakers, nonprofit organizations, and research centers with expert, nonpartisan policy analysis; and provide Woodrow Wilson undergraduate and graduate students with the analytical tools and in-depth knowledge needed to tackle important policy issues.

How do students apply what they learn in the classroom to real-world policy challenges?

We believe that learning extends beyond the classroom. We enrich formal coursework with almost-daily public lectures and informal talks with policymakers and advocates working on the important issues of the day. We send students all over the world to learn in the field—summer work for graduate students, policy workshops to strategically engage and analyze a policy issue on behalf of a real client, or field work to supplement formal studies. The result: Students are able to learn about any given policy topic from various vantage points.

How does the School support students’ career goals and objectives?

Many schools take the approach that students should invest in their own educations. At the Woodrow Wilson School, we take a different view—that the School should invest in the students. We provide generous financial aid for MPA, MPP, and PhD students as well as financial support for travel to complement policy workshops; financial support for language training; and financial support for summer internships. We provide ongoing career coaching and guidance, and our career services team is dedicated to helping launch Woodrow Wilson School graduate students after graduation and throughout their careers.

How does the School engage in foreign affairs and foreign policy?

For a school our size, we offer remarkable range in this regard. Our faculty and practitioners study international relations, politics, and economics, and our nineteen centers and programs focus on policy issues ranging from climate change and forced migration to security studies, health, and finance. We are a home for the study and debate of national and international policy and support a variety of educational, research, enrichment, and outreach activities. Opportunities abound for our students to gain the skills necessary to become the next generation of strategic thinkers and decision-makers, including learning directly from accomplished individuals. In addition to our ninety full-time tenured faculty, we regularly host visiting leaders and diplomats. Ambassadors Daniel C. Kurtzer and Ryan Crocker are with us now, both of whom have led crisis decision- and policy-making processes and both of whom now teach our students and engage with our community.