MA International Relations

FU Berlin's MA International Relations is a joint degree run by Berlin's three major universities — Free University of Berlin (FU), Humboldt University (HU) and the Hertie School — operated through the Berlin Graduate School for Transnational Studies. The two-year programme is taught entirely in English and consistently ranks among Europe's strongest IR master's degrees. The curriculum covers international political economy, security studies, international law, comparative regionalism (with strong South Asia content via FU's Institute of South Asian Studies), research methods, and a research thesis. Students take electives across all three universities and the wider Berlin think-tank ecosystem.

Berlin is the centre of European foreign policy — the programme leverages the Bundestag, Auswärtiges Amt (Foreign Office), the embassies cluster in Mitte, and the dense think-tank network (SWP, DGAP, Mercator, Hertie School, ECFR). Mandatory internships are typically completed at one of these institutions. Berlin remains tuition-free at the state level. Sri Lankan applicants with backgrounds in political science, international studies, history, law or economics are welcome — the programme attracts a substantially international cohort (typically 40+ nationalities).