Germany · Master's
Hertie School
Master of International Affairs
Hertie School
Course Overview
The Hertie School's Master of International Affairs (MIA) is Berlin's flagship two-year professional master's in international policy, modelled on the U.S. SIPA / Fletcher / Kennedy School tradition but rooted in the European policy ecosystem. The Hertie School sits at Friedrichstraße in the heart of Berlin's government quarter, three minutes' walk from the Bundestag and Auswärtiges Amt. The school is a private graduate-only institution (founded 2003 by the gemeinnützige Hertie-Stiftung) and is one of only a handful of German universities accredited at the European master's standard for policy education.
The MIA is taught 100% in English. The curriculum combines policy analysis, economics, quantitative methods, international law and a substantive concentration: International Security, International Political Economy, Global Governance, or Human Rights & Migration. Students complete a Professional Year between Years 1 and 2 — usually a paid internship at a Berlin think tank, a German federal ministry, the European External Action Service in Brussels, or a UN agency. Hertie's alumni network places into German Foreign Office, the Bundestag, EU institutions, McKinsey Berlin/Brussels, the World Bank, and the major think-tank cluster around Tiergarten. The school operates very strong scholarship support — typically 40-50% of admitted students receive partial-to-full tuition funding.
Entry Requirements
Academic
- check_circle Bachelor's degree in any discipline — first-class or upper-second (GPA 3.3+, Sri Lankan First or Second Upper). Strong applicants come from political science, IR, economics, law, history, public policy and area studies, but engineering, science and management backgrounds with policy interest are welcome.
- check_circle Minimum 1-2 years' relevant work experience strongly preferred — Sri Lankan applicants from MoFA, MoF, think tanks (LKI, CPA, ICES), UN agencies, NGOs and management consulting all qualify.
- check_circle Letter of motivation outlining policy interests (~1,000 words).
- check_circle Two academic / professional references.
- check_circle CV evidencing leadership, policy engagement or relevant internships.
- check_circle GRE / GMAT optional — recommended for applicants with weaker quantitative backgrounds.
English Proficiency
- check_circle IELTS Academic: 7.0 Overall (min 6.5 in each section).
- check_circle TOEFL iBT: 100 Overall.
- check_circle Cambridge English C1 Advanced: 185 Overall.
- check_circle Waived if your bachelor's degree was taught and assessed entirely in English — Sri Lankan applicants from UoC, UoP, UoM, SLIIT, NSBM, NIBM and equivalent English-medium degree programmes qualify with an MOI letter.
- check_circle German not required — the programme is taught 100% in English.
Estimated Cost of Study
| Expense Category | Amount (€) | Approx. LKR |
|---|---|---|
| Tuition Fee (per year) | € 33,000 | Rs. 11,385,000 |
| Semester Contribution (×2) | € 100 | Rs. 35,000 |
| Living Expenses (Berlin, 12 mo.) | € 12,000 | Rs. 4,140,000 |
| Blocked Account + Visa + Health Ins. | € 12,500 | Rs. 4,313,000 |
| Total Year 1 Investment | € 57,600 | Rs. 19,873,000 |
*LKR conversion based on current bank rates. Subject to change.
Career Outcomes & PR
Germany offers an 18-month Job Seeker Visa post-graduation. Hertie School MIA graduates route into the German Foreign Office, German Federal Chancellery, the European External Action Service (Brussels), the European Commission, the UN system (Geneva, New York, Vienna), the World Bank and IMF, OECD, plus consulting (McKinsey Berlin/Brussels, BCG, Roland Berger), think tanks (SWP, DGAP, ECFR, Mercator, Brookings Europe), the Open Society Foundations and major German political foundations. Sri Lankan returnees route into Ministry of Foreign Affairs Sri Lanka, Lakshman Kadirgamar Institute, UN agencies (UNDP, UNESCO, UNICEF Colombo), policy think tanks (CPA, ICES) and international NGO leadership.
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ඔබට සුදුසු විශ්වවිද්යාලයක් තේරීම, අයදුම්පත් යොමු කිරීම, SOP සකස් කිරීම සහ වීසා ලබා ගැනීම ඇතුළු සෑම පියවරකදීම, ඔබ වෙනුවෙන් සියලුම වගකීම් විශ්වාසවන්තව අප භාර ගනිමු.