Is a international relations degree from Cal Poly Maritime Academy worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 61% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 59%. Compare the cost with other California programs before deciding.

Cal Poly Maritime Academy International Relations (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: How much debt do Cal Poly Maritime Academy international relations graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $26,000, which ranks 11th lowest of 11 international relations bachelor's programs in California. That works out to about $276 a month over 10 years.

Q: Do Cal Poly Maritime Academy international relations graduates stay in California?

Most do. 75% (24 of 32) were working in California one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in International Relations and National Security Studies
Public school
Vallejo, CA

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Cal Poly Maritime Academy international relations graduates earn about what international relations graduates earn nationally, $42,924 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $26,000 in federal loans, more than at 88% of international relations programs in the country. Several California programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$42,92462nd percentile of 105 programs nationally

Median federal debt$26,00011th lowest of 11 California programs

Debt-to-earnings61%California median 54%, national 59%

How it compares

Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The California and national columns are the medians across all international relations bachelor's programs that report the figure.

	Cal Poly Maritime Academy	California	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$42,924	$36,015	$36,889
Median federal debt at graduation	$26,000	$18,914	$21,750
Debt as share of first-year pay	61%	54%	59%
Programs compared		12	105

Debt and first-year pay at every California international relations program

Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the California medians.

Cal Poly Maritime AcademyOther California programs

Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $276 a month, or 7.7% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (33 borrowers)	Share
Paying down the balance	40–59%

The government publishes these as ranges to protect privacy. They were measured in 2018 to 2020, partly during the pandemic pause on federal loan payments, so the forbearance share may be higher than usual.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

75% of graduates (24 of 32) were working in California one year after graduating. Prices in the Vallejo area are about 8% above the national average, so a $42,924 salary here buys what about $39,569 buys in a typical US city.

Careers this field leads to

These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to international relations, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Political Scientists

$142,080

Median pay nationwide. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 2% from 2025 to 2035, with about 400 openings a year. Typical education to start: master's degree.

About Cal Poly Maritime Academy

In-state tuition and fees	$9,944 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$22,544 / year
Average net price after aid	$20,555 / year
Admission rate	95%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	60%
Undergraduate students	804

International Relations ranks 6th of 6 bachelor's programs at Cal Poly Maritime Academy by first-year earnings. The top three are Other Engineering Technology ($115,589), Mechanical Engineering Technology ($98,661), and Mechanical Engineering ($92,315).

Other international relations bachelor's programs near Vallejo

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Cal Poly Maritime AcademyVallejo, CA · public		$42,924	$26,000
University of San FranciscoSan Francisco, CA · private nonprofit	23 mi	$36,669	$24,508
San Francisco StateSan Francisco, CA · public	28 mi	$31,254	$16,750
UC DavisDavis, CA · public	42 mi	$34,949	$12,416

Common questions

The median graduate earns $42,924 one year after graduating. The median across international relations bachelor's programs in California is $36,015.

About this data

Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid (grants or loans).
Earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school. Graduates who went straight to further study are not included.
Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of California comparisons when their main campus is in another state.
Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.
School-level numbers like tuition, admission rate, and graduation rate are for the whole school, not the international relations program.

Sources

U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024

International Relations bachelor's programs in California, ranked12 programs by pay and debt International Relations bachelor's programs in the US, ranked105 programs by pay and debt All Cal Poly Maritime Academy programs, ranked6 programs by pay and debt