The Administration Series of the Council on Foreign Relations contains records relating to the general operations of the organization, including subject files on administrative matters, files from the Executive Office of the Council, Library and Archive records and materials documenting the various trips offered to members of the Council. In general, this series contains departmental records not falling under any of the other series.

The Studies Department Series documents the planning and execution of the various study groups (including discussion groups, current issue review groups, seminars, workshops and conferences) and projects. Documents in this series reflect the administration of the Studies Department (mainly through correspondence and subject files), the records of the groups themselves (through correspondence, background papers, meeting minutes and final reports), and the subject files and correspondence of major players in the Council's Studies Department from the 1940s onward.