Learn more about the requirements and offered tracks in the International Studies Major.
Requirements: International Studies Major
Students complete 42 credits, or 14 total courses in the major:
- 6-7 required courses
- 2 or more courses in Politics and Government
- 2 or more courses in History and Area Studies
- 3 or more elective courses at the 400 level
Students complete at least one course in each of the following areas:
|
Subject |
Code and Title |
Prerequisites |
Credits |
|
Economics |
ECO 210: Introduction to Economics[1] or ECO 220 and 221: Micro and Macro-Economics[2] |
ECO 210: None ECO 220: None ECO 221: ECO 220 |
3-6 |
|
Geography |
GEO 303: World Geography[3] |
None |
3 |
|
History of the Middle East |
HST 320: History of the Middle East[4] |
CIV 203 or HST 102 |
3 |
|
International Relations |
POL 302: International Relations |
None |
3 |
|
Political Philosophy |
POL 303 or 401: Political Philosophy |
None |
3 |
|
Capstone |
IST 410: International Studies Capstone |
IS Major, Senior Standing |
3 |
[1] Students may not receive credit for ECO 210 if they have already completed ECO 220 or ECO 221. Students may take ECO 210 before ECO 220 and ECO 221 and receive credit for all three.
[2] Students must take both ECO 220 and 221 to fulfill the economics requirement; both will count towards the major.
[3] POL 305: The Political Economy of Petrostates fulfills this requirement if taken before Fall 2014.
[4] This requirement is waived for students who enrolled before fall 2012 and completed HST 201 as a core requirement.
Students complete two or more courses in POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT chosen from the following:
|
Code |
Title |
Prerequisites |
Credits |
|
ECO 220 |
Microeconomics |
None |
3 |
|
ECO 221 |
Macroeconomics |
None |
3 |
|
ECO 403 |
International Political Economy |
ECO 221 or ECO 210 |
3 |
|
POL 301 |
Comparative Political Systems |
None |
3 |
|
POL 305 |
Political Economy of Petrostates |
None |
3 |
|
POL 355/SCI 301 |
Water: Science, Policy, and Health |
SCI 101 and POS 305 or SCI 208 |
3 |
|
POL 400 |
Topics in Political Science |
None |
3 |
|
POL 403 |
American Government |
None |
3 |
|
POL 404 |
Leaders and Statesmen |
None |
3 |
|
POL 406 |
Contemporary Political Trends |
None |
3 |
|
POL 420 |
International Relations of the Middle East |
HST 201, HST 320, or POL 302 |
3 |
Students complete two or more courses in HISTORY AND AREA STUDIES chosen from the following:
|
Code |
Title |
Prerequisites |
Credits |
|
HST 306 |
World History since 1945 |
CIV 203 or HST 102 |
3 |
|
HST 321 |
Islamic Religious Traditions (formerly IST 241) |
None |
3 |
|
HST 401 |
The World Wars |
CIV 203 or HST 102 |
3 |
|
HST 421 |
Religion in Iraq |
CIV 203, HST 102, or REL 202 |
3 |
|
IST 202 |
Geopolitics Ancient and Modern |
None |
3 |
|
JRL 310 |
International Journalism |
ENG 102 |
3 |
|
LIT 403 |
Literature and Politics |
ENG 203 |
3 |
|
LIT 470 |
Imperialism and its Aftermath |
ENG 203 |
3 |
Tracks
International Studies majors may choose to complete a track in 1) History and/or 2) Middle East Studies.
- These tracks are optional. Students can choose to complete them as part of the major, but they are not required to choose a track.
- Courses taken in a track count towards the IS major.
- IS majors may complete more than one track, although a second track will require that they take more than 14 courses in the IS department.
- One course cannot count for more than one track, e.g. HST 420 can count either towards the History track or towards the Middle East Studies track; it cannot count towards both.
- Students receive a certificate of completion of the track at graduation.
History Track
In addition to HST 320, required for the major, students complete four courses from the following list, including at least two at the 400 level.
|
Course Code |
Course Title |
Prerequisites |
Credits |
|
HST 306 |
World History since 1945 |
CIV 203 or HST 102 |
3 |
|
HST 321 |
Islamic Religious Traditions (formerly IST 241) |
CIV 203, HST 102, or REL 202 |
3 |
|
HST 401 |
The World Wars |
CIV 203 or HST 102 |
3 |
|
HST 421 |
Religion in Iraq |
CIV 203, HST 102, or REL 202 |
3 |
|
IST 202 |
Geopolitics Ancient and Modern |
None |
3 |
Middle East Studies Track
In addition to HST 320, required for the major, students complete four courses from the following list, including at least one from each category (HST and POL) and at least two at the 400 level.
|
Course Code |
Course Title |
Prerequisites |
Credits |
|
HST 321 |
Islamic Religious Traditions (formerly IST 241) |
CIV 203, HST 102, or REL 202 |
3 |
|
HST 421 |
Religion in Iraq |
CIV 203, HST 102, or REL 202 |
3 |
|
POL 305 |
Political Economy of Petrostates |
None |
3 |
|
POL 400 |
Topics in Political Science, summer 2013: Women Leaders in the Middle East |
None |
3 |
|
POL 420 |
International Relations of the Middle East |
HST 320, HST 201, or POL 302 |
3 |