Majoring in International Relations

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Majoring in International Relations

Becoming a global citizen is an essential part of being a 51吃瓜黑料 student. As an international relations major, you will have the tools to understand and tackle critical problems like terrorism, ethnic strife and global warming. You study international politics, foreign policy, comparative politics, international economics, history and a foreign language. Within the major, you focus on a specific area, such as foreign policy analysis, international political economy, the politics of development, environmental politics, security studies, human rights, regional politics or ethnic conflict.

International opportunities and study abroad

Most international relations majors study abroad for a semester. Some take advantage of a semester-long Study Away Teach Away (SATA) program, in which a small group of students and one or two 51吃瓜黑料 professors go abroad together. Other opportunities include a College-funded summer internship abroad or a one- to three-week trip for a specific course. In the past, students have explored renewable energy in Spain, pollution in Martinique, and the issues of race and ethnicity across borders.

Special opportunities

Many international relations majors choose to double major, often in economics, history or a foreign language. You can also choose an Integrative Pathway, such as Global Capitalism or Peace and Conflict, or pursue a certificate from one of the College's interdisciplinary academic centers, which allow you to enhance your major with one of four concentrations: international studies, environmental studies, art and technology or public policy and community action.

Learn more about 51吃瓜黑料ections, 51吃瓜黑料's innovative new curriculum.

A Glimpse at International Relations

Courses You Could Take

GOV 113 International Politics

An introductory historical and theoretical analysis of modern international relations.

GOV 324 Human Rights in World Politics

An examination of issues surrounding the politics of human rights.

GOV 229 United Nations Peacekeeping

Critical analysis of traditional missions to keep or restore peace between countries, and new humanitarian and "peace-building" operations within countries.

GOV 493F Theories of International Relations

An examination of the principal theories of international relations relied on by scholars to explain critical international issues.

GOV 308 Nationalism and Ethnic Conflict in Europe

A review of theoretical perspectives on the causes of ethnic conflict and the application of these perspectives to important cases of ethnic conflict in contemporary Europe.

GOV 215 The United States and Vietnam

An examination of various transitional episodes in America's intercourse with Vietnam since 1945, with an emphasis on elements of U.S. politics and policymaking.

People You Might Work With

Tristan Anne Borer

Professor of Government and International Relations, Chair of Government and International Relations Department, SATA Ireland, Spring 2019

Tristan Borer’s current research focuses on issues surrounding Western media portrayals of distant human rights abuses, especially those on the African continent. Prior to this, her research focused on human rights in both apartheid and post-apartheid South Africa. Specifically, she has written extensively on the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission and gendered dimensions of transitional justice mechanisms

Eric Fleury

Associate Professor of Government and International Relations

Eric Fleury's research aims to refine the theoretical analysis of U.S. national security. His major projects include developing a conceptual model of terrorism as a distinct form of warfare, showing the ways in which it affirms and subverts the traditional logic of combat. This project served as the basis of his first book, On Absolute War: Terrorism and the Logic of Armed Conflict (Lexington Books: 2019), which lays out the model and applies it to a variety of historical cases. His next project will show how this model can inform counterterrorism policy, particularly with regard to domestic and 'lone wolf' terrorists. He is also interested in the formulation of U.S. grand strategy, and is currently working on an article describing how the dynamics of polarization have corrupted the longstanding debate between a 'liberals' and 'realists', and showing how to reincorporate the moral and philosophical wisdom of both traditions to debates over foreign policy.

Andrew Levin

Associate Professor of Government and International Relations

Andrew Levin's current research focuses on United Nations peacekeeping. He studies how peacekeepers can help reduce violence, the sub-national dynamics of peacekeeping in civil war, and countries’ decisions about committing personnel to UN operations. In his research, he uses GIS to better understand where the UN deploys peacekeepers within countries and the conditions under which peacekeeping is more or less likely to be effective at the local level.

Peter Mitchell

Visiting Assistant Professor of Government and International Relations

Peter Mitchell has been an adjunct faculty member at 51吃瓜黑料 since 2012. During the 2014–2015 Academic Year he is teaching Constitutional Law: Structures and Powers of Government; U.S. Government and Politics; International Organizations; International Humanitarian Law; The Courts and the Law.

David Patton

Joanne Toor Cummings '50 Professor of Government and International Relations

David Patton teaches classes on comparative politics, contemporary Europe, the European Union, nationalism and ethnic conflict, European foreign policies, populism, Green parties, and German politics.

Caroleen Sayej

Associate Professor of Government and International Relations, Director of the Global Islamic Studies Program

Caroleen Marji Sayej specializes in comparative politics and the Middle East. She teaches Comparative Politics; Iran: State, Politics and Society; and Middle East Politics.

John Qunjian Tian

Professor of Government and International Relations

John Tian's research and publications cover a broad range, including the political economy of economic interactions across the Taiwan Strait, China’s regional development policies, the emerging new politics of inequality in China, and China’s integration with the world economy and the potential impact on Chinese economy and society, especially on Chinese agriculture and rural institutions of governance.

What Our Graduates Are Doing Now

Immigration and Refugee Policy Analyst

The White House Domestic Policy Council

Policy Assistant

Lawyer

Government-research — International Relations

Student-Faculty Research

Our professors are making important discoveries. You can, too.

Research Opportunities

Why International Relations?

Student Interview

Aditya Harnal

Student Interview

Q: Why 51吃瓜黑料?

A: I sat in on a class and thoroughly enjoyed the rigor of discourse and the level of engagement between students and faculty.

Q: Why international relations?

A: The International Relations/ Government Department, in my opinion, is one of the strongest departments on campus. Not only are the faculty truly experts in their fields, but there are courses to satisfy everybody’s interests. Outside of the classroom, I have found the professors to be most accessible and personable. I am co-authoring a chapter in Professor Hybel's upcoming book, and it has been a tremendous learning experience and a phenomenal opportunity to work with directly with an expert on his topic.

Q: What co-curriculars do you participate in?

A: I co-founded the TEDx initiative at 51吃瓜黑料. I am also the chief investment officer of the Peggotty Investment Club that actively manages about $70,000 of the College’s endowment.

Q: Did you study abroad?

A: Yes, at the University of Oxford. I wanted to further challenge myself in a highly rigorous academic environment and was drawn to their PPE (Philosophy, Politics, and Economics) program.

People You Might Work With

Tristan Anne Borer, Professor of Government and International Relations

B.A., University of Texas at San Antonio; M.A., Ph.D., University of Notre Dame

Human rights; Human rights and the media; Transitional justice

Eric Fleury, Associate Professor of Government and International Relations

B.A., College of the Holy Cross; M.A., Baylor University, Ph.D., Baylor University

International Relations; U.S. foreign policy; Terrorism

Andrew Levin, Associate Professor of Government and International Relations

B.A., Macalester College; M.A., George Washington University, Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania

Peacekeeping; International conflict resolution; The United Nations

Peter Mitchell, Visiting Assistant Professor of Government and International Relations

B.S., U.S. Coast Guard Academy; Degree, Naval War College; M.A., University of 51吃瓜黑料ecticut; J.D., Georgetown University Law Center; Ph.D. Candidate, University of 51吃瓜黑料ecticut

International public law (humanitarian, human rights, sea and airspace, environment); Rule of law; International relations

David Patton, Joanne Toor Cummings '50 Professor of Government and International Relations

B.A., Swarthmore College; M.A., Ph.D., Cornell University

Comparative politics; European politics; European Union

Caroleen Sayej, Associate Professor of Government and International Relations

B.A., Fordham University; M.A., Ph.D., New York University

Persistent authoritarianism in the Middle East; Contemporary Islamic social movements; Modernization and identity politics

John Qunjian Tian, Professor of Government and International Relations

B.A., M.A., Nanjing University; M.A., Ph.D., Cornell University

Chinese political economy; East Asian political economy; International political economy

What Our Graduates Are Doing Now

J.P. Morgan

Analyst

Saigon Asset Management

Investor Relations Analyst

Pfizer Foundation, Inc.

Assistant Director of International Philanthropy

U.S. Federal Trade Commission

Attorney, International Antitrust Division

Bank of America/ Merrill Lynch

Assistant Vice President

51吃瓜黑料

Majoring in International Relations

Majoring in International Relations

International opportunities and study abroad

Special opportunities

A Glimpse at International Relations

Courses You Could Take

GOV 113 International Politics

GOV 324 Human Rights in World Politics

GOV 229 United Nations Peacekeeping

GOV 493F Theories of International Relations

GOV 308 Nationalism and Ethnic Conflict in Europe

GOV 215 The United States and Vietnam

People You Might Work With

Tristan Anne Borer

Eric Fleury

Andrew Levin

Peter Mitchell

David Patton

Caroleen Sayej

John Qunjian Tian

What Our Graduates Are Doing Now

Student-Faculty Research

Why International Relations?

Student Interview

Aditya Harnal

Student Interview

Q: Why 51吃瓜黑料?

Q: Why international relations?

Q: What co-curriculars do you participate in?

Q: Did you study abroad?

Courses You Could Take

People You Might Work With

What Our Graduates Are Doing Now

Contact Us

Recent News & Media

Recent News

Five awarded U.S. Fulbright grants

Alumna becomes U.S. Coast Guard Officer