International Studies Major

Students majoring in International Studies begin with foundational coursework in international relations, economics, geography, and sociology/anthropology, and complete their degree requirements with a senior research project. The challenges and perils that face the global community are multifaceted and complex. Students acquire different sets of knowledge, tools, and perspectives to deal with the complexities that face local to global communities.

Complementary Studies and International Opportunities

Students complement their International Studies major with coursework in related departments like politics, economics, sociology, history or foreign languages, and in the Dolan School of Business. Many students also pursue related interdisciplinary programs, such as environmental studies, women's studies, peace and justice, and area studies with which International Studies works especially closely. They also study economics and business emphasizing multinational organizations and regional trade pacts, economic and political systems, socio-cultural structures, microfinance and diversities that have operational significance for community and economic development and international business.

The International Studies Program reinforces multidimensional learning with real-world experience through language studies, service learning, Model United Nations, the Undergraduate Journal of Global Citizenship, internships, and study abroad opportunities, and through work with our faculty on research projects. Students are expected to engage in one or more of these forms of experiential learning.

Graduation with Honors in International Studies

Fairfield University has a campus chapter of Sigma Iota Rho, the national honor society for international studies. Students must have attained a junior standing and completed at least twenty-one hours of course work toward the International Studies/Business major. Students with an overall GPA of 3.30 or greater and a GPA of 3.40 or higher in their International Studies or International Business major will be nominated for membership.

For a 30-credit major in International Studies, students complete the following:

Foundational Courses
Electives
INTL 1050People, Places, and Global Issues3
INTL 1051Introduction to International Relations3
INTL 1052Culture and the Political Economy3
INTL 1053Introduction to Economics3
or ECON 1011
ECON 1012
Introduction to Microeconomics
and Introduction to Macroeconomics
INTL 4999Senior Capstone Seminar3
Select five electives to develop a specialization in International Studies 115
Total Credits30

Students are encouraged to complete INTL 1050INTL 1051INTL 1052, and INTL 1053 in their First and/or Sophomore years. Students should work closely with their advisor to select courses that cohere into a unified program.

International Studies Electives

AETH 2293Ethics of War and Peace3
ANTH 1115Cultures of Africa3
ANTH 1120Islamic Societies and Cultures3
ANTH 1125Sex, Gender, and Sexual Orientation3
ANTH 2015Refugees and Culture3
ANTH 2100Culture and Inequality3
ANTH 3700Grant Writing for the Social Sciences3
ANTH 3710Theory and Practice in Anthropology3
COMM 2240Intercultural Communication3
COMM 2241Communication and Culture: East and West3
ECON 2120Introduction to Environmental Economics3
ECON 3230Comparative Economic Systems3
ECON 3231International Trade3
ECON 3233International Economic Policy and Finance3
ECON 3235Economic Development3
ECON 3237Fair Trade and Microfinance3
FNCE 3200Global Capital Markets3
FNCE 4240International Financial Management3
HIST 1189Modern Latin America, 1800-Present3
HIST 2251The American Century: The United States and the World Since 19003
HIST 2265History of the Indian Subcontinent: Colonialism, Nationalism, and Democracy, c.1857 to Today3
HIST 2270History of Global Humanitarian Action3
HIST 2273History and Culture of Central and Eastern Europe Since 19453
HIST 2274Historical Perspectives on Contemporary Global Crises3
HIST 228420th Century Russia3
HIST 2285Modern China: 1800 to Present3
HIST 3366Gender, Culture, and Representation: Women in China and Japan, 1600 to Present3
INTL 2154Contemporary Issues Affecting the Global Business Environment3
INTL 2150International Operations of Non-Profits3
INTL 2471United Nations Security Council Crisis Simulation3
INTL 2481International Human Rights3
INTL 3980Internship3
INTL 3990Independent Study3
LCST 3301Justice and the Developing World3
MGMT 4350International Law3
MGMT 4360Negotiations and Dispute Resolution3
MGMT 4370Managing Non-Profit Organizations3
MGMT 4385Managing People for Global Business3
MGMT 4390Cross-Cultural Management3
MKTG 4312Global Marketing3
PHIL 2263The Concept of Human Rights3
POLI 1102Introduction to Comparative Politics3
POLI 2251Islam and Muslim Politics3
POLI 2252African Politics3
POLI 2253Latin American Politics3
POLI 2255Middle East Politics3
POLI 2256Asian Politics3
POLI 2257Northern Ireland: Politics of War and Peace3
POLI 2258Political Violence3
POLI 2259The Development Gap3
POLI 2331Introduction to Peace and Justice3
POLI 2472Politics of Humanitarian Action3
POLI 2474International Environmental Policies3
POLI 2476United States Foreign Policy3
POLI 2477International Political Economy3
POLI 2478International Law3
POLI 2479Threats to Global Security in the 21st Century3
POLI 2480Border Politics3
POLI 4303Gender, War, and Peace3
POLI 4304Seminar on Global Environmental Politics3
POLI 4314International Perspectives on International Politics: Moving Beyond Western Paradigms3
RLST 2335Liberation Theology3
SOCI 1145Globalization3
SOCI 1150Introduction to International Migration3
SOCI 1155Sociology of Europe3
SOCI 1160Contemporary Latin American and Caribbean Society3
SOCI 1165Social Change in Developing Nations3
Plan of Study Grid
First YearCredits
INTL 1050 People, Places, and Global Issues 3
 Credits3
Second Year
INTL 1051 Introduction to International Relations 3
INTL 1052 Culture and the Political Economy 3
INTL 1053
Introduction to Economics
or Introduction to Microeconomics and Introduction to Macroeconomics
3
 Credits9
Third Year
Thematic Electives 15
 Credits15
Fourth Year
Thematic Electives  
INTL 4999 Senior Capstone Seminar 3
 Credits3
 Total Credits30