International Relations Major
International Relations is an interdisciplinary major administered by the Department of Government and International Relations. It consists of ten or more semester courses, seven of which are taken in the Government and International Relations Department, and three of which are taken in other social-science departments. Of these three, one must be in Economics, and one must be in History. The third course must be taken outside the department from the approved list of social-science courses below (or with the permission of the department). Normally, the department will count up to two courses taken at a one-semester program towards the major, if appropriate, and up to three courses from two semesters taken elsewhere, if appropriate. Normally, at least seven courses (eight for honors) must be taken at Connecticut College.
The required seven courses in GOV/IR are distributed as follows:
- GOV 113
- One additional course in International Politics
- One Comparative Politics course
- One course with a Foreign Policy focus.
- Three additional GOV courses in International Politics, Foreign Policy, or Comparative Politics, selected from the list provided below. (NOTE: No concentration is required).
The level distribution of the seven GOV/IR courses is as follows:
- GOV 113 is a required course
- Can count up to two 100-level courses. GOV 113 is required. Students may also count 112 towards the major
- Can count up to three (but no more than three) 200-level courses
- At least two courses at the 300-level or above, including:
- Must take at least one 400-level seminar at Connecticut College in the junior or senior year.
NOTE: a 300- or 400-level independent study can count towards the seven GOV-course total, but cannot substitute for a 400-level seminar, which is a required course.
NOTE: Students undertaking honors thesis work (GOV 497/498) will complete eleven courses in the major for graduation, with one semester of honors work counting towards the ten-course total.
NOTE: Students who have taken AP Comparative Politics and received a score of 4 or 5 are exempt from taking GOV 112. They can elect, but are not required to, enroll directly into comparative politics courses at the 200 level.
The three courses taken outside the Government deparment should be distributed as follows:
- One course at the 200-level or above from the list of approved ECO courses
- One course at the 200-level or above from the list of approved HIS courses
- One additional course at the 200-level or above from the approved list of social science courses.
NOTE: please be careful to check for prerequisites for all courses. For example, almost all of the Economics courses listed below require Economics 111 or 112 or both. You are responsible for completing perquisites, normally by the end of your sophomore year.
Language:
In addition to the College language requirement, majors must take at least one course in a modern foreign language beyond the intermediate level.
- For five of the languages taught at the College -- French, German, Italian, Russian, and Spanish -- the IRL major requires at least one course beyond their standard two-semester intermediate level.
- Students taking French, German or Russian need a 300-level course that requires course 202. For Italian, any course that requires 202 would satisfy the requirement. Students studying Spanish must take a course beyond SPA 201
- Students taking Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, or Hebrew must complete the 200-level intermediate series.
NOTE: To become and remain fluent in the language, as well as to be competitive for certain graduate programs, students are encouraged to take language courses through the senior year.
NOTE: Students are highly encouraged to study abroad, especially if language immersion is involved.
Requirements
Required Courses
One course in Comparative Politics:
One course in Foreign Policy:
One course in International Politics:
Two other 200-, 300-, or 400-level Government course in the International Politics, Foreign Policy, or Comparative fields noted above.
A Government seminar taken at Connecticut College during the junior or senior year: A 400-level Government International Politics, Foreign Policy, or Comparative Politics seminar.
Appropriate 400-level courses include:
Three additional, non-Government courses at the 200-level or above, selected as follows:
One additional course selected from the following:
One course in Economics selected from:
| ECO 210 | INTERNATIONAL ECONOMICS | 4 |
| ECO 220 | ECON OF MULTILATERAL ORGNZATNS | 4 |
| ECO 234 | ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 4 |
| ECO 237 | ECON GROWTH/DEVEL IN LAT AMER | 4 |
| ECO 240 | HEALTH ECONOMICS | 4 |
| ECO 251 | ECONOMICS OF THE WELFARE STATE | 4 |
| ECO 311 | INTERNATIONAL TRADE | 4 |
| ECO 322 | GAME THEORY | 4 |
| ECO 330 | INTERNATIONAL FINANCE | 4 |
| ECO 332 | OPEN MACRO: EMERGING ECONOMIES | 4 |
| ECO 407 | ECON OF CONFLICT & COOPERATION | 4 |
| ECO 412 | SEM: INTERNATIONAL ECONOMICS | 4 |
| ECO 430 | GROWTH/PROMISE IN LAT AMER | 4 |
| ECO 440 | TOPICS IN NEW GLOBAL ECONOMY | 4 |
| or an appropriate advanced course | |
One course in History selected from:
Advisers: T. Borer, E. Fleury, A. Levin, D. Patton, C. Sayej, J. Tian