International Relations (BA)

专业详情

The Program in International Relations (IR) offers an interdisciplinary undergraduate major, minor and honors program allowing students to explore how global, regional and domestic factors influence relations between actors on the world stage. The program equips students with the skills and knowledge necessary to analyze choices and challenges that arise in this arena. IR majors pursue study in world politics, including courses in Political Science, Economics, History, languages, and other fields focusing on issues such as international security, political economy, economic development, and democratization. The major prepares students for careers in the government, nongovernment, and private sectors, and for admission into graduate programs, including law, international policy, business, political science, economics, and journalism.

In the undergraduate major program, students focus on political, economic, and cultural relations among peoples and states in the modern world. Students majoring in IR will pursue a course of study that includes classes in political science, economics, history, environmental policy, languages, and other fields. IR majors may focus on a range of issues including international security, international trade and finance, political and economic development, human rights and humanitarian policy, climate change, as well as the politics, history, and cultures of other countries and world regions. All IR majors must spend at least one quarter studying abroad and achieve high proficiency in a foreign language. 

The International Relations (IR) major is designed to provide students with an interdisciplinary education of both foundational skills and specific knowledge necessary to analyze contemporary international relations. 

Suggested Preparation for the Major

Prospective International Relations majors are advised to consider any introductory seminar taught by International Relations affiliated faculty through Stanford Introductory Studies. It would also be useful in the freshman and sophomore years to begin foreign language study and complete an introductory economics and/or statistical methods/data science course.