Certificate in International Studies
The International Studies Certificate is designed to prepare students for careers in government agencies, international governmental and nongovernmental organizations, multinational firms and banks, and for graduate studies in International Relations or Political Science. The certificate is not a substitute for degree requirements in any subject, including political science; rather, the required courses add an international and comparative dimension to the student’s chosen major.
Requirements for the certificate are intended to provide an understanding of international relations and comparative government, an awareness of global social and political-economic processes, and sensitivity to foreign political systems and cultures. These objectives are met by a sequence of political science courses in the areas of international relations, comparative politics, and area studies.
Students majoring in any subject at the university may be awarded the International Studies Certificate upon completion of the following 15 semester hours of political science courses:
Choose one from the courses below 3
- POS 150 Comparative Government SB, G (3)
- POS 160 Global Politics SB, G (3)
Choose one from the courses below 3
- POS 361 American Foreign Policy SB, G (3)
- POS 364 National Security, Intelligence, and Terrorism SB (3)
Choose two from the courses below 6
- POS 300 Contemporary Controversies in Global Politics SB, G (3)
- POS 465 International Organization and Law SB, G (3)
- POS 467 International Security SB, G (3)
- POS 486 International Political Economy SB, G (3)
Choose one from the courses below 3
- POS 350 Comparative Politics SB, G (3)
- POS 355 Russia and Successor States SB, G (3)
- POS 355 Russia and Successor States SB, G (3)
- POS 357 South Asia Politics SB, G (3)
- POS 358 Southeast Asia SB, G (3)
- POS 359 African Politics and Society SB, G (3)
- POS 360 World Politics SB, G (3)
- POS 451 China, Japan, and the Koreas SB, G (3)
- POS 452 China SB, G (3)
- POS 453 South America SB, G (3)
- POS 454 Mexico SB, G (3)
- POS 455 Central America and the Caribbean SB, G (3)
- POS 459 South and Southern Africa SB, G (3)
- POS 463 Inter-American Relations SB, G (3)
- POS 468 Comparative Asian Foreign Policies SB, G (3)
Total semester hours 15
Honors students who select an international topic for their theses may apply thesis credit toward the 15 hours of international course work for the certificate.
Depending upon their interests, certificate students are strongly advised to take 12 semester hours or more from appropriate courses in anthropology (ASB), economics (ECN), geography (GCU), history (HST), international business studies (IBS), and sociology (SOC). Knowledge of a modern foreign language equivalent to at least two years of college study is strongly recommended.
Certificate students must have a minimum GPA of 2.00; only courses in which students have a grade of “C” (2.00) or higher count toward the certificate.