In addition to the coursework necessary to complete the International Studies major, students are expected to fulfill the First-Year Foundation and Foundational Abilities requirements set forth by the university. Furthermore, students must complete at least 6 credits of Writing and Communication foundational ability coursework in one major. For the International Studies major, students would be able to fulfill this requirement by selecting 6 credits of elective courses in the major that are designated as Writing and Communications courses.
All courses taken for International Studies requirements must be completed with a grade of C- or better, and may not be taken satisfactory/unsatisfactory. Consult the Academic Catalogue for more information.
Students considering a major in International Studies should begin introductory courses required of the major early in their college careers. Choices may include AS.180.101 Elements of Macroeconomics, AS.180.102 Elements of Microeconomics, the appropriate level of a foreign language, and one of the designated International Studies Gateway courses.
In completing the requirements below, students must fulfill an advanced coursework requirement comprised of 5 courses taken at or above the 300 level from the political science, economics, and/or history requirements. The focus area and foreign language classes cannot count towards this advanced coursework requirement.
Courses with more than one subfield designation (e.g., both INST-IR and INST-CP) may not be double counted to fulfill both requirements.
Courses taken while studying abroad, and intending to count for the major, must receive approval from either the International Studies Program Director or Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies. Such approval is contingent upon completion of AS.180.101 Elements of Macroeconomics, AS.180.102 Elements of Microeconomics, at least one course at the appropriate level of a foreign language, and one designated International Studies Gateway course. Study-abroad coursework completed prior to meeting these benchmarks, or prior to declaring the major, may not be applied toward the International Studies major.
Interdivisional Registration at SAIS: Interdivisional registration (IDR) in courses offered by the School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) is restricted to KSAS graduate students and junior and senior International Studies (IS) majors and requires appropriate approval. Juniors and seniors who are not International Studies majors may enroll in SAIS courses via IDR only with the approval of Kate Bruffett [email protected] in the International Studies Program. Students enrolled in the DMP and BA/MA program with SAIS are not eligible for interdivisional registration in SAIS courses during their first three years of undergraduate study, regardless of major or special permission.
For advising information, please consult the Contacts & Advising page.
Political Science Requirements
International Studies students must complete 18 credits in political science, including:
- One course in international relations (INST-IR)
- Two courses in comparative politics (INST-CP)
- One course in American politics (INST-AP)
- One course in political theory (INST-PT)
- One of the following gateway courses (INST-GATEWY):
- Contemporary International Politics (190.108)
- Introduction to Global Studies (190.111)
- States, Regimes and Contentious Politics (192.150)
Economics Requirements
International Studies students must complete 12 credits in economics, including:
- Elements of Macroeconomics (AS.180.101)
- Elements of Microeconomics (AS.180.102)
- One course (student’s choice) taken in the JHU Department of Economics (e.g., AS.180.xxx).
- One approved international economics course designated by the POS tag INST-ECON in the course description; this course may sometimes be fulfilled via study abroad with permission
Note: both Elements of Macroeconomics and Elements of Microeconomics should be completed by the end of the sophomore year.
History Requirements
International Studies students must complete 15 credits in global history, designated by the POS tag INST-GLOBAL in the course description.
Foreign Language Requirements
All International Studies majors must demonstrate proficiency in at least one modern foreign language other than English. Note: American Sign Language is not accepted for the major.
Students may satisfy this requirement in one of the following ways:
1. Through coursework at Homewood:
- For Arabic, Chinese (not including Heritage Chinese), Japanese, and Korean, students must complete coursework through the second semester of the second-year (200-level).
- For all other languages (including Heritage Chinese), students must complete coursework through the second semester of the third-year (300-level).
2. Students who place above the required level as determined by exam or other methods (above second-year for Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean; above third-year for all other languages), must complete two additional modern foreign language courses (in the same language) for JHU credit at any level of instruction. These may include literature courses taught in a foreign language.
All students must complete at least two modern foreign language courses for JHU credit, regardless of proficiency or placement level.
Note: Students cannot count their foreign language courses toward the 5-course advanced coursework requirement.
Focus Area Requirements
To narrow an inevitably broad focus in international studies, students are required to pursue a specialization in an internationally-oriented field. To complete the specialization requirement, students may do one of the following:
- Pursue one of our unique double major or major/minor tracks. Students will receive either a double major in International Studies and the affiliated department or program OR a major in International Studies and a minor in the affiliated department or program depending on the track.
- Create their own specialization reflecting a coherent combination of coursework equivalent to four semester courses and may include:
- A language beyond that used to fulfill the major’s language requirement
- A functional specialization (e.g., international economics, security studies, international environmental policy)
- A regional or area focus (e.g., Latin America, the Middle East).
Note: The four courses may be drawn from other requirements of the International Studies major, the requirements of another major or minor, or the university’s First-Year Foundation and Foundational Abilities requirements. Furthermore, the focus area classes cannot count towards the 5-course advanced coursework requirement.
Focus area specializations are to be developed according to the student’s evolving interest in international studies. Proposed specializations should be discussed as early as possible with the International Studies Program Director or Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies.
Honors
Departmental honors will be awarded to students who have a major GPA in the top 20% of the International Studies graduating class OR have a major GPA above a 3.7 and have written a senior thesis.