Undergraduate degrees: B.A, B.S.
The Department of International Studies provides a solid foundation for students interested in the complex political, economic, social, and cultural interrelationships that exist among nations.
Getting in Touch With the Global Community
The idea of “the global community” is becoming increasingly important as advanced communication and resource allocation brings nations and people together. If you’re interested in this dynamic relationship, international studies at the University of Oregon is a great way to approach it.
A highlight of the curriculum is that it allows you to apply international studies to other subjects and disciplines. Maybe you have an interest in business and economics. A working understanding of these issues from an international perspective is a must in an increasingly globalized world market.
If you have an interest in teaching and education, international studies might be the way to go. Many countries seek U.S. teachers; at the UO you can focus on English as a second language or on international education. International studies is a suitable path if you’re interested in development and tourism.
A major component of the international dynamic is figuring out how different nations can cooperate peacefully and respectfully. This involves an understanding of cross-cultural communication, issues of human rights, and conflict resolution. The UO DEpartment of International Studies allows you to explore all of these aspects of international relationships.
The department's curriculum is rigorous and challenging. Majors are required to complete an international core, a regional focus, and a professional concentration. Basically, this means that you do some general studies, then pick a region that interests you, and finally fine tune your major toward a professional goal. You will receive support from the program as a whole and individualized attention within your professional concentration. Upon graduation, you’ll find you’re already a part of the global community.
Points of Interest
- International studies prepares students for a wide range of careers in law, communications, human rights, and politics
- The UO program helps majors locate international internships
- More than eighty study abroad programs give students first-hand exposure to international culture and issues
- Students can apply international studies to one of fourteen professional concentrations such as economics, development, art, environment, journalism, or human rights
- Students can also choose to focus on one cultural area
Sample Courses
- Value systems in cross-cultural perspective is an introduction to value systems of various cultures, with a focus on how values relate to religion, forms of social organization, group affiliation, and patterns of conflict resolution
- Cooperation, conflict, and global resources takes a sociocultural, economic, and political perspective on resource management strategies for coping with global imbalances
- International leadership is an interdisciplinary introduction to international and cross-cultural perspectives on leadership
- Cross-cultural communication focuses on skills and insights needed by professionals working in cross-cultural settings
- Africa today: issues and concerns introduces students to current challenges facing African peoples today, and prepares students for more advanced study regarding the African continent
Hands-on Learning
Internships are a great way to apply to real life the skills and knowledge learned in the classroom. If you want to study abroad, an internship is a perfect way to work and study in an international context. The UO's International Studies program can help you get involved with volunteer organizations such as United Nations Volunteers. You’ll have lots of help in locating internships in the U.S. and abroad.
Interdisciplinary Opportunities
International studies is, by nature, an interdisciplinary major. The six core faculty members come from a variety of disciplines including sociology, linguistics, political science, ethnic studies, and anthropology.
After you complete a core of departmental requirements, you will study the region of your choice by taking history, geography, and anthropology courses. You can also pick up foreign language courses, and take classes in education, business, and political science. For your professional concentration, you can choose courses that will help attain post-graduation goals.
Student Work
When one of Chelsea Maricle’s favorite professors, John Gage, told her about a course he was offering in Siena, Italy, last year, Maricle was excited by the prospect of studying in a foreign country. “I knew I had to go,” she says, because it was a perfect fit for her academic pursuits. She enjoyed the classwork, which consisted of an intensive Italian course with an emphasis on travel writing, and took ample opportunity to see as much of the country as she could.
In addition to her degree in International Studies, Maricle is an English major. “I have loved to write as long as I can remember,” she says. “And I just eat up books, so a degree in English was a no-brainer.” By combining her English interests with an international scope, Maricle is rounding out her college education with a desire to see and know many different aspects of the world.
Maricle is an active member of Amnesty International, and attended the group’s international conference last spring. In addition, Maricle is working toward a minor in dance, and participates in several on-campus dance groups.
There are so many classes to choose from at UO, Maricle says. “I’ve been here five years, and I’ve barely scratched the surface.”
Selected Faculty Work
As director of the Southeast Asian Studies Program, Associate Professor Kathie Carpenter has developed and overseen the beginnings and growth of Thai, Indonesian, Filipino, and Vietnamese language study at the UO. She used a cooperative faculty equipment award from Apple Computer to develop innovative materials for teaching the Thai and Indonesian languages on a Macintosh computer.
Dennis Galvan is an associate professor of international studies and political science, and has served as director of the Ethnic Studies program. His interests focus on comparative analysis of development and social change, the politics of cultural identity, and the politics of Africa and Indonesia. His work examines how ordinary non-Western peoples adapt markets, law, local government, and natural resource management sytstems when “traditional” cultures are incorporated into “modern” political and economic systems.
Stephen Wooten is an assistant professor of anthropology and international studies. His research interests are in African and international studies, local-global dynamics, and social-cultural change.
Associate Professor of History Carlos Aguirre is also the director of the Latin American Studies Program. Aguirre has written several books about prisons and inmates in Lima, Peru, and teaches classes on Latin American history, as well as the history of terror in modern Latin America.
Career Opportunities
You can apply this major to many careers—from law and business to teaching and human rights activism. You can get into international politics and diplomacy. If you have interests in agriculture and environmentalism, you might want to explore a career in international agriculture. Many developing nations need food and supplies to support their people. A major in international studies has proven to be a strong foundation for far-reaching professional futures that can take you around the globe or put you to work in your very own community.
Contact Information
(541) 346-5051
(541) 346-5041 fax