Minor in International Relations

Program Overview

The International Relations Minor at the university requires a total of 19 units, with at least 6 units being upper-division courses. The program provides foundational knowledge in international relations, global politics, and economic issues, with a focus on contemporary global challenges. Students can choose from various upper-division elective courses to specialize in areas such as international security, diplomacy, and globalization. The minor is designed to prepare students for careers in international affairs, government, and non-profit organizations.

Program Outline

Outline:

The International Relations Minor requires a total of 19 units, with at least 6 units being upper-division courses.

Required Courses (11 units):

• IR 104 Introduction to International Relations: Politics, Economics, Environment, and People (3 units)
• IR 208 Fundamentals of International Relations Theories, Issues, and Perspectives (4 units)
• Choose one of the following:
• IR 310 U.S. Foreign Policy (4 units)
• IR 312 Introduction to International Political Economy (4 units)

Electives (8 units):

Upper-division elective courses offered under the IR prefix or cross-listed with International Relations. Examples include:

• IR/BIOL 305 Global Politics of Science, Technology, and Health (4 units)
• IR/CJ 306 Crisis in Central America: U.S. Policy and the Root Causes of Chaos (4 units)
• IR/GPS/PHIL 315 Introduction to Global Peace Studies (3 units)
• IR/PLSI 321 Development and Foreign Policy: Africa (4 units)
• IR/PLSI 322 Policy Analysis: The Latin American Cases (4 units)
• IR 323 The Persian Gulf in International Relations (4 units)
• IR 324 Middle East and North Africa in International Relations (4 units)
• IR/PLSI 325 Chinese Foreign Policy (4 units)
• IR/PLSI 327 Europe: Forming a More Perfect Union (4 units)
• IR 330/IBUS 332 World Law (4 units)
• IR/ENVS 331 Global Environmental Crisis (4 units)
• IR/IBUS 334 International Organizations: New World Order (4 units)
• IR 335 Muslim Societies in Transnational Perspective (4 units)
• IR 336 Politics of Globalization (4 units)
• IR 337/PLSI 432 Introduction to the European Union (4 units)
• IR 341/CJ 340 Comparative Criminal Justice (4 units)
• IR/PLSI 342 Modern Conflict: Cyber Warfare, Food Security, and Crises in the International System (4 units)
• IR/HIST 346 Europe since 1914 (3 units)
• IR/CJ 360 Intelligence and Intelligence Agencies (4 units)
• IR 361/CJ 461 Terrorism and Covert Political Warfare (4 units)
• IR/PLSI/CJ 362 The Making of US Foreign Policy (4 units)
• IR/PLSI/HUM 372 Critical Political Theory (4 units)
• IR/PLSI 404 Politics of China (4 units)
• IR/PLSI 407 Politics of Russia (4 units)
• IR/PLSI 409 Russia and World Order (4 units)
• IR/PLSI 411 East Asian Politics (4 units)
• IR/PLSI 412 South Asian Politics (4 units)
• IR 413/CHIN 411/JOUR 411 Media Chinese (3 units)
• IR/PLSI 416 Ethnicity and Nationalism (4 units)
• IR/PLSI/SOC 424 Social Movements (4 units)
• IR/GEOG 428 International Political Economy of Food and Hunger (4 units)
• IR/JS/PLSI 430 Israeli Democracy: Politics, Institutions, and Society (3 units)
• IR/PLSI/FIN 435 Politics of Global Finance and Crisis (4 units)
• IR 436/PHIL 435 Human Rights in Global Perspective (3 units)
• IR/GEOG 445 Geopolitics and Globalization (3 units)
• IR 446 The Multinational Corporation in World Affairs (4 units)
• IR 450/LABR 550 International Labor (4 units)
• IR/JOUR 452/BECA 451 International Media Politics (4 units)
• IR 453 Women and Media in International Relations (4 units)
• IR/PLSI 459 Refugees in Global Perspective (4 units)
• IR 460/HIST 430 Rising Powers (4 units)
• IR 530/JS 560 The Arab-Israeli Conflict (3 units)
• IR 540 Rich and Poor Nations: Legacies of Slavery and Colonialism (4 units)
• IR/PLSI 544 Women in the World (4 units)
• IR 601 Lectures on Contemporary Global Issues (1 unit)
• IR/ECON 635 Economics of Globalization (3 units)
• IR 640 Field Study in International Relations (1-5 units)
• IR 685 Teaching Observer Practicum in International Relations (1-4 units)
• IR 699 Independent Study (1-4 units)

Other:

• All coursework used to satisfy the requirements of the minor must be completed with a minimum grade point average of 2.0.
• Courses fulfilling the IR minor core requirement may not be taken on a CR/NC basis.