Global Reach

Global Reach

Arts & Sciences is the heart of a global research and teaching university. Our students hail from more than 100 countries, comprising one of the largest international student populations of any American university. Our faculty is also international in its origins, and our teaching and scholarship encompasses the world's cultures and societies. A key part of the CAS mission is to prepare students to live and work in a global society.

Global & International Studies

Many universities talk about “internationalizing the curriculum,” but international and global studies at CAS have long been an important focus of the research and teaching of almost all our humanities and social science departments and programs.

CAS is home to many interdisciplinary area studies programs, centers, and institutes. African Studies, founded in 1953, is a designated Title VI Center. Asian Studies, including the Center for the Study of Asia, the East Asian Studies Interdisciplinary Program, and the International Center for East Asian Archaeology & Cultural History, is also strong. The Latin American Studies Program houses an undergraduate major.

The Institute for the Study of Muslim Societies & Civilizations addresses a growing interest in the culture, history, religion, and literature of the global Islamic world. New minors in Muslim Cultures and Muslim Societies put us at the forefront of scholarship in this important area of global study.

Our renowned International Relations Department offers a special blend of academic and practical applications of international affairs. As the largest major in CAS, International Relations offers a multidisciplinary curriculum that encompasses not only the traditional studies of politics, trade, investments, war, and peace, but also social science-oriented studies in history, economics, geography, anthropology, and other disciplines. In addition, the department offers a range of MA programs geared toward students who want careers in international affairs.

Foreign Languages & Comparative Literature

Every student pursuing a BA in CAS must fulfill a foreign language requirement. Our teaching and scholarship is rich in opportunities to learn a wide range of languages and explore the world through those languages and their literatures. Among the languages offered through programs in the Department of Modern Languages & Comparative Literature, the Department of Romance Studies, the African Studies Program, and the Department of Classical Studies are:

  • Latin
  • Persian
  • Portuguese
  • Russian
  • Spanish
  • Swahili
  • Turkish
  • Wolof
  • Xhosa
  • Zulu
  • Amharic
  • Arabic
  • Chinese
  • French
  • German
  • Greek (Classical and Modern)
  • Hausa
  • Hebrew
  • Italian
  • Japanese
  • Korean

The Global World of Science

CAS scientists are constantly engaged in collaborative research and teaching with other scientists from around the globe. For example, some of our physicists are connected with the Large Hadron Collider at the CERN laboratory in Geneva. Our scientists also seek to understand and teach about the different regions of the world, how they are related, and how they affect each other. Some examples come from the diverse areas of environmental research:

Center for Ecology & Conservation Biology

The Center for Ecology & Conservation Biology offers a semester-long Tropical Ecology Program in collaboration with the Universidad San Francisco de Quito in Ecuador at the Tiputini Biodiversity Station. This program provides a unique 18-credit program in which students study the ecology of tropical Ecuador through intensive field-based learning experiences.

Earth Sciences in Antarctica

David Marchant of the Department of Earth Sciences travels annually to Antarctica with his students to study the history of the Earth by examining the ancient ice. Their work helps us understand the history of the Earth’s climate and the history of Mars.

Center for Energy & Environmental Studies

The Center for Energy & Environmental Studies, associated with the Department of Geography & Environment, helps us understand crucial issues related to energy supply, technology, and use, and how they affect the world in which we live.

Boston University Marine Program

We can’t understand our world without understanding our oceans, and our interdisciplinary group of scholars have come together to form the incomparable Boston University Marine Program (BUMP), featuring a hands-on research-oriented curriculum.

Study Abroad

At least 40 percent of our students participate in Boston University’s extensive study abroad programs, which are designed specifically for our students and well integrated into the CAS curriculum. Many involve interesting and exciting internships. Information is available through Boston University International Programs.

Peace Corps Volunteers

According to a Peace Corps ranking of colleges and universities that produced the most volunteers in 2008, BU is first among graduate schools, with 17 alumni volunteers, and 20th among large undergraduate institutions, with 45 alumni volunteers. Moreover, BU is the only private university in the top 20 rankings.