Graduate Certificate Programs

Students in International Relations MA programs have the option of completing one of two Graduate Certificate programs: the Graduate Certificate in African Studies and the Graduate Certificate in Asian Studies. Completion of these certificates does not require any additional coursework above that required for the student’s degree. Courses can be chosen so as to fulfill the requirements of both the student’s degree program and the student’s chosen certificate program. Students should talk with their advisor and plan carefully to ensure that they fulfill all requirements correctly.

Please note that while in theory these certificates can be combined with any of our degree programs, in practice the relatively complex course requirements of some of our joint programs make it difficult to complete a certificate. The certificates can easily be undertaken by students in the International Affairs, IR & Religion, IR & International Communication, IR & Master of Business Administration, and the Mid-Career International Relations MA programs. Combination with other degree programs may prove difficult.

African Studies Certificate

The Graduate Certificate in African Studies is completed under the joint direction of the IR Department and the African Studies Center. Students complete at least 16 hours of coursework in African studies, write a substantive research paper on an African topic, and demonstrate language proficiency in an African language or a European language used in African studies. For further details regarding this certificate, please see the section on the African Studies Center in this bulletin or contact them at 617-353-3673. Details can also be found online at ir/graduate/programs/africanstudies/.

Asian Studies Certificate

The Graduate Certificate in Asian Studies is offered by the Boston University Center for the Study of Asia (BUCSA). It can be earned by post-baccalaureate students in any Boston University graduate or professional program who fulfill the following requirements, in addition to the requirements of their degree programs.

Requirements

Students are required to complete at least 16 credits of coursework (four standard courses) in courses primarily focused on Asia, with a minimum grade of B in each course. At least three of the four courses must focus on a subregional or substantive area (e.g. East Asia, Southeast Asia, comparative government, cultural/archeological preservation, Buddhism). Courses must be chosen from at least two departments or schools, and no more than four credits can be earned through directed study.

Students must complete a piece of significant independent work such as an MA or MFA thesis, a doctoral dissertation, or two substantial research papers in graduate-level seminars. Additionally, students must demonstrate reading knowledge of an Asian language relevant to the course of study. Language proficiency will be demonstrated by passing the language proficiency test of the student’s own department; for students in schools or departments that do not offer language proficiency testing, BUCSA will arrange an assessment of reading proficiency based on a dictionary-aided, timed translation of a professionally relevant scholarly (or equivalent) document.

A listing of pre-approved coursework can be found online at ir/graduate/programs/asianstudies. Other courses may be applied to the certificate with permission of the director of BUCSA.

International Relations Courses

The following is the list of courses offered by the Department of International Relations. As part of the Master of Arts curriculum, students should choose their elective courses from this list. Both core and elective courses are listed below. Some coursework may be done outside of the Department with the approval of the Director of Graduate Studies.

  • CAS IR 500    Topics in International Relations
  • CAS IR 503 U.S. Foreign Policy in the Middle East
  • CAS IR 504 Seminar: The Persian Gulf/ Arabian Peninsula
  • CAS IR 506 India: An Emerging World Power
  • CAS IR 507 The Muslim and Western Worlds: A “Clash of Civilizations”?
  • CAS IR 508 Islamic Political Movements and U.S. Policy
  • CAS IR 509 Islam in Middle East Politics
  • CAS IR 511 The Middle East Today
  • CAS IR 513 Bureaucracy and Governance: A Comparative Inquiry
  • CAS IR 514 Major Themes in the Middle East Peace Process
  • CAS IR 516 Intelligence and Homeland Security
  • CAS IR 520 The State and Public Purpose in Asia
  • CAS IR 521 Congress and National Security
  • CAS IR 522 Ideas and American Foreign Policy
  • CAS IR 527 (PO 527) Political Economy of China
  • CAS IR 529 Cuba in Transition
  • CAS IR 531 Intercultural Communication
  • CAS IR 535 Diplomacy and Statecraft
  • CAS IR 536 European Environmental Policy
  • CAS IR 538 France, Europe, and the World: The History of French Foreign Relations in Modern Times
  • CAS IR 539 State-Formation and Nation-Building in Southeastern Europe: From Byzantium to Brussels
  • CAS IR 540 Committing to Defend Europe: The U.S. and the U.K.
  • CAS IR 541 Russia’s International Policies I
  • CAS IR 542 The Reemergence of Russia
  • CAS IR 543 The Changing Face of Eastern Europe
  • CAS IR 544 Comparative Political Systems and Foreign Policies
  • CAS IR 546 Power and Legitimacy: Ideology as a Political Tool
  • CAS IR 548 United Nations Peacekeeping
  • CAS IR 549 Politics and International Relations of the New Germany
  • CAS IR 550 West European Integration
  • CAS IR 551 Social Europe
  • CAS IR 552 Nordic Europe
  • CAS IR 553 Masterworks of International Affairs
  • CAS IR 556 Current Intelligence Issues
  • CAS IR 557 Guerrilla Warfare and Terrorism
  • CAS IR 560 The Politics of Religion, Ethnicity, and Nationalism in International Relations
  • CAS IR 561 The Multiple Modernities of Religion and International Relations
  • CAS IR 562 Politics and Religion in Modern Europe: Church-State Relations in Comparative Perspective
  • CAS IR 563 Public Religion and Politics Across Cultures
  • CAS IR 566 Democracy in Latin America
  • CAS IR 567 Latin American Politics
  • CAS IR 568 U.S.–Latin American Relations
  • CAS IR 570 Politics and Social Change in Postwar Japan
  • CAS IR 571 Central America and U.S. Policy
  • CAS IR 572 The Latin American Military
  • CAS IR 573 Introduction to Public International Law
  • CAS IR 574 Ethics and International Relations
  • CAS IR 575 Political Economy of Mexico and NAFTA
  • CAS IR 577 Foreign Policy of the People’s Republic of China
  • CAS IR 578 Foreign Intelligence and Security Systems
  • CAS IR 579 Japan in International Politics
  • CAS IR 581 The Evolution of Strategic Intelligence
  • CAS IR 583 Aspects of Defense Planning and Technology
  • CAS IR 585 Problems and Issues in Post-Mao China
  • CAS IR 586 Islam in South Asian Politics
  • CAS IR 587 Political Economy of the Middle East
  • CAS IR 589 North Atlantic/European Security Issues
  • CAS IR 590 Political Economy of Latin America
  • CAS IR 591 Great Powers in the Middle East 1798–1922
  • CAS IR 594 Global Environmental Negotiation and Policy
  • CAS IR 596 Globalization and Contemporary Capitalism in Advanced Industrialized Nations
  • CAS IR 597 Development and Environment in Latin America
  • CAS IR 598 International Business Intelligence and Security Practices
  • CAS IR 599 Science, Politics, and Climate Change
  • GRS IR 701 Introduction to International Relations
  • GRS IR 702 Research Methods for International Relations Practitioners
  • GRS IR 703 Introduction to Security Studies
  • GRS IR 704    International Economic Relations
  • GRS IR 706 The Iranian Revolution and Its Impact on the Middle East
  • GRS IR 707 Political Reform in the Middle East
  • GRS IR 711 Civil Society and the State
  • GRS IR 712 International State Systems
  • GRS IR 718 International Migration and Diaspora in World Politics
  • GRS IR 721 War, Guilt, and World Politics
  • GRS IR 722 U.S. Foreign Policy since the End of the Cold War
  • GRS IR 757 Transnational Shi’ism
  • GRS IR 758 Comparative Political Economy of China and India
  • GRS IR 759 International Institutions for Finance, Development, and Trade
  • GRS IR 760 The Political Economy of the European Union
  • GRS IR 762 Turkey and the European Union: The History and Contemporary Aspects of Turkey’s European Path
  • GRS IR 764 Seminar on China in the Contemporary World
  • GRS IR 765 Japanese Political Economy
  • GRS IR 767 Latin American Comparative Politics
  • GRS IR 768 Reform of the State: Political and Institutional Reforms in Latin America
  • GRS IR 772 Classics of International Relations
  • GRS IR 778 Problems of Strategic Intelligence
  • GRS IR 780 CIA’s National Clandestine Service
  • GRS IR 787 The Latin American Policies of the United States
  • GRS IR 788 International Relations of Asia-Pacific
  • GRS IR 789 Globalization, Development, Governance
  • GRS IR 794 Current Issues in International Environmental Affairs
  • GRS IR 798 Global Development Capstone
  • GRS IR 799 MAIA Paper Workshop
  • GRS IR 825 Graduate Study in Women and Social Change in the Developing World

Teaching Fellow Training

  • GRS IR 699 Teaching International Relations I

Directed Study

All Directed Study courses require a memorandum of understanding written by the student and approved by the supervising faculty member and the Director of Graduate Studies/Chair of the International Relations Department. Please contact the Graduate Programs Administrator for more details at 617-353-9349 or irgrad@bu.edu.

  • GRS IR 901 Directed Study I
  • GRS IR 902 Directed Study II