College of Arts & Sciences: International Relations

The listing below reflects the Hub units fulfilled by courses in the 2019/2020 academic year.

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  • CAS IR 230: Fundamentals of International Politics
    Introduction to basic concepts of international politics: the state system and types of states, modern ideologies, legal frameworks of international transactions, and political regions. Also raises key issues such as population, the environment, war, and international law. Carries social science divisional credit in CAS. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
  • CAS IR 242: Globalization and World Poverty
    (Meets with CAS SO 242.) Globalization and world poverty; how and why over 80% of the world remains poor and inequality increases despite economic modernization and democratization. Addresses urbanization, immigration, religion, politics, development politics, foreign aid, women, drugs, environment, food security. Special attention to Latin American, African, and Asian experiences. Carries social science divisional credit in CAS. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry I, Ethical Reasoning.
    • Social Inquiry I
    • Ethical Reasoning
  • CAS IR 251: Introduction to Comparative Politics
    Undergraduate core course. Meets with CAS PO 151. Examines different patterns of political development and contemporary politics in Europe, Latin America, Africa, and Asia. Introduces the comparative method in political science and competing theories of political development and political change. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry I, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Critical Thinking.
    • Social Inquiry I
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
    • Critical Thinking
  • CAS IR 271: Introduction to International Relations
    Explores major issues in international relations, including conflict, cooperation, and governance. Addresses dominant international relations theories and their application. Investigates state system, international law and organization, transnational actors, state behavior, and globalization. Carries social science divisional credit in CAS. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry I, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
    • Social Inquiry I
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
  • CAS IR 275: The Making of Asia
    This course provides undergraduates with a broad introduction to diversity and development in Asia Pacific. Part I introduces historical and political legacies in Asia, focusing on the rise and decline of a China-centric and a Japan-centric order in East Asia. Part II focuses on political-economic developments in Pacific Asia after WWII. Part III focuses on the 1997/8 Asian financial crisis and its impacts on individual countries in the region as well as their transnational politics. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry I, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
    • Social Inquiry I
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
  • CAS IR 290: Drugs and Security in the Americas
    (Meets with CAS HI 331). Drug trafficking is one of the greatest threats to security and stability in the Americas. In this class, we study how drug trafficking became such an immense problem and why it has been so difficult to solve. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, Ethical Reasoning.
    • Historical Consciousness
    • Ethical Reasoning
  • CAS IR 292: Fundamentals of International Economics
    Covers basic principles of international economics, including trade, international finance, exchange rates, currency markets, economic policy, the role of institutions, and financial crises. Examines both theoretical frameworks and applications, with an emphasis on analysis case studies and real world examples in different world regions. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry I, Quantitative Reasoning I.
    • Social Inquiry I
    • Quantitative Reasoning I
  • CAS IR 304: Environmentally Sustainable Development
    Traces the emergence of and current issues in environmentally sustainable development policy and practice. Surveys and evaluates approaches to balancing ecological sustainability, economic development, and social justice in various parts of the world and at the global level. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry II, Research and Information Literacy.
    • Social Inquiry II
    • Research and Information Literacy
  • CAS IR 305: Comparative European Politics: France and Beyond
    Study of the political systems of European countries and the elements of European democracies. Assessment of multiple approaches to study of social and political science from rational choice to political anthropology and the sociology of elected officials. Conducted in English. Also offered as CAS PO 248E. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry I, Ethical Reasoning, Research and Information Literacy.
    • Social Inquiry I
    • Ethical Reasoning
    • Research and Information Literacy
  • CAS IR 306: International Human Rights Law
    An introductory course detailing global, regional, and domestic legal frameworks for the protection of human rights. Learners marshal knowledge and perspectives gleaned from source materials to gain ethical reasoning, discernment, and advocacy skills with reference to contemporary issues. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Ethical Reasoning, Writing-Intensive Course, Critical Thinking.
    • Ethical Reasoning
    • Critical Thinking
    • Writing-Intensive Course
  • CAS IR 311: Climate Change and Development Policy
    Explores global and regional policy responses to the twin challenges of sustainable development and adaptation to climate change from a comparative and interdisciplinary perspective. Critically examines existing policies and radical alternatives to these challenges at global, regional and national scales. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry I, Ethical Reasoning, Critical Thinking.
    • Social Inquiry I
    • Ethical Reasoning
    • Critical Thinking
  • CAS IR 330: Diplomatic Practice
    The course is designed to get students familiarized with the "art of the possible," emphasizing how diplomatic practice has evolved so far. Students will be able to understand how foreign policy is formulated and promulgated and how diplomacy works on a daily basis.They will demonstrate a clear understanding of the role and importance of multilateral diplomacy/international organizations (liberalism) in today's world and examine how multilateral diplomacy functions. Students will be able to grasp the core principles of diplomatic negotiations and demonstrate them in the simulations. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Research and Information Literacy, Teamwork/Collaboration.
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
    • Research and Information Literacy
    • Teamwork/Collaboration
  • CAS IR 331: Diplomatic Practice
    The course is designed to get students familiarized with the "art of the possible," emphasizing how diplomatic practice has evolved so far. Students will be able to understand how foreign policy is formulated and promulgated and how diplomacy works on a daily basis.They will demonstrate a clear understanding of the role and importance of multilateral diplomacy/international organizations (liberalism) in today's world and examine how multilateral diplomacy functions. Students will be able to grasp the core principles of diplomatic negotiations and demonstrate them in the simulations. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Research and Information Literacy, Teamwork/Collaboration.
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
    • Research and Information Literacy
    • Teamwork/Collaboration
  • CAS IR 336: European Business Environment: Institutions and Enterprise
    Provides learning and skills at the interface between international business, international relations, and other disciplines, through studying the system of EU "Competences" that provides comprehensive rules of conduct for firms. Includes Briefings by officials from EU Institutions, designed to build/test research/teamwork skills. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry II, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Teamwork/Collaboration.
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
    • Social Inquiry II
    • Teamwork/Collaboration
  • CAS IR 349: History of International Relations, 1900-1945
    What were the causes and the consequences of the two World Wars? What was the nature of political, economic, and military relations among the major powers of the world from the beginning of the twentieth century to the end of the Second World War? What was the effect of domestic factors (political, economic, religious, and ideological) on the foreign policies of individual states? Seeking to provide a genuinely multinational perspective on world affairs, this course will assess the ways in which powerful nation-states in this period competed and cooperated in the international system. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Research and Information Literacy.
    • Historical Consciousness
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
    • Research and Information Literacy
  • CAS IR 350: History of International Relations since 1945
    What are the causes and consequences of the global Cold War? How was the twentieth-century international system transformed by East-West conflict, North-South disparity and South-South cooperation and competition? What lessons can be drawn from this recent past? These are some of the questions that this course will examine. The course will contextualize present-day international and regional conflicts and cooperation in the recent past, collectively analyze primary source documents, and discuss policy implications. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Research and Information Literacy.
    • Historical Consciousness
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
    • Research and Information Literacy
  • CAS IR 352: International Human Rights: Applying Human Rights in Africa
    Meets with CAS PO 378. Studies the growing international influence on politics of human rights principles, documents, and organizations, drawing especially on African cases such as Congo, Zimbabwe, and Sudan. The class explores the relationship between civil and political rights and economic, social, and culture rights. We consider debates over claims of universality vs. cultural relativism, individual vs. group rights, and ways to improve human rights enforcement well respecting local cultures. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Ethical Reasoning, Teamwork/Collaboration.
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
    • Ethical Reasoning
    • Teamwork/Collaboration
  • CAS IR 357: Zanzibar: Politics, Culture, and Community Engagement
    This class studies the historical processes and cultural forms that allowed Zanzibar's diverse population to produce new forms of art, popular music, religious ritual, and fashion, new individual and collective identities, and new forms of social and political engagement. The class combines seminar- style meetings and an internship experience at a local NGO, business, government office, or cultural center as well as tours of important cultural, historical, and environmental sites throughout the island. Effective Summer 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: The Individual in Community, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
    • The Individual in Community
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
  • CAS IR 365: Rise of China
    How has China risen economically in the last four decades? How different was the Chinese economic model compared to other Asian nations and western models? In what aspects has China's political system been changed or unchanged during its economic rise? what opportunities and challenges are presented with the economic rise of China in the region and in the world? The course offers foundational knowledge on China's economic reform, domestic politics, and global implications, evaluates public and policy debates, and applies the process and methods of social research. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry I, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Research and Information Literacy.
    • Social Inquiry I
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
    • Research and Information Literacy
  • CAS IR 368: Contemporary East Asian Economics
    Meets with CAS EC 368. An introduction to the economic history and institutions of Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and China. Topics include structural change, trade, labor markets, corporate organization, financial systems, and macroeconomic and industrial policy. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry I, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
    • Social Inquiry I
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy

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