Few universities have separate International Relations departments. As the process of globalization becomes more pervasive, preparation in this area is becoming more pertinent every year.
International Relations is becoming increasingly relevant as the world grows more and more interconnected through trade and commerce, migration, the internet and through social media, and concerns about pressing global environmental problems. A globalized world calls for academics and professionals trained to comprehend these complex interactions - promoting understanding and crafting policy and business solutions to meet the challenges of today and the future. International Relations offers a comprehensive and adaptable toolkit particularly well suited to employment in a rapidly changing world.
View the SF State Bulletin B.A. in IR section for further details.
Professor Mahmood Monshipouri congratulates graduating International Relations students, class of 2023.
Courses for the Bachelor of Arts in International Relations have three objectives:
- To impart knowledge of basic concepts, theories and methods in international relations.
- To develop in each student at least one area of special individual competence in international relations.
- To train students in research, writing, analytical, and presentation/communication skills.
While integrating liberal arts educational goals, the program also seeks to develop marketable skills appropriate to the field. Utilizing the extensive course offerings in IR and other departments, students are encouraged to develop specializations within geographical, functional (e.g., international political economy), problem-oriented (e.g., arms control), theoretical and methodological, and other categories. The emphasis on elective courses of study requires students to consult with an advisor every semester.
International Relations (IR) is an interdisciplinary major focusing on the changing political, economic, and cultural relations within a globalized system. The program explores how global, regional, and domestic factors influence relations between actors on the world stage. Students are prepared for future careers, civic engagement, and life-long learning with strong analytical, writing, research, and presentation skills steeped in theory, history, and practice.
Our faculty offers courses in theory and regional/thematic issue-areas that meet the diverse needs and preferences of students. Examples of our student best practices include the development of individual and group projects in close consultation with faculty. Outcomes of such training in research and presentation skills are evident not only in classes, including the culminating senior thesis experience (I R 550), but also in student participation in IR conferences at both regional and national levels. Our students have the opportunity to publish their original research papers in the Department’s International Relations Journal.
Core: 25 Units
I R 208 must be taken prior to I R 309GW, and I R 309GW must be completed prior to I R 550. No core courses may be taken concurrently with I R 550.
- I R 104: Introduction to International Relations (3 Units)
- I R 208: Fundamentals of International Relations: Theories, Issues, and Perspectives (4 Units)
- I R 309GW: International Relations Analysis and Application-GWAR (3 Units)
- I R 309: International Relations Writing Workshop (1 Unit) (Must be taken concurrently with IR 309GW)
- I R 310: U.S. Foreign Policy (4 Units)
- I R 312: Introduction to International Political Economy (4 Units)
- I R 550: Senior Thesis in International Relations (6 Units) (Culminating Experience)
Grading Basis
International Relations majors must take the core courses for a letter grade.
Electives: 18 Units
Students are required to complete 18 elective units related to international relations. At least twelve units of coursework must be upper-division I R courses (300-level or above) or be cross-listed with I R. Six additional units may be taken outside of the department upon the approval of a major advisor. Lower-division language courses taken in the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures and 200-level IR courses can be used for these six units; otherwise, upper-division courses are required.
Twelve units of complementary studies are required of all candidates for the B.A. degree in International Relations. These units must come from courses bearing a prefix other than IR and that are not cross-listed with International Relations. They can be lower or upper division courses. Students can also satisfy this requirement by completing a minor, a second major or through an approved study-abroad program.
Complementary studies courses should have a direct bearing on the study of politics, or deepen and enrich the study of politics. Such courses are typically found in departments like Modern Languages and Literatures, Political Science, Urban Studies and Planning, or Philosophy, and in the College of Ethnic Studies.
Six of the twelve Complementary Studies units may count toward the major as elective units, if approved in advance by an IR advisor. Students must consult with an advisor in the department to ensure that their choices fulfill the department’s requirements.
In addition to fulfilling elective requirements for the International Relations major and minor, many electives offered through the IR department satisfy upper-division General Education and SF State Studies requirements.
Course ID | Title | Units | GE | SF State Studies | Cross-listed with |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
I R 201 |
International Relations Through Cinema |
3 |
LD-1 |
GP |
CINE 101 |
I R 255 |
Religion and World Politics |
3 |
|
|
|
I R 259 |
Children and Youth in International Relations |
4 |
LD-E |
GP, SJ |
|
I R 305 |
Science Tech and Global Politics |
4 |
|
|
|
I R 306 |
U.S.-Central American Relations |
4 |
|
GP, SJ, AERM |
CJ 306 |
I R 307 |
Qualitative Methods in Political Science and International Relations |
4 |
|
AI |
PLSI 307 |
I R 314 |
Post Modernism in International Relations |
4 |
|
AI |
|
I R 315 |
Introduction to Global Peace Studies |
3 |
UD-C |
ES, GP, SJ |
GPS 315, PHIL 315 |
I R 321 |
Development and Foreign Policy: Africa |
4 |
|
AI |
PLSI 321 |
I R 322 |
Latin American Policy Analysis |
4 |
UD-D |
GP, SJ |
PLSI 322 |
I R 323 |
The Persian Gulf in International Relations |
4 |
|
AI |
|
I R 324 |
Middle East and North Africa |
4 |
UD-D |
ES, GP, SJ |
|
I R 325 |
Chinese Foreign Policy |
4 |
|
AI |
PLSI 325 |
I R 326 |
South and Southeast Asia Foreign Relations |
4 |
|
GP |
|
I R 327 |
Europe: Forming a Union |
4 |
|
GP, AI |
PLSI 327 |
I R 328 |
Domestic and Foreign Policy: Post-Communist Regions |
4 |
|
AI |
PLSI 328 |
I R 329 |
U.S.-Japan Politics |
4 |
|
AI |
PLSI 329 |
I R 330 |
World Law |
4 |
|
AI |
|
I R 331 |
Global Environmental Crisis |
4 |
|
ES, GP, SJ |
ENVS 331 |
I R 332 |
International Criminal Law |
4 |
|
AI |
C J 505 |
I R 334 |
International Organizations & New World Order |
4 |
|
AI |
|
I R 335 |
Muslim Societies |
4 |
UD-D |
AERM, GP |
|
I R 336 |
Politics of Globalization |
4 |
UD-D |
GP |
|
I R 337 |
Introduction to the European Union |
4 |
|
AI |
|
I R 341 |
Comparative Criminal Justice |
4 |
|
AI |
C J 340 |
I R 342 |
Modern Conflict & Hybrid War |
4 |
|
AI |
PLSI 342 |
I R 346 |
Europe Since 1914 |
3 |
|
AI |
HIST 346 |
I R 360 |
Intelligence and Intelligence Agencies |
4 |
|
AI |
CJ 360 |
I R 361 |
Terrorism and Covert Political Warfare |
4 |
|
AI |
C J 461 |
I R 362 |
The Making of U.S. Foreign Policy |
4 |
|
AI |
PLSI 362, CJ 362 |
I R 372 |
Critical Political Theory |
4 |
|
AI |
PLSI 372, HUM 372 |
I R 395 |
International History 1814-1918 |
3 |
UD-D |
GP |
HST 395 |
I R 404 |
Politics of China |
4 |
UD-D |
GP |
PLSI 404 |
I R 407 |
Politics of Russia |
4 |
UD-D |
GP |
PLSI 407 |
I R 409 |
Russia and World Order |
4 |
|
GP, AI |
PLSI 409 |
I R 411 |
East Asian Politics |
4 |
UD-D |
GP |
PLSI 411 |
I R 412 |
South Asian Politics |
4 |
|
GP |
PLSI 412 |
Course ID |
Title |
Units |
GE |
SF State Studies |
Cross-listed with |
I R 413 |
Media Chinese |
3 |
|
GP |
CHIN 411, JOUR 411 |
I R 416 |
Ethnicity and Nationalism |
4 |
UD-D |
GP |
PLSI 416 |
I R 417 |
Gender, Equality, and Politics: A Comparative Perspective |
4 |
|
|
PLSI 417 |
I R 422 |
Comparative Law and Courts |
4 |
|
|
PLSI 422 |
I R 424 |
Social Movements |
4 |
|
|
PLSI 424, SOC 424 |
I R 425 |
Imagining Power in the Middle East |
4 |
|
GP |
PLSI 425 |
I R 428 |
International Political Economy of Food and Hunger |
4 |
|
|
GEOG 428 |
I R 430 |
Israel Democracy & Society |
3 |
UD-D |
GP |
JS 430, PLSI 430 |
I R 432 |
Model United Nations |
4 |
|
|
|
I R 433 |
Model Arab League |
4 |
|
|
MEIS 433 |
I R 435 |
Politics of Global Finance and Crisis |
4 |
|
|
PLSI 435, FIN 435 |
I R 436 |
Human Rights in Global Perspective |
3 |
UD-C |
GP, SJ |
PHIL 435 |
I R 445 |
Geopolitics and Globalization |
3 |
UD-D |
|
GEOG 445 |
I R 446 |
The Multinational Corporation in World Affairs |
4 |
|
|
|
I R 450 |
International Labor |
3 |
|
|
LABR 550 |
I R 452 |
International Media Politics |
4 |
|
SJ |
JOUR 452 |
I R 453 |
Women and Media in International Relations |
4 |
|
|
|
I R 459 |
Refugees in Global Perspective |
4 |
UD-C |
AERM, GP |
PLSI 459 |
I R 460 |
Rising Powers |
4 |
|
|
HIST 430 |
I R 520 |
Globalization and Development |
4 |
|
|
|
I R 530 |
The Arab-Israeli Conflict |
3 |
UD-D |
GP |
JS 560 |
I R 540 |
The Rich and the Poor Nations: Legacies of Slavery and Colonialism |
4 |
|
|
|
I R 544 |
Women in the World |
4 |
UD-D |
GP, SJ |
PLSI 544 |
I R 601 |
Lectures on Contemporary Global Issues |
1 |
|
|
|
I R 604 |
Analysis of Global Issues |
4 |
|
|
|
I R 605 |
Get Ready for a Career in International Relations |
2 |
|
|
I R 705 |
I R 609 |
Colloquium in International Relations |
1 |
|
|
I R 709 |
I R 635 |
Economics of Globalization |
3 |
|
|
ECON 635 |
I R 640 |
Field Study in International Relations |
1-5 |
|
|
|
I R 685 |
Projects in the Teaching of I R |
1-4 |
|
|
|
I R 699 |
Independent Study |
1-4 |
|
|
|
Note: Due to staffing, the department is not able to offer all elective courses on a regular basis. The course IDs marked with an asterisk are those the department can currently offer on a regular basis—if not every academic year. This does not include cross-listed courses housed in and staffed by other departments.
Updated June 2023
Employment possibilities for graduates in international relations exist in business, government, electronic and print journalism, teaching and private international service (e.g., U.N. Association, Red Cross, etc.). Students completing a degree find it excellent preparation for entry into highly competitive programs of advanced study or work abroad in areas of special interest or knowledge.
Some of the most likely career areas are:
- Non-governmental organizations
- Foreign Service officer
- Import/export business
- Commerce Department
- International finance and banking
- Corporate regulatory affairs
- Peace Corps administration
- Intercultural communication
- Foreign correspondent
- International counseling
- United Nations staff
- International airlines
- Intelligence officer
- International marketing
- Social studies teacher
- International lawyer
- Policy analyst
- Research on global issues
Explore our Alumni section to find out where an IR degree might take you!