International Relations

Return to: USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences  

The Department of Political Science and International Relations offers: a BA in International Relations; a BA in International Relations (Global Business); a BA in International Relations and the Global Economy; and a BA in Intelligence and Cyber Operations. The department also offers minors in international relations, global communication, and international policy and management.

The international relations major encourages undergraduate double majors, especially with economics, environmental studies, geography, history, journalism, political science and sociology. Programs are flexible, allowing students to gain a broad background in international studies and, at the same time, to specialize in a particular area.

Center for International and Public Affairs, CPA 330
(213) 740-6278; 740-2136
FAX: (213) 821-4424
Email: poir@usc.edu

Chair: Ange-Marie Hancock-Alfaro, PhD

Faculty: see Political Science and International Relations  

Advisement

Advisement is required for all majors and minors. Students are encouraged to meet with International Relations advisers at least once a semester to review the direction of their individual programs. Students are also encouraged to seek the advisement of faculty members whose specializations are appropriate to their programs of study.

Academic Specialization

Students majoring in international relations who wish to develop their own specialization or emphasize a particular regional area may establish with a faculty adviser, or with International Relations advisers, an academic program that will accomplish the students’ objectives.

International Relations Honors Program

The department offers a two-semester honors program for outstanding undergraduate students in the junior and senior years. The organization of the course during the first semester follows the seminar model, emphasizing independent research, discussion, and oral and written reports. In the second semester, the student is required to write a thesis under the direction of a substantive faculty adviser. Students are admitted to the program after careful screening on the basis of their academic record and an interview with a prospective adviser.

Graduate Degrees

Degree Requirements

These degrees are under the jurisdiction of the Graduate School. Refer to the Requirements for Graduation  section and The Graduate School  section of this catalogue for general regulations. All courses applied toward the degrees must be courses accepted by the Graduate School.

All graduate students are required to maintain regular contact with the graduate coordinator to assure compliance with departmental regulations.

Programs

• Intelligence and Cyber Operations (BA)
• International Relations (BA)
• International Relations (Global Business) (BA)
• International Relations and the Global Economy (BA)

• Global Communication Minor
• International Policy and Management Minor
• International Relations Minor

• International Relations (MA)

Courses

• IR 100gx The United States and World Affairs
• IR 101gxw International Relations
• IR 210gw International Relations: Introductory Analysis
• IR 211g International Relations: Approaches to Research
• IR 212 Historical Approaches to International Relations
• IR 213 The Global Economy
• IR 302 International Relations of the Great Powers in the Late 19th and 20th Centuries
• IR 303 Leadership and Diplomacy
• IR 304 National Intelligence and the Shaping of Policy
• IR 305w Managing New Global Problems
• IR 306 International Organizations
• IR 307 Contemporary International Politics
• IR 308w Economic Globalization
• IR 309 Global Governance
• IR 310 Peace and Conflict Studies
• IR 311 Research Design and Methods
• IR 312 Introduction to Data Analysis
• IR 313 Religions and Political Violence
• IR 314 Espionage and Intelligence
• IR 315 Ethnicity and Nationalism in World Politics
• IR 316 Gender and Global Issues
• IR 317 The Political Economy of Africa
• IR 318 Violent Conflict
• IR 319 Human Security and Humanitarian Intervention
• IR 320 Technology and International Relations
• IR 321 Civil War, Peace Building and International Intervention
• IR 322 Financing Development in Mexico
• IR 323 Politics of Global Environment
• IR 324 Multinational Enterprises and World Politics
• IR 325 North-South Relations in the Global Economy
• IR 326 U.S. Foreign Economic Policy
• IR 327 International Negotiation
• IR 328 The Evolving Global Economic Architecture-Capital Mobility
• IR 329 The Global Finance and Monetary Regime
• IR 330 Politics of the World Economy
• IR 331 The Global Economy 2040
• IR 332 Money, Guns and Oil
• IR 333 China in International Affairs
• IR 337 The Impact of Remittances on Development in Mexico
• IR 339 Public Health and International Relations
• IR 340 The Political Economy of China
• IR 341 Foreign Policy Analysis
• IR 342 The Politics and Strategy of Weapons of Mass Destruction
• IR 343 U.S. Foreign Policy since World War II
• IR 344 The Global South in World Politics
• IR 345 Russian and Post-Soviet Foreign Policy
• IR 346 Communism and Post-Communism: Eastern Europe and the Balkans
• IR 349 International Law and Politics
• IR 350 Power and Authority in the Middle East
• IR 351 Insurgency and Counterinsurgency
• IR 358 The Asia Pacific in World Affairs
• IR 359 The United States and the Middle East
• IR 360 International Relations of the Pacific Rim
• IR 361 South and Southeast Asia in International Affairs
• IR 362 The International Relations of the Contemporary Middle East
• IR 363 Middle East Political Economy
• IR 364 The Political Economy of Latin American Development
• IR 365 Politics and Democracy in Latin America
• IR 366 Mexico and its Relations with the United States
• IR 367 Africa in International Affairs
• IR 368 French Foreign Policy: 1945 to the Present
• IR 369 Post-War European Relations
• IR 370 Global Governance and Health: From Global to Local
• IR 371 Global Civil Society: Non-State Actors in World Politics
• IR 374 Model Europe: Comparative Public Policy in France and the European Union
• IR 376 U.S.-Japan Encounters: War, Trade, and Culture
• IR 379 Cyber Conflict: Problems and Policy Issues
• IR 380 Conducting Research on Climate Change, Conflict and Natural Resources
• IR 381 Introduction to International Security
• IR 382w Order and Disorder in Global Affairs
• IR 383 Conflict Mediation & Negotiation
• IR 384 Asian Security Issues
• IR 385 European Foreign Policy and Security Issues
• IR 386 Terrorism and Counterterrorism
• IR 387 Strategic Studies
• IR 388 Immigration in Spain: Issues and Controversies
• IR 389 Islam in France
• IR 390 Special Problems
• IR 391 Directed International Relations Field Study
• IR 392 Supervised Undergraduate Research Experience
• IR 393 Policy Writing for National Security Affairs
• IR 394 Social Justice and Community-Based Research
• IR 401 The United Nations and World Order
• IR 402 Theories of War
• IR 403 Transnational Diplomacy and Global Security
• IR 404 International Relations Policy Task Force
• IR 405 Cultural Heritage, Religion, and Politics in the Middle East
• IR 406 Ethics and World Politics
• IR 407 Chinese Foreign Policy
• IR 408 Global Democratization
• IR 409 Environment and Politics in the Middle East
• IR 410 The History of Modern International Relations
• IR 412 Applied Data Science for International Relations 1
• IR 413 Applied Data Science for International Relations 2
• IR 422 Ecological Security and Global Politics
• IR 423 Forced Migration and Conflict
• IR 424w Citizenship and Migration in International Politics
• IR 425 The New Triangle: China, the U.S. and Latin America
• IR 426 Trade Politics in the Western Hemisphere
• IR 427 Seminar on Economics and Security
• IR 428 China’s Political Economy