International Studies

This course examines the rise of China and its implications for regional and global security. It critically examines the theory and practice of China's international relations, as well as explores the ways in which China's historical legacy has shaped its worldview and foreign policy. Drawing on key concepts of power, legitimacy, national identity and international status, the course examines China's evolving global role, with a particular emphasis on key relationships and security challenges in the Asia-Pacific. 

This course investigates the interconnectedness of poverty, human development as a measure of collective and individual quality of life and social progress, and human rights as an international discourse, legal and political construct. The course combines theoretical approaches to case studies with a historical and comparative perspective. Students learn how to analyze poverty and human development indicators; interrogate and compare different conceptions of rights and their effects in shaping analysis, policies and objectives; and evaluate the roles of social movements, governments and NGOs in social and economic development.

This course offers a study of international human rights. The first part of the course focuses on the major features of international human rights law as part and parcel of general international law. Topics in the first part of the course include the philosophical and political bases for the international human rights movement; the ongoing debate over universality, culture, and human rights; relevant sources; different categories of rights; and the nature and scope of the application of rights. The second part of the course explores the content of various substantive human rights, such as civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights. The third part of the course considers judicial, quasi-judicial, and non-judicial mechanisms for the promotion and protection of human rights at the international and regional levels. In this part of the course, students discuss the United Nations system, and the regional human rights systems of Europe, Africa, and the Americas. The final part of the course examines several relevant developments and challenges regarding international human rights law, such as terrorism and counterterrorism, poverty, and environmental degradation. Students read weekly readings, participate in class discussions, complete a paper and an exam, and participate in a mock court. The course requires that students have completed the UCU course on International Law or an equivalent as a prerequisite.

This service-learning course combines a structured curriculum and extensive partnership with a local community-based organization to offer tangible community service. Here, student community service includes direct
engagement as well as a research-based action plan addressing a specific challenge or goal identified by a community-based organization. Students begin by exploring key community-based organizations: examining their
mission, vision and goals, and the place of the organization in the local community. Each student then works with an assigned partner organization and invests at least 90 hours partnering with the organization, working with them
and investigating ways to solve a challenge or issue the organization has identified. Student service-learning includes exploring the proximate and ultimate drivers of the organization's chosen challenge, and the organization's
infrastructure, resources, limitations and possibilities for reducing barriers to achieving the organization's self-identified goals. In concert, coursework probes the role of community-based organizations in both local and global
contexts, common challenges of community-based organizations in defining and implementing their goals, the role of service-learning in addressing these issues, and effective ways for students to help them achieve their mission,
vision, and goals. Coursework also guides the student's service-learning experience by helping students develop sound international service ethics, provide tools to investigate solutions to common development issues, aid in
data analysis and presentation, and provide best practices to illustrate findings and deliver approved joint recommendations orally and in writing. Throughout, students use service-learning as a means to expand their global awareness and understanding, explore shared aspirations for social justice, and develop skills to work with others to effect positive change.

The 2020s have seen the rise of numerous strategic problems for Australia. There are giant states in fierce competition, such as the United States and China, and emerging giants in India and Indonesia. There are also problems from below, such as climate change, artificial intelligence, cyber security, and terrorism. This course examines the security challenges facing Australia and explores how Australia should approach its region. 

This course provides an in-depth examination of the intersection between trade law and diplomacy in the context of international trade relations. Students will gain an understanding of real-world trade issues and will investigate the role of diplomacy in trade relations as well as the practice of trade laws focusing on the World Trade Organization and its dispute settlement procedure. 

The course provides background case analysis of the previous WTO disputes and covers current and emerging trade issues such as US-China trade dispute, Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, Tech Diplomacy, and AI-related trade issues.  

Professor Sangsoo Yoon was a career diplomat working for the Korean Foreign Ministry and his previous post was Consul General of the Republic of Korea in San Francisco, USA. During his diplomatic career, Professor Yoon has been heavily involved in multilateral trade negotiation in the World Trade Organization and has unique expertise in WTO dispute settlement procedures.  Professor Yoon will share his first-hand knowledge on trade law and diplomacy and foster dialogue on current trade-related diplomatic issues. 

This course examines foundational international relations theories encompassing realist, liberal-internationalist and constructivist perspectives to ongoing and emerging political dynamics in the Asia-Pacific region. It complements comparative political perspectives on regional governance by applying state-centric and key sub-state based perspectives on understanding how the region ‘matters’ in a global context. Various perspectives on international political economics, foreign policy analysis, international security and regional/international institutions will supplement the theoretical perspectives that underwrite the subject’s conceptual approach.

The extensive independent study field research paper produced by the student is both the centerpiece of the intern's professional engagement and the culmination of the academic achievements of the semester. During the preparatory session, IFE teaches the methodological guidelines and principles to which students are expected to adhere in the development of their written research. Students work individually with a research advisor from their field. The first task is to identify a topic, following guidelines established by IFE for research topic choice. The subject must be tied in a useful and complementary way to the student-intern's responsibilities, as well as to the core concerns of the host organization. The research question should be designed to draw as much as possible on resources available to the intern via the internship (data, documents, interviews, observations, seminars and the like). Students begin to focus on this project after the first 2-3 weeks on the internship. Each internship agreement signed with an organization makes explicit mention of this program requirement, and this is the culminating element of their semester. Once the topic is identified, students meet individually, as regularly as they wish, with their IFE research advisor to generate a research question from the topic, develop an outline, identify sources and research methods, and discuss drafts submitted by the student. The research advisor also helps students prepare for the oral defense of their work which takes place a month before the end of the program and the due date of the paper. The purpose of this exercise is to help students evaluate their progress and diagnose the weak points in their outline and arguments. Rather than an extraneous burden added to the intern's other duties, the field research project grows out of the internship through a useful and rewarding synergy of internship and research. The Field Study and Internship model results in well-trained student-interns fully engaged in mission-driven internships in their field, while exploring a critical problem guided by an experienced research advisor.

This course focuses on the transatlantic Cold War and thus on developments in and interactions between the US, the USSR and Europe from the angles of primarily diplomatic, as well as cultural and technological history.  After completing this course students are able to: summarize the main developments in international politics in the post-World War II world, as well as some of the main themes in international relations theory; plan their own research, i.e. find relevant literature, and work out a thesis on their particular topic; and present the results of their research, both orally and in writing.  Prerequisites include one of the following courses: Ancient Literature and History, Ancient History, Medieval History, Early Modern History, Modern History, or Introduction to Political Theory. Knowledge of modern history (especially post-World War II history) is required for this course. If students have not taken a prerequisite course, they must request permission from the instructor to enroll.